Logan blinked, then broke into laughter. “Have you lost your mind? How are we going to be a family when that kid of yours isn’t mine?”
“We’re going to do this. You remember the night of the hurricane. We were all trapped here and . . .”
Logan threw his hand in her face. “You’re fucking insane.”
“That’s not what the DNA test says. Jean is your son and I know for a fact he’s going to be the only child you’re ever going to have, since your soon-to-be ex couldn’t give you a child.”
“Watch your mouth. You’re not even fit to think about her, much less say a mumbling word about her.” Logan clenched his hands into fists. And though he would never strike a woman, Kamrie was a test.
“Logan, we can have the family I know you want. Jean should meet his father and have a relationship with you.”
He took a huge step back. “You don’t know shit about me.”
She smiled, reminding him of The Grinch on Christmas day. “You keep acting as if you’ve forgotten that I know every inch of that amazing body. Especially . . .” She nodded toward his crotch. “Stop denying it. We’re a family and you should come home, where you belong.”
Logan crossed over to his car and slammed inside. He wondered if he could order a seventy-two-hour hold for that crazy bitch. Calm down, he thought as he pulled out of the parking garage. Logan knew he needed to find his wife. She hadn’t taken his calls and her lawyer wasn’t forthcoming with where he could find Robin.
Of course, going to her office was an option but it was going to be his last resort. He didn’t want to cause a public scene this close to the holidays. Hell, he didn’t want to cause a scene, period.
But he had to find her and they needed to talk. Robin was more than likely in Charleston, South Carolina, with her family. Maybe it was time for him to listen to the human resources director and take some time off.
All he wanted for Christmas was to win his wife back and get his life back on track. And he was going to do whatever he had to do to prove his love to Robin. That meant that he was going to have to get Kamrie to come clean about the father of her son.
Logan couldn’t live without Robin and this lie wasn’t going to destroy them. All he could do was pray that he wasn’t too late.
Chapter 2
Robin tried to keep a brave face on for her sister. Nina looked so beautiful in her white gown. The older the youngest Richardson sister got, the more she looked like their mother, Nora. Especially when she smiled.
She was smiling a lot these days. Young love was a beautiful thing. But Robin hoped Nina would never face the kind of pain that Logan had caused her. It would’ve been different if the son of a bitch had been honest and owned up to what he did. It was his constant denials that kept her angry. She couldn’t believe her prince charming had become the average Joe.
When caught, deny and lie. Logan—her man—was supposed to be better than that. He’d promised her that he’d never lie or hurt her. That bastard did both. Logan knew how much she wanted to have a family of her own. But that was never going to happen. Her family didn’t know why she and Logan hadn’t had children, and, thankfully, her sisters weren’t the type of women who thought the key to a happy marriage meant a house full of kids. But Robin wanted children and wanted to have the kind of family that she’d grown up with.
Cancer changed that.
She thought that it wasn’t going to change her marriage. Logan had promised her that it wouldn’t. He’d even said that he didn’t want children. He’d said they could spend their lives traveling and enjoying each other. She believed him. Believed that she alone was enough for her husband.
After her surgery and the fact that she would never be able to have a child, Logan swore that they could make a family any way they wanted to. Adoption, foster parents, volunteering at schools or Boys & Girls Clubs.
“Family,” he’d said, “is what we make it.”
Then I guess he made it with that woman. Wonder if he’s going to claim his kid now?
Alexandria, Robin’s oldest sister, touched her shoulder. “What’s going on with you?”
“Huh?”
“You keep staring off into space and this isn’t like you. You normally have some magical story to tell about your wedding.”
Robin waved her hand. “I’m fine. The last thing I want to do is take away from Nina’s day and Christmas.”
“But you don’t have to suffer in silence. I know something serious is going on. Let’s go grab a drink, and if you want to talk, we can. Otherwise, we can drink and eat chicken wings.”
“I’m vegan now.”
Alex rolled her eyes. “Vegan? Why?” She looked her sister up and down. “It can’t be for vanity’s sake. You look amazing. A little too thin, if I’m honest.”
“I’m doing it for my health.” Robin smiled. “But I’m glad you think I look good.”
“Yeah, well, you have a lot working in your favor. We share the same DNA.”
Robin pinched her sister’s arm. “Modest much?”
“Let’s get out of here. Yolanda and Nina are going to be flipping through fabric swatches and ignoring us for the next few hours and you need to talk to me.”
Robin dropped her head and fought back the hot tears welling up in her eyes. Alex wrapped her arms around her sister’s shoulders. “I’ll happily kick his ass.”
“Now you sound like Yolanda.” Robin laughed and wiped a tear away. “There’s more to this than just Logan cheating.”
Alex furrowed her eyebrows. “What’s really going on?”
Robin tried to usher Alex out of the room before Nina or Yolanda saw her tears. Too late.
“Robin!” Nina and Yolanda were by her side in a flash. “Why are you crying?” Nina asked.
“I told you something was going on over here,” Yolanda said. “Spill it.”
“Leave her alone,” Alex warned. “Don’t y’all have stuff to do?”
“Yeah,” Nina said. “And at the moment, I’m going to hug my sister.”
Nina drew Robin into her arms and gave her a tight hug. She wished that she hadn’t told her little sister about Logan. But, since Yolanda knew, Robin had to share the sad news. “Do you know how much I love you for being here right now? I know it has to be hard for you to remember your wedding when your marriage is falling apart.”
Robin sighed and ran her hand across her face. “I wish it was just that. Nina, I am beyond happy for you and Clinton. This isn’t just about my marriage ending.”
Yolanda nodded. “Start talking, Robin.”
“We’re going to need a few bottles of wine for this,” Robin said. “Let’s go and have a few drinks.”
“Wait,” Nina said as she looked down at the slip she was wearing. “I need to change.”
“We’ll be at the bar across the street,” Robin said as she and Alex left. Yolanda stayed behind with Nina.
* * *
The drive to Charleston seemed to take forever. Six hours turned into eight because of the holiday traffic on the interstates. And there were a few moments when Logan almost turned around. What if he arrived in Charleston and Robin wasn’t there? Suppose Sheldon decided to have him arrested for trespassing?
Logan wasn’t stupid enough to believe that he could plead his case to his father-in-law and have him on his side. Robin was his daughter and though Sheldon was a fair man, nothing was stronger than the love he had for his daughters.
Still, he had to get Robin to hear him out. Logan knew he couldn’t live without her. And this lie was going to be the death of him. Especially if she continued to believe it. Why would she think that I’d want another woman when she has been the only one I’ve ever needed?
Logan slowed down as the person in the car in front of him abruptly slammed on the brakes. Switching into the right lane, he wondered if the accident in front of him was a sign. When he arrived in Charleston, was his marriage going to really crash and burn like the Prius that had hit the deer? He didn’t l
ook at the carnage in the other lane as he pressed forward. If he was going to fight, then he couldn’t be a punk ass.
It was after three a.m. before he arrived in Charleston, and it didn’t dawn on him until he pulled into the parking lot of a no-name motel that it was Christmas Eve. Christmas just didn’t mean a thing to him without Robin. After parking his car, Logan walked into the lobby and wasn’t surprised to find the front desk clerk asleep.
He tapped the desk and smiled as the man opened his eyes. “Sorry to wake you,” Logan said.
“My bad. It’s been a long day. You need a room?”
Logan nodded. “Got any king-sized beds?”
“Nope. Queen or twin.”
“I’ll take a queen.” Logan sighed and pulled out his wallet. “Don’t hit me on the head with the cost for one night, though.”
“Don’t tell the boss that I was sleeping and I’ll let you stay for fifty dollars.”
Logan pulled out his credit card and nodded. “My lips are sealed.”
After getting checked in, Logan walked into a room that smelled a lot like mildew. He shook his head, thinking about how stellar things had always been at the Richardson B&B.
In college, Robin talked about her father’s hotel and made it sound like some fairy tale castle. When she’d taken him to Charleston in their junior year at Xavier, he saw that she was right. The history of the place in the face of Southern discrimination, how he raised his daughters surrounded by such beauty and privilege, yet they were some of the most gracious women ever. Even if Alexandria tried to act like she was a hard ass. Clearly, she wasn’t. Alex had a protective nature over her family but knew that Sheldon wore the pants. He had been pleasantly surprised by the wedding toast she’d given all of those years ago.
“To the man who will love my sister to the moon and back. And to my sister, who found her Creole prince charming, may God bless your union. And may you teach my sister how to make jambalaya.”
He wondered if Alex would listen to him and help him win his wife back. It took him about three seconds to realize that he was foolish to think that any one of those sisters would listen to a word he had to say.
Even if he hadn’t done anything wrong. Kamrie had been spreading this lie about them sleeping together and that child being his. He had to stop it and that meant he needed a real DNA test. That would mean giving credence to the rumors Kamrie flaunted. Logan stupidly had hoped this thing would disappear. He wanted to keep his marriage and his reputation intact. As the rumbles in the rumor mill grew and grew, Logan couldn’t ignore it anymore. He needed to clear his name. But not just for his career. He had to do whatever he needed to do to win his wife back.
He could understand why Robin was so devastated by this. She’d been the one who wanted a big family. Three children, all boys. Logan smiled as he thought about the days they’d lain in the grass on the quad and planned their life.
“What do you see in that cloud?” she asked as she pointed to a puffy white cloud.
“A big chance that we’re going to be all wet real soon,” Logan replied with a laugh.
She grabbed his hand and placed it on her thigh. “Who says I’m not wet already.”
“Now, Robin, you know you can’t play with me like that.”
She licked her bottom lip. “I don’t play. But I got some studying to do.”
“All work and no play makes a dull girl.”
Robin rolled her eyes and eased closer to him. “I made a promise to my mother and I have to keep it.”
“What promise was that?”
“To be focused. And as amazing as you are, Mr. Baptiste, you’re not taking my focus off my future.”
“Nah, that’s not what I’m doing. We’re going to be a team. So, if you need to study, then get to it.”
She looked down at his arm, which hadn’t left her waist. “You’re going to let me go or no?”
“Do I have to?”
Robin raised her right eyebrow. “Aren’t you in my study group?”
He nodded. “But I’m skipping tonight. Guess who has a chance to go and cut open a human heart tonight.”
Robin shook her head and moved his arm. “The fact that you’re so excited about that really makes me believe you’re going to be a great doctor or a serial killer one day.”
“Stop watching those true crime channels, attorney.”
The couple rose to their feet and held each other just as the first drops of rain started falling. Logan leaned in and kissed her while they were drenched.
“Looks like I’m going to have to dry you off after all.” Logan scooped Robin into his arms and ran to his dorm. She held on to him so tightly. But it was the smile on her full lips that made him realize she was the woman he’d spend the rest of his life with.
No matter what he had to do, Logan was going to get his wife back.
* * *
When the sun slashed through the windows, Robin was sure that she’d been asleep for only fifteen minutes. How many bottles of wine did she and her sisters go through last night as she told them about the demise of her marriage, her cancer, and Logan’s refusal to end things? Robin didn’t always share her failures with her sisters. She’d only told them that she and Logan had grown apart.
Two whites and one red. And Robin was sure that she’d drunk all of the merlot. Of course, Alex and Yolanda had been pissed that she hadn’t told them about her cancer and the surgery she had had to remove her uterus.
Nina had just cried. And Robin pointed to that reaction as to why she’d never told them. But deep inside, she knew she didn’t tell her family because Logan had taken such good care of her that she hadn’t needed her sisters. He had been her emotional support. He’d taken a leave from work as she’d gone through treatment and ultimately the surgery. Logan had been able to ask the doctor questions that Robin would’ve never thought to ask.
She’d been so grateful for him and his medical knowledge. And he’d comforted her so much when it sunk in that she wouldn’t have the three children they’d always dreamed about.
Robin walked into Whole Foods with Logan. One of the changes they’d been making in their lifestyle had been to eat more clean meals. Robin had been reading about vegan meals and their healing properties.
Logan was happy to go along with it as long as he could sneak a steak every now and then. She leaned against his shoulder as he pushed the green cart. “I think we should start with vegan mac and cheese tonight. I saw a really easy recipe that uses cauliflower noodles.”
“I’m sure it tastes better than it sounds,” he replied, then stroked her cheek. “Glad you wanted to get out of the house today.”
She released a heavy sigh. “I think I’ve been in bed long enough.”
“Babe, if you need more time or to call one of your sisters . . .”
Robin shook her head. “ If I call one, they all will come and I can’t . . .”
He stroked her cheek again and kissed her. “Understood. You just let me know what you need and I’ll make sure you have it.” Logan pointed to a display of vegan cheese. “And there is the fake cheese.”
She pinched his side. “You’re funny. We’re going to need almond milk, some pepper. Umm, what is the vegan substitute for eggs?”
“I don’t think there is one, Rob.” As Logan walked over to the display to grab the cheese, a little girl who’d been running from her flustered mother grabbed his leg.
“Dada!”
Robin’s knees quaked as she watched Logan set the cheese aside and pick the little girl up to stop her from outrunning her mom.
“I’m so sorry,” the woman said breathlessly as she reached for her daughter. But the little girl wrapped her tiny arms around Logan’s neck.
“Dada!”
“Baby, no. This isn’t Dada.” The woman shook her head. “She learned that word two days ago. Now, every man in Richmond is ‘dada.’”
Robin dropped her head in her hand and tried not to cry. But how could she not? Logan would
never have a child of his own to call him daddy. She wouldn’t have a precious little girl to chase around the market.
The tears came as she watched Logan force the little girl back into her mother’s arms. He rushed to her side and pulled Robin into his arms. Her sobs made her body shake. Logan held her tighter. “Shh, shh.”
“That-that was so sweet of you to hold that little g-girl. I’m so sorry that I won’t be able . . .”
“I’m holding everything I ever need right here.” Logan stroked the back of her neck.
“B-but . . . We dreamed about a family and now . . .”
“Robin. You are enough. We can make a family any way we want when we’re ready.” He held her out in front of him and wiped her tears with his thumbs. “You want to go home and order takeout?”
Robin brought her hands to her face as she shook her head. “No. I can’t cry every time I see a child. I know I’m blessed to be alive.”
“And I’m blessed to have my wife. Robin, you’re all I need. And down the road, we can look at options, but right now, we need to focus on you and your healing.”
She nodded. “It’s time for me to see that therapist. Will you go with me?”
“You don’t even have to ask.” Logan brushed his lips against hers. “Whatever you need, I got you.”
Robin took a deep breath and wondered what made him let her go. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, Robin knew she needed to put on a brave face and meet her family for breakfast.
Nina’s wedding, along with Christmas, was tomorrow and she didn’t want to be the Grinch. Nor did she want anyone feeling as if they needed to hide their happiness. So, Robin decided that she was going to fake it and hope the spirit would bring some happiness into her heart before the new year.
Before she could open the door, Nina burst into her room. Her little sister’s red-rimmed eyes gave her pause.
“Nina, what’s wrong?”
She wrapped her arms around her sister and squeezed her tightly. “Nothing’s wrong. I was just thinking about you all night and . . .”
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