Sweet Daddy: The Complete Collection

by Rachel Burns

  “Twenty minutes ago. It was a tall beautiful blond woman with blue eyes wearing a blue skirt suit.”

  He listened to his friends talking, and then he looked at Joshua. “They got a picture of her. Now what?”

  Joshua shrugged. “I don’t know her name.”

  “We’ll take care of it,” Mr. Johnson assured him. “We need her name, address and the normal background check-up.”

  “I’ll see to it that you get the information you need as soon as possible,” Mr. Johnson assured him.

  “Thank you. She showed up in my office and told me that she was pregnant. When I congratulated her, she asked me if I was mad. I asked her why I should be mad, and she said because I’m the father.”

  “Are you talking about Eve?” Mr. Johnson asked.

  “Whose Eve?”

  “Eve Temple. A tall blond woman with blue eyes, wearing a blue skirt suit who left out of this door.”

  “Where do you know her from?”

  “You brought her home with you one evening. About three or four weeks ago,” he added. “She was very nice.”

  “Are you serious? Why can’t I remember that?” Joshua was floored by the possibility that the baby could be his.

  “Don’t worry, Mr. Anthony. We’ll find her for you. We have the connections. You know that.”

  Joshua nodded at him and went back to his office. He had a lot to think about. His lifestyle had caught up with him. His world was crashing down on him.

  If Mr. Johnson said that he’d brought her home one evening, then it was the gospel truth. He wouldn’t lie.

  In all of his life, Joshua never pictured himself as being one of those weekend dads. He saw a traditional family in his mind.

  Poor Miss Temple, what had he done to her?

  Chapter 9

  Eve woke up feeling sick to her stomach. It had taken her hours to fall asleep last night. Yesterday had been the worst day of her life.

  She got up and sat down in front of her mirror. Half an hour later, her face was perfect. There were no signs of tiredness, and she was beautiful.

  Still, all she saw was just another pretty face. Back home she’d been something special, but here she was one of many. Every time she tried out for a role, she saw exactly how interchangeable she was.

  Joshua obviously felt the same way. He didn’t even remember her.

  She’d made the biggest mistake possible. She’d gotten knocked up. That meant that no one would ever hire her again.

  What would she do then?

  She’d end up being a welfare case and not the star that she dreamed of becoming.

  Joshua sat down on the couch in the penthouse of his apartment building. He was listening to Mr. Schmidt, the cook for the building and a fellow lottery winner of Mr. Jonson, give him the report about a Miss Eve Marie Temple.

  Joshua knew all the facts about her, but he couldn’t remember her.

  Mr. Romano was also present. He was the butler for the building.

  The three older men had chipped into buy a lottery ticket together. They’d been amazed when they won. They invested their time and money in the building they’d worked in.

  The owners loved the occupants and cared for them. They’d never turn someone in need away. It was their nature to serve, so they continued to do so.

  Now they were able to decide who lived in their building.

  “Why isn’t any of that ringing a bell?” he asked the three men gathered around him.

  “If you’ll forgive me for saying so, sir, I’d say that your lifestyle has caught up with you.”

  “But to not remember her at all is weird,” Joshua stated.

  “You not only brought her home with you, you also introduced her.”

  The three men traded knowing looks. They’d been worrying about him for a long time already.

  “Mr. Johnson, tell me why you remember her? Can you remember all the girls I’ve dated?”

  “She’s an especially beautiful woman, of course that made her stand out from the others, but it was the way you looked at her when you came in with her. For starters, it was around ten o’clock in the evening. You don’t usually come home that early. You looked happy with her. I got a premonition that she might be the one.

  “Early the next morning, she left, telling me that she had an afternoon performance and needed to get ready for the show. She was one of those people who doesn’t look through people but at them. I think that’s what made her stand out.”

  “Was I drunk when I came home that night?” Joshua asked.

  “No more than usual, sir,” he answered.

  The only night that Joshua couldn’t remember was the night he’d gone out with his friends. Kyle had followed him home, but he hadn’t said anything about a sexy blond.

  Mr. Romano cleared his throat softly to get everyone’s attention. “I firmly suggest that you stop dwelling on what happened back then and concentrate on now. You have her address, and you can visit her. This needs to be cleared up.”

  “I don’t know if I can face her. You should’ve seen her face when she realized that I didn’t remember her. She deserves better.” Joshua loathed himself for being such a flake.

  “Still, you can’t not contact her. She deserves better than that.” Mr. Romano was very pro-family. He was one of nine children, and he grew up in an Italian family. His mother seemed to be constantly pregnant, and everyone was excited to welcome a new family member.

  “Of course, she does,” Joshua agreed with him. Eve deserved better than him. He hated to think about what must be running through her mind.

  Mr. Romano wrote her address down on a piece of paper and handed it to him.

  Joshua looked at it and then put it in his pocket. He nodded at the other men. “Thank you. I owe you.” Then he left to find her.

  Chapter 10

  Joshua stood in front of Eve’s door and tried to think what he should say to her.

  He decided to say I think we need to talk before he rang her doorbell. His heart was pounding, and he worried that this was a trick.

  Could some woman he’d been with thought this up as a punishment? To make him look like a fool? He certainly felt like a fool.

  Eve was an especially beautiful woman. How could he not remember her?

  Something about this didn’t seem right. Maybe the problem was that he didn’t feel ready to be a father.

  Of course he didn’t. How could he be a father when he wasn’t married?

  He waited a very long and painful moment, and the door didn’t open.

  This wasn’t how he’d planned this. He’d felt such a built up to this moment, and now nothing was happening.

  He went back home.

  Mr. Johnson opened the door when he saw Mr. Anthony coming.

  This was becoming a daily routine. Every day Joshua went to her apartment at varies hours of the day and night, and she was never home. “She wasn’t home,” he muttered as he went by, unable to hide his disappointment.

  He took a few steps into the building and turned around. “How can I right this wrong if she’s never at home?” he asked the older man, hoping he was smarter than he was. The truth was that Joshua felt like a stupid jackass.

  A better man would recognize a woman when she told him that she was expecting his child.

  “I’ll have someone watch her apartment, around the clock.”

  “Thank you. I’m at my wits end.” Joshua felt that he sounded like a broken man.

  In the two weeks since she came to see him, he hadn’t gotten much done. He wasn’t working like he should, and he wasn’t enjoying his nights either.

  His plan was to ask her to marry him and make an honest woman out of her. His child would have a father. In fact, he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

  Joshua grew up in an intact family, and so would his child. They’d have a couple more children. An only child was a terrible thing. Most were spoiled beasts. A child needed a sibling to keep them down to earth.

  J
oshua shook his head. His thoughts were constantly going in such directions. He needed to focus. Here and now was the most important thing at the moment. He needed to talk to Eve.

  For some reason, he believed Eve beyond a doubt. The look on her face convinced him. The fact that he’d forgotten her had wounded her deeply. That was plain to see.

  Even if she was an actress, she couldn’t have played that out as a game. It was too convincing.

  Better said: he was convinced.

  Eve looked out over the audience and bowed as she smiled. In a week, this would be over. She’d been looking for a new role to play, but she’d be showing in a few months. They’d need to replace her then. It wouldn’t be fair to the rest of the cast.

  No role, meant no money. This would be her last great role, and it wasn’t even a leading role. She’d dreamt of the spotlight all of her life.

  Everyone had said that she should be a model. Maybe she could have gone further if she’d been a model. Then she’d have been able to tuck a little money to the side for a rainy day, or an unwanted pregnancy.

  The same question haunted her again and again. Why?

  Why had she gone to the club that night? It had been her night off. Usually, she’d relax at home to regain her strength on those rare nights, but she’d felt a yearning to go out and dance.

  She danced with a few men, but he’d been the best dancer. It felt like every woman in the room wanted to get his attention. But he’d only had eyes for her. He hadn’t even noticed that they were looking at him. She’d felt so special. It had been clear that they’d fallen in love.

  In her heart, she knew that she’d met the man she was going to marry. That was the only reason why she’d gone home with him. She’d felt safe with him. It had felt like a beginning, making her let her guard down.

  Now, she had to give up everything because she’d made a mistake.

  She’d give up her life here in New York and go back home, where people would talk behind her back and say that they’d known it all along, and that they weren’t surprised that she hadn’t made it in the big city.

  She’d return with nothing but a few good memories and be a single mom.

  Her parents would help her, and maybe she’d go to college and major in something boring but safe. Something that would ensure that she’d be able to feed her child.

  She’d never be something special to many people again. They’d never clap for her while she took her bows.

  She’d already informed her landlord that she’d be out by the end of the month. Everything was settled.

  Chapter 11

  Joshua was given a report about Eve’s whereabouts. He was shocked about her working hours. A woman in her condition needed to rest. He’d had no idea how much time went into putting on a play.

  He stood at her door at six in the morning, hoping to catch her before she went to work. She’d come home after midnight last night. That was normal for her. The first thing he planned to do was to make a schedule for her. He wanted her to have healthy sleeping hours.

  Joshua had very distinct ideas about what he wanted his marriage to look like. The past three weeks had given him time to think about that.

  He wanted her to stay at home. When the baby, was a little older she could act again, but no more plays. He’d rather she did commercials.

  The door opened and there she stood.

  “Eve, I’m glad you’re home.” He stepped forward.

  Her jaw dropped when she saw him. “How do you know where I live?” She dropped her voice. “And how do you know my name all the sudden?”

  Joshua had wanted to over roll her with how he felt this was going to be, but now he was on the defensive.

  “I’ve had some investigating done.”

  “I see. You found my number in your cell.” Eve stepped out in the hall and locked her apartment door. “You still don’t remember me.”

  “I’m here to get to know you.”

  “No, I don’t think so. I’ve already given you the benefit of the doubt once. I’m not going to do it again.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “When you didn’t call me, I thought up excuses for you. I was wrong to do that. The truth is better for me. You clearly didn’t care.” She tried to step past him, but he blocked her.

  “I’m here now. I’m not going to leave you alone with your problems.”

  “I don’t see my baby as a problem,” she told him, offended.

  “Of course. I put that badly.”

  “Everything went badly. Please, let me by. I have to go to work.”

  “I’ll take you.”

  “No, thank you.” She stepped past him and hurried to the subway.

  Joshua followed her the whole way to the theater. Once she was inside, he went home to get some work done and think about his next strategy.

  She was hurt. That was clear and understandable, but it lay in his hands to do something to make this right.

  During his lunch break, Mr. Johnson knocked on Joshua’s door. “Excuse me for interrupting, but I have some new information.”

  “I take it from your tone that it isn’t good news.” Joshua sat up straighter, bracing himself. It was clear to him that Mr. Johnson was about to tell him that Eve had lost the baby. That would also explain why Eve had been so cold to him.

  One way or the other, this was a wake-up call. His lifestyle needed to change.

  “I’m afraid that Eve is moving away at the end of the month. She’s going back home to her parents.”

  Joshua looked down at his lap. Somehow this news was hitting him just as hard. The idea of having to go back home because she got knocked up by a man who couldn’t even remember the night he spent with her was cruel. He’d ruined her, not only her career, but also her dreams.

  Eve wanted to be an actress. “Do you think she’d stay if she found an acting job that didn’t care that she was pregnant?”

  “Perhaps she’s worried about caring for the child after the child is born. Her parents will be able to babysit while she works.”

  “I earn enough that she doesn’t have to work.” He looked up at Mr. Johnson. “You don’t know anyone who casts actors, perhaps for TV, do you?”

  “No, I’m afraid not.”

  “Shouldn’t wife and mother be the role of a lifetime?” Joshua asked him.

  “Yes, it should. But you started off so badly.”

  “I’m positive that I’ve never forgotten a woman before.”

  “The whole situation is very strange, but she was here with you. I hate to say it, but do you think that she could have slipped you something? After all, she is an actress. Do you have any enemies, perhaps a woman? This could be an act of revenge.”

  “No, it doesn’t make sense. Besides, I believe Eve beyond a doubt.”

  “With all due respect, sir, I’d have the child tested.”

  “I will. It will ease my mind and feed my guilt.”

  “Have you tried reconstructing the evening? Perhaps if you remember one little thing other things will follow.”

  “Do you know the date that I brought her home?” Joshua asked.

  “Yes, I looked it up. It was on March 9th.”

  Joshua turned to his computer. “Let me check my calendar for that evening.”

  Joshua saw that he’d met with friends that evening. This was confusing. Had he picked up Eve afterwards? No, he’d come home early that evening.

  “This doesn’t make sense. I was out with some college friends that evening.” Joshua looked up at Mr. Johnson.”

  “That’s great. Maybe they can tell you what happened.”

  “I doubt it. They drink more than I do.”

  “It’s worth a try.”

  Joshua nodded and called up the man he considered to be his best friend from the group. “Hello, Matt. How have you been?” … “That’s great. How are your wife and your newest baby daughter doing?” … “They’re so cute at that age. How’s my godchild doing?” … “I wish I could h
ave seen that. Listen, I have an odd question. What happened when we went out back in March?” … “What’s so funny?” … “What!” … “How could you?” … “This isn’t funny. She’s stopped by to visit me a couple of weeks ago, telling me that she’s pregnant, and I didn’t remember her.” … “I don’t want anymore help from you.”

  Joshua hung up and set his cell down on his desk. He felt a strong desire to break something.

  “I know it isn’t any of my business, but I feel compelled to ask.” Mr. Johnson never butted in but he was suffering from terrible curiosity at the moment.

  “My so-called friends thought it would be funny to play a prank on me.”

  “Eve isn’t pregnant?”

  “Oh, she is, and I’m the father. They thought that I was paying more attention to the women in the club than to them, so they decided to give me something that would make me forget the evening in the hope that it would freak me out so much that I’d finally settle down.”

  “How? I mean who has something like that in their pocket.”

  “One of my friends is a cop. I’m guessing they’ve been watching too much TV.”

  “So you had a sort of hangover?”

  “Apparently. My idiot friends thought it would be funny. Their joke is harming Eve more than me.” Joshua was starting to remember that evening. Slowly, he remembered meeting Eve and ignoring his friends. He’d told them that she was the one.

  They made jokes, saying that Joshua probably said that every night.

  “It’s coming back to me.”

  Chapter 12

  Joshua had managed to get tickets to Eve’s play. It was great watching her without her knowing he was there. She was very talented. He whistled and clapped loudly when she took her bow at the end.

  When it was over, he waited for her. Several other people were also waiting for her because they wanted an autograph.