A Baby Affair (Parent Portal 2)

And then he added, “I am now grossly aware that not everyone is meant to be a parent. And that children are completely dependent on those raising them to help them reach their potential. I know, firsthand, that some parents can hurt their children and that the courts can’t always save them. Or can only do so for certain periods of time at which point the parents get a second chance. And sometimes a third and fourth, depending on the circumstances. And the age of the child.” He could go on. And on. But he stopped himself.

“If you’d like to make an appointment to stop by my home sometime this weekend, I will let you inside for a short time.”

He had to replay her words in his head before her offer hit home.

“And only with the very firm understanding that no matter what you think, this child is mine. Not yours.”

Okay. Hell’s bells. He was being given the road to recovery. To at least some level of emotional freedom from regret. “I understand.”

“You have no say, no ownership, no rights to make even one single suggestion where my baby is concerned.”

“I understand.” But she didn’t seem to. He didn’t want her baby. He just wanted her to be a decent parent. And finally felt free to start probing her background.

“I didn’t ask Christine, but are you married?”

Which mattered only because her husband should then have a say about when he visited their home.

“No.”

No reason to feel any hint of relief there. To the contrary, he’d rather his child have a two-parent home. As he had. So when one adult was ill or otherwise distracted by life’s responsibilities, there was another to step up. Children’s needs didn’t wait around for convenient moments.

“You live alone?”

“Yes.”

“Is there a significant other in your life?”

“No.” Her tone sharpened.

And he knew when to quit.

Agreeing to meet her at home the following afternoon at four, he rang off. And thought maybe he should turn off his phone just in case she tried to contact him to cancel.

He didn’t do it. He wasn’t out of his head. But the thought had been there. So he entertained it. Which was why it took him another couple of seconds to realize he was smiling—and looking forward to the next afternoon.

Only for peace of mind’s sake. Or so he told himself. He was going to meet the woman carrying his biological child. He couldn’t really wrap his mind around that one—but there was good feeling in it.

Tossing his phone on the cushion on the other side of his dog, he jumped up, ready to find something for dinner. He wondered if there was some small gift he could take the next day when he officially met the mother of his child.

As he left the room, he glanced back at the dog, to see if she was awake and might take some food. Talley was glaring at him. Like he’d even need to wonder whether or not he should pick something up. Of course he should. The woman was carrying his baby.

Chapter Five

Amelia worked Saturday, catching up on everything that had fallen behind during her four days in the south of France. The laces Feel Good bought from Duane’s family business were fine for jeans and purses—and quite lovely on the pillowcases and towels they’d branched into a few years before. With the possibility of precious-metal jewelry embellishments lingering on the horizon, she’d needed some finer but affordable lace, at a price point that would allow them to sell the finished product and make a profit. They were starting out small with lace embellished jewelry—just one design in time for summer weddings.

Until she’d had the call from Craig Harmon, ideas had been flowing faster than she could get them sketched.

It wasn’t like she’d had time recently to sit with her sketch pad. Being the boss sometimes took precedence over being a designer, along with Angie. The lace embellished jewelry idea had been hers. She had a wholesaler from China offering the basic jewelry pieces—mostly various wires and simple circular pendants that they’d embellish.

They did most of their design and desk work, marketing, etc., out of the new headquarters in Marie Cove, and had a small factory and forty employees in east LA, where the actual inventory was made put together. Payroll and accounting were outsourced, as was a lot of the public relations and advertising help, but she wanted to pursue the idea of moving everything in-house—growing from the inside out. Angie hadn’t fully jumped on board with that idea.

But she hadn’t said no. Amelia wasn’t ready to push her sister for fear of any rift it might cause between them. She needed Angie to feel validated, welcome. Wanted.

As her mind started to wander toward the much more personal business on her agenda later that afternoon, Amelia consciously refused and focused on Feel Good. When was growth healthy and when was it too much? She didn’t want to ignore Angie’s more financially conservative perspective, but Amelia was the one with the business degree. Angie’s degree was in marketing and she handled a lot of the in-person meetings with accounts. They’d both minored in art design. With their success, they showed every sign of being able to sell stock options someday. It made good business sense to allow the business to breathe itself into whatever it could be.

Angie wanted to keep boundaries around Feel Good. To keep it small and in the family.

So, for now, Amelia was focusing only on growing the family, instead of the company. Giving in to Angie because her relationship with her sister was more important than extended business growth.