Accidental Dad: The Irresistible Daddies Book One

by Kaylee, Katy

  Happy. Yes. That was the word. Happy. I hadn’t been truly happy in so long and it was like a revelation.

  Layla noticed it the moment that I sat down at the table for our lunch. I’m pretty sure the entire restaurant noticed, actually. We’d been coming there for so long that the entire waitstaff probably knew when my period was.

  “What’s got you all chipper?” she teased as I sat down. “You’re more upbeat than I’ve seen you in ages. Did you pick a donor? Are you…” Layla lowered her vice. “Pregnant?”

  “Not yet, no. I’ve narrowed the field down. I might ask you for help in picking someone, actually.”

  “Well that’s good,” Layla said. “But that’s not why you’re so damn chipper, is it? What’s going on, really?”

  “I…” I wasn’t sure, for a moment, if I should tell her. Telling someone else made everything so much more… real.

  Not that this wasn’t all real, not that—I wanted to tell her. I wanted to gush about this to someone. I wanted to be able to share all the wonderful things that were now happening in my life, this wonderful person that I’d reconnected with.

  But if I told Layla, the moment I brought someone else into it, it wasn’t just ‘our’ thing anymore. It belonged to more than just Ted and me. And Layla could tell other people, Layla would have her own opinion, Layla would be observing.

  What if telling her jinxed it all and Ted and I stopped having our wonderful connection? What if things started to go sideways after I told her? What if…

  Stop it, Veronica, for heaven’s sake, I told myself sternly. I was starting to sound like a paranoid lunatic.

  I was happy with Ted, here and now, in the present moment, and wasn’t that what I had said I wanted this entire time? Not to put expectations on it or to plan too hard for the future but just to be together in the moment and go slow?

  This was what I had wanted in freeing myself from Chad—the ability to be happy. To choose my own fate. And that was exactly what I was doing.

  So I smiled at Layla. “Actually, I’m seeing someone.”

  Layla’s face lit up and she banged her knees on the underside of the table jumping in excitement. She immediately looked around to see if anyone had noticed, blushing like a fire hydrant, and then turned back to me. “Oh my God, that’s amazing!” she whispered. “Who is it?”

  I took a deep breath, then another, steadying myself. “…my ex.”

  Layla stared at me. “Aren’t you… isn’t he… you said he was the doctor at your fertility clinic, right? That ex? Or do you have another ex that you never mentioned?”

  “No, no, it’s that ex. From high school. He’s not my doctor anymore, we’re referring me to another person because I still want to continue the treatment. Dating or not, I’m going to have a baby.”

  “Of course, don’t let anyone or anything keep you from your dream. Not after you’ve had to put it aside for so long.” Layla waved her hands at me, like fluttering moths. “But I want to know, how did all of this happen?”

  I explained how it all came about. “I admit I… I really regret what I did. Dumping him in high school. I’m ashamed of it. I think it’s the most shame I feel about anything. But he doesn’t care, he forgives me. He says that what I did helped him to take a look at himself and sort of self-evaluate and become someone that he’s proud to be.

  “But I still wish… I wish that I hadn’t been so quick to always worry about what people thought, especially my parents. I just did whatever they told me, even though it usually made me miserable. I wasted all of this time trying to make everyone else around me happy and I never thought about myself, I never dared to just seize what made me happy.”

  “You are now, though,” Layla pointed out. “And honey, we all make mistakes. You were a kid. And you were married to Chad, for crying out loud, I think that’s plenty of punishment, if you even deserved punishment in the first place. Which I don’t think you do. I think you’re being too hard on yourself.”

  “That’s what Ted says.” I paused as Katie came over and delivered our food, then resumed when she went away. I trusted Katie and everyone else here, but I wasn’t sure if I was ready for the entire restaurant staff to know about this. “He cares about making me happy. Not about how I look or behave, or what I can do for him. He just enjoys making me smile.”

  “And are you happy?” Layla asked.

  I nodded, the smile on my face getting so big that it was starting to hurt. “I am, yes. We’re not really telling anyone about it, though. It’s just between the two of us. So if you could… keep this to yourself, and all…”

  “Of course. You deserve some privacy, Chad made the divorce such an awful big public thing.”

  “I just wish he’d quit it. It’s over and done with. There’s no point in continuing to be so awful.” I sighed. “Ted’s been really patient with me. I feel like a skittish horse. I don’t want any expectations, you know, no real talk about the future. And I feel bad because I know he wants a wife and a family. He even bought this big house that he renovated all on his own, made with a family in mind, he’s got kids’ rooms and a big backyard and everything. And here I am insisting we not label anything and that we go slow.”

  “Veronica. Honey. Listen to me. You are not a terrible person.” Layla took my hand. “Your parents and Chad have done a good job of making you feel like one. And you know that they’re wrong, but you still feel terrible, so you’re using Ted and how you treated him as a way to beat yourself up instead.

  “If you were so awful, back then, or right now, why would Ted be with you? He sounds like a really smart and wonderful guy, and more than that, he sounds like he knows that. He knows what he’s worth. He doesn’t sound to me like he’d stick around with someone if they treated him anything less than what he deserved.

  “And you were his patient. That says a lot. He’s finding you a new doctor so that he can date you. I know we see all those big fancy medical dramas.” Layla squeezed my hand and winked at me. I was always teasing her for loving shows like E.R. and Grey’s Anatomy. “But in real life there’s not nearly so much… sex and bed hopping and all that. He wouldn’t be doing this if you weren’t worth it to him.”

  “But is it really a good idea for me to be doing this?” I asked. I hadn’t told Layla about Ted and me because I wanted advice, but as I spoke with her, I realized that was exactly what I wanted. I needed some reassurance, and outside eye.

  “Why wouldn’t it be?” Layla replied, releasing my hand and digging into her meal.

  “Well, it’s so soon after the divorce. And I wanted to have some time to myself, to be single.”

  “Honey, single or in a relationship doesn’t matter. Or at least it shouldn’t. I wish I had known that or I wouldn’t have gotten married so quickly, or… I wouldn’t have… anyway.” Layla shrugged, tactfully avoiding discussing her own unsatisfactory marriage. “If you’re single and you’re happy being single, that’s what matters. If you meet someone and they’re right for you, then that’s what matters. You shouldn’t force yourself to be with someone when you don’t want to be, and you also shouldn’t force yourself to stay single if there’s someone you have feelings for.”

  “I hadn’t thought of it that way,” I confessed.

  “That’s why you have me.” Layla grinned momentarily, then sobered up. “Look, he makes you happy, you said, right?”

  I nodded.”

  “That’s what matters. Who cares about timetables? Stay your course and take things as they come. You’re not giving up on all of your other dreams to be with him, which is good. Who’s to say that he can’t fit into your life? If you two end up breaking up, then that’s what happens and it’s okay. But right now being together is what you want and that’s fine. Don’t abandon your happiness because it doesn’t fit into your plan. That’s exactly what you did last time, only it was for your parents’ plan. Don’t make the same mistake twice.”

  She was absolutely right. I hadn’t seen it that way at
all, but it was true. I had given up a good thing in front of me because it didn’t fit what my parents had planned out, and now I had been about to do the same thing over again? What an idiot I was.

  “Thank you,” I said. “Honestly, Layla, thank you. I really needed to hear that.” I paused. “And you know that you… can and should take your own advice, right? If you’re… if you’re unhappy, then you should make yourself happy. Do whatever it takes.”

  Layla gave me a tiny smile. “I appreciate that, honey, but I… I don’t know. I know that it’s not saving people from a fire or anything quite like that but divorcing someone, redoing your life, it… it takes courage. A particular kind of courage and I’m not sure if I have it.”

  “I think that you do.”

  Layla shrugged. “Well. You’re happy and I’m glad for you. Go with that.”

  “I will,” I said, deciding to let the subject of Layla’s own life drop for now. “I will.”

  I would.

  21

  Ted

  I sat down at my office desk and pulled up some patient records. Hmm. I really wasn’t sure if this one patient of mine should get pregnant. There were a lot of health risks involved for her and I honestly thought it would be better if she chose to adopt instead. But she was insistent on wanting a child that was hers biologically.

  Perhaps I could convince her to use her eggs and her husband’s sperm and put them in a surrogate for the pregnancy itself. I didn’t want to risk my patient’s life.

  A knock sounded on my office door. “Come in!”

  Bridget poked her head in. “Ah, sorry to bother you, Ted, but there’s someone waiting for you in the lobby, said she was Roni and she brought you lunch?”

  I glanced at the clock. It…as in fact right about when I took my lunch break for the day. But… Veronica? Here?

  We had been careful, at Veronica’s request, not to have her meet me at the clinic. Bridget and the others who worked with me would notice the same woman showing up all the time for lunch and would start to see us as a couple, and Veronica had said she wasn’t ready for that yet. But if she was now here…

  I walked out into the lobby and sure enough, there was Veronica. She was carrying some to-go boxes from a Mexican place that we both loved. They made enchiladas that Veronica just couldn’t get enough of.

  “Hey, you,” I said, unable to keep the smile off my face.

  Veronica stood up and walked over, and kissed me hello. Nothing crazy, just a soft, casual hello kiss, but… it was right in front of my receptionist.

  I couldn’t even begin to describe the feeling of surprise and joy that shot through me. I had been trying to do things at Roni’s pace, and now I was being rewarded for it. She was taking more steps to combine our lives, to make this serious, all on her own.

  “Did I come at the right time?” Veronica asked. “I can wait, if you have another appointment.”

  “No, no, you came at the perfect time. We can eat in my office.” I helped her take the to go boxes and we went back to my office to eat.

  “You really didn’t have to buy me lunch.” I knew that Veronica was being careful about her spending, so that she could make her alimony money stretch as long as possible for her child. It was a reversal of how things had been in high school. Now I was the one with the money and Veronica was the one living on a budget.

  “I know,” she replied simply. “I wanted to.”

  Usually on my lunch hour I would read up on reports, do a little extra work, or read a few chapters in a book while I ate. It was solitary, and quiet, and in some ways that was nice, but this… this was so much better. Having someone who cared about me and brought me lunch and was just… there, and happy to be there, it meant… it meant so much more than I had expected it would.

  I hadn’t realized how much it would mean to me to have someone in my life like this. No, no… not to have someone. Not just to have anyone. To have Roni.

  “I told Layla about us,” Veronica admitted, sitting down and helping me to unwrap all the food. “She was really supportive.”

  “Did you think she wouldn’t be?”

  “No.” Veronica shook her head. “It just… makes it real when you tell someone. And that was a good thing and a scary thing for me. She helped me to realize how I was screwing us both over by giving up a good thing to stick to a timetable. I want to be in the moment and just enjoy what we have, today, now.”

  That was definitely a step forward. I understood if Veronica still didn’t want to think about the future but having her dispense any fears about the present was good. I was glad. “That’s great. I don’t want you to feel anxious or upset, I want you to feel good about this, and about every decision you make.” I grinned. “And I have to admit I haven’t been idle either.”

  “Oh?” I think Veronica could tell by my tone that I was up to something.

  I’d been up to a lot of things, back in the day, always getting into trouble and driving my teachers and classmates nuts. When I said something like I haven’t been idle either to Veronica, she knew that it meant I’d executed yet another plan.

  My general pranking days were over. I was no longer that aimless and frustrated teenager. But that didn’t mean that I could use my long-ignored powers for good, or at least spite, if the need arose.

  And if you asked me, that need definitely arose when it came to the asshole who’d made Veronica’s life hell for eight years.

  Veronica’s mouth twisted up into a knowing smile. “What did you do.”

  “I… might have placed a couple of calls,” I replied. “I found out what pharmacy Chad uses and I called in an order of ketoconazole for him.”

  “What… I’m sorry, what? That sounds like a type of weird diet pill.”

  I grinned at her. “Nope. It’s a drug to prevent erections.”

  Veronica’s mouth dropped open. Her eyes lit up, and a slow smile spread across her face. “Oh my God.”

  “I had them add a note that it’s to help with his hair. He’ll have no idea.”

  Veronica started laughing so hard she nearly knocked her food off her lap. “He’ll take it and have no clue, he probably won’t even realize that’s why, he won’t make the connection between that and why he can’t get it up - oh my God. That’s the perfect revenge.”

  “I know it’s unethical,” I told her. “It violates my oaths and my professionalism. But I don’t care. What that bastard did to you was ten times worse. And I don’t think that anyone would blame me if they knew the truth.”

  Veronica laughed a little, but I could see her eyes getting wet with tears. “You really didn’t have to do that. It’s still a risk—”

  “He’s not going to be able to get an erection for a couple of months,” I pointed out. “He abused you for years. This is only a taste of all that he really deserves. And I don’t care what the consequences will be, if there’ll even be any. They can’t trace it back to me, I made sure of that. It’s the least that I could do. He should be getting so much worse than that.”

  Veronica gave me a wobbly smile. I didn’t want her to dwell on such a sad subject. I had wanted to make her laugh, and I had, and now I wanted to move us onto something that would keep her happy.

  “Sorry,” she said as I passed her tissues.

  “You’re not the first patient to cry in my office, and you won’t be the last, even if you’re not my patient anymore.”

  “Am I the first girlfriend to cry in your office?” Veronica replied, dabbing at her eyes.

  My heart stuttered in my chest and I lost my breath. “Yes,” I replied, my voice a little hoarse. I cleared my throat. “I’ve never… had any other girlfriends, really. Not for years. The people I dated in college and med school were all… just flings, really. None of them lasted more than a couple of weeks.”

  Veronica smiled softly at me, reaching across and taking my hand. I interlocked our fingers, squeezing. “I think I was always waiting for you, even if I didn’t realize it.”

&nb
sp; We finished up our lunch, moving onto more lighthearted subjects. I asked after Layla and Veronica mentioned her unfortunate marriage and how she had been trying to encourage her friend to divorce her husband, but that Layla was still scared. I brought up how David had been teasing me about my attachment to Veronica and shared some amusing stories from when we were in college and med school together.

  “I see you still found a bit of time to prank people,” Veronica said, her previous tears forgotten, as I’d hoped. “You’re lucky that your professors liked you two so much with the kind of shit you were pulling.”

  “What can I say? I’m charming.” I winked at her.

  “It sounds like you had a really good friend in David, though.” Veronica laughed. “I mean, still do, oh gosh, that made it sound like he died or something.”

  “Ah, no, still alive and kicking unless you count my kicking his ass at racquetball last week as a murder. Which I do.”

  “Oh, so modest. But I’m serious. I’m glad that he was there for you. And I’m sorry, again, for… for all of it.”

  I helped her to clean up the trash from lunch. “You need to stop apologizing for that, sweetheart, it’s over and done with.”

  I offered her my arm, and I walked her out to her car. I wanted to keep chatting with her, but my lunch hour was almost over and I had more appointments to get to. Looked like Bridget and the others had taken the opportunity to split, since I didn’t see their cars in the parking lot. I chuckled to myself. The moment they saw I was distracted they took the chance to go off-site for lunch.

  When I mentioned this to Veronica, she looked around at the empty parking lot and laughed. “Reminds me of when… you remember how the librarian at school was cheating on her husband with the janitor? They’d always do it in the car in the staff parking lot when everyone was at lunch.”

  “Oh my God.” I had forgotten all about that. “That was hilarious, I remember—oh man. And they got caught by the lacrosse team because Jerry had convinced everyone else to pull a prank on Coach Wheeler’s car… oh my God.”