Page 121 of The Daddy P.I. Casefiles: The Second Collection
I send her back a thumbs up and flip over to my string with Cynnie.
I’m back, baby. When can I see you?
At De Leon’s insistence, I didn’t tell anyone our timetable. No one but Logan and Mac know we’re back, and I’m a little surprised he told Logan.
Bumble: Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Oppa! Now!
I chuckle and De Leon, who still doesn’t understand the whole concept of privacy and is shamelessly reading over my shoulder, snorts.
I need a couple of hours to get back to the city and meet with Logan. Breakfast?
Bumble: Now! Now! Now! Now! Now! Now! Now! Now! Can’t wait!
I flip over to my string with Logan.
Do you mind if Cynnie comes over?I chew over my next words, then send them before I wimp out.I’m pretty desperate to see her.
Logan: Tell her to come now and she can watch a movie with Emmy until you get here. We’re too keyed-up to do anything but wait for you.
Thanks.
I flip back to Cynnie and let her know the plan. She sends me the ecstatic bumble chibi in response. Smiling, I put my head back and close my eyes. I got a little sleep on the plane, but what no one quite mentions about small planes is how noisy they are. And we hit turbulence coming down the East Coast, so my nap was interrupted by nausea.
I hear Mac and De Leon talking quietly as I drift off, but I don’t focus on their words. Between the two of them, I know I’m safe enough to sleep.
Mac bringing the car to a stop wakes me. I rub my eyes and look out the window at Logan’s quiet neighborhood in the East Village.
“I’ve got to get the car back to Manny,” Mac says. “If you need me back tonight, text me. Otherwise, I’ll catch up with you tomorrow. Whup your jet-lagged ass back into shape with a half-marathon.” At my groan, he grins at me in the rear-view mirror. “Glad you’re home, Maxie.”
“Thank you for coming, Mac. It means a lot.”
“Any time. Anything for my boys.” He hooks his thumb at the door. “Scat before I get a ticket for loitering or something.”
De Leon grunts and slides out of the car, pulling his bags after him. I grab mine and follow him into Logan’s townhouse.
twenty-five
I’m barelythrough the door when two very exuberant littles jump on me.
“Max! Max! Max!”
“Oppa! Oppa! Oppa!”
Laughing, I hug them, then hand Emmy back to her daddy before gathering Cynnie up in my arms and kissing her breathless.
I’ve never had a better homecoming.
The mood drops after I fill Logan in about my confrontation with Miranda. He sits at his desk, rubbing his hand over his scarred forehead, as De Leon and I face him from the guest chairs. The office door is closed, but I can faintly hear the soundtrack of the movie the girls are watching from within the blanket fort they’ve built while they were waiting for me.
I know the night’s ticking down towards Emily’s bedtime and that’ll be the end of Logan’s attention. Her bedtime is sacred and now I totally understand why. I’ve told him about the confrontation with Miranda first, both because it’s the thing he doesn’t know about yet and so we can get the worst over with before Emmy’s bedtime.
At last, Logan rocks forward in his chair, plants his elbows on his desk, and nods. “I’m not sure it matters. I’ve been forwarding everything to the solicitor in Manchester as you’ve uploaded it. The claim was already filed before you even met with Fred, based on the statement you got from Tilly. My solicitor’s made an emergency petition for a hearing on Tuesday in case Miranda goes into labor early. So Miranda has a few more days to prepare? I’m not sure it makes a difference.”
“I want to use the time to sanitize your internet footprint, Lo. Get rid of any records that could be used to suggest?—”
“To suggest what?” Logan interrupts. “That I’m a pedophile because of my relationship with my fiancée? No, don’t sanitize a thing. If Miranda dares bring that up, I’ll crucify her with everything we did together. That’s a can of worms she doesn’t want to open, but if she does, I’ll go there. I willmorethan go there.”
I glance at De Leon, who has been impassive and nearly silent through our conversation. “As an outsider, what would evidence of a caregiver relationship make you think about someone’s fitness to be a parent?”
