Kaeden flipped the pancakes. He glanced over at her and nodded, confirming he cared.
Damn, I bet that hurt like a bitch. Sky set her coffee cup down and buried her face in her hands. She mentally slapped herself. She hated when stress made her spiteful and mean and vowed not to let this situation make her any more bitter. She glanced over at Kaeden. He was here; he had admitted he cared for his daughter; it was more than she'd had twenty-four hours ago.
Sky raised her thumb to her mouth and nibbled on the nail. She had no idea what the correct choice was in this matter and said as much to Kaeden, "I'll admit I don't know what to do. Yesterday, you demanded I not tell anyone you were here. If I tell Kadey, she's going to spout that information off to everyone she sees. I need some input."
Kaeden flipped the pancakes onto a plate and turned off the stove. He turned around and sat down with her at the table. "Yesterday was an excess of caution on my part. My profession doesn't allow me to trust people." Kaeden glanced out toward the front room. "If you would allow me to give her some happy memories of me, I would be grateful."
"You make that sound like you'll never come back. One day she may need you again." Sky rimmed the top of her coffee cup with her finger. She brought her gaze to him. His expression confirmed her words even though he didn't verbalize the thoughts. "Again, I'm not sure I know what to do here, Kaeden. Is it fair to introduce you as her daddy and then have you leave us again?"
"Probably not." Kaeden's face remained emotionless.
Sky sipped her coffee and spun the scenario a thousand different ways, but every time she examined the outcome, her heart spoke louder than her mind. She took a pancake from the plate and tore a small piece off. "Look, I want to do what's right by her, and I don't want her hurt, but my heart tells me you deserve to know the adoration that little girl holds for the man she thinks her daddy is. Even knowing that you'll be leaving again, I think Kadey needs to have that part of her life colored in rather than wondering about you for the rest of her life… and you should have some of those memories, too… I'll tell her who you are." She dropped the pancake.
Kaeden's eyes tracked the fall of the fried dough before he closed his eyes for a moment as if by doing so he could hide the gratitude that flashed through them.
"Momma! Trey's here!" Kadey's voice broke the moment. "He's getting out of his car, and he's got doughnuts!"
"Okay, baby. I'll be right there." She stood and pushed her hair out of her face. Sky shrugged her shoulders and braced for what was to come. "I need to go deal with this. Are you staying?"
"I am." Kaeden got up and turned the burner on, heating up the griddle again.
"Do I introduce you to him?" She wasn't sure how that would go.
"I'll handle any introductions, should they become necessary."
Sky couldn't help the smile that spread across her face, even if the shadow of happiness she felt lasted only a few seconds. She made it to the front door just as Trey knocked.
He visibly flinched when she opened the door. "Shit, did you just roll out of bed?"
"A couple minutes ago, yeah, and please stop swearing." Sky ran a self-conscious hand through her hair.
"Whatever, and it sure looks like you had a hell of a night. Are you still wearing the same clothes?"
Sky ran a self-conscious hand down her rumpled shirt and jeans. "Yeah, I ah… fell asleep on the chair."
"I can tell. Anyway, I brought breakfast. I hope you've at least managed to put coffee on. Hey, kid."
"My name's Kay-dee!" Kadey's foot stomped when she spoke.
Trey slid his eyes to Sky as if expecting her to reprimand her daughter.
She put her hand on her daughter's shoulder.
"Are you going to let me in?"
Sky opened the door further, moving both her and Kadey out of the doorway. "I brought doughnuts. Do you want the one with sprinkles?" Trey opened the box but held them just out of Kadey's reach and view.
Sky picked her up so she could see into the box.
"No, I want pancakes." Kadey squirmed in her arms, so Sky let her down.
"Then you're out of luck." Trey picked up the only donut with sprinkles and ate half of it in one bite.
Kadey watched him for a few seconds before she spun and walked away. "That's okay, Prince Charmin and I made pancakes." Kadey, still decked out in Kaeden's t-shirt, sashayed into the kitchen.
"Charming, baby. Charmin is toilet paper." Sky called after her.
"Is that a new imaginary friend? She's a little old for that shit, isn't she? Maybe you should have her head checked."
Sky opened her mouth, but Kaeden's voice cut her off.
"Sky, where's the syrup?"
Trey's head whipped around as quickly as Sky's. Sky blinked at the picture of Kaeden standing in the doorway with a day's worth of stubble on his chin, wearing no shoes or socks and his shirt half untucked. The clothes he wore hugged his body just enough to define his impressive build but not enough to call undue attention to him. He held Kadey on his hip as if it was an everyday occurrence.
Trey swiveled his head back toward Sky.
"Kaeden." Sky didn't know what else to say.
"I see." Trey turned his attention back to the man across from him. The disdain Trey had for Kaeden oozed out of every pore in the man's body.
The tension in the room built further… if that was possible.
Trey pulled himself up to his full five-foot-ten-inches and glared at Kaeden, "Where have you been?"
Kaeden flicked a dismissive look at Trey and hugged Kadey closer to his chest. The little girl wrapped both arms around his neck and focused her attention on the cartoons playing on the television. The lack of any answer from Kaeden coupled with a glacial attitude forestalled any other questions from Trey.
Sky stepped between the men, "Trey-"
"I'm Sky's boyfriend."
A smile passed over Kaeden's face, and he arched an eyebrow. The expression clearly implied he found Trey's words amusing.
Sky wanted to thump him. Kaeden could close off his facial expressions and be a stone-cold statue when he wanted, so she never doubted for a moment that the smirk was calculated to offend.
"Sure you are." Kaeden turned his attention to Sky. "Syrup?"
"Top right-hand cupboard, second shelf in the back."
"Got it. Come on kitten, we have pancakes to eat!" Kaeden spun quickly sending Kadey into a fit of giggles.
"Not too rambunctious, she needs to stay calm," Sky called after them.
"Got it, no fighting dragons until after breakfast." Kaeden's voice carried over Kadey's giggles.
Trey turned toward her. "What the actual fuck?"
Sky felt her eyes bulge at Trey's words. "Language!"
"Right, like that matters. She's not here, she's with bio-dad and what the fuck is he doing here? I thought you couldn't find him? You said you hadn't heard anything."
"He arrived last night after you stormed out." Not a total lie.
"Did he sleep here? A stranger? How did you explain that to your precious daughter?" Trey spat the words at her.
Sky narrowed her eyes at her friend and sometimes lover. "That man is not a stranger, he is Kadey's dad, and yes he stayed here last night."
"Great." Trey dropped the doughnuts on the sofa table. "So that's why you didn't want me to spend the night. Is that why you haven't been putting out? You're cheating on me with bio-dad. How long have you been getting some on the side?"
Sky blinked at the accusation. "I said he got here after you left. He had nothing to do with the fact that I didn't want you to spend the night."
"But you'll let him waltz back into your life and move right on in." Trey crossed his arms over his chest. "Look, I came over here this morning to figure out a way to get past last night. Maybe I haven't been the best at explaining my expectations, but I've got a lot invested in this relat
ionship. You know that guy is a douche, he left you high and dry when you were pregnant, and he'll drop out of sight again. Men like him don't stick around to play house."
Sky flinched. Trey had flung a load of truth at her, and she couldn't deny a word of it. "I know that, alright? But, he's going to save Kadey's life. What do you want me to do, tell him to get lost?"
Trey blew a huff of air and shook his head. "If there was any other way for me to get through this situation, I would throw him out."
Sky could have laughed at the image Trey's words conjured up. There was no way he could possibly move Kaeden an inch, let alone muscle him out the door. But something Trey said stopped her. She cocked her head and crossed her arms in front of her. She stared at Trey for a long moment.
"What?" Trey spit the harshly hissed question out.
"If there was any other way for you to get through this situation?"
Trey narrowed his eyes and looked at her, almost daring her to continue. Sky put her hands on her hips. She couldn't deal with his selfishness anymore. "This situation isn't about you, Trey. For your information, this is my daughter's life we're talking about."
"As if that hasn't been explained in finite detail every time I'm here! Eventually, this situation will all be done, one way or the other. Sure, I want the kid to get better, but I also want you to know that I'm not going anywhere. Once all this is past us, when he's gone, I'll still be here."
"One way or the other?" Sky couldn't go there. One way or the other and Trey would be here? Her mind was a whirlpool of swirling thoughts.
"Fuck, like you don't know about the risks." Trey's verbal slap hurt more than any physical punch to the gut.
"Why?" Sky elevated her eyes to the man, seeing him clearly for probably the first time, and what she saw disgusted her.
"What do you mean, why?"
"I mean why will you still be here? Why are you here today? We don't love each other. We've never had a passionate romance. Why are you so adamant that you want to be here when he's gone?
Trey reached out and cupped her cheek. His grip tightened on the back of her neck. "Because I've got a lot of time and effort invested in you. I'm not willing to just walk away." Trey pulled her in for a kiss.
Sky twisted away. "I'm not in love with you, Trey. I've been honest with you from the beginning. I used to enjoy your friendship, but you've changed. I'm sorry if you thought there was anything more. I never meant to mislead you."
Trey dropped his hand and glared toward the kitchen. "I haven't changed, you needy bitch. This entire situation has become a soul-sucking event because you've let it dominate your life. Now you're kicking me to the curb, and he's staying here with you?"
Sky gaped at him. "Soul-sucking event? You know what, no, we haven't discussed the logistics of it, but if he wants to stay here… yes."
"Right." He turned toward the door and stopped with his hand on the knob glancing back at her. "When he leaves you, and he will leave you, I won't be here to pick up the pieces of your seriously fucked up life."
Sky glared at him. "Is that what you think you've been doing?"
"Obviously. I've never met a woman so unfit to be a mother. You have no job because you fucked up and got caught doing shit that was illegal. You're going to lose this house, and at the end of the investigation the DA is doing on you, you won't have insurance for your precious little baby. How are you going to afford the surgery then? Unless you marry me and get on my insurance, you can't. Not like I'd fucking take you now and good luck getting bio-dad to step up to the plate." A nasty sneer painted itself across his face.
"Get out and never come back." Sky raised her arm and pointed at the door.
"Gladly. You will regret this."
"I'll never regret it. My only regret is I didn't do it sooner." Sky growled the response as the door slammed behind Trey. There was no stabbing pain of regret or sharp emotional sting from the breakup. Trey's departure didn't leave a void. In fact, she felt a wave of relief. She'd fallen into the relationship because she needed to talk out her concerns. She needed someone to unload her fears onto and that someone had been Trey…in the beginning. However, his expectations, needs, and demands had slowly added up to a pressure she didn't want or need in her life, but she had not had the emotional strength to face the drama that would ensue if she kicked him out.
The sound of laughter snapped her back to the present and led her down the short hallway.
"Momma, he put a whole pancake in his mouth! All at once!"
Kaeden's eyes widened, and he pointed to himself innocently. The conspicuous movement of his jaw as he chewed the pancake sent Kadey into another giggle fit.
"He's so silly!"
"He sure is, baby. Sit down on your chair for a minute. I need to talk to you."
Kadey's face immediately fell. "'bout the surgery."
"Yes, about the surgery. You remember how the doctors said you had super special blood and only someone with super special blood could help us?"
Kadey nodded her head and turned her eyes to Kaeden. "Do you have super special blood, too?"
Kaeden smiled at her. "I do."
"Are you going to help make me better?" Kadey spun her fingers in her curls
"I am if it is alright with you."
Kadey stared at him for several long seconds. She jumped down from her chair and ran out of the room.
Sky blinked at her daughter's sudden bolt out of the kitchen. "Kadey! Where are you going? No running!"
"'Kay! Just a minute, Momma!"
Sky started after her only to stop as Kadey came barreling back into the kitchen with the small picture that sat on Sky's night side table. The little girl was pale from the brief physical activity. Her chest heaved with labored breathing. Sky immediately dropped to her knees by her daughter and reached for her. Kadey ignored her and fought to get out of Sky's hold.
"This is you. Right?" Kadey pushed the picture at Kaeden.
Kaeden glanced from the picture to Sky.
She nodded at him; her eyes stung with unshed tears. Her baby knew her daddy without anyone having to tell her.
"Yes, that's me."
"You're my daddy?" Kadey made a valiant effort to climb up on Kaeden's lap.
Kaeden lifted her up and smiled. "Yes, I am."
"Are you done helping all the peoples?" Kadey looked at the picture and then back at Kaeden as if comparing the likenesses.
"Not yet, but I'm taking a break from that so I could come help you, because you are more important to me than all the other people in the world."
Sky's heart broke at his words. She knew she'd never be enough to hold Kaeden. She'd tried to make peace with that years ago, but she wished Kadey could have a relationship with a father figure who would love her the way Sky loved her. She swiped at the tears that tumbled down her cheeks.
"Momma cries when it gets dusty," Kadey talk-whispered to Kaeden before she turned to Sky and smiled at her. "Is it dusty again, Momma?"
"Yeah, baby, it's dusty again."
Chapter Five
Anubis tugged the medical tape and gauze pad off the inside of his elbow. He'd arrived for his appointment, had his blood drawn, and left the building in seven minutes. Guardian's influence once again paved a smooth path.
He palmed a new burner phone that he'd purchased with cash on the way to his doctor's appointment and called into CCS, the secure intelligence computer center that functioned as the brain of Guardian. Making contact directly with people at Guardian was about twenty miles outside his comfort zone. He preferred facilitated contact through multiple anonymous filters-filters that deliberately removed him from any form of association with his co-workers.
Thankfully, Bengal's woman didn't answer this time, and Anubis chuckled when Bengal's distracted voice boomed across the connection, "Reynolds."
"That name never ceases to confuse me." He pur
posely forwent any salutation.
"No shit. Took me about three months to get comfortable with it. The report you've requested is waiting in your Shadow World account. There were several flags and concerns. The dude has no criminal record, but he's got issues at work. He's been written up several times and has very little in the way of savings. Spends money like a drunken sailor on shore leave. Not the type of person I'd want hanging around my family."
Anubis inhaled sharply. He gazed up at the sky and searched the puffy white clouds. "They aren't… I can't do family."
"Bullshit, but I don't have time to debate that with you today, so I'll take a rain check."
"Roger. Copy. Remember to mask my blood work, so alarms don't go off."
"The alarms will go off because Kadey is Rh-null. We will try to mask her name and all her information in the hospital's system, but it will only delay the inevitable. If word gets out that she is having surgery, that logically means another Rh-null donor has been found. The Internal Blood Group Reference Laboratory will contact the hospital, and as we discussed, it isn't like you could just make the donation and leave."
Yeah, like he didn't know that. Besides, after hearing the verbal abuse Arnie laid on Sky this morning, he wasn't going to leave her without knowing the man was warned off. He'd make sure the bastard knew the consequences of continuing any type of contact. He couldn't wait to explain in detail why Arnold Treynor Cross wanted to leave his daughter and her mom alone.
"I can't leave them until Kadey is through the operation and they're both safe."
"And that is why we will never debate the fact that Sky and Kadey are your family."
Anubis totally disregarded Bengal's comment and continued the conversation without acknowledging his words. "If the laboratory gets a sample of my blood they'll compare it to other known samples. My past will be resurrected." Like Lazarus, back from the dead.
"We're working that. Unfortunately, the system the lab overseas uses to store information on Rh-null donors isn't online. Jacob sent Lycos to take care of it. He's been tasked with eliminating any physical or digital files pertaining to who you once were, although he has no idea why he's deleting a dead man's data."
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