A Baby for the Billionaire(71)
“I made a mistake but I can—”
“It doesn’t matter,” he cut her off. “Even if you’d stayed, there would be no stopping the reality Clara and I started years ago. We were always meant to be together, Veronica, and it took the complete reordering of my world to finally stop fighting it. She’s the one for me. I love her with every fiber of my being and there’s no undoing that.” He squeezed her fingers. “Please understand. I’m not saying this to insult you.”
She pulled her hands from his. “No one turns me down.”
His smile was self-deprecating. “Only morons who can’t see what’s right in front of them.”
“You’re one of these morons?”
“For years, it seems. I think it’s time I go correct my mistake.”
She looked away. “You could give it some time. See if we could be what you had with Clara.”
“No one can ever be Clara to me,” he said. “And I wouldn’t want them to be. She’s it for me. I can’t lose her.”
“She left of her own free will. I didn’t drive her out.”
He shook his head. “I know. Now I need to convince her to come back.”
“And if you can’t? Not every woman wants to sign up to be part of a three-way parenting ring. What if this is all just too much for her?”
He swallowed hard, her words mirroring his own fears. “If I can’t convince her to be with me, then I won’t be with anyone. We’ll make co-parenting work, you and I, but that’s all it will ever be. Even without Clara in the picture.”
She stepped back as if she’d been stung. “I can’t believe this.”
“I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings between us.”
“Oh, I think we’re crystal clear.” She folded her arms over her chest.
“Thank you,” he said, already backing up. “I’ve got a girl to see.”
“I’m not sure I wish you luck.”
His grin was brief. “We’ll figure this all out, Veronica. I promise. But right now…”
“You’ve got more important places to be.” She spun on her heel and headed for the stairs. “Don’t let me keep you.”
Way to go, Beckett. Piss off all the women why don’t you.
He’d make it up to Veronica later.
Right now, she wasn’t the one he most needed to see.
Racing back upstairs, he found Emily in the nursery, staring down at Hunter with worried eyes.
“Emily.”
She glanced up. “How is it going?”
“I need to leave. Can you keep an eye on Veronica and Hunter until I get back?”
She put her hand on the crib. “Absolutely.”
“Good. I’ve got somewhere to be.”
Relief filled her face. “I know this isn’t my place, but that’s the best news I’ve heard all day.”
He grinned. “I still have to convince her to come back. You know how stubborn Clara can be when she thinks she’s doing the right thing.”
“Don’t take no for an answer,” she advised. “I’ll be here. Even if you have to camp out on her doorstep all night. Don’t worry about us.”
“I owe you.”
“Good luck.”
He might need it.
With a last glance at Hunter, he left. It was time to have the most important conversation of his life.
He just hoped it ended the way they all needed it to.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Her home didn’t feel like home. Last night she hadn’t thought too much about it because she’d assumed the return had been temporary.
Now she sat on her couch looking around the home she’d so painstakingly put together and it felt…
Empty.
“Stop it. This is your life now,” she scolded herself.
A life without reaching for the phone and seeing an incoming call from Walker or bouncing Hunter on her knee to make him smile.
A life without waking up in the arms of the love of her life.
Pushing from the couch she paced the length of her apartment. Had it always felt this small? This uncomfortable?
Nothing was quite right and she feared the feeling was permanent. How did anyone move past what she’d lost?
Stopping at the window, she leaned her head against the glass, trying to tamp down the despair eating at her. She’d done the right thing. She’d made the right choice. Hunter needed his mother. And Walker needed to take his chance at a real family. He’d been without one for so long. They both had. How could she begrudge him his shot now when she knew how painful it was to go without?
“He’ll be fine,” she told herself. “Both my boys will be just fine without me.”