Submerged(Bound Together Book 1)(37)

 

“Natalia.”

 

He closes his eyes as the single word washes over him. “She’s stunning,” he finally says as he opens his eyes.

 

“She is.”

 

“She’s you,” he whispers, adoration clearly written on his face.

 

“She looks like me, yes. She has a personality completely of her own, though. She’s bossy and demanding and won’t take no for an answer. She actually reminds me a lot of you. Or at least, what I can recall of you,” I tell him with a small smile. His soft laughter fills the room as he offers me his first smile since our reunion   earlier this afternoon.

 

“I don’t even know where to begin, Carly,” he says as he sets his tumbler down on the end table. The only light in the room is the small lamp on the sofa table behind the couch.

 

“Me neither. When I woke up alone that morning, I thought that was it. The end of our story. And while that might have been the end of our time together, it was in no way the end of the story. About a month after, I started to feel nauseous all the time. I had just started my new job for Reid, and at first, I associated it to the stress of a new job. When it wouldn’t go away, I finally told Tara about my suspicions. She brought over a home pregnancy test and it was confirmed later that evening.”

 

“We wore protection, though. I mean, I’m not trying to be a bastard here, but I wore a condom.”

 

“Yeah, you did. But I guess it didn’t work. It’s the only thing I can think of, Blake. I hadn’t been with anyone for months before that night, and I haven’t been with anyone -” I instantly stop, realizing I am about to reveal a little too much.

 

“You haven’t been with anyone, what?” he prods, the intensity in his eyes burning brighter than the Las Vegas lights.

 

“It doesn’t matter. The point is that I know she’s your daughter. During that time of my life, you were the only person I’d been with. I’ll still submit her to a DNA test, though. I’m sure you’ll want one,” I say before taking another sip of the alcohol in my glass. “Though, you can’t exactly deny those green eyes.”

 

“No shit. I’ll consider the test. You know, I saw her a week ago when I delivered your car. She touched my face with those slobbery hands, and I felt…I don’t know. Something. A pull to her.” Blake takes another drink from his glass, returning it to the table. “So, tell me about our…daughter,” he asks, stumbling just a little on the word.

 

“My pregnancy was easy, I guess. Besides a little nausea in the beginning, I didn’t have any troubles. My mom was with me the entire time. She’s been my rock since I was a little girl. She’s all I’ve ever really had,” I confess, looking down at the glass I’m still clutching in my hand.

 

“So your dad wasn’t around?” he asks, sitting up straighter, searching my face. Ah, my elusive father.

 

“No. I was led to believe that he passed away when I was five years old,” I tell him and watch as he visibly relaxes with my admission. His whole body seems to release tension that he was holding as he slumps down in the couch and closes his eyes.

 

“I’m sorry you were led to believe that. It must have been quite the shock when you found out he was alive.”

 

“You have no idea,” I confess. “If you and that scary dude hadn’t walked in, I’m not sure where that conversation was headed.”

 

“What do you mean?” he asks, leaning forward now with his elbows on his knees.

 

“I don’t know what I mean. I just found out my father was alive, that my uncle and my mother have both kept it from me, and that the father of my daughter, who I haven’t seen in two years, works for him. It’s a lot to process, you know?”

 

“Yeah, I know.”

 

“What do you do for my dad?” I ask, concerned about his involvement in the business I’m starting to question.

 

“I’m a shop foreman for the auto repair place,” he says, not giving me any more information. He’s being evasive, this I can tell. But I just don’t know how much more I can handle right now.

 

“Why do I feel like there’s more to that?” I ask, trying to gage his reaction.

 

“Carly,” he exhales deeply and looks down. Moving with the quickness of a cat, he is off the couch and squatting before me, between my legs, before I realize what’s happening. He takes my hands firmly in his, pulling them against his chest. “Carly, I need you to trust me. I know you don’t know me well, but you need to know that I will always have your best interests and that of our daughter’s at heart. I have things I can’t tell you right now, but I promise you that soon I will be able to fill in all the blanks and answer the questions I know you want answered. But, right now? I can’t. I need you to trust me. Can you do that?” he asks, searching my eyes with a fierceness I can’t even process.