Secret Baby (The House of Morgan, #2)

by Victoria Pinder

  She leaned over and placed her hand on his. "I didn't sign anything either."

  "I believed you that day we talked." He slipped his hand away. "To end the story, when the DCF official heard my denial of signing papers, she agreed to give mom custody for the night in my stead."

  Vicki dried her face. "The agent had a heart."

  Colt dropped his hands to the sides now. "I doubt it. My dad called the senator and the governor. Our lawyer proved fraud. I took a DNA test the next day, and Clara has been a Collins since the day she was born."

  "No one called me, including you." Vicki closed her eyes, and memories flooded her of how she'd felt empty for years. She'd have never run away without her baby. "If I had one whiff of Clara being alive, I'd have done anything to be with her."

  Colt stilled. "I called you a few times, but you never answered. I stopped when my lawyer received a letter of complaint that threatened harassment."

  "My father...for what he did to Clara, I want him to come back alive so that I might kill him."

  "I thought we should clear the air about all this, Vicki. I didn't want to cause you more pain."

  "You didn't."

  She squeezed the bridge of her nose. Then she let out a sigh and answered him. "He must have blocked your phone calls. I did stay in the house a few weeks, but then I saw how my father wanted me to go to school and forget Clara. I couldn't pretend, and finally I walked out the door."

  She stilled and saw he clearly had a question. Then slowly he asked, "So why didn't you tell me you were pregnant? You said something about me and a woman at basic. I wanted to ask you what you meant."

  "I have the pictures in my bag. Hold on." She jumped out of her chair and raced for her pocketbook. She sorted through the materials she'd brought and then grabbed the pictures. She returned and laid them on the table. "My father's private investigator brought me these."

  He flipped through the pictures as he wrinkled his nose. "This is Stacy."

  She widened her eyes. "Who's Stacy?"

  His hand went to his chin to support him. "One night at basic, she was in bad shape. Her parents died in a car crash, or something truly horrible like that. It was a long time ago. I remember feeling awful for her. We all went drinking and had too much. She couldn't walk, so I helped her to the car so we could return to base."

  "That's it?"

  He pushed the picture of him and Stacy to the table. "Despite this picture, I never kissed her."

  Then her eyes narrowed. "Are you sure?"

  He shook his head. "Why would I then? I would close my eyes and still imagine you. I wanted you to call me every day of training."

  Her heart melted. She was too late and had missed her chance with Colt, so she avoided his gaze. "If I did, then I disowned him, my family, the money to pay for Clara's birth, and my college tuition."

  He ran his hands through his hair. "My family isn't poor, Vicki. Granted, my trust fund isn't a big as yours, but we could have been fine."

  She lowered her gaze. "He threatened I'd lose everything for a man who was heading off to war and who was in bed with another woman. Then when the nurses, doctor, and my father all said my baby died, I lost my will to fight." Her cheeks were wet with tears, and she couldn't look at Colt. "I shouldn't have let that happen."

  "Don't blame yourself." He reached out to hold her hand for a moment, and his eyes had a spark of something deeper. "We're starting fresh from now on, Vicki. No more lies between us, and there was no other woman."

  He was engaged, and despite how she wished she had him too, she knew this was a fantasy. She dropped his hand that she clung to, and reached up to her mother's necklace to hold the pendant. Her daughter deserved more than a necklace for a mother. "Today is as good as any to start fresh. What happened before now can all be forgotten."

  "No." He took his hand back across the table, and a grin appeared on his face. "Clara is the best thing that came from our mistake."

  "She's perfect." She smiled as tension eased off her skin. "I'm glad. Can we tell her I'm her mother?"

  Colt massaged the back of his neck. "Soon. Not yet. I want it be natural and without pressure. When the topic comes up again, I'll tell her." He stood suddenly. "I have to get going to check on the oranges. You're staying here?"

  "I am." She nodded. "My appointment in town is for tomorrow, but it won't take more than a few hours. Clara is welcome to join me. We'll go to the shop, have lunch, and I'll bring her back here."

  "That sounds fine. Guess tonight's our last night of one-on-one family." He sucked in his breath as he held both hands behind his back. "Belle's flight is in the morning tomorrow."

  "Ohh." The bubble she lived in was about to burst. His fiancée showing up meant no more times like now. Her shoulders sagged. "Okay. I'm happy for you."

  His face reddened. As he headed to the door, he tipped his head. "After work, let's celebrate that we're putting the past away."

  "You're on, cowboy," she called out.

  "I like how you say my name, princess."

  "Colt." Her heart beat faster for him even after he walked out the door. She shouldn't. She sighed and told herself she was here for Clara.

  Her lips ached as she wished for an impossible kiss that would only exist in her dreams.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Vicki and Clara found the cake convection oven still in its box in the pantry. Vicki decided it was time to use it. She placed it on the counter, and showed Clara how to make a homemade cake, complete with frosting. Clara ended up with flour on her face, and a huge laugh. Vicki's heart soared as she wet the cloth and cleaned up her baby's face. As they set the mix into the machine, Clara wiped flour all over her forehead again and tugged at Vicki's shirt.

  Vicki breathed lighter as she reapplied the wet towel and cleaned her up.

  "What's up, darling?" Vicki asked as Clara closed her eyes and sighed. Vicki scrubbed her clean and then told her, "You smell like strawberries."

  Clara opened her eyes and stared at Vicki. Vicki's heart wished that her baby realized she was her mom, but then all Clara said was, "My shampoo."

  Vicki dropped the towel in the sink, satisfied the flour was gone. Then she picked up her daughter so they could wash their hands together.

  "Next time, I want to go get my stool. I'm too big to be picked up," Clara said, then reached over to turn off the faucet. Vicki held her and whiffed her soft, strawberry-flavored hair.

  "I don't mind holding you." Vicki shrugged as she helped her stand on the ground.

  Clara giggled. "Okay, but you're skinny and I'm too big."

  "I'm stronger than I look."

  "Dad is bigger and stronger."

  "Girls are made different, but we're strong in our way. So what's the plan now?" Vicki asked, and wondered what other game or activity her daughter preferred to play. Every second of today had to be about Clara.

  Clara spun around, showed her toothy smile, and giggled. "Let's play dress-up again."

  "It's turning into your favorite game. I'll help you into a dress and do your hair." Vicki followed her as she traipsed through the house toward her room.

  At the door, Clara spun around, tugged at Vicki's arm, and demanded, "No, you have to dress up too."

  Vicki's eyebrows lifted. "I don't have any of my dresses here."

  "Wear one of Grandma's until you get your clothes to move in with me." Clara swung their hands together like she was enjoying herself, and Vicki couldn't say no. Clara must have smelled her victory, because she sped up. "I'll show you where they are."

  Vicki ran her free hand on the wall. If she wore something clean and fresh, not a few days old, her spirits would lift. In these clothes, she thought about Colt every other second, and to her, clothes held memories too long. "Okay."

  In a bedroom in the back of the house, Clara threw open the closet without a care. "Grandma's stuff. I'm going to take a shower. Be in my room in ten minutes and we'll do our hair to impress Daddy."

  "You don't have to impress
your dad, sweetheart." Vicki smiled. "Colt's love for you is unconditional."

  "Daddy will laugh at me." Clara squeaked and ran out of the room.

  With a critical, well-trained eye, Vicki perused the dresses, and picked out a plain black knee-length. With a dress and a good cleaning, Vicki might feel pretty. A smile broke out on her face, and all thoughts returned to Colt's well-formed backside. As a sophisticated Miami socialite, she was used analyzing a man's form without getting attached. Every girl in Miami could calculate that one, but everything about Colt was familiar and yet different.

  Either way, Colt made her heart thump, but she refused to flirt. He'd be the perfect guy to fall in love with. The thought heated her cheeks as she tried to let it go. Then she followed her daughter's plan with the dress, held it in her arms, and rushed to her room for a fast shower.

  Five minutes later, she threw the dress over her head and, without warning, Clara opened the door. Vicki heard Colt's voice. "Close the door."

  Her entire body was so hot that she might melt as she tugged the dress further down her body. With her eyes closed, she prayed she'd seem calm, and at least the fabric covered her red face this second. The door clicked closed and then she finished fast, took a deep breath, and walked out into the living area.

  "Vicki, you look pretty." Clara's smiling face greeted her as Vicki straightened out the back. "Dad will like you better than Belle, I just know it."

  Vicki knelt down and pressed her foot into her washed Prada shoe. "What was that?"

  Clara put her hands behind her back. "Nothing."

  Vicki crossed her arms. "Do you not like Belle?"

  Clara smiled and swayed on her feet. "I like you more."

  Vicki stood. She couldn't smile that her daughter liked her, but her entire body felt lighter. Colt hadn't heard this conversation, and he'd get defensive again. She smiled. "Let's go, sweetheart."

  With a huge smile on her face, she held her daughter's hand and walked out the door. Colt waited in the kitchen area with his muscular back turned. She licked her lips and then imagined his entire body naked. She must be blushing for how she thought, and she tried to ignore her reactions. "Dinner is almost done. Let me get everything on the table. Go sit with Clara."

  He whiffed the air as he turned toward her. With a sly grin, he added, "Doesn't smell like you burned anything."

  She shrugged a shoulder, and then winked at Clara. "Sit. Wait and be surprised."

  "You never could cook, and certainly didn't know how to turn on the stove."

  He'd see. Colt leaned over and whispered something to Clara. Their daughter giggled, and he led the girl to the table.

  With a raised her eyebrow, Vicki held her tongue and slipped on oven mitts. She gave him a saucy grin, and intended to prove that Vicki Morgan knew how to take care of herself. She held her head high and retrieved the juice.

  She brought over cups and the juice for the table. Smoke wafted in the air as she sniffed. She broke into a run, opened the oven door, and the smoke made her cough.

  Tears formed in her eyes, and she grabbed the tray with the food. Her ears rang with Colt's laughter from behind as he came to the kitchen to help. She swatted at the air to clear out her lungs as he found a towel and took out the charred remains of her dinner. It was black, not even brown. She ran her hand through her hair. She had worked all day on that. Then she dramatically dropped her shoulders. "I added a hundred degrees, I guess. At home, I never screw up like this."

  "Excuses, excuses. Shall I call for a pizza?" Colt said, and picked up his phone from the counter.

  The char-grilled lasagna didn't strike her as appealing. She nodded. "I'll have appetizers and vegetables steamed while we wait."

  Colt spoke to whoever answered the phone while she cleaned up the mess. She closed her eyes, said a little prayer, and then finished.

  Moments after he'd hung up, he spoke to their daughter as she picked out a bowl and added the steamed edamame.

  Without instructions, Vicki added the sea salt, and asked, "Want me to add the salt?"

  Colt smirked at her, but didn’t say anything about how she asked him as she did it. "Not particularly, princess. Bring it over here."

  Darn. He made her nerves jitter sometimes.

  "Daddy, I'm the princess," Clara added fast.

  "No, you're the royal pain." Colt blinked, and his cheeks turned red. "Vicki's always been the princess."

  Vicki bit her lower lip. How she'd screwed up dinner made no sense. "I'll take 'Your Royal Highness' from you, Marine."

  Her face was still warm. She'd messed up dinner, but she refused to fight at their last meal as one family. She pasted a smile on her face and dragged her feet over to the table.

  "You keep trying to prove you can cook. You don't have to do that. We're good either way." Colt told everyone, "I ordered the pizza. Sit and I'll get the drinks."

  With a shrug, Vicki plopped in her seat and sipped her water. She swallowed then asked, "How did you take John in Alice's life? Our family is screwed up."

  "I still think your father hurt you all, in different ways. John was ignored. You were trained to be a prize. Peter was raised to be exactly like your father, which meant he probably dealt with your father the most."

  Vicki's skin went cold. He placed the edamame in the middle of the table and added an empty bowl for the shells next to it, as he continued, "My sister and my mom fought a lot when she was a teenager, but our family was nothing like yours."

  Colt's opinion on her family was insightful, and she could only see the truth in every syllable. She tried to think of something she could do for his family. "Alice had me in her corner."

  Without a word, he hopped out of his chair, retrieved a bottle, then poured her a glass of white wine, and one for himself. Her head tilted as he placed the glass in front of her. "Thank you."

  Colt inhaled then broke their visual connection to give Clara an unsweetened tea, her favorite drink. Vicki's skin jumped as she realized she knew that one fact about her daughter now.

  He ran his hand through his hair, slid into his seat, and served everyone edamame. Vicki nodded, unable to speak due to the heat that coursed through her. This was her family. Clara was her daughter, and Colt was unforgettable. As she pressed her hand in her lap, she changed the topic. "Do you all go to a Dolphins games with Clara?"

  "Not yet," Colt answered. "But that's a good idea. Clara should experience a football game, and one day we might get a good team again."

  "You loved the Fins." In her head, she wanted to add, We can go as a family, but then her pulse raced at the realization that he intended to marry someone else. Clara stared at her like she'd made a strange face, but still Vicki didn't say a word.

  Colt didn't seem to notice. "You were the cheerleader."

  "It was easy in high school. I was rooting for you."

  His face grew a huge smile. Then he turned to Clara. "Vicki's getting her clothes, then she moves back in here to spend more time with you. Tomorrow, do you want to go with her to pack a few things, visit her store, and have lunch in Miami?"

  Vicki's lips formed a circle and she couldn't blink. Move in? They hadn't discussed that. Wasn't his fiancée about to show up?

  "You trust me to do that?" she asked, though she wished she could stay here with him, without his fiancée. No woman would want the mother of his child living with him. Vicki gulped and kept that to herself. Three was a crowd. He knew that. Colt was being kind.

  Vicki bit her lip. She'd stay with her family.

  He took a sip of his wine, and did not elaborate. She couldn't quite close her mouth yet. He then reached across the table and placed his hands over hers. "I'll trust you to bring my daughter home. You both want to spend time together, and I believe in you."

  Her heart soared. No one had ever believed in her. Vicki felt like someone who'd won the lottery. She glanced at Clara and smiled. Colt understood the entire situation, and he was right that telling their daughter had to be natural. Vicki's
face heated as she glanced at her wine. "Thank you. If you want to spend the first night together with your fiancée tomorrow, I'll take Clara to dinner on the town too. Give you both breathing room."

  "No." His fast answer shook Vicki's resolve. He massaged his neck and averted his gaze. Then she turned her palm upward and took his hand in hers. Colt's lips puckered as he said, "It's not you, but it's Belle. Clara needs time to see she's not a monster."

  "Then I shouldn't be here." Vicki gazed at the floor. She stopped massaging his hand and shook her head.

  "You absolutely should be here. Clara needs you." Colt pressed his lips together like he wanted to say something else but then stopped himself. "I made a promise to you. Natural will be easier to handle if we're all in the same room."

  "Right now is good."

  "Let me first talk to Belle. It's not that long."

  "Clara doesn't need two women in one house." Now he wanted to talk to Belle? Perhaps she should see a lawyer. She swallowed that thought and finished. "It's a recipe for disaster."

  "I want Vicki, not Belle," Clara added fast.

  Colt shrugged, and then took his hand back. "Princess, I want you to stay."

  He meant Vicki, not Clara. Vicki's pulse quickened as she wondered if he might care about her, but she could be so wrong. Maybe Colt and Belle weren't happy and there was trouble in paradise, but he'd never said a word to her. She'd pack a bag, for now, but ensure she had a full tank of gas in case she needed to evacuate. Whatever happened with Belle, she'd not be here. "No worries. Clara and I will have fun. We'll stop to my bridal shop, get lunch, do something fun, and return early enough for dinner with Belle."

  Clara's face contorted.

  "School starts in two weeks, so not too much fun." He nodded at his daughter and swallowed. Then he turned back to Vicki. "I'm trying to make this work. If we stick together, near home, we'll figure out how to function in a healthy, sharing way."