If Colton’s mine, I know I’m to blame. But it’s not due to carelessness. Still, if he has my DNA, then obviously the fault lies with me. “I don’t even know for sure that he’s mine.” As if that makes everything okay. “And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you when you first got here.” And I’m not happy that Ashley forced me to.
He waves his arm. “I don’t care about you not telling me right away. I’m more concerned with the whole situation.” He glances towards Ashley, who’s standing in the kitchen feeding the baby. “You’re engaged, Drake. Getting ready to be married. And what happens? A woman from your past shows up on your doorstep with a bouncing baby boy.” His head tilts. “You never told me the baby’s name.” A small smile turns up the corners of his mouth. “Don’t you think I should know the name of my grandson?”
Sighing in exasperation, I say, “His name’s Colton.”
Dad’s eyebrows shoot up, then he starts to laugh.
I set my napkin on the table. “What’s so funny about that?”
Dad shakes his head, all traces of humor gone. “It’s not. That’s what.”
I know what he means. It’s like the jokes on me. First, I didn’t even know Megan was pregnant, but now there’s a baby named after me whether he’s my son or not.
“I have to admit,” Dad says after a moment. “I’m a little surprised that you have him here. You know, since you wanted to keep him a secret when you knew I was coming over.”
Frowning, I glance at the baby. “Yeah, that wasn’t the original plan. Megan showed up earlier this afternoon and asked us to babysit.” Frowning, I add, “She was supposed to pick him up before you came. But she’s not answering her phone.”
“I hope she’s okay,” he says.
So do I. The idea that something’s happened to her makes alarm bells clang loudly in my head. But that’s only for selfish reasons. If something happened to her and this baby is mine, then I’m it. There’s no one else to take care of him. At the thought, panic pounds in my temple.
Ashley comes back into the dining room, Colton cradled in her arms and happily sucking on his bottle.
I have Ashley. She’ll help me get through this. This isn’t her fault, yet there she is stepping up. Which is what I should be doing.
“I’ll take him,” I say, surprising myself.
Ashley’s eyebrows rise, but she hands him to me. For the first time I look at his face and notice his tiny eyelashes, his perfect little nose, all of his incredibly tiny, but perfectly formed features.
Wow. What if he is my baby? My son? It’s actually kind of incredible to think this perfect baby boy could be mine.
Watching him happily sucking on his bottle, his eyes closed in contentment, a sense of protection rushes over me, taking me by surprise.
ASHLEY
Tears push into my eyes as I watch Drake with baby Colton. This is the first time he’s actually paid any kind of attention to him, and from the look on his face I think he might actually be feeling some tenderness towards him. Though I’m still unhappy about the whole situation, it’s critical to me that Drake has it in him to be a loving father.
More than anything I wish Megan hadn’t shown up, that Drake hadn’t fathered her child, but since I can’t change that, the next most important thing is for Drake to be a good father to his son. Because if he can be, then that means he’ll be a good father to my children.
Drake looks up, and when his eyes meet mine, a tentative smile curves his mouth.
After his father leaves, Drake takes me by the hand and leads me to the couch.
“Let’s talk,” he says, which fills me with dread. I know he was pissed when I said in front of his father that he should tell him about Colton, who’s currently asleep on our bed.
“Okay,” I say as I sit beside him.
Releasing my hand, he turns towards me. “I’m not happy that you forced me to tell my dad about Colton,” he says. Then he sighs. “But I am kind of relieved that he knows.”
Glad that he’s not angry with me, I take one of his hands. “I’m sorry. I just…I couldn’t keep it to myself. Not when even he saw how much Colton looks like you.”
“I can’t wait to get that paternity test over with,” he murmurs. “Then we can know for sure once and for all.”
Nodding, I say, “Why don’t you try to call Megan again.” We haven’t tried since before Drake’s father came over.
“I will.” Moments later I listen to Drake’s side of the conversation. “Where are you?…Have you been drinking?” Drake gives me a worried expression. “No, you shouldn’t drive. Just stay there and sleep it off.”
When he hangs up, anger furrows his brow. “She said she’s sorry, but this was the first time she was finally able to let loose and have fun.” His nostrils flare. “She sounded completely wasted. She’s in no condition to take care of a baby.” Rubbing the back of his neck, his breath comes out in a huff. “Now what are we going to do?”
Alarmed that she even considered coming to get Colton, my protective instincts kick in. “We’ll take care of him until she’s sober.” But even saying those words makes me nervous. Is this really the first time she’s gotten drunk since she’s had him? He seems like he’s been well taken care of, but who really knows?
“Do you—,” I begin, hesitant to see Drake’s reaction. “Do you think she gets drunk often?”
He obviously understands the implications. “I don’t know. When we dated she didn’t seem to drink overly much. Maybe she was telling the truth. I guess this is the first time she’s been able to get out on her own. Maybe she just went a little overboard this one time.”
I hope he’s right, but I can’t help but worry about the helpless baby lying on our bed.
Twenty-Three
DRAKE
“Are you sure you’ll be okay by yourself?” Ashley asks, doubt clear in her eyes.
She’s about to leave for work, and since Colton is still here, I have no choice but to take care of him until Megan comes to get him. I have the option of working from home, but Ashley’s concerned about taking time off, especially after what happened two weeks before when she wasn’t at work during a crisis.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” I say, although I’m actually rather nervous about being in charge of an infant. Ashley showed me how to fix a bottle and she coached me in changing my first diaper. Though it didn’t look as good as the one she did, it hasn’t fallen off yet, so I define that as a success.
“Okay,” she says with a smile. “Call me if you need me.”
I laugh, but it sounds forced. “Megan should be here soon. I think I can manage for a couple of hours.”
She kisses me, then leaves. The moment the door closes behind her, the baby starts to fuss.
Oh boy. Here we go. “It’s okay,” I murmur, although I’m sure he can sense the tension roaring through me. “It’s okay,” I say again as if that will make it true.
It doesn’t take long for him to settle down—what with me standing the whole time and patting his back like Ashley showed me. When he falls asleep against my shoulder, pride slides through me. But I’m afraid to put him down. What if the change in position wakes him?
I walk into the kitchen and look at the microwave clock.
Crap!
I need to call in to a meeting in fifteen minutes.
Before Ashley left, I emailed Jasmine to let her know I would be working from home. I didn’t tell her why—I have no intention of telling my employees about my maybe-son until he becomes my definite-son. But I’m worried about being on a conference call while holding a baby. If he wakes up and starts to cry, that could be a problem.
Daring to lay him down, I walk to the guest bedroom, then carefully place him on the bed. This is where he slept the night before. If he’s mine—and I’m beginning to be less horrified by the idea—I’ll have to get a crib.
I tiptoe out of the room and quietly close the door before heading to my office to prepare for my conference call.
&n
bsp; An hour later the call is done and I don’t have anything else scheduled that day that I can’t move around. But Megan should be coming any minute.
Two hours later I’ve fed Colton and done a better job of changing his diaper. But still no Megan. Impatient, I decide to call her.
“Hello?” Her voice sounds breezy.
“Where are you?” My voice is practically a growl.
“Shopping.”
“What?” At the sharp tone, Colton begins to wail in my arms. “You’re supposed to be picking up your baby.”
“I can’t hear you.”
That’s because your baby is screaming. Fury cascades over me, so I take several deep breaths to calm myself, then, while holding my phone between my ear and my shoulder, I gently bounce Colton as I pace around my living room. After several minutes he settles down.
“Are you still there?” I ask.
“Of course. Is my baby okay?” She sounds as if she’s worried I might harm Colton.
“He’s fine.” Fresh pride washes over me that I’ve managed to care for him the entire morning. Well, most of the morning. It’s not even noon yet. “I thought you were going to come get him.”
“I am. But I wanted to get some shopping in first. It’s not often that I get time to myself, you know.”
I ignore the implied criticism. After all, I just found out about the baby a few days ago. It’s not as if I’ve been the cause of her lack of freedom. Then I remind myself that if this baby is mine—and Ashley seems pretty damn certain that he is—then I kind of am responsible. “You don’t sound too hungover.” I know it’s mean of me to say, but I’m pissed that she’s screwed things up for me so badly.
Momentary silence. “I have some things to take care of today, so I won’t be there until this evening.”
“This evening?” The explosion in my voice sets Colton off again. Damn it! It takes several minutes to calm him down.
“You can’t keep doing that,” Megan says, her voice even. “You’re scaring him.”
No kidding.
“If you’re so worried,” I say, “why don’t you come get him?”
“I have an appointment with an attorney,” she says. In the background I can hear hangers sliding along a clothing rack.
But it’s not the noise of her shopping that catches my attention. It’s the word attorney. “What for?”
She sighs. “To talk about child support.”
For some unknown reason, the financial implications of her claim hadn’t occurred to me. The paternity test kit should be coming today—I paid extra for a rush delivery—but until then, it makes me furious to hear her talking about something so serious as child support. “If he’s my son—and I still don’t know that yet—of course I’ll support him financially. You don’t need a lawyer for that.” I really don’t want to get the courts involved.
“Hmm. We’ll see.”
Yes, we’ll see. We’ll see what the paternity test says. But I’m getting less confident that it will come back negative.
“So,” I say, “you’ll wait on talking to the lawyer?”
“I haven’t decided yet.”
I know there’s nothing I can do about that, so I ask her again when she’s going to pick up her baby.
“I told you. I’ll be there this evening.”
Pissed, I say, “Fine.” Then I disconnect the call and shove my phone into my pocket.
Moments later Colton has a diaper blowout. Disgusted, I do my best to clean him up, but then to my horror I realize that there are no more diapers in the diaper bag.
Unsure what to do, I leave him lying on the living room floor while I race to the kitchen and grab a handful of paper towels. Then I dash to my office and grab a roll of scotch tape. Kneeling back in front of him, I watch as he grins at me and kicks his legs.
“You think you’re funny, do you? Making me clean up such a disgusting mess.”
Feeling clever, I stack several paper towels together before folding them into a makeshift diaper. I place them on him, then use the tape to keep the paper towels from falling off.
“That should hold you for a little while,” I say. Then I text Ashley with a desperate plea to pick up some diapers and bring them home. She answers right away, which makes me wonder if she expected me to reach out to her for help.
Ashley: Now?
Drake: Yes. I ran out.
Ashley: Okay. I’ll take my lunch break. See you in a few minutes.
Beyond grateful for her help, I look at Colton. “You can hold it for a little while, can’t you?”
He giggles—maybe at the scared expression on my face. But the sound makes me smile.
Twenty-Four
ASHLEY
Driving home with a package of diapers in my trunk, I smile and shake my head as I picture Drake with Colton. Then I wonder why Megan hasn’t picked up her baby yet. A few minutes later I walk in the house to find Drake holding Colton with a thick hand towel wrapped around him as a diaper.
“Uh…,” I say with a grin.
He laughs. “Yeah. The paper towels weren’t quite as absorbent as the ads claim.”
I laugh with him. “I don’t think they’re meant to be as absorbent as diapers.”
“Apparently not.”
I open the package of diapers and hand him one, which he puts on the baby—much more expertly than he had this morning. Glad that he seems to be in such good spirits, I ask, “So, have you heard from Megan?”
He lifts the freshly diapered baby, then scowls. “When I talked to her earlier, she was shopping.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. She said she’ll pick him up this evening.”
“This evening? What’s she doing all day?”
Drake’s scowl deepens. “Evidently she’s meeting with a lawyer to talk about child support.”
“Wow. Okay.” Although if the baby is Drake’s, she’s certainly entitled to his financial support. Still, I’m bugged that my fairytale ending with Drake has gone so far off the rails.
A brisk knock on the front door interrupts our discussion.
“Maybe that’s her,” I say as I go to the door. But it’s not. It’s a small package. I carry it in and set it on the coffee table.
Drake stares at it, then looks at me. “That must be the paternity test kit.”
I nod.
“Can you take him?” he asks, then he hands me the baby. Moments later he’s reading the instructions on how to take the test. “Might as well do it now,” he says. A sardonic smile curves his mouth. “I guess it’s a good thing Colton’s still here.”
“Yeah.”
He rubs the swab inside Colton’s cheek, then does the same for himself with a second swab.
“Does Megan have to do a sample too?” I ask.
He shakes his head as he begins repackaging the kit. “No. It’s more accurate with both parents, but we’re talking a difference of 99.9 percent accuracy without her versus 99.999 with her.” He smiles as he seals the envelope. “So I think we’re good.”
“Okay.” I pause a beat. “How long will it take to get the results?”
“Just a few days. They’ll email me with the results.”
“I can drop it off at the post office on my way back to work,” I offer.
He frowns. “Do you have to go back today?”
“Uh, yeah.” As much as I’d like to help him, I don’t think my boss would appreciate me not coming back that afternoon.
“All right.” He’s obviously not happy, but this baby is his. Not mine.
“It looks to me like you’re doing fine on your own,” I say.
“Thanks. It hasn’t been too bad.” He stares at the envelope, then looks at me. “I just have a lot of work I need to do, and it’s kind of hard to work when you’re taking care of a baby.”
I glance at the envelope then look at him. “If it comes back positive…are you going to ask for joint custody?” I’m not sure he’s ready to think that far ahead, but I want to get him thinking
about it. Because his decision will affect me.
He nibbles on his lip. “Don’t you think I should? If he’s mine, I mean.”
I’m glad he won’t abandon his child, but am I ready to be a mother? Scratch that. A stepmother? “Well, yeah.”
“But?” He looks at me expectantly.
Am I really ready to take this on? Do I love him enough to stick with him through this? I remember the feeling of peace I felt on the ATV ride. Was I being premature? Am I really ready to take this on? I just finished college. I just struck out on my own. I just got engaged. Am I really ready to be a parent? To someone else’s child? “I just…I need to think about how I fit in to all of this.”
Panic sweeps over his face. “You said you were with me on this. Are you having second thoughts?”
Not ready to answer him, I hedge. “Let’s see what the test says, okay?”
He sighs. “Right.”
I stand and hand him the baby. “I need to head back to work.”
“You didn’t even eat anything.”
“I’ll grab something on my way back.” I pick up the envelope. “I’ll drop this off now, and I’ll see you this evening.”
He stands and kisses me. “I love you, Ashley. Never forget that.”
I kiss him back. “I won’t forget, and I love you too.”
After I drop the envelope off at the post office, I grab a burger, then head back to work.
I log in to my computer and start working, but my mind is with Drake. I was pleased to see him actually caring for the baby. I’m sure it’s not easy for him—I don’t think he has any experience with babies. Yet there he was, improvising on a diaper when he ran out of the real thing. And Colton seemed happy.
“How was lunch?” Evan asks as he stops by my cube.
Things have been okay with Evan. Despite his shocked reaction to my engagement, he’s been acting like a normal friend and co-worker. I hope that means he’s gotten past any romantic feelings towards me.
“It was fine.” I glance at the burger on the desk in front of me. “I had to run errands, so I grabbed something on the way back.”
Drake and Ashley: The Complete Story Page 55
