Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Maybe my dad can come down over the weekend and we can talk then, I thought, swallowing hard. We were approaching the entrance to the subway station that Ada and I took every morning to get into Manhattan, and I paused.
“Wanna slum it and ride the train with us?” I asked.
Nico laughed. “I would,” he said. “But I have to get into the office, I have a call.” He gave me a look, then glanced down at Ada. “I could have my driver pick all three of us up,” he said. “I’ll just have him swap the car for an SUV.”
I shook my head. “No,” I said. “I appreciate the offer, but I wouldn’t want you to miss your call.” I leaned in close. “And we don’t want Ada getting so excited that she refuses to go to Dawning City,” I said. “She never gets to ride in a car anymore.”
Nico chuckled. “Fair,” he said. He leaned in and gave me a kiss, then squatted and gave Ada a kiss on the forehead. “You be good today, devochka,” he said to Ada. Then, he got to his feet and gave me a look. “You be good, too,” he added.
I blushed and smiled. I knew I was acting like an idiot, like a love-struck teenager, but with Nico around I couldn’t help myself.
At Dawning City, Ada turned to me and gave me a very serious look. “Do you love Daddy?”
Stephanie and several of the other workers were lurking nearby and when their heads snapped towards us, I blushed crimson red.
“Of course I do!” I said loudly. “All Mommies love Daddies. It’s a rule, honey.”
Ada didn’t look satisfied, and I bent down and pulled her into my arms.
“I know this is all pretty strange right now,” I told her. “But I doubt the weirdness will last long.”
Ada frowned. “What does doubt mean?”
I sighed. “We’ll talk about it later,” I said. “Right now, Mommy has to get to work.”
Thoughts of Nico – and our blossoming little family – stayed on my mind all the way from Dawning City to my office. I’d gotten in with just a few extra minutes to spare, and I went to the kitchen and made myself a second cup of coffee. I would probably be up all night at this rate, but I hadn’t been counting on getting a tremendous amount of sleep, anyway.
Nico had to be in this for real – there was no way he would be cruel enough to toy with me and Ada, to make us believe that he wanted us in his life.
I was almost sure of that, even though he hadn’t said as much.
The thing I was unsure of was ... well, myself.
I had never seen myself as the kind of woman who would get married and settle down and be a big happy family with a man.
Then again, I’d never seen myself as a mother, either. But after having Ada, I couldn’t even imagine not having her – she was my sunshine, my pride and joy, the reason why I worked so hard in life.
Maybe things would be like that with Nico, too. Maybe things between us would become so serious that after a while, I wouldn’t even be able to picture myself as a single mom anymore.
Sitting down at my desk and starting work was a relief.
At least, I was until Nell walked up. She was smiling brightly at me and carrying a portfolio tucked under one arm.
“Good morning, Harper,” she said. “I trust all is well at home?”
I nodded. “Ada’s doing much better,” I said.
“Good!” Nell set the folder down on my desk and several glossy photos spilled out. When I saw that they were photos of Nico for the issue, I sighed.
Nell didn’t miss it – of course, she didn’t.
She raised an eyebrow at me. “Everything okay?”
“Of course,” I lied. “Everything’s just fine.”
31
Nico – Saturday
Sitting in a College Station, Texas living room decorated with kittens and Christian kitsch, I took another sip of the too-sweet iced tea.
“This is wonderful, thank you, Mrs. Chafee,” I said. “I’ve never had such wonderful tea.”
My client’s mother, Saralynne Chafee, beamed at me. She was a little smaller and older than I’d imagined – clearly, Andy had been her late-in-life baby – but she looked thrilled that I was there.
The previous day, I’d come into work with a huge smile on my face, thinking of Harper and Ada and the night we’d shared together. My good mood had been dashed, however, when Amber had patched through Mrs. Chafee.
“It was just so good of you to come out here,” Saralynne continued.
If we hadn’t been in Texas, I would have called her by her first name. But here, the elderly relished their place in society and demanded all the respect they could get. Andy Chafee was a hot ticket, someone I thought who could easily be a first-round draft pick by the NFL, and keeping him – and his little old mother – happy was deeply important to me.