LITMIR.BIZ

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her family, always chasing happiness in the next town. Having a child had been too much for her father, who’d split when she was ten. But her mother had stuck it out until Kate’s eighteenth birthday, before skipping town with the current flavor of the month.

      But when Kate became pregnant, her priorities changed. She wanted her child to have a real home. She promised herself that her little one would have something she never had—stability.

      The same town.

      The same house.

      The same bed.

      She wondered what it’d be like to live in a home like Lucas’s, rich with family history. The man didn’t know how good he had it. The errant thought brought her up short. Why should she think of him now? And why did just the mere thought of him have her heart going pitty-pat? Maybe because she hadn’t anticipated his kindness after finding her, a total stranger, in his house.

      “Yay! Daddy’s here.” Molly’s smile filled the room with an undeniable glow.

      Chad gave their daughter a kiss and a hug. Kate watched the happy reunion and wondered whether she should be furious at her unreliable ex or grateful he’d made Molly’s face light up like Christmas morning. A child’s ability to forgive was truly impressive. And right now Molly’s happiness was all that mattered.

      “How long are you sticking around?” Kate asked, wondering if she had time to grab some much needed coffee and gather her thoughts.

      “For a while. Molly and I have some catching up to do.”

      “Daddy, wanna watch this with me?” Molly pointed to a cartoon on the television anchored to the wall.

      All three of them in the same room for an extended period would only lead to problems. Chad had a way of finding her tender spots and poking them. And having Molly witness her parents arguing was certainly not something her little girl needed right now. Kate struggled to come to terms with the fact Chad was suddenly back in their lives.

      “I’m just going to step out and get some coffee. I’ll be right back.” Kate couldn’t help thinking that she was a third wheel here, an unfamiliar feeling. “You should know she sleeps a lot.”

      “No need to rush.” Chad used his take-charge tone, which caused every muscle in Kate’s body to tense. “How about I stay until this afternoon and then you can spend the evening with our girl. No need for both of us to be here. After all, you have money to raise.”

      Just the way he said the last part let her know that coming up with the money for the surgery would be solely her responsibility. Her blood pressure rose. What else was new?

      She was about to inform him of his responsibilities toward their daughter when common sense dowsed her angry words. An argument between her and Chad was the last thing Molly needed. Still, with all three of them crowded in this small room all day, an argument was inevitable.

      “You can leave,” Chad said dismissively.

      “Yeah, Mommy. Daddy and me are gonna watch TV.”

      Maybe it was the best way to keep Molly happy. She caught Chad’s gaze. “Are you sure you want to stay that long?”

      “Absolutely. Molly and I have lots of catching up to do. Is that a stack of board games over there?” He pointed to the corner of the room.

      Before Kate could speak, Molly piped up. “Yeah. Wanna play?”

      While Chad wasn’t reliable for the long haul, when he was with Molly, he was a good father. Kate smiled at her daughter’s exuberance. “What time should I be back?”

      “Three. I have some things to do then.”

      “Okay. I’ll see you both at three.” And to be certain of Chad’s intentions, she added, “You will still be here, won’t you? Because I can come back earlier.”

      “I’ll be here.”

      Kate kissed her daughter goodbye and hesitantly walked away. She assured herself Molly would be fine with Chad. In the meantime, she had planning to do. Four weeks wasn’t much time to come up with enough cash to cover the bill.

      The thought made her chest tighten. She didn’t have access to that kind of money. As it was, her house in Pennsylvania was being sold to pay some prior medical bills. What in the world was she going to do?

      * * *

      “Elaina, you have to be reasonable.” Lucas struggled to maintain a calm tone with his ex-wife. “All I’m asking is for you to let me see Carrie when I fly back out to San Francisco.”

      “And I told you it’s too confusing for her. She has a dad now—one who doesn’t spend his life at the office. Don’t come around again. All you’ll do is upset her.”

      “That’s not true.” His grip on the phone tightened. “You know you could make this easier for her by not yelling at me in front of her.”

      Elaina sighed. “When you show up without invitation, what do you expect? And I’m only doing what’s best for my daughter—”

      “Our daughter. And if I waited for an invitation, I’d be an old man. Don’t you think her knowing her father is important?”

      “No. Don’t keep pushing this. Carrie is happy without you.”

      A loud click resonated through the phone. His teeth ground together at the nerve of his ex-wife hanging up the phone while he was trying to reason with her.

      The kitchen chair scraped over the smooth black-and-white tiles as Lucas swore under his breath and jumped to his feet. He paced the length of the kitchen. The sad thing was Elaina meant her threat. She would make his life hell if he didn’t play by her rules. She’d done it once by skipping town with their daughter and leaving no forwarding address. This time he didn’t even want to think of the lies she’d tell Carrie about him.

      This was the reason he’d decided to let his daughter live in peace without the constant shuffle between two warring parents. He wanted a better childhood for Carrie than he’d had.

      His thoughts drifted back to his childhood. He’d hated being a pawn between his parents and being forced to play the part of an unwilling spy. Those two were so wrapped up in knowing each other’s business and with outdoing the other that, in some twisted way, he figured they never really got over each other.

      But if that was love, then he wanted no part of it. That’s why he’d decided to marry Elaina. They had a relationship based on friendship and mutual goals, not love. A nice, simple relationship. Boy, had he made a huge miscalculation. Even without love things got complicated quickly. Now he couldn’t let his daughter pay the price for his poor decisions.

      Lucas stopped next to the table and stared down at the unfinished email. The cursor blinked, prompting him for the next words, but he couldn’t even recall what he’d written.

      Nothing was going right at the moment. First, his ex-wife declared war if he pursued his right to spend time with his little girl. Then there was the San Francisco expansion, which was hemorrhaging money. His only hope was the launch of his newest line: Fiery Hearts—brilliant rubies set in the most stunning handcrafted settings.

      The launch of this line had to be bigger and better than any other he’d done. Fiery Hearts had to start a buzz that would send women flocking to Carrington’s, infusing it with income to offset the cost of getting the West Coast showroom up and running. He raked his fingers through his hair, struggling for some innovative, headline-making launch for the line. But he drew a blank.

      He closed the laptop and strode over to the counter. He went to refill his coffee cup only to find the pot empty. The thought of brewing more crossed his mind, but he had a better idea—getting away from the house by going to a coffee shop. Between the hum of conversation and his laptop, it’d keep him occupied. And if Kate needed her suitcase, she had his number.

      Satisfied with his plan of action, he grabbed his keys and wallet

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