His Ex's Well-Kept Secret(31)

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"Hey, bud." Jaeger dropped to his haunches in front of Ty, and a look of love crossed his face that liquefied Piper's knees.

Breathe, Mills, dammit. Ty, immediately leaned forward, dropping his  duck and shouting his approval. His favorite person, Piper thought, was  back and all was right with his world.

Jaeger pushed the button to release Ty from his safety belts and lifted  the baby into his arms, placing his mouth on Ty's temple and inhaling  his special baby smell. Then Jaeger grimaced and held Ty away from him,  shaking his head at his son.

"Is that your way of punishing me for staying away? By greeting me with a  loaded diaper?" Jaeger asked, smiling. "That's a highly effective  reprimand. Respect, dude."

Jaeger tucked Ty against his side, grabbed the stroller and finally, finally looked at her, his eyes guarded. "Hi."

Piper lifted her hand to hold her throat, wishing she could get more air  into her lungs. He was dressed in navy pants, a brown leather belt that  matched his shoes and a plain white shirt. He looked insanely hot.  Situation normal, then.

Piper looked again and noticed his ragged edges. His beard was days past  trendy, and his olive complexion looked a shade lighter. His hair  suggested that his hands lived in it, and his eyes were as bloodshot as  hers.

Jaeger nodded at Johnson. "I've got this, thanks. Thanks for letting me know she was here."

It took a moment for Jaeger's words to sink in, and when they did, Piper  spun around and glared at Johnson. "You alerted him I was here? Why did  you let me think I was on the kooks and crazies list?"

"Stop giving my staff a hard time, Piper, and let's go up."

Piper gave the now openly amused Johnson a slitty-eyed glare as Jaeger  pulled Ty's diaper bag from the storage area below his seat. He asked  Johnson to park the stroller, and Piper followed Jaeger and Ty to the  bank of elevators. Jaeger stopped in front of a smaller single elevator  she hadn't noticed the last time she was here and watched as he placed  his thumb on a scanner. Within seconds the doors opened, and Jaeger  waited for her to enter first.

As the elevator lifted, Piper turned to him. "What have you done with my house?"

The smallest smile touched Jaeger's face. "We'll get to that."

Piper started to argue, but then the elevator doors opened. Instead of  seeing a hallway, Piper faced a wall of Jaeger's siblings. Their eyes  bounced from Jaeger's face to Ty's, and they instantly made the  connection. Oh, crap! Piper took a step back and then another until she  reached the back of the elevator.

"Linc, Beck, Sage, meet Ty. Your nephew."

Sage squealed, Linc laughed and Beck grinned. Three sets of hands  reached to take Ty. Ty, who didn't have a shy or retiring bone in his  body, laughed and blew raspberries.

"You take him, you change him. Warning, he's ripe," Jaeger said, and  those eager hands disappeared. Jaeger rolled his eyes. "Thought so."

With the hand not holding Ty, Jaeger reached out, grabbed Piper by the  wrist and tugged her into the hall. "We'll be in my office, my locked  office. Leave us alone." Jaeger threw the words over his shoulder as he  led her to his office. Piper looked back at their bemused expressions  and lifted her shoulders in a tiny shrug. At least Jaeger had publicly  acknowledged his son. Maybe that meant he wanted to claim Ty as his own.

Jaeger locked the door behind him and nodded to the sofa in the corner. "Take a seat while I change Ty."

"I can do it," Piper protested.                       
       
           



       

Using just one hand, Jaeger cleared a space on his desk, pulled a  blanket from the diaper bag and spread it over the sleek wood. He put Ty  on his back and quickly and efficiently changed him. She stood by the  door, listening to the rumble of his voice as he spoke to his son, his  tone too low to make out his words. Judging by Ty's soft chuckles, he  was enjoying their conversation. Within minutes, the diaper was disposed  of, Ty was back in his arms and Jaeger rubbed his cheek against Ty's  head, closing his eyes as he inhaled Ty's scent. "God, I missed you," he  said.

Piper swallowed, trying to dispel the knot of emotion in her throat.  Jaeger loved Ty, absolutely adored him. She just wished he felt a  fraction of that love for her.

"I want to share custody of Ty," Jaeger stated, looking at her.

This was progress. He wasn't professing his deep and abiding love, but it was obvious that he loved Ty and wanted to be his dad.

Piper walked toward her son and his father. "I appreciate the sentiment,  but he's too young to deal with the upheaval of spending some nights  with you and some nights with me. Maybe when he's older."

"I'm not waiting that long," Jaeger firmly stated. "Not for him, and not for you."

Piper felt the world rock beneath her feet. Oh, God, she couldn't cope with false hope. "What, exactly, does that mean?"

The corners of Jaeger's mouth tipped up. Jaeger walked toward her and  picked up her hand, which she immediately snatched away. If he touched  her she'd cave-beg him to love her-and she wouldn't allow herself to do  that.

Piper stepped away from him, ordering herself to think. "Explain that! Right now."

Ty batted Jaeger's face with his hand, and Jaeger captured the baby's  fingers, pretending to bite them. Ty's laughter rang out loud and clear.

"Jaeger!"

Jaeger sent her a half smile. "I want to share custody of Ty with you,  but in the only way it makes sense. You and me, together. I want Ty, but  I need you. I need you in my bed and in my arms and in my life. I need  to wake up with you, fall asleep with you, make more babies with you. I  need you. I love you. Frankly, my life is crap without you."

Piper felt love, hot and strong, well up inside her, but she forced it  back down, not willing to allow it to cloud her thinking. "But you said  you'd never trust me again."

Jaeger led her to the sofa and Piper sat down on the edge, grateful,  because she wasn't sure whether her legs would hold her for much longer.  Jaeger loved her, wanted her and Ty in his life.

God, was she hallucinating? Not sure, she touched his hard thigh as he sat down and bounced Ty on his knee.

"I went to see your cousin in Sag Harbor. I bought her sapphs."

She didn't care about the sapphires. She wanted to hear more about how  much he loved her, whether there was some way, any way, they could make  this work.

"She's the sharpest geriatric I've ever met, and she also has a magnificent jewelry collection."

Piper really didn't care.

"You obviously had a heart-to-heart with Maeve because she immediately  tagged me as Ty's father, as the man you were having issues with. I told  her I wouldn't discuss you, and she told me she wouldn't sell me the  sapphs if I didn't."

Piper sneaked a look at him. "So, what did you tell her?"

"That I was confused, that I loved you but I couldn't understand why you  kept Ty from me. Maeve told me about your nonrelationship with your  father, and I understand a bit better. Maybe we can talk about it more?"

Piper waved her hand in the air. "I shouldn't have let my issues with  Mick affect my decision." Piper lifted her hand and rested her fingers  on his cheek. "I didn't want to hurt you, Jaeger, and I wanted to tell  you. After Milan, I really did try to tell you. I couldn't get hold of  you, and I thought you didn't want anything to do with me." Piper rubbed  her hand up and down his thigh. "And then I read about your lack of  interest in kids, and I took it at face value. Afterward, and  subconsciously, it was also a way for me to justify my decision not to  tell you about Ty."                       
       
           



       

"I'm not like your father, Piper."

God, she knew that! "Jaeger, you're the best man I know and nothing like  Mick. You've walked through hell and it's just made you stronger, and  better. You're a good man and God knows, I need one of those in my life.  I need you. Another reason I didn't tell you about Ty was that I knew I  would lose you when I did." Her voice cracked. "I didn't want to lose  you, Jay."

"I'm here now, Piper, asking if we can move beyond this, whether we can  move forward, together." Jaeger's voice was low and deep and laced with  emotion. And love. So much love. "I trust you. With my heart, my life,  my son. Be with me. Love me."

Tears welled and ran down her face. "I do. I will."

Jaeger raised his hand and cradled her cheek, his own eyes bright with moisture. "I love you so much."

"And I you," Piper whispered against his lips.

Jaeger's kiss was soft, sweet and so very, very sexy. He broke their kiss to speak. "I have a little something for you."