Page 26 of Almost Paradise

I agreed without talking to Nia first. I don’t need her permission to parent my son. She can be as hostile as she wants, but I’m not going anywhere. She’s the one who kept him from me. She should be grateful that I don’t take her to court and fight for shared custody at the very least. I would win, too. But I know that would cause irreversible damage.

I’ll take Wyatt’s advice for now and go slow, but it’s not in my personality to let someone else call the shots. If she continues to fight me over everything, I will have no choice but to go through the courts and have everything documented.

I send instructions to my financial adviser and Wyatt to start the process of setting up a trust fund for Carter.

I spent hours at the Nash house. I didn’t leave until after dinner. The boys insisted that me and Wyatt stay, and I didn’t even care that the rest of them were hostile and unwelcoming. To piss them off, I ate everything that was available.

I rub the back of my head. I can feel a headache coming on. It’s going to be a long night because I finally have to tackle the mountain of work I’ve ignored for the past two weeks.

After changing into sweatpants and a T-shirt, I pour myself a drink and go to my office. I stare at the blank computer screen. The other thing I have to do this week is tell my family about my son. I asked Scarlett to keep quiet because I want the news to come from me.

Really? Your basket case of a mother and irresponsible brother? Hannah’s the only normal one. And are you really going to bring him around Scarlett?

I ignore the voice. They will love him, and that’s all I care about right now. I stare at the computer screen for what seems like hours. I don’t lift a finger to do any work. I don’t even log in.

All I can think about is how something that was so beautiful can turn into something so ugly. But in the middle of that ugliness is a gift. One so pure, he’s unaware of the tension between the adults in his life.

I hear the alarm beep and I sigh but not in relief. Scarlett isn’t due back until tomorrow, but here she is. I’ve barely thought of her, and I feel guilty about that, but it’s never been like that with us. She’s safe. There’s not this obsessive need to know where she is or what she’s doing all the time. The last time I had that, it went up in flames.

“Drake!” she yells. She finds me seconds later still sitting at my desk. She comes in, runs a hand through my hair, and kisses my mouth. I move away before she can deepen it. “There you are. Why are you just sitting here like that?” She eyes me and says, “Things didn’t go well?” She takes my hand. “Maybe it’s for the best. You can still take financial responsibility. You don’t have to—”

I pull my hands away. When she reaches for them again, I stand from my chair and cross the room, staying as far away from her as possible.

“Things went great with Carter.” She looks away, but not before I see some fire in her eyes. “He’s smart and sweet. It was better than I could have imagined.” She crosses her arms and gives me her back. I go to her and lay a hand on her shoulder. She pushes it away.

“I’m so happy for you.” The sarcasm doesn’t sit right with me, but I’m too mentally exhausted to deal with that right now. “I’m so happy that the man I’m going to marry is the father of someone else’s child. You get to have your outside little family, and I get to look like a fool.”

“Can we not do this right now, Scarlett? I’m exhausted. Both emotionally and physically.”

“Sure. I’ll just wait for the crumbs that you give me. Only I’ll have less, won’t I?” She turns and shoves my chest. I wrap my hands around her wrists.

“This is not the type of relationship where we get physical with each other.” I put her hands down. “I have a son. I want to be in his life. That doesn’t take anything away from you or us. It’s not about you at all, Scarlett.” I immediately regret my sharp tone, but I don’t take it back. I’m drained, and I have nothing left to give anyone today, least of all an insincere apology.

I don’t want to sound harsh, but I need to be very clear with my intentions. My son is now the most important thing in my life, and there is no compromise when it comes to him.

“It takes everything from me. Every last thing! But like always, it’s your way. It’s only about what Drake wants. I thought you loved me.”

“I asked you to marry me, didn’t I? I told you I didn’t want this to change anything. We’ve set a date.” The last few words get stuck in my throat.

“We’ve set a date?” she gasps. “You think that’s some concession? You asked me to marry you. You gave me this.” She holds up her left hand and the diamond catches the light. “Setting a date is not some gift. It’s what comes next, but you’ve just dragged your feet.”

“Scarlett, enough. I’ve been through hell these past—"

“You’vebeen through hell?” she yells. “And what? It’s been a walk in the fucking park for me? All day long, all I could think about was you and your illegitimate child. I hate this!” she snaps.

“Don’t you call him that! The situation is what it is!” I yell back. “You have options.” She gasps and takes a step back. “I’m not going to turn my back on my child, so if you have a problem with that—”

“I have a big problem with it!” she yells back. Scarlett is never one to yell. She’s calm and level-headed, but even I realize that the situation can be upsetting to her. She didn’t sign up to be with a man with a child. “Stop yelling at me! Stop telling me I have options because I don’t. Not when I love you as much as I do.” Tears fall, and she swipes them. I know I should pull her in my arms and console her, but I can’t bring myself to do it. I don’t know why I can’t.

Yes, you do.The reason’s face pops into my head and I shake it away. She’s not mine. She’s made her feelings about me abundantly clear.

Only because she thinks you dumped and abandoned her.I push that thought away too. It won’t change anything. All I want is to have my son in my life.

What you want is to have them both in your life.

“I didn’t mean to yell,” I say to Scarlett in a much calmer voice. “But Carter is not going anywhere. I need you to understand that too.”

She swallows but won’t meet my eyes, yet I can see the resignation on her face. She’s not going to walk away.

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