Page 52 of The Billionaire's Accidental Daddy Duty
“I knew you were the good one.” She wiped her nose. “You even had your driver take me home the next day. You had already gone, but you made sure I had a ride. The other guys didn’t even say good-bye.” She pressed her face to my chest and resumed the crying. “I wanted it to beyou so badly.”
“What?”
“I don’t want to lie to you.” She swayed in place, and her skin turned pale like she was about to pass out. “Sorry. The radiation is starting to take its toll.”
I picked her up, sat her on the bed, then went to get her some water. On the way back, I stopped in my tracks. Isla was standing exactly where I had left her when Harper walked in. I was such an asshole. I rubbed the side of my face as my gaze shifted between a frail Harper sitting on the bed and a deeply wounded Isla staring at me with those doe eyes.
“Don’t move,” I said to Isla then rushed to Harper to give her the water.
When I turned around, I caught a glimpse of Isla’s long hair as she ran out the door. I went after her, cursing under my breath. What was she thinking? How did all of this look to her? Even in those high heels, she made it all the way to the lift in under a minute. As soon as she saw me, she wiped her face and hit the call button several times.
“You don’t owe me anything.” She crossed her arms over her chest, realizing she had nowhere to go. She had no choice but to face me. “In fact, I’ve already been compensated plenty. I can even afford an apartment in the city. So you don’t need to worry about me.”
“Isla. Stop.” I reached for her, but she stepped back. She had every right to be pissed at me. But how was I supposed to know the kind of trouble Harper was in? She needed me. “I’m sorry. I know that whole conversation with Harper must’ve been hard for you to get through. I promise. My feelings for you haven’t changed.”
“What feelings, Declan? You needed a nanny for a few days. And now you don’t. So it’s over. I get it. Trust me. Noone gets all of this as much as I do. I won’t be the woman that stands in the way of your family.” She raked a hand through her hair as her gaze bounced from one corner of the corridor to the other. “You should marry her. She needs you. It’s, um, it’s really, truly the perfect solution. If you’re her husband, you’ll be able to help with medical stuff and everything else, you’ll be there for her and Joey.” She shook her head. “I get it. I really do. Go.”
I glanced up to the digital screen over the door. The lift was only five floors away. I moved toward it and blocked the entrance. I didn’t want her to go. But I knew where Isla lived, where she worked. Harper on the other hand, if she disappeared again, I had no idea where she would go. The thought of her dying before Joey saw her again made my heart squeeze into a tight ball. I couldn’t leave her. I reached into the inside of my suit coat and got my phone to call Tommy. He answered immediately.
“Let me go, Declan,” she begged.
I shook my head. And for a split second I thought of telling Tommy to lock Isla in my room and keep her there until I returned. My whole body ached for her. I wanted to hold her and tell her she was mine. That she couldn’t go.
“Isla is going home.” I waited until he confirmed he’d wait for her in the private lobby downstairs then hung up. “Tommy’s waiting downstairs.”
“You’re the good one.” She echoed Harper’s words.
The lift doors slid open, and she stepped forward. I gripped her upper arm and pulled her to me. “Isla, this isn’t a good-bye. I just need a few days to figure things out.”
When she pushed me away, I braced my hands on the threshold, looking for the right words to say, but I had none.Right now, wasn’t the time to be the selfish asshole. Our gazes met, and hers filled with unshed tears.
“Good-bye, Declan.” She leaned forward and hit the call button.
“Isla.” I begged though I wasn’t exactly sure what I was asking for.
I couldn’t ask her to stay not while Harper waited in the suite. I stood there until the doors shut close and her face was replaced with my own reflection on the polished stainless steel. How the fuck did I get here? A month ago, I was tethered to no one. Now, I couldn’t even make myself chase after Isla.
On my way back to the suite, I texted Tommy. By the time, I shut the door behind, he’d confirmed Isla was in the car and he was taking her home. I pictured her sleeping in my bed tonight. That image alone breathed life into my body. It unraveled the tightness in my chest and cleared my head. Since the first night she came to my apartment, Isla was able to do that for me. She gave me clarity and peace.
“Declan, I need to see him,” Harper called out from the bed.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Jesus. The last time she called for me from that very spot, she looked so different. Our lives had been so different. And now we had to face the consequences of our actions. “You will. But first tell me what you meant by ‘I don’t want to lie to you.’”
She glanced around the room as if considering her answer. “That night I was celebrating my thirtieth birthday. Did you know that? I can’t remember if I told you.”
“You did.” I sauntered toward her and sat.
“A friend of mine thought it would be a good idea for meto live a little. Thirty is a big milestone, you know.” She shrugged. A sad smile pulled on her lips as she shook her head. “I spent all my life doing the right thing, getting the good grades so I could go to the right school, get the right job. They never tell us at what point we’re supposed to enjoy life and be happy. That birthday seemed like a good time to start.”
“You were crying that night. Were you sick then?”
“No.” She laughed. “Just stupid drunk. And feeling a whole lot of regret for all the time I wasted waiting for my life to start. Declan, I slept with two other guys that night. I don’t know?—”
“I know.” I pulled her into my arms.
I’d had the same thought. There was a chance, thirty-three percent chance, that Joey wasn’t mine, which was why I had decided to take the paternity test in the first place. But seeing Harper like this, so weak and pale, put things into perspective for me. Even if Joey wasn’t mine, I didn’t want to lose him. Not to one of those other assholes that were with Harper that night. They truly were bigger assholes than me. And that was saying something given my track record.
“Did you mean it?” She glanced up at me with wet eyes and a tiny bit of pink on her cheeks. “Would you really consider marrying me? If I’m gone, he’ll have you.”
