Page 77 of Lies and Lullabies
Jonas laughed. “He hated the idea. He might even regret that you referred me to him. But I don’t need a paternity test. I don’t mean to brag, but look at her.”
“The eyes,” I admitted. “It’s uncanny.”
“She has my hands,” Jonas whispered, his voice raw. “Guitar fingers. It’s the craziest thing I ever saw.”
“Here,” Kira said, thrusting the envelope toward me. “This money really belongs to you.”
“Wait,” Jonas said. “I thought you might do that. So I did this.” He picked up the second envelope and handed it tome.
The hair stood up on the back of my neck. “What?”
“I asked Ethan to write the check twice.”
“Damn.” I just stared at the envelope in my hand. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“I know, but I wanted to. Adam, thank you for raising my kid for four years.”
I didn’t know what to say. And what’s worse, I didn’t like how suspicious it made me feel. On the one hand, it was an incredibly generous offering. Jonas was saying, not in so many words, that my care was valuable.
But I also felt as if Jonas might be trying to buy me off. And I was not for sale.
“I don’t think I can cash this,” I admitted even as I privately recalculated my law school loans down to zero.
“Just consider it,” Jonas said, with a nudge to the hand that held my check. “If it really makes you that uncomfortable, put it in a college fund for Vivi.”
The perky waitress chose that moment to arrive with our plates. Vivi was still staring at the video on my phone, and ignoring her breakfast plate. So I cut a bite of Vivi’s pancakes with her fork, then held it up to her mouth, which opened like a little bird’s.
“Thank you,” Kira said quietly after the waitress had left. “I should use this money to finish my degree next semester. If I don’t have to work for minimum wage in that library, it won’t take me so long to graduate and get a better paying job.”
At that, Jonas raised her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “You use it however makes sense to you,” he said. “That’s just what I owe you for past years. We can work out the details going forward whenever you’re ready.”
I took a bite of my omelet and tried to squash my uncharitable thoughts. It had been a while since I’d experienced this kind of big-brother angst. And I didn’t know how to make it go away.
Taking a strawberry from Vivi’s plate, I put it in her hand. Then I watched as Vivi slowly raised her hand to her mouth, eating the berry while staring at the tiny screen.
“She’s really anesthetized by that thing,” Jonas said.
“Yeah. Elmo is more effective than morphine.” I watched Jonas watching Vivi. And the man’s eyes were soft, his expression full of wonder and quiet joy. One of his arms was looped around Kira, holding her in a casual, comfortable way. The way that Kira deserved to be held.
Well, fuck. Either the guy was exactly what Kira and Vivi needed, or he was a slick devil who would break both their hearts.
I fed Vivi another bite of pancakes, and tried to keep an open mind. Not that it was easy for a guy with cancer in one of his nuts and a once-a-year hangover.
I picked up my mug and took another hit of that life-giving force known as coffee. Maybe that would help. It would have to.
Nineteen
Kira
Back in the hotel room, I had only a couple of minutes to throw our things into the duffel bag. “Where is Purple Kitty?”
“Here!” Vivi yelled, running over to me.
I tucked the stuffy into my bag and then looked around to make sure that we hadn’t left anything else behind. Purple cat? Check. Toothbrushes? Check. Envelope with a hundred grand inside? Check.
“I’m taking Vivi down with me to get the car,” Adam said, snapping off the TV. “Can we meet you out front?”
My brother seemed to be trying to give me a moment alone with Jonas. That was nice of him. “All right. Thank you.”
