Page 56 of Secret Baby Next Door
“Another tough one. And... I don’t know. I’ve gotten so into my career and my life as a single guy that I honestly don’t know where I'd fit in a family. With each year that passes, the less likely it seems.”
“Oh.” I could sense that she was slightly disappointed by my answer. But it was the truth.
“Why do you ask, Piper?” I turned to her, placing my hand on her chin and gently turning her face toward me. Maybe touching her like that was a little too intimate but in that moment, I could sense there was something being left unsaid.
She closed her eyes, turning away from me and my touch. When she opened them, they were glossy with tears.
I had a damn good feeling what was on her mind.
There was no putting it off.
“Say it,” I said. “Tell me. I need to know if she’s mine.”
Piper turned back to me.
“She is.”
Chapter 18
PIPER
I’d never been more scared than I was in those moments.
Part of the reason was because of how damn hard Valentino was to read. The man was too stoic for his own good—standing there, sexy as a damn movie star, his face holding that steely expression. Every emotion possible could’ve been raging through him and there’s no way I’d know.
“Say something. Please.” I couldn’t take the tension any longer. I’d just broken the biggest news of my life, and all he could do was stand there.
Valentino took a deep, slow breath, as if he wanted to make sure that each word that came out of his mouth was carefully chosen.
“You’re sure? There’s no doubt?”
“I’m positive. I don’t want to put too fine a point on it, but no sense in being coy—you're the only man that I've been with since our night together. And it’s not like I was seeing anyone at the time we met. There’s no doubt.”
He formed his lips into a flat line, taking another look over the backyard.
“I’ve been wondering ever since I first laid eyes on her. I wanted to talk to you about it tonight, actually.”
“You knew?”
“I didn’tknowfor sure, obviously. But I definitely had my suspicions. God, look at her! Her eyes, her hair... she looks just like me.”
I nodded. “I know. She looks so much like you that I was certain you had to know from the moment you two met.”
“Deep down I did. But that’s not really the kind of thing you can just come out and say.”
So far, so good. He hadn’t blown up, hadn’t stormed off telling me that I’d be hearing from his lawyer.
But he hadn’t given me anything definitive, either.
“I know this is a lot to take in,” I said. “If you need some time to process it, I'll totally understand. It’s just that—”
“I’m ecstatic.”
“Huh?” The word tumbled out of my mouth before I knew it. Valentino stood in front of me, a warm smile on his face.
“You’re right. Part of me isn’t surprised. The timeline made sense, and all the rest of the evidence was there. But there’s still a huge difference between suspecting and knowing.”
I allowed myself a small smile, tentatively getting a bit excited.
