sorry when my assistant called to ask you to come in that she was bound by law not to tell you why you’d been summoned.” He removed an envelope from the folder and withdrew a single sheet of paper. His dark eyes studied each person at the table. “This is a codicil to Samantha Madison Lawson’s last will and testament.”
Giles went completely still. The name conjured up the image of a woman from his past who had disappeared without a trace. Now it was obvious he had not come to West Virginia for an update about a fellow soldier, but for a woman with whom he’d had an off-and-on liaison that went on for more than a year.
“Ms. Lawson, before she passed away,” Preston continued, “made provisions for her unborn child, hence named Lily Hope Lawson, to become the legal ward of her sister, Mya Gabrielle Lawson. Ms. Lawson, being of sound mind and body, instructed me not to reveal the contents of her codicil until a month following her death.” He paused and then continued to read from the single page of type.
Giles, a former marine captain who had led men under his command into battles where they faced the possibility of serious injury or even death, could not still his momentary panic. A tense silence swelled inside the room when Preston finished reading.
He was a father! The woman sitting across the table was holding his daughter. He had no legal claim to the child, but his daughter’s mother sought fit to grant him visitation. That he could see Lily for school and holiday weekends, Thanksgiving, Christmas and one month during the summer, while all visitations would have to be approved by Mya Gabrielle Lawson.
Giles slowly shook his head. “That’s not happening.” The three words were dripping with venom.
“What’s not happening?” Preston questioned.
“No one is going to tell me when and where I can see my daughter.”
“You’ve just been told.” The woman holding the child had spoken for the first time.
Mya was certain the rapid pumping of her heart against her ribs could be heard by the others in the room. She hadn’t been able to move or utter a sound when the tall, black-haired man with piercing blue eyes in a suntanned face walked into the conference room. It had only taken a single glance for her to ascertain that the man was Sammie’s ex-lover and Lily’s father. He continued to glare at her in what was certainly a stare down. However, she was beyond intimidation because legally he had no claim over her daughter.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Giles countered in a low and threatening tone. “As Lily’s biological father, I can sue for joint custody.”
“If you do, then you will surely lose,” Mya countered.
Preston cleared his throat. “I’m afraid Ms. Lawson’s right, Mr. Wainwright. Legally, you have no right to the child. But look on the bright side, because it was the baby’s mother’s wish before she passed away that you could have a relationship with your daughter.”
Giles’s eyes burned like lasers when he turned to glare at Preston. “You fail to understand that a woman carried my child and neglected to notify me about it. Even though she’s gone, you’re allowing her to become the master puppeteer pulling strings and manipulating lives from the grave?”
Preston shrugged shoulders under a crisp white shirt. “Ms. Samantha Lawson must have had a reason for not informing you about the baby. I’m going to leave you and Mya alone, and I suggest you work out an arrangement that you both can agree on. Please keep in mind it’s what’s best for the baby.” Reaching for a cane, Preston rose to his feet and limped out of the office.
Lily began squirming again, and Mya knew it was time to feed her and then put her to bed. “We’re going to have to put off this meeting for another time because I have to get home and feed Lily.”
“I don’t have another time,” Giles said. “The sooner we compromise, the better it will be for all of us.”
A wry smile twisted Mya’s mouth. Spoken like a true businessman. She wanted to tell him it wasn’t about compromising. The terms in the codicil did not lend themselves to negotiating a compromise. “That’s not possible now because I’m going home.”
“Then I’ll go with you.”
Mya went completely still, and she stared at Giles as if he had taken leave of his senses. Did he actually expect her to welcome him, a stranger, into her home as if she had offered him an open invitation? “You want to come home with me?”
He cocked his head at an angle. “I don’t hear an echo.”
Her temper flared. “You cocky, arrogant—”
“I know I’m an SOB,” he drawled, finishing her outburst. “Look, Ms. Lawson,” he continued in a softer tone. “Up until a few minutes ago I had no idea that I was a father. But if Samantha had told me she was carrying my child, I would’ve made provisions for her and the child’s future.”
Mya scooped the diaper bag off the floor and looped the straps over her shoulder. “In other words, you wouldn’t have married Sammie, because you weren’t ready for marriage and fatherhood. She wouldn’t tell me your name, but she did open up about your views on marriage and children.” Mya knew she had struck a nerve with the impeccably dressed businessman when he lowered his eyes. Everything about him reeked of privilege and entitlement. His tailored suit and imported footwear probably cost more than some people earned in a month.
“What’s the matter, Mr. Wainwright? You see a little girl with black hair and blue eyes and suddenly you’re ready to be a father? What happened to you asking for a paternity test?”
Giles’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t need a paternity test because Lily looks like my sister.”
“If that’s case, then you can save some money,” Mya mumbled under her breath. Suddenly she realized she wasn’t as angry with Giles Wainwright as she was with her sister. Sammie had completely blindsided her with the codicil.
Giles rounded the table and took the large quilted bag off Mya’s shoulder. “Please let me help you to your car.”
Mya resisted the urge to narrow her eyes at him. At least he’d said please. She walked out of the room, Giles following as she cradled Lily to her chest. Fortunately for her, the baby had quieted. She had parked the Honda Odyssey in the lot behind the office building.
Pressing a button on the remote device, she opened the door to the minivan and placed Lily in the car seat behind the passenger seat. She removed the baby’s hand-knitted sweater and buckled her in.
“We’ll be home in a few minutes,” she crooned softly as Lily yawned and kicked her legs. She closed the door and turned around to look for Giles. He was nowhere in sight. Where could he have gone with the diaper bag?
“Are you looking for this?”
She turned to find him standing on the other side of the vehicle, holding the bag aloft. Bright afternoon sun glinted off his neatly barbered inky-black hair. Closing the distance between them, she held out her hand. “Yes. I’ll take it now.”
Giles held it out of her reach. “I’ll give it back to you when you get to your house.”
