“No need to rush. I’m working Friday.”
First, she avoided talking to him and now she didn’t want to see him either. “You don’t usually work Fridays.” In the two months since he’d met her, she’d never worked a Friday shift.
“Shelly needed the day off. Some family reunion, so she asked me. I’m covering her for Saturday morning too. She’s only scheduled until three though.”
He wanted to ask why she’d agreed. Another nurse could have filled in. The weekends were all they got. Scott refrained because he doubted he’d get the real reason behind Paige’s actions over the phone.
“I already canceled our plans with my parents for Saturday night.”
The more Paige spoke, the more suspicious he became.
“If you’re off at three, we would’ve still had time, Paige. You didn’t need to cancel.”
“It’s no big deal. We can do it some other time. My parents understood.”
His chest grew tight at her words. Damn it. She was withdrawing from him.
“Is Sunday okay to have dinner with mine?” When he saw her, he’d demand answers, but for now, he’d play along.
Seconds ticked by and all he heard was Ryder barking in the background. “Um, probably. Can we decide for sure this weekend or do they need to know before then?”
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. Even before this call, he’d been suspicious. Now he feared the worse. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do a single thing about it tonight. Some conversations you couldn’t have over the phone. He’d have to wait until Friday.
“Mom said they’re around all weekend, so we can talk about it again when I see you.” And we’ll talk about other things too.
“Awesome, thanks for understanding. It’s been an extra crazy week, and I’m already beat. I can’t think about the weekend tonight.”
“Get some rest, and we’ll talk tomorrow.” He saw no point in keeping her on the phone. “Love you.”
“Will do. Love you too.”
Scott ended the call. Fuck. In less than a week, his life had turned itself upside down. And tonight he had no way of righting it.
Paige Foster, you’re a giant chicken. She plugged in her smartphone so it would charge and went for her chocolate stash. Tonight definitely called for the good stuff. She hated lying to Scott, but she also couldn’t talk to him right now. Every time they spoke, it only reminded her of what she needed to tell him. He sensed she was avoiding him too. She heard it in his voice. He’d gone along with it, but he didn’t fully believe her. At least, not anymore. Perhaps he had until she’d told him about working this weekend. She could’ve and should’ve told Shelly no, or at least not agreed to both shifts. There were plenty of other people her coworker could’ve asked. When she’d asked though, Paige had agreed right away. Working gave her a legitimate excuse to cut the time she spent with Scott this weekend short. Or forever, for all she knew. Saturday, no matter what, she planned to tell him everything. Who knew what he’d do afterward, especially if by then he’d gotten the paternity test back confirming he was Cooper’s father. Regardless of how he felt about her news, he might decide he didn’t have the time for a relationship now. Knowing Scott, he’d want to devote as much time as he could to a son, which meant there might not be anything left over for anyone else.
She bit into the candy and savored the rich dark chocolate, which contained just a trace of sea salt. Heavenly. Chocolate might not solve any problems but it sure helped get through the day. Breaking off another piece, she considered the best way to approach the subject when she saw Scott. Should she just announce she might never be able to have children because she only had one fallopian tube and ovary, which made it potentially more difficult to get pregnant? Or should she explain how she and Benjamin had tried for a few years and when it didn’t happen he’d left her rather than consider other options. She’d rather not discuss that time in her life, but it might help him understand her feelings on the matter. Decisions, decisions. She’d rather be considering whether to have more of this chocolate bar Scott had brought back from his most recent trip or switch to the cheaper stuff. Her stash of Favre chocolate was running dangerously low, and there was a good chance she’d need a lot of it to get her though the upcoming days.
***
Paige left room 320 and checked her watch as she walked back to the nurses’ station. Before she could do anything about it, she yawned and again she kicked herself for taking Shelly’s shift.
“I haven’t seen you in forever. Did your schedule change?” Mary, one of the nurses’ assistants, asked. For a long time they’d worked the same shift, but after having a baby Mary had switched to part-time and only worked Friday and Saturdays. Paige couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen the woman.
“Nope, just filling in. How’ve you been?” Paige answered.
“Great. I just left the patient in room 323, and he’s looking for you.”
What else was new? Since she’d started her shift, the patient had been calling for her every ten minutes. “Thanks, I’ll go see what he needs.”
Grabbing her coffee from the nurses’ station, she took a gulp. Lukewarm liquid slid down her throat, and she grimaced. She liked hot coffee and iced coffee. Anything in between she found disgusting. Good thing she could get more soon.
“What can I help you with, Mr. Ross?” she asked, entering the patient’s room. Unlike on her previous visits to the room, a man, perhaps in his early twenties, and woman about her own age sat with Mr. Ross.
“My father needs another blanket,” the young man answered.
A blanket? He could’ve asked Mary for a blanket when she’d been in here checking his father’s vitals. “Certainly. Anything else?”
“I’d like to speak to my father’s doctor. Do you know when he’ll be here?” This time the woman spoke.
“He’s making his rounds. I’m sure he’ll be in shortly.”
The woman frowned. “He better be. I want some answers.”
Oh boy, not one of those. “I’ll get you the extra blanket, Mr. Ross.”
Escaping the room, she stopped quick. She’d recognize his profile anywhere. Like he had so many weeks earlier, Scott stood at the nurses’ station, his presence distracting every female hospital employee around. She hadn’t expected to see him until much later. While she’d hinted he should stay in New York tonight, he’d either not gotten the message or had ignored it, because he’d promised to see her when she got home. Since he stood feet away, he’d decided not to wait so long.
“Hey, Mary. Can you do me a favor,” she asked as the nurse’s assistant came out of the patient room next door. “The patient in room 323 needs another blanket. Will you bring him one?” Pretending she hadn’t seen Scott wouldn’t make him disappear.
“No problem.”
With no other pressing matters, Paige headed down the hall.
He must have seen her in his peripheral vision because he turned toward her before she spoke.
“Hey, what are you doing here? Didn’t you plan on visiting your cousin until I got off?” To her own ears, she sounded less than enthused about seeing him. Unless he’d suddenly gone deaf, there was no way he hadn’t picked up on it too.
“Decided to go over later. I stopped at my Uncle Mark’s office instead.” He took her hand and squeezed it, the gesture causing the fist around her heart to do the same. “Have you gone on your lunch break yet? I tried to get here the same time as I did before.”
If she said yes, he’d leave and she’d have a few more hours before she needed to answer his questions. But she’d lied enough to him already, and she did need some fresh coffee. “No, I was about to go. Let me get my things.”
The cafeteria was unusually busy for the time of day. “Someone’s at my favorite table,” she said, speaking for the first time since they’d left the CCU.
“If you want to pick another, I’ll get us coffee.”
“I didn’t get around to packing anything, so I’m going to buy
a sandwich or something. You find us a seat, okay.” She walked away before Scott could insist on doing it for her.
Scott was on the phone when she came back, but he immediately ended the call when she set down her tray. “Doesn’t look too bad. Meatball sandwich?”
“Eggplant,” she answered, handing him his coffee before taking a large gulp of her own. “Did you hear anything from the lab today?” She’d expected news by now.
Scott scowled, answering her question without a single word. “No. Not yet anyway. I’ll log in to the site again later and check.”
“At least you don’t have to wait for them to mail something out.”
“I wish Nicole had picked a different lab. I did a little research and some places guarantee results within two business days. This four to seven is bull— It’s ridiculous.”
Paige closed her hand over his, her need to comfort him in some small way too great. “Almost over. Was that work on the phone?”
Moving the topic away from the paternity test might help improve his mood. Hers as well. She’d already spent enough time thinking about it this week.
“Yeah, just an update on a new project in France. Looks like we got the green light.”
“Someday I’d love to visit. See Notre Dame and the Louvre. When I was in high school, the French club went to France for a week, but my parents wouldn’t let me go. They thought it was too far for a seventeen-year-old to go without a parent.”
Scott’s scowl faded, and something close to a smile replaced it. “I’ll be going over before the end of the year. When I do, come with me. While we’re over there, we can visit anywhere else you want.”
She couldn’t think any further into the future than tonight. “We’ll see. I don’t even have a passport. Mine expired last year and I never got a new one.” Paige focused on cutting her sandwich, rather than look at him. “How come you changed your plans and went to see your uncle?”
“Needed his legal advice.” The half smile disappeared. “Just in case.”
He didn’t need to explain any further. Mark Sherbrooke, his uncle, was the Supreme Court Chief Justice in Rhode Island. If anyone knew the law, it would be him.
Across from her, Scott picked up his coffee. “Let’s talk about something else. Derek invited us out on his boat tomorrow night. I thought we could head to Newport when you get off work and join him and his fiancée, Brooklyn. You’ll like her. Then we can spend the night at my house there. What do you say?”
“Can we talk about it later?”
“Later?” His lips barely moved when spoke.
She didn’t blame him for being upset. After all, she’d said the same thing about meeting his parents this weekend.
“Yeah, sure. Later it is.”
“Please don’t be upset. I just want time to think about it.” She didn’t want him mad at her.
“I’m not upset, Paige. I’m frustrated. Something’s going on with you. I don’t know what, but you haven’t been yourself.”
Paige shifted in her seat, unable to meet his eyes. If she denied, it she’d be lying, but she didn’t want to talk about it in here either.
“This situation with Nicole and Cooper is far from perfect, but there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“We’ll talk tonight. Promise. As soon as I get home.” Her time had run out.
***
Twice Scott was stopped by acquaintances as he made his way toward Derek’s table in the country club’s lounge. Already agitated from his brief encounter with Paige, he couldn’t tolerate any more small talk with people. He’d leave altogether, but he’d canceled lunch with Derek earlier so he could visit Uncle Mark. He couldn’t bail on his cousin twice in one day.
“What’s biting your ass?” Derek asked, his voice low so no one else would overhear him.
Where to start?
“Let me guess, woman problems?”
“You could say that.” Scott considered his conversation with Paige at the hospital. It hadn’t gone the way he’d envisioned.
Derek held back any more questions when the waitress approached and took Scott’s drink order. As soon as she left, Derek went into lawyer mode and started his interrogation. “Does it have something to do with why you ditched me earlier and went to see my dad instead?”
“Some of it.”
“Not much for sharing today.” Derek picked up his drink and took a sip.
What difference did telling Derek make anyway? He wouldn’t share with anyone except maybe Brooklyn. “There’s a decent chance I’m a father.”
Derek choked on his whiskey. “What? When the hell did that happen? Who’s the mother? How do you not know?” His questions came one right after another.
Before he got into it, he grabbed his cousin’s drink and took a swig, since the waitress hadn’t delivered his yet. “Nicole Sutton, do you remember her? She stopped by my place last week and delivered the news. She was screwing two other men when we dated.” Scott kept his voice low. He didn’t need anyone around them hearing their conversation. “Jordan Lee isn’t the father like she hoped. Leaves me and the other guy. I should have the paternity results soon. Visited your dad this afternoon for his advice in case Cooper turns out to be mine.”
“Don’t blame you for being pissed today. How’s your new girlfriend handling the news?”
Scott held off answering and thanked the waitress when she set down his glass. “Not well, if this week’s any indication.”
“She didn’t tell you? Brooklyn would’ve let me know just what she thought.”
“Paige says it doesn’t bother her. But something’s wrong. She’s avoiding me.”
“Hey, I have a novel idea. Ask her.”
He glared at Derek. “Aren’t you the genius? I guess that’s what I get for going to Yale instead of Harvard like you.” Scott sipped from his glass. “I plan on getting answers tonight.” He didn’t look forward to their conversation, but it needed to happen.
“Have you told anyone besides my dad and me about the possibility?” Derek asked, perhaps understanding Scott didn’t want to talk about Paige and their relationship.
Another fun conversation he didn’t want to have with anyone and one he hoped he could avoid. “Not yet. Holding off for now. No point in bringing it up, if it turns out I’m not the father.”
“How soon is soon on the test results?”
“Could be today. I checked the site earlier they weren’t there, but they might be now. If not, I expect them Monday.” Scott pulled his smartphone out. He had a strong Internet connection inside the club. He should be able to get on the site.
“You’re checking now?”
He saw no reason not to. Scott brought up the lab’s website then typed in his username and password, his finger lingering over the enter button.
“Don’t blame you for being nervous,” Derek said when Scott still didn’t proceed.
Checking or not checking wasn’t going to change the answer. Grabbing his drink, he took a gulp and hit Enter. Immediately, he found a link marked test results.
“Are they there?”
He stared at the screen, the link taunting him. All he had to do was open it, and he’d know. “Yep.”
“And should I go out and buy you a car seat or not?”
He appreciated his cousin’s attempt to lighten the situation. “Don’t know. I need to open them first.” Do it. Get it over with. Either way you’ll finally know. Scott pressed the link, and the report popped up.
Chapter 14
She turned off the water after taking one of the quickest showers in history. At least she’d been able to take one. Considering how she’d left things with Scott earlier, she’d expected to find him waiting in the driveway when she got home. Wrapped in a soft bath towel, she grabbed her scrubs off the bathroom floor and tossed them in the laundry before switching off the light and walking out.
When he’d asked about going out with his cousin, she should’ve said yes. Telling him they’d talk about it had
only upset him further. She’d rather have him in the best mood possible when she told him everything. But she hadn’t wanted to lie to him any more than she already had. Her conscience had her tossing and turning every night already because she’d lied and told him she was too tired to talk when he’d called during the week. More guilt wouldn’t help.
As she pulled on a top, Ryder jumped off the bed, barking as he hightailed it toward the kitchen. A moment or two later the doorbell chimed. Without bothering to brush her hair, Paige tied it back. Tonight wasn’t about looking good. It was all about getting the truth out between them.
Paige rubbed her chest in an effort to ease the ache there. This might be the last time she found him on her doorstep. God, she hoped not.
“Right on time. As always.” She stepped back while Ryder bolted straight for Scott. On cue, he rewarded the dog with a scratch behind the ears.
“Hey, buddy. It’s nice to see you too.” Scott spoke to the dog as he walked inside, closing the door behind him. “But it’s even better to see you.” He pulled her close and kissed her, causing the ache around her heart to spread.
“I agree,” she somehow managed to say around the lump in her throat. “How’s your cousin?” Procrastination evidently was her middle name tonight. “He must be excited about his wedding.”
Scott shrugged and took her hand. “We need to talk.”
She’d promised they’d do so as soon as she got home. Looked like he planned on holding her to that. “Do you want anything first? Have you had dinner? I haven’t. Only managed a shower before you got here.”
The muscle in Scott’s cheek twitched.
“We’ll eat later,” Paige said, before leading him into the other room and sitting down. Not wanting to be left behind, Ryder followed them and jumped on a chair.
“You were right earlier. And I’m sorry if I haven’t been myself.” The sooner she spoke the sooner she’d be done. “There’s something I need to tell you. I meant to do it last weekend, but then your ex-girlfriend showed up and, well, I didn’t.”
Falling For the Billionaire Page 16