by Holly Rayner
Ashley considered that and found that she agreed. Sarah nodded to her phone.
“So? Text him back.”
Ashley unlocked her phone and considered what she could possibly say. Finally, she began to type.
Hi, Matteo. Can we meet for coffee and talk?
Her thumb hovered over the send button for a moment, then pressed it, the text flying onto the screen. She figured it would be a while before she heard back, when she instantly saw three dots appear on the screen, signaling a reply.
Yes, of course. I would be grateful for any time you can give. Same place as last time? Fifteen minutes?
Ashley swallowed, then sent a confirmation message. And that was that.
“You’re doing the right thing,” Sarah said, clearly able to read the doubt on her friend’s face.
“I hope so,” Ashley said.
Her feelings were going wild, and she’d never been more conflicted or confused in her life. The second she saw Matteo’s text, her heart fluttered and her stomach bubbled. This was not a date. She was having a serious meeting with the biological father of her son to discuss terms of engagement. If anything it was a game of Risk, and she was a general facing off against a king.
The last thing Ashley needed was to get romantically involved with David’s biological father. In that moment, no matter how her body reacted to the man, she needed to remember that the situation was hard enough without complicating it further.
Her son’s happiness was at stake.
“Good luck,” Sarah said, placing a bracing hand on her friend’s shoulder.
“Thanks,” Ashley said. “I’ll keep you posted.”
“You better,” Sarah said.
And with that, Ashley turned and left the shop, heading straight for the café.
Chapter 13
Matteo
The delectable scent of coffee washed over Matteo as he stepped through the front door of The Ground Palace. The double meaning of the place was not lost on him. He wondered if Ashley would find the same amount of humor in it as he did, now that she knew who he was.
He remembered her order from their previous meeting there, so he stepped up to the counter and ordered them a pair of coffees, hoping to get right into the conversation as soon as possible. The past few days had been some form of torture, for many reasons.
Silvio was constantly calling, asking for direction and decisions on any number of important issues. Matteo managed to stay somewhat present in his duties, but he knew it wasn’t enough. His kingdom needed him back, and soon.
But he couldn’t possibly go without getting some form of answer with regards to his relationship with his son. He had to find a way to meet in the middle with Ashley, whatever that meant.
“Matt?” the barista called.
Matteo stepped forward and nodded in thanks to the young woman before he found a table where he could easily see everyone that walked in the door. An older, gray-haired woman and a small child strolled in and ordered a pair of hot chocolates before settling down together.
The sight left Matteo with a pang of sadness in his heart. David would never know his paternal grandmother. Or grandfather. Matteo was the only family package he could offer…well, except for Carlotta.
Who still was not on positive terms with this entire endeavor.
The bells at the door rang, jarring Matteo from his reverie, and there stood Ashley, in a light jacket and jeans, absolutely stunning in casual dress.
No. He had to release those thoughts. At the moment they were in the middle of very sticky business—business that involved a child that they both loved. Even that thought was an emotional web he wasn’t sure how to untangle. He knew he loved the boy—he’d loved him before he met him, of course. Now having met him, he wanted to be a part of his life more than anything.
Ashley’s warm, hazel-eyed gaze landed on him, and he could see by the tightness in her shoulders that she was somewhere between nervous and defensive already. He would need to tread carefully. He stood and gestured to the coffee he had purchased.
“Thank you for taking the time to meet with me. I truly do appreciate it,” he said. “I took the liberty of ordering you a coffee, based on our last trip here. I hope that’s all right.”
Her eyebrows arched as she took in the cup, and then she met his gaze again.
“Yes, thank you. That’s thoughtful.”
“Please, do sit down,” he said, pulling out her chair.
Her eyebrows stayed aloft, but she took the proffered seat and he joined her across the table. He’d spent plenty of time practicing what he was going to say, and, thanks to his experience running his country, he was ready to come to the table with a reasonable offer.
At least, he hoped so.
“I’m sorry that I sprang that information on you in such a way. I didn’t know the right way to tell you who I really was,” he said.
She held up a hand.
“I’m the one who should apologize,” she said, surprising him. “You were just trying to be a part of your son’s life. You had no choice in where he was raised or even getting the chance to bring him up yourself, and that’s not your fault. I just got scared.”
“I completely understand,” he said, a wave of tension releasing from his shoulders. “You love David. Of course you do—he’s wonderful. The last thing that I want to do, Ashley, is take away your son. You must believe me—I just want a chance to be a part of his life.”
“And what is your life like?” she asked, leaning in.
He inhaled, the scent of her flowery perfume mingling with the essence of coffee around them. It was in no way unpleasant, but he had to keep a clear head. His son’s future depended on it.
“My life?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Walk me through an average day in the life of King Matteo of Golina,” she said.
He sat back and considered.
“Well, I wake up every day around six. Breakfast is brought into my chambers around six thirty, and I have until seven thirty to finish up before I generally attend a string of meetings for the day. I’m often asked to attend important dinners and functions, charity events, of course. By the time that’s all finished, my day can end around seven in the evening or significantly later, depending on which dinner event I might be asked to attend. It does vary,” he said.
“That doesn’t sound like very much time to devote to your son,” she said.
The way she said it—your son—sounded almost like an accusation. In a way, he very much belonged to them both, but saying our son sounded a little too personal, given the circumstances.
It did have a nice ring to it, though.
“I assure you, I would absolutely find the time to spend with him,” Matteo said.
She stared at him for a moment, considering.
“What are your intentions, Matteo? You say they aren’t to take David away, that you simply want to be a part of his life. What does that look like to you?”
Ah, the heart of the issue. Matteo proceeded with caution.
“Now, having found David, I would very much like to have a presence in his life. I don’t want things to be difficult for him or for you, but perhaps,” he began, then hesitated. He took a breath and carried on. “Perhaps in the future, once he comes to terms with who he is, we could facilitate some form of shared custody.”
“Shared custody? You mean he’d spend half the year in Golina and half the year here?” she asked.
Matteo shook his head.
“No, nothing like that. It would be too disjointed for him, and as I said, I don’t want to make your lives harder. Perhaps he could spend the school year here with you, and summer with me in Golina? Or, if you’d prefer, I would be more than happy to relocate you both to my home country, and he could get the best education money can buy. It would be a life-changing experience.”
“No matter what, it will be a life-changing experience,” Ashley said. “He’s wondered where his family came from, of cour
se, but I never had enough information to tell him.”
“So he knows he’s adopted?” Matteo asked.
Ashley nodded and took a sip of her coffee, which had to be lukewarm at that point. She didn’t seem to mind.
“Yes, he does. I always promised myself that I would stick to the truth as much as possible with him. Honesty always produces less heartache, in my opinion. When you told me what you did the other day…well. That was the first time I’ve lied to my son,” she said, her eyes downcast.
This time he did reach across the table, gently resting his hand on hers. She didn’t move, but she did look up to meet his gaze.
“I truly am sorry, Ashley. I didn’t know how this would pan out, but I’m beyond grateful that you’re David’s mother.”
“I’m not, though,” she whispered. Her eyes glistened with tears, enhancing their ethereal color, and Matteo gripped her hand even tighter.
“Of course you are. You are the only mother he’s ever known. You were there for him when I was not. I failed him in every way, and you have kept him safe when he needed it most. You are far more a parent to him than I am,” he said, his own shame rising back to the surface.
This time Ashley gripped his hand, and as they stared at one another, two lost souls sailing through unknown waters, Matteo felt for the first time that he wasn’t alone.
“So what do we do, Matteo?” Ashley asked.
He gripped her hand a little tighter as he prepared to make his proposal.
“Come to Golina,” he said.
She sat back, releasing his grip as she did. An emptiness settled where her hand had been.
“You want us to move to Golina?”
“No. I mean, not right away, if you don’t want to… I just mean come for a visit. Maybe this can be the trip that helps him see where he’s from, and it can help ease the news of who I am.”
“You don’t want to tell him who you are?” she asked.
“Not right away. My advisor was right about one thing—this is a delicate business. I don’t want David to be overwhelmed with so many things at once. It might be best if we introduce him to the palace, to life in Golina, and then, when you think the time is right, we can tell him. Together, if you’d like.”
Ashley considered his proposal as she took another sip of her coffee.
“I do want him to know where he comes from. He deserves that much,” she said. “I would very much like to keep your identity under wraps for a while. As you said, learning so much at once might make him upset.”
Matteo nodded.
“I also think a trip to Golina would be doable, but we’ll need some time to prepare. And any decisions we make, we make together.”
Matteo grinned ever so slightly.
“Just as every parental pair should do, right?” he asked.
It sounded suggestive, even to him, but he couldn’t help himself. There was a part of him, in a place he didn’t want to acknowledge, that secretly hoped that maybe Ashley could come to see him as more than the man who fathered her adoptive son. Maybe someday the three of them could…
Well. There was no point in setting himself up for disappointment. Ashley held out her hand, a challenge in her gaze.
“Partners, then?” she asked.
He slid his hand into hers and held it firm. Her eyes widened a bit as he gave a shake and held on tight.
“Partners,” he agreed.
Her hand went slack, and he released it. She let out a breath.
“Well, I’m glad that conversation is over with,” she said.
“I know it’s a difficult one,” he said.
“You don’t know the half of it,” she mumbled.
He wondered if she knew he had exceptional hearing, then dropped the thought. This wasn’t the time for silent wonderings. There were things that Matteo very much wanted to know. Things he’d been curious about for two years.
“What was David like as a baby?” he asked.
Ashley glanced up at the ceiling as she considered, her gaze turning distant.
“He was a little fussy. He got cold very easily, so I had to bundle him up a lot everywhere we went. I made sure to get the warmest onesies, because you can’t put a blanket in the crib until the baby is at least one, so I had to get creative.”
“Hmm, I wonder if that is because of his Golinian blood. The climate is very mild, where I live.”
“I look forward to seeing it,” Ashley said.
“What else?” he asked.
When she cast him a curious glance, he shrugged.
“It’s just…I’ve been imagining what my son was like for two years. Now that you know who I am, and you’re okay with me being a part of his life, I’m desperate to know everything about him. What are his likes and dislikes? Does he have allergies to anything? When did he say his first word?”
Ashley’s smile was warm as she nodded.
“Yes, I can imagine wanting to know all of that, when no one ever told you. I have some pictures, if you’d like to see them?” she said.
“I would, very much,” Matteo said.
Ashley pulled out her phone and scrolled a bit until she reached videos of David as a baby. She scooted closer to Matteo, then tapped the play button.
“Oh, this is when he took his first steps!” she said, leaning closer to get a better look.
Together they watched the video of baby David toddling forward, one wobbly step at a time.
“Come on, sweetheart! You’re doing great!” Ashley’s voice said from behind the camera in the video.
Matteo laughed.
“He’s a determined little one, isn’t he?”
Ashley nodded, her eyes filled with pride.
“Always. He’s my little trooper,” she said.
She tapped out of the video and scrolled to another one, which appeared to be David’s second birthday. He was seated in front of an enormous dinosaur cake, staring out with wide, green eyes.
“Go ahead, David. Take a bite!”
“Roar!” David said, his tiny voice squeaking as he made a little claw with his hand and demolished the cake.
Matteo and Ashley were in tears as they watched video after video, laughing together. After a video of David riding a bike without training wheels, Ashley glanced up at the time on her phone.
“Oh, I have to get going. I’ve got a pair of poodles to walk, and of course now I’ll need to get coverage while we’re away.”
She glanced up at Matteo, and it was only then that he realized just how close they were sitting together. Her lips were inches from his own, and for a moment they were frozen, so close. It would be so easy to just lower that short distance…
Ashley scooted back, effectively breaking the spell he was under. She was absolutely enchanting, but he was instantly angry with himself. Ashley deserved nothing but his utmost respect, and here he was acting the randy teenager again.
“Should I look into flights?” she asked.
He was grateful for the subject change. He shook his head.
“I have a plane. We can go as soon as you’re ready,” he said.
Her eyebrows raised, but she didn’t comment on the plane.
“Three days okay? That should be enough time for me to get a sub for dog walking and let David’s teachers know we’ll be out of town for a bit.”
“Three days is perfect,” he said.
She stood and grabbed her empty cup. He reached out and laid a gentle hand on her arm, catching her attention. When she looked up at him, he could have sworn he saw affection in her gaze.
He hoped he was right.
“Thank you for sharing those videos with me. It’s all I could hope to experience, given our situation.”
She nodded, then took another step closer to the door, breaking their connection.
“Of course. We’ll look forward to our trip in a few days.”
“Great,” he said. “I’ll have a car come pick you up. We can text out the details later.”
“S
ounds good,” she said. “Until then. Goodbye, Matteo.”
With that, she was out of the coffee shop, and Matteo was left with some major planning to do.
He was going to introduce his son to Golina!
Chapter 14
Ashley
“Mom, is it time yet?” David asked for the seven hundredth time that day.
Ashley closed her eyes and counted to ten. Her patience was wearing just a tad thin at being asked all day long if it was time to go. She’d done everything she could to distract David. They’d gone to the local gym and played basketball. They went out to lunch, then played on the playground. Frankly, she was stunned he had any energy left to ask.
But David had an untapped wellspring of energy, and the ability to ask the same question until the end of eternity.
When she opened her eyes, she found her son’s face inches from her own, and she couldn’t help but laugh. She cupped his little cheeks between her hands.
“No,” she said, planting a kiss on his forehead before he had a chance to wriggle away.
“It has to be! It’s taking forever!” he protested.
On that, she could agree. Ashley had been busy in the three days since she met with Matteo. She’d worked to get one of her backups to take on her dog-walking shifts—a local college student who sounded very happy to take on the extra work and pay. She’d spoken with David’s teachers, who asked exactly how long he would be gone. Ashley hadn’t been able to provide a solid answer there. She honestly had no idea.
A bubble of anxiety popped in her belly, and she stood and paced the room in an effort to release the excess nervous energy. Their suitcases stood by the door, packed with a week’s worth of clothing for all possible weather. She was in uncharted territory here, and it was maddening and terrifying and exciting all at once.
“How does Matteo know I’m from Golina?” David asked, once again a question she had heard dozens of times since explaining their trip to him.