and Tabitha were close, but even you knew that she was prone to exaggeration.”
“Yes, but about something this important?”
“I’m not taking this man’s side, but I could see Tabitha calling someone a bully if they didn’t let her have her way.”
“I suppose so,” Nicole said reluctantly.
“Look, I’m not suggesting you hand over Joel without finding out more about this man—”
“I would never give Joel up,” Nicole said, her voice cracking with emotion.
Julia put her arm around Nicole’s shoulders. “One thing you may want to consider is what does this man have to gain by claiming his rights to Joel? You’ve described him as a wealthy, successful playboy. He doesn’t need any money that Tabitha may have left for Joel. Plenty of men would run screaming in the opposite direction. Particularly the kind of man you describe.”
Nicole bit her lip again, remembering what Rafe had said about losing his father at a young age. A burst of sympathy squeezed past her defenses. What if the man wasn’t the ogre Tabitha had described?
“As hard as it seems, my best advice is for you to get to know this man as much as you can. He is Joel’s father. In this situation, he’s holding all the cards. If he wanted to, he could take Joel away from you tomorrow and at best, the only thing you could do would be to delay it.”
At 5:30 p.m., Rafe strode up the sidewalk to the well-kept two-story home belonging to Nicole Livingstone. He carried pizza and some cupcakes he’d picked up from a grocery store. Armed with information he’d gleaned from his attorney and his private investigator, he knocked on the front door.
In the last three days, Rafe had covered the gamut of emotions ranging from fury at Tabitha for concealing his son’s existence from him to an aching sense of loss. Now, his focus was pure and simple. He would be a father to his son, and nothing would get in his way.
The door opened, and Nicole looked at him, her gaze filled with wariness. She took a breath, an audible breath, as if she were preparing herself for battle, and glanced at the pizza. A hint of a wry smile played over her lush mouth. “Excellent guess,” she said. “Joel loves pizza.”
“Pepperoni okay?” he asked, curious what had made her soften.
“Depends on his mood. He’ll either pull them off and eat them or leave them on his plate.”
“I also brought a few cupcakes,” he said, referring to the contents in the plastic bag.
A doubtful expression crossed her face. “That much sugar at bedtime can be deadly.”
“Just one. If you think about it, I’ve missed four birthdays.”
Her gaze met his and clung for a surprising second. He saw a flash of empathy and the slightest drop of regret. He drank it in like water for a man dying of thirst. His private investigator had filled in a lot of gaps about Nicole. Her education—double master’s degrees in medical administration and sociology; her job—health services coordinator for disabled veterans; her financial rating—superb; her love life—limited; her devotion to Joel—infinite. Despite the fact that Nicole was clearly the more reserved twin, the woman had a heart. That would work in his favor.
“You can forget about him eating four cupcakes in one evening,” she said with defiance in her eyes.
“That’s good. I planned to eat at least one myself.”
Her lips twitched again then her face turned serious. “Come inside. Take it slow and don’t talk about the future.”
“Why not?”
“Because we haven’t figured that out yet. Just knowing he has a father is enough for Joel to handle right now.”
“Are you speaking for Joel or yourself?” Rafe challenged.
Irritation prickled through her. “You can’t believe that you know more about what’s best for Joel than I do.”
“I know I’m his father. That’s enough.”
She clenched her jaw. “I am asking you not to discuss future plans with him.”
“I intend to make it clear to Joel that he can count on me being in his present and future,” Rafe conceded. “That’s all I can promise you for tonight.”
She took a quick breath. “It’s enough that you exist and you’re here. Trust me, you’re overwhelming enough,” she said and turned away. “I’ll get him.”
Rafe suddenly felt a rush of excitement. Joel. His son would be walking into his life within seconds.
A little boy with short, curly brown hair and blazing blue eyes came toward him and studied him. “Mom says you’re my father.”
“Yes, I am,” Rafe said.
Joel glanced at the box in Rafe’s hands. “You have pizza,” he said.
Rafe chuckled. “Yes, I do.”
“I’m hungry.”
“Then we should eat.”
It was that simple. Within minutes, Nicole, Joel and Rafe were eating pizza. Tonight Joel was good with pepperoni and ate the slices after he plucked them from the pizza.
“What are your top three favorite things to do?” Rafe asked his son, fascinated by the young child that bore such a striking resemblance to him.
“Wii, reading stories and animals,” Joel said before he took a big bite of pizza.
“What kind of stories?” Rafe asked, hungry for more information about his son.
“I like the strawberry story,” Joel said, taking another big bite of pizza. “It has a mouse and a bear in it.”
Rafe nodded. “I haven’t read that one. I’ll have to check it out.”
“You can read mine,” Joel said. “But you have to give it back cuz it’s my favorite.”
“Okay,” Rafe said and smiled. “Thank you.”
After dinner and a cupcake, Rafe played Wii with Joel. Throughout the evening, he felt Nicole studying him. He suspected he was being graded. He didn’t really care what her opinion was, but he also knew that she could make it easier for Joel to adjust to having him as a father. If she fought him, he would still win, but it would be messy.
She was far different from the Tabitha he remembered. Tabitha had chattered a mile a minute and flaunted her body. Nicole appeared to think before she spoke. She wore a pair of jeans that weren’t too tight, but still faithfully followed the curves of her hips and her long legs. Her pink cashmere sweater gave more of an impression of quiet femininity than va-va-voom.
He wondered if she ever cut loose. He wondered what it would take to arouse passion in that cautious gaze.
“Time for bath and bed,” Nicole said.
