Page 99 of Almost Paradise

“I don’t know. Those were his orders.”

“Just so you know Howard, I’m coming for you and Scarlett. When I’m done with you, I’m going to go after your children. And then—”

“My children had nothing to do with this. Please—”

“My son had nothing to do with this either, but you didn’t give a shit about that. Now my dad’s dead and you’re left to deal with my wrath.”

“Daddy,” Carter says as soon as I step into the penthouse. His little bare feet tap against the hardwood floors as he runs to me. I pick him up and hug him against me.

I want to scream at the fact that my father was behind me missing out on three years of his life. I close my eyes and feel his little body pressed to mine. When I open them, Nia is studying me. I open my arm, and she joins us in a hug. I kiss her temple.

“I love you, baby girl,” I whisper. I can see the questions in her eyes when she pulls her head back to look at me.

“I love you too. I fed Carter, but I thought you and I could eat together.” She takes Carter from me and sets him up in the living room. She turns on his favorite channel and gestures for me to follow her.

“Delores made this incredible salad and lemon chicken. Sit down, and I’ll get it for you,” she tells me.

“Remember that time you cooked chicken for me?” I ask her. “I still don’t know how it was burnt on the outside but raw on the inside.” I chuckle at the memory. I remember how she stood by my chair, biting her bottom lip and anxiously waiting for my reaction. When I cut into the meat, it was pink and raw on the inside. Without a word, I dumped the food in the trash, took her hand, and drove us to a nearby restaurant.

“Well, now I don’t need to cook ever again. Let’s eat and then you can tell me what’s wrong.” And that’s what we do. We don’t talk, but every few seconds she looks at me. I try to smile, but I just can’t bring myself to fake it today.

“I’m afraid the news is not good, but I promised you that I’d never lie or keep things from you, and I meant it. Come sit here,” I tell her once dinner is over. I tap my lap, and she sits. “Scarlett let something slip today when you stepped out to talk to your dad.” She tenses but doesn’t say anything. I don’t know if that’s a good sign or not. “She said something about her and my father. She caught herself before she could finish, but that got my attention. It triggered a memory of the night I ended things with her. She said she lost me the first time because of you.”

“How could she have known that?” Nia asks. “How could she have known anything about me?”

“Exactly, so I went to see Howard Banks.”

“Your father’s lawyer? The guy with the beady eyes?” she shivers. “He gives me the creeps. What did he say?”

“I asked Wyatt to investigate your claims about my father. He went straight to Howard, and he confirmed everything you told me.” I tell her everything Wyatt reported to me weeks ago. From how my father found out about her to the steps he took to keep us apart.

“But you’ve known this for weeks. What can be worse than that?” she asks. She looks at me with her big brown eyes. The same eyes I fell in love with on my first day at work, only I was too stupid to realize it.

“Scarlett knew about your pregnancy.” She lets out a rush of breath. Her big eyes widen and her mouth falls open. “She knew I had a son and never said a word. My father got to her once I was in Berlin and told her everything. She visited three times while I was there.” I rest my forehead on her shoulder and wait for her to say something, only she doesn’t. “Nothing happened between me and her in Berlin,” I say quickly. “I wasn’t even thinking about that.” I tell her everything else I learned from Howard today.

She doesn’t say a word, but she wraps her arms around me and hugs me tight. She runs her delicate hands along my back. She even runs her hands up the back of my neck and through my hair.

“Paradise, I’m sorry,” she says. “I’m sorry people you cared about did that to you.”

I close my eyes and just feel her in my arms and absorb her touch.

“I have no business letting you comfort me about this, Nia. That’s not why I told you, but I’m too selfish not to take it. I really need you right now, baby girl.”

“I’m your wife. If you’re upset, it’s my job to comfort you.” She pulls away and cups my face. “I know how much you loved and admired your father. Probably as much as I love and admire mine. I can’t even begin to imagine how I would feel if my father did something like this. As for Scarlett, I wonder if she ever truly loved you or only the idea of you. I love you, Paradise, and I could never imagine doing that. If I found out tomorrow you had another child out there, I’d welcome him or her into our family. That’s what you do when you love someone.”

She hugs me again, and I close my eyes and sigh in relief.

“Your dad’s dead. You and Scarlett are over. Let’s live our lives together and be happy. I know you lost some time with Carter, but you have the future.” She pulls away and cups my face again. “Soon, we’ll have another baby, and you’ll be there for everything. I’ll be selfless enough to let you get up at night so I can get my beauty sleep since you missed out on that with Carter. Maybe by then science will advance enough so you can breastfeed,” she teases.

“Hey, now. I don’t have breasts.”

She giggles and says, “My point is we should focus on all the good stuff ahead.”

“You’re right except I’m going to make Scarlett and Howard wish they were never born, but I’m putting that away for now. We have our party tomorrow. What are the odds your dad punches me in the face?” I ask. She laughs and that takes some of the tension out of the air.

“Zero. My dad would never, and I gave him a stern talking to. It’s going to be a great night, I promise.” She rests her forehead on mine, and I forget about the crappy day I’ve had. We only move away when we hear little feet running through the house and into the kitchen.

“Can I have ice cream?” Carter asks. He comes to a stop when he sees us. He watches and slowly comes closer. “Why is Daddy sad?” he asks his mother while pointing at me.

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