Chapter 50

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Rose

THERE WASN’T A DOUBT in my mind I was setting myself up for more heartbreak when I entered that coffee shop. I could have easily hung up on him when he called, but I needed to confront him and hear his side of the story, even if it was going to be painful.

He stood up with a smile on his face when I reached the table, but his deep brown eyes were filled with sadness. “Thank you for coming,” he spoke then took a seat after I took mine.

“I thought about turning around when I was halfway here, but…I guess my curiosity got the best of me.” I studied him closely and was shaken by the resemblance I bore to him. Same dark eyes, same cleft chin. How could I have such a likeness to a man I never knew existed?

“I’m sorry about Collin.” He shook his head in disgust. “You shouldn’t have found out that way.”

“No, I shouldn’t have found out at all, right?” I raised an eyebrow.

He expelled a frustrated breath. “When Kate told me she was pregnant with you, I was willing to provide, but she was adamant that she didn’t want my help. She had it all under control.”

“And by provide, you mean, write out a check every month for eighteen years until the little mistake you two created was of age? That’s okay, I didn’t need either of you. I was raised by a man who actually cared about me,” I snapped.

“Rose, that’s not fair. I was never given the opportunity to get to know you.”

“But you knew about me, so you had the chance to know me if you chose to.”

“You don’t understand what went on with Kate and me.”

“Oh, I think I do. You were rich and handsome, and she thought she’d found her Prince Charming in you. You see, I was that same girl not so long ago. I thought the only thing that mattered when landing the perfect guy was the size of his bank account, but now I realize, the perfect guy consists of so much more. It’s someone you can laugh with. Someone you could cry to. Someone who’s seen you at your worst and still thinks you’re beautiful anyway. Someone who could drive you absolutely insane with anger, but you still find them irresistible. Someone who makes stupid mistakes, but you care about them so much you forgive them anyway, and most of all someone who makes you see inside the real you even though you’re terrified of what you may find.”

His gaze was intense. “Not many of us are lucky enough to find someone like that.”

“Yeah, maybe not,” I whispered.

“You’re a beautiful, kind, and caring person. So much like Kate, and so unlike me.”

I nodded. “Thank God for that, because even though I’m pissed off at her beyond words at the moment, I admire her more than anyone I’ve ever known.”

“I, umm...would love to keep in touch.”

“Please don’t say things you don’t mean just because you think you’re sparing my feelings. The truth of the matter is, we’re strangers regardless of what our DNA says. I just wanted the truth, and you gave that to me, so I’ll always be thankful for that.”

He reached over the table and my gaze dropped as his hand covered mine. “I’m so sorry I missed out on knowing you.”

“Yeah, well, it wasn’t meant to be. For what it’s worth, you did help me put things into perspective.”

“How’s that?”

I stared out the window and gathered my thoughts before turning my attention back to him. “I’m in love with someone I was too afraid to admit it to for fear of having my heart broken. He messed up, and I used that mistake as reason for walking away. At the time, I thought it was the worst thing that could ever happen—I finally gave my heart to someone and they broke it. But now sitting here with you, a man who has the same color eyes as me and even the same smile, a man I never even knew existed just a short time ago, I realize what’s really important and what constitutes a broken heart.” I bit back a tear and rubbed my hand down my belly. “Twenty-five years from now, I don’t want another child having the same conversation with his or her father because their mother was too stubborn to tell him he means the world to her.”

His eyes widened. “You’re pregnant?”

“Yes,” I whispered. I found it ironic I had just found out the night prior, and besides Marisa, no one else knew, except for this stranger...this man who was half responsible for my existence, and who oddly enough was partly responsible for my child in a small way.

His eyes glazed over, and he looked down at the table before raising his head, meeting my gaze with tear-filled eyes. “I can already tell you’re going to be a great mother.”

I pulled in my bottom lip and nodded. “Yeah, I think I will be.” Pausing for a moment, I looked around the coffee shop and pulled it together. “The funny thing is, I never in a million years thought I’d want a child. Weird how things change when you find the right person.”

He reluctantly nodded. “Finding your one true love in life is a treasure. Hold onto that and don’t ever let it go.”

I had a feeling he was referring to his relationship with Aunt Kate.

“I have something for you.” As he reached into his briefcase, I was filled with anticipation, hoping that whatever it was he was going to pull out was some type of indication that I was on his mind throughout the years. My heart sank to the floor when I stared down at the table to find a check written out to me—not twenty-five letters, one for every birthday he’d missed, like William had tucked away. Even when he had no place to live, he still managed to carry a piece of his daughter with him. Instead, he was trying to make up for lost time by buying me, but there was no amount of money in the world to make up for that loss.

“I don’t want this.” I shook my head, not wanting to touch it or even look at it.

“Rose, it’s the least I can do. Take it for you and the baby.”

“No. I don’t want anything from you. That was never my intention. I just wanted to meet the man my aunt Kate fell in love with all those years ago and see if she was justified in doing so.”

“Was she?” he asked.

“Yeah, I think maybe she was,” I whispered.

“I’ve never been a jealous man until now. I’m envious of Charles for having the opportunity to raise such a lovely person.”

I bowed my head, managing a slight laugh. “Yeah, well, you wouldn’t be saying that if you saw my credit card bills.”

He smiled in amusement. “You remind me so much of Kate when she was your age.”

“Should I take that as a compliment?”

“The very highest of compliments,” he responded. “I did love her very much. It was just so complicated. My divorce was almost final. My wife and I were over a long time before Kate came into the picture. We agreed on a custody agreement for Collin, and everything was pretty much in place. Then she found out about Kate, and it changed. She became vindictive and spiteful, and everything we agreed upon was suddenly void. She wanted half the business, and she was going after full custody of Collin. I was pretty sure if I held my ground, she would’ve backed off and agreed to our original agreement, but Kate wasn’t willing to risk it. She ended it. She wouldn’t take my calls, and I didn’t even know she was pregnant with you until a month before she gave birth. I know this was a shock to you and you have every right in the world to be angry, but please don’t be angry with her or Charles…be angry with me. They were only doing what they thought was best at the time.”

Sometimes people do the most screwed up things with the very best intentions. I thought back to that day when I asked Audra if she was angry at her mother for not telling her who her father really was and how her words had resonated with me. Never in a million years did I think that would apply to me, but it did. It would take me a while to get over this, but I knew eventually I would. However screwed up the situation was, they were still my family and they loved me without a doubt.

Now I had a new addition to that family, a part of Alex and me, who right now was only the size of a peppercorn, but I was already completely in love with and fiercely protective of. I had two choices: become bitter and guarded for the rest of my life because of this, or use it as a lesson to make sure history didn’t repeat itself. I looked down at my belly and couldn’t contain my inner happiness. The thought of gaining weight, enduring God knows how many hours of labor then being up half the night to take care of a screaming little human used to scare me to death. Now here I was counting down the months for him or her to get here. I had made my choice, thanks to the man sitting across from me and the one true love he let slip away.