He jerked his hand away. There were things he would not allow her to do and touching him was high on the list. “You know, I should be grateful to you, Kayla. Sounds crazy, I know, but poking holes in that condom gave me my greatest gift.”
He thought of the little girl who looked more like him than her mother, with her toothless grin and happy laugh, and everything inside him eased.
Kayla nodded, a satisfied grin forming on her heavily colored lips. “I’m glad you can see the upside in this situation. I have to say I’m surprised you’re being so generous with the compliments.”
Yes, he thought, he was buttering her up and setting her up for the fall. And damned if he wasn’t enjoying every minute. “So you see, there really isn’t much I wouldn’t do in order to keep my daughter with me and… safe from you.”
She frowned at that. “I’m hardly a monster.”
“I suppose we can agree to disagree on that.”
“Excuse me,” a waitress said, coming up to the table with a pot of coffee in hand. “Can I get you something to drink before you order?” she asked. “A refill?” She glanced at Kayla, who had arrived first.
“No thank you,” he told her. “Actually I won’t be ordering.”
“I’ll take a refill,” Kayla said, completely at ease with whatever was coming next.
Just the way he wanted her.
The waitress topped off her cup and Kayla added her milk and Splenda, and Austin gave her all the time she needed. “So where were we?” she finally asked.
“Disagreeing on how to describe your personality, but that’s neither here nor there.”
“I agree. Last time you gave me a hundred grand. This time—”
“You’re not getting a penny.”
She slammed her hand down, rattling the table and splattering her coffee over the top of the cup. “How do you figure? Because I know you don’t want to end up in front of a judge.”
He smiled, his first genuine one since sitting down across from her. “Actually that’s exactly what I want. Because like I told you, there is very little I won’t do to protect my daughter. Starting with hiring a private investigator to look into your life, and it’s very interesting what he discovered.”
Kayla stared at him in disbelief. “I doubt there’s anything that could prevent me from getting custody.” But a tic had formed at the corner of her eye and she attempted to cover up her nerves with a shake of her dark hair over her shoulders.
He rested his arms on the table. “Think again. I’ve got photographs of your live-in boyfriend, Paul Milian, dealing drugs from your apartment. Video, too. Oh, and guess who happened to be standing right there when the transaction took place?”
Her mouth opened wide before she pursed her lips in feigned annoyance. “I know nothing about that. Paul’s business is of no concern to me. You know I can get any judge to—”
“To throw your custody suit out when he finds out you’re living with a drug dealer,” Austin said. “Nice area you’re living in, by the way. I guess you’re that hard up for cash. Or maybe you have a habit of your own you need to support and that’s why you’re trying to blackmail me for money? Either way, you’re finished.”
Kayla’s eyes narrowed and he could see the calculations going on in her brain. “Oh, you know better than that. I don’t give up that easily.” But her hands were shaking and he hadn’t even told her the best part.
“As we speak, the police are searching your apartment with a valid warrant. If your boyfriend is there, I can guarantee you he’s been arrested.”
Now real fear replaced the smug look of earlier. “I need to go.”
Austin glanced over and nodded at the men seated at a nearby table. Then he leaned back in his seat and let them do their jobs.
They rose from their chairs and walked over. “Kayla Gibson?” the taller man asked, pulling out a badge from his jacket pocket.
His ex swallowed hard. “Yes.”
“I’m Officer Suarez and this is my partner, Officer Harrison. We’ll need you to come downtown for questioning.” The officers had given Austin the professional courtesy of wrapping up his blackmail issue with his ex-wife before stepping in.
The color drained from her face. “Whatever you want, it has to be a mistake.”
“We can assure you it’s not,” Officer Suarez said. “Drugs were found in your apartment this morning. Now you can come with us quietly or we can make this harder.” He parted his jacket, revealing handcuffs he’d obviously be more than happy to use.