Page 14 of Shocking Sapphires
But he was a movie star. He was Hollywood royalty and so far outside of my league that we weren’t even on the same playing field.
It was silly of me to harbor this ridiculous crush on someone that I could never have, but I couldn’t seem to control it. My feelings for him escalated with each passing day. The more I got to know the real Grant Chandler, the more I fell for him.
Too bad he didn’t seem to have any romantic feelings for me. I was simply the nanny that was taking care of his baby while he couldn’t. Besides, why would he even consider me when he had a gorgeous bombshell girlfriend like Eva Wingate?
Sitting back down after making a fool of myself by kissing the man’s cheek, I decided that I’d let my curiosity run wild long enough. It was time to ask Grant the question that had been burning in my brain.
“Is Eva Scout’s mother?” I looked down at the floor as I asked because it was a personal question that I really didn’t have any right to ask, but that fact didn’t lessen my desire to know.
“No,” he answered simply.
Just when I was becoming concerned that he wasn’t going to expand, he went on. “Scout’s mother is a fan. She was a random one-night hookup that I honestly don’t even remember.”
My head whipped back in disgust at this revelation.Did he sleep with so many women that he couldn’t even remember them all?
My facial expression must have revealed my revulsion because he quickly went on. “I don’t normally do anything like that, but I had way too much to drink that night, and I was depressed about losing a role to Christian Hart.”
I’d never imagined the talented, cocky man before me might ever feel insecure, but his voice was clearly tinged with self-doubt when he pursed his lips and said the younger actor’s name. That bit of fragility didn’t excuse the fact that he was a cheater, though.
“So, you cheated on Eva to make yourself feel like more of a man than Christian Hart?” I guessed.
“No, it was nothing like that,” he shook his head to back up his words. “It was just a dumb mistake.”
I’d been feeling irrational flares of jealousy toward Eva Wingate, but sympathy for the beautiful actress suddenly surged in my heart. “Poor Eva must have been devastated when she found out about your affair.”
Using the word ‘poor’ to describe the gorgeous, successful movie star wasn’t something that I would have imagined ever falling from my lips, but it rang true in this moment.
Grant had the audacity to scoff before saying, “No, I don’t think she cared.”
“Of course, she cared! You two have been together for years, yet you had no trouble trampling on her heart.” I hated sticking up for the woman who seemed to have it all, but I had no tolerance in my heart for cheaters. They were the lowest of the low.
“Our relationship is a sham that we just put on for the cameras.” His voice was so quiet that it took me a moment to comprehend what he had revealed.
“Oh.” It was a lame response, but I wasn’t sure what else to say. Grant and Eva had always seemed like the perfect, madly-in-love couple that the rest of us aspired to be. Finding out their relationship was fake was a significant blow, even though it also gave me a secret little thrill that raced along my spine.
Changing gears, I asked, “Is Scout’s mother looking for him?”
“No,” Grant answered, sounding certain.
Finding that incredibly hard to believe, I said, “She must be worried sick about him.”
“She signed over her parental rights when she gave him to me. She made it perfectly clear she wants nothing more to do with him––ever. Once the paternity test confirmed that he was mine, I took responsibility for the little guy and decided to try to raise him on my own.”
I stared down at the chubby-cheeked cherub, not quite able to believe that anyone could want to be rid of him––especially not his own mother.
Since Grant seemed to be in a sharing mood, I decided to go for it with the other question that had been bothering me since the fateful night of the accident.
Trying my best not to sound accusatory, since I knew Grant regretted the decision, I asked, “Why did you leave Scout at the fire station?”
He took so long to respond that I thought I had overstepped and that he might simply ignore me. Eventually, he said, “He cried during the entire flight to Boston from L.A. It’s a good thing we had a private jet because we’d have probably driven everyone insane on a commercial flight.”
“Babies are sometimes fussy,” I murmured, thinking that was no excuse for dumping his child.
“I know,” he admitted before continuing. “He also screamed during the whole drive up from Boston. By the time we got here, I was frazzled and thinking that I didn’t have what it took to be a proper father to him. It seemed like he hated being with me.”
He ran a hand through his thick, dark hair before adding, “I was exhausted, and I must not have been in my right mind. I just kept thinking that he deserved better than me, so I left him there. I regretted it almost immediately and came racing back for him.”
That much I already knew. Hoping to reassure Grant, I said, “You’re his father. There is no one better for him than you.”
