Page 8 of Wild Forever
“I came to talk.”
He folds his arms across his chest.
“Then talk.”
It comes out as a growl that make my knees go weak.
Damn him. I’ve spent weeks rehearsing this moment, and now all I can think about is what it would feel like if those strong arms had me pinned to a bed.
My palms sweat, and I wipe them on my shorts.
“I just want to see my niece. She’s the only family I’ve got left. I thought if I came here and found you…”
I thought what? That if I explained my fucked up situation to him in person instead of letting him find out through the courts that he’d have some kind of empathy for me? That he’d see how devoted an aunt I am and hand over my niece? That I was hoping I’d find a man struggling to be a dad who’d be happy to hand over the baby to someone else?
But the way he’s looking at me with his gaze hard makes my heart sink.
It was stupid to think I could walk into town, find Bailey, and convince her dad that his daughter was better off with me.
“I just want to see my niece,” I say. “I miss her.”
His gaze softens, but he keeps his arms folded. “Why now? Where were you when her mother died?”
I wince at his question and look away.
I’ve just spent a carefree hour with this man. We laughed together, and he made me feel things I haven’t felt in a long time. He looked at me like I was someone worth looking at, someone desirable even. Not scum, not a lowlife, and not someone to be pitied. But as soon as he knows the truth about me, that will change. He won’t look at me like a hungry man eyeing a juicy steak anymore, and he certainly won’t let me near his daughter.
“I was sick.” It’s a half truth. Some call it a sickness.
His eyes narrow. “I didn’t know Bailey existed. I never would have known if Karen hadn’t passed. You could have taken custody, and I’d have been none the wiser.”
“I couldn’t,” I mumble. “I wasn’t in a position to.”
The state wouldn’t let me is closer to the truth, and I thank them for their privacy laws that stop them from telling Grant the entire truth, because if they had, he wouldn’t still be here talking to me.
Grant’s still staring at me like I’m his mortal enemy, and I don’t blame him. It must look like I hijacked him in his own home, which is more or less what I planned to do.
The sound of a car pulling up outside has him frowning.
“Shit.”
He runs a hand through his shaggy hair, and I glance outside.
A vintage caddy pulls up out front. It’s a beautiful car with sleek edges and entirely out of place on the gravel drive of this cabin surrounded by woods.
There’s a baby seat in the back, and my heart leaps.
“Is that Bailey?” I say excitedly.
“Yes,” Grant grunts.
I stride to the window and then stop. “Is it okay if I see her?”
It seems a little too late to ask. I came to Wild because I found out that’s where she was. I planned to walk the streets until I found her.
“It’s not okay. None of this is okay, April.” He runs a hand through his hair, a hand that sent heat through my body only a short time ago.
“I don’t like it that you turned up here. You should have called.”
