Page 14 of Challenging Jayce

She doubted it was what he was going for, but she was more intrigued than ever now. But it didn't appear she was going to get the chance to find out anything more tonight.

"Good night, Kennedy. I'll be talking to you soon."

"Yeah, good night."

He hung up before she could say anything more and maybe that was best, because the frustration she felt on the way home was now long gone. It was replaced with curiosity and she knew from experience that always got her in trouble. She was sure this time wouldn’t be any different.

CHAPTER9

Shaun wasn't kiddingwhen he said the results of the DNA test would be quick. Jayce had his blood drawn earlier that morning and he already had the results back that afternoon. Michael was his son.

Again, not that he believed any differently after seeing the boy, but it was nice to have proof.

Maybe “nice” wasn't the right word because now that he had confirmation, he was pissed all over again for the years he lost out on; all the things he didn't know about his son because Jasmine hadn't wanted him in Michael's life.

It was a good thing Jasmine was dead because he couldn't be sure he could play well with her at the moment. It would be hard enough having to go through Shaun. He might hate the man but he wouldn't take Shaun out of Michael's life. He wasn't that much of a bastard and he wanted this to be as smooth of a transition as he could make it. That meant changing a few things in his life.

Jayce grabbed his phone off the nightstand and called one of his co-workers. Caden answered after the second ring.

"Everything okay?"

Of course he would think something was wrong. He hadn't spoken with any of his friends since storming out of the office yesterday and it was unlike him not to be at work.

"What did Luke tell everyone?"

It was better to see what everyone already knew before he spilled too much. He would need to tell them eventually but he wanted to keep it to himself for a little longer.

"Nothing. Just that you needed some time off and we weren't to reach out unless it was an emergency."

He owed Luke big-time.

"I need a favor."

"You're not going to tell me what's going on, are you?"

He thought about it some more. Caden wouldn't gossip and he would need to give his friend something if he expected help. Otherwise, Caden would be going in blind and that wasn't fair.

"Jasmine passed away and left a note claiming Michael is my son. I had a DNA test done today to confirm it."

"Holy shit," Caden cursed. "That's . . . A LOT. How you holding up?"

He blew out a sarcastic breath. "I'm not even sure, to be honest. I'm pissed but have no one to take it out on. Jasmine is dead and she never told Shaun. He found out when she left him a note. Michael looks like me, and sure, he could've confronted her about it, but what good would that have done? We all know she was a spiteful bitch and would've cut Shaun out without a second thought."

The more he thought about it, the more he realized Shaun was in a no-win situation. There was no scenario where Shaun would've won against Jasmine if she dug her heels in. She cared only about herself, as proven by the note she left.

"I never could understand how you tolerated her."

"Blinded by love. I only saw what I wanted to see."

Which was the number one reason he would never allow another female to get close. He wouldn't be stupid enough to make the same mistake twice.

"So what favor did you need from me?"

"I need you to look into Jasmine. I want to know everything she's done over the past fifteen years. She mentioned losing a battle in her letter. I want to know what she meant by that, her full medical history if possible and what it means for my son."

The last word got stuck in his throat. He still couldn't believe it was true.

"You got it. Anything else?"

---