That was all. She’d given him the most shocking news of his life and now she was leaving with a simple “Oops—never mind.”
He tried to focus on the act of breathing. He kept seeing Stephanie that night, her triumphant smile as Danielle had wept—and he felt sick.
He’d gotten her pregnant. He’d fathered a child at sixteen. And now that child was twelve years old and didn’t know who her own daddy was.
CHAPTER NINE
NOTHING HAS TO CHANGE. Those words seemed to echo in Matt’s head long after Angela left. They were so ridiculous. If what Angela had told him was true, if Kayla really belonged to him, everything had changed. Regardless of the way Kayla had been conceived, he couldn’t simply go on as if he didn’t know he had a daughter.
He’d get tests, of course—for his own peace of mind. Stephanie was the one behind this, and he didn’t trust her one bit. But he was fairly sure DNA would confirm what he’d just been told. Kayla was his. Stephanie had been so obsessed with him, he doubted she’d so much as looked at another boy that entire year. And when he pictured Kayla, he could see the family resemblance. It was a wonder he hadn’t noticed it before. Or maybe not. Why would he? He’d never even entertained the thought. Not after one incident he could hardly remember. And not after such a long silence.
I want to find my daddy….
Still at the window, Matt shoved a hand through his hair. I’m your daddy. The reality of that was overwhelming. And yet he felt a strong sense of responsibility. He had to tell Kayla. He couldn’t let a child of his go through life feeling lost and unloved.
But how did he explain what had happened? And where did they go from here?
He needed to call Angela, get her to come back so they could talk. Now that the initial shock was beginning to wear off, he could see that she was in a difficult situation, as well. She wasn’t to blame for Stephanie’s actions thirteen years ago. And yet she was standing in for the absent parents, taking care of a child who wasn’t even hers.
His child.
He wasn’t convinced he’d ever get used to the idea.
Reaching for the cordless phone, he dialed the hotel. No answer. He tried her cell.
“This is Angela Forrester. I’m out of town until after the holidays, but if you’ll leave your name and number, I’ll return your call as soon as I can. If this is an emergency, please contact my assistant, Lisa Burton, at Pierpont Realty.”
The beep sounded in Matt’s ear. “This is an emergency, but your assistant can’t help me. I need you. I’m sorry if I didn’t react the way you’d hoped I would. I admit that I’m still…reeling. But I need to talk to you, to discuss this. Can I come over? Or if you find that too threatening, you can come here.”
Frustrated, he punched the off button and was about to toss the phone across the counter when it rang.
“Thank God,” he muttered and answered immediately, although caller ID said Unknown. He assumed Angela had her cell number blocked. But it wasn’t Angela.
“I have a collect call from Stephanie Cunningham.”
Matt stiffened. Stephanie was calling him? After thirteen years of silence? That scared the hell out of him. He hadn’t even decided what he was going to do about Kayla and already Stephanie was back in his life!
“Will you accept the charges?” the operator asked.
He cursed silently to himself but agreed. Then Stephanie’s voice came across the line.
“Matt, don’t listen to her,” she said in a rush. “It’s a lie.”
He expected to feel a wave of intense hatred, especially now that he knew the real consequences of what she’d done to him, but he didn’t. A variety of other emotions surged through him instead—anger, pity and disgust. He’d never imagined Stephanie as part of his future. Had he just stepped into some alternate reality?
“What’s a lie?” he asked, pacing in agitation. Sampson whined, obviously sensing something wrong, but Matt ignored him.
“You don’t need to give Kayla any locket. She’s not yours. She’s from…someone else, a—a guy I met after I left Virginia City.”
Matt wished he could believe her—so his life would return to normal. He almost asked her for Kayla’s birthday so he could compare the dates. But he didn’t need to. The hard edge of desperation in Stephanie’s voice told him she was the one who was lying. And now that he’d heard the truth, there was no hiding from it. “What are you hoping to gain by telling me that?” he asked.
“I’m doing you a favor. You’re off the hook. You’re not the father. Tell Angela she has to come home now. She—she can’t leave me here. She can’t take my child away from me.”
So he wasn’t the only one frightened by recent developments. They were all scared, he realized. His involvement upset the delicate equilibrium. And yet Angela had risked it.
“Where are you?” he asked.
“None of your business,” she said, but he could hear others talking in the background—“Get off the phone, bitch. I get to make my call, too”—and imagined her in jail or some sort of community shelter.
Briefly, the temptation to take Stephanie at her word, skip the paternity test and pretend he’d never met Kayla reasserted itself. He didn’t need to be part of this mess, did he? It wasn’t his fault. Angela would take care of Kayla. She’d be fine.
And yet…
He focused on the statue he’d brought home from the station, the one Kayla and Angela had given him for Christmas. It was a fireman rescuing a child. Safe from imminent danger.
With a mother like Stephanie, what child needed him more desperately than his own?
“I’m sorry, Stephanie,” he said. “But there are going to be some changes.”
“What changes?” she cried.
His eyes still on the statue, he drew a deep breath. “If Kayla’s mine, I’ll be taking care of her from now on.”
ANGELA’S HEART BEGAN TO RACE the moment she heard Matt banging on her door. What now? She’d managed to avoid his calls, but she could hardly let him wake all the other hotel guests at one o’clock in the morning.
Dropping his quilt, which she’d been hugging around her since she’d finished packing Kayla’s and her belongings, she hurried across the room and opened the door to find a rumpled-looking Matt.
“Let me in,” he said, his voice terse, his eyes intense.