Page 4 of Nanny For My Daddy's Best Friend

“No. Amanda was with her right before the wedding started. She said Jasmine was excited. That she had no idea she was getting cold feet. I would have taken care of it if she suspected anything.”

“Do you think this was all because of cold feet?”

I wasn’t too sure who Jasmine was at her core. I spent one night with her four years ago. Anything could have changed in the past four years. She had a son now, and I knew personally how children could change you. She was a free spirit, and that was evident with the different types of jobs she had worked. It also made so much more sense knowing that she was Francis’ daughter. He wouldn't have appreciated her working in a bar or a strip club. It was possible from what I knew of her personality that she could change her mind like this without any notice.

“I don’t know what this is. Her and Adam had been with each other for five or six years. I know they weren’t serious at first, but once she discovered she was pregnant, they became serious. They are living together. They have a son together. They should be married. Nathan and I wanted them to be together. We worked hard to make that happen, and now Jasmine has thrown it all away and for what?”

Ahh, it all made sense. He was more pissed off that Jasmine ran out on his business partner’s son. He was more worried about what this could do to his business and not what his daughter wanted. This was different compared to who he used to be growing up. We both grew up with strict parents. We both wanted to have our own family and do everything different with them. I had tried, but it would appear that Francis fell into old habits.

“Maybe she doesn’t love him? We never know what is going on behind closed doors. All you can do is talk to her once she reaches out.”

That was all anyone could do right now. She ran for a reason, and I had to believe it was for a good one. It sucked for Francis and everyone involved, but there was nothing anyone could do.

“I’m sorry you had to come down and see this circus.”

“You know better than that. I’m gonna head back. Let me know what happens, and if you need anything, just call.”

We were in Miami, and I needed to get back to Oregon. I had my private jet scheduled for tomorrow, but I could easily make the change and get back tonight. There was no wedding so there was no need for me to be away from my son for the night.

“Thanks Liam. How is Christian? I know you have a lot going on with Ellis and the divorce.”

“He’s doing well, all things considered. The divorce is finalized, but no word from Ellis. I am waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

“It’s been what? Sixteen, seventeen months since the divorce and since she last saw him?”

“Around there,” I answered with a sigh.

Four years ago, when I was with Jasmine, I had just left Ellis. I had no plans of getting back with her, only two weeks later she informed me that she was almost three months pregnant. I wasn’t one hundred percent sure the baby was mine, but I agreed to making things work for the baby. When he was born, we did a DNA test, she wasn’t happy about it, but I wasn’t willing to budge on it. It wasn’t that I wouldn’t raise another man’s child, but I needed to know if he was mine or not. I couldn’t spend the rest of his life or my life, wondering every time I looked at him if he was mine or not.

It came back that he was, and I apologized to Ellis; I worked my ass off to make it work between us. Ellis seemed to have changed with the pregnancy, for the better. Before, we were always fighting. She was going out with her friends and cheating on me. After she got pregnant and after Christian was born, it was like she was a completely different person. She was the woman I had fallen in love with all over again. I was happy, and I couldn’t imagine getting to spend my life without her and our son.

But it only lasted eighteen months before she went back to her old habits. She started going out with her friends, which I understood. She was entitled to have her own life as well and be more than a mother. But she would be out all night. She started coming home with hickeys on her that she tried to hide from me. Her phone would be blowing up with texts and calls from other men. I caught her on a few dating apps.

Then it was weekends away followed by a week or two she would be gone. Six months ago, I just couldn’t take it anymore. I filed for divorce and finally six weeks ago, it was officially behind me. I knew a custody battle could be in my future, but as it stood, she was happy to live her life in Portland and forgot about us.

“Bitch,” was all Francis said, and I had to agree with him.

“If she was around, he would get to have his mother in his life. On the other side of it though, her not being around makes my life less stressful and drama free.”

“Everyone says it’s better to have a two-parent household over a single parent. I can understand how easier it is to have two parents there to help raise the child. I don’t know what I would have done without Amanda. At the same time, I don’t know how beneficial it is to a child to have one parent that never shows up and is a constant disappointment.”

And that was the debate I had constantly going through my mind. I wanted Ellis to be in Christian’s life. I wanted her to wake up and see what she was missing out on. I wanted Christian to have a mother in his life. I had no problem co-parenting, especially because I knew how wonderful of a person and mother she could be. She had her own demons that she was trying to work through and until she was ready to face them, Christian was the one that would be paying for it.

“The ball is in her court. There’s nothing I can do. I better get on the road. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you.” I had no idea what I would do, but the offer was there should he decide to pick it up.

“Thanks Liam. Fly safe and give Christian a hug for me.”

“Will do,” I said as I pulled him in for a hug and he returned the favor.

I moved back and headed off for my rental car. I would need to stop at the hotel to grab my things, but the plane would need to get ready anyways. Today had not gone the way I thought, but it did allow me to head back home to my son.

I was just twenty minutes away from the church driving down a dirt road to avoid an accident on the highway. I did not expect to drive by a car with the hood up and smoke coming out of it. I drove by not thinking much of it, but I saw the white dress out of the corner of my eye, and I knew it was Jasmine. A quick look in my rearview mirror confirmed that she was the one broken down.

I should have kept going. Let someone else deal with it. But before I could even register what I was doing, I was slowing down and pulling off to the side of the road. I was going to regret this.

Jasmine

Ofcoursethiswashappening to me. I made a rash decision to run out on my own wedding, and now my car had broken down just twenty minutes from the church. With the way my luck was going, Adam or my parents were going to drive by, and I’d be stuck on the side of the road and have to deal with them. I knew I would need to speak with them at some point, but I didn’t want to be in my wedding dress when I did so.

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