Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
FACING THE ENEMY
SADIE
I back out of my sister’s hospital room in shock and disbelief. My eyes are too blurred with tears to see clearly as I race out of her room and down the hall, frantically searching for Caleb. I only got the call from the hospital half an hour ago, but since I live close to the hospital, I was here within ten minutes.
I was still too late.
I check my phone to see if my parents have called me back and there’s nothing. They’re visiting my mom’s sister in Missouri and weren’t planning to start driving home until tomorrow. I’ve left messages, but they’re not great about checking their phones when they’re away, and I don’t want to tell them anything in a message.
I rush into Caleb’s room and see a guy standing near the crib. Dark hair, tall, broad muscled shoulders. No. Tell me this isn’t happening . I’d recognize him anywhere. Weston Shaw. My sister and I have watched him play on TV every week for the past two years. I rush toward the bed and when he turns and meets my eyes, my blood goes cold.
“What are you doing here?” I spit out.
He reels back, studying my face. He looks confused and upset.
I move to the other side of Caleb’s crib, and the tears fall all over again as I look him over and say a silent prayer of thanks that he’s okay.
“Are you—” Weston starts. “Who are you?”
He holds out his hand, eventually dropping it when I ignore him.
“I’m Weston Shaw. I got a call that my s?—”
A nurse hurries into the room, interrupting Weston, and her smile is luminous when she sees him. I’m not sure she realizes anyone else is in the room, including Caleb.
“Hi, Mr. Shaw. We’ve been expecting you,” she says.
My mouth drops open. They’ve been expecting him? How is this happening? I turn, looking back at Weston with renewed fury. I’m heartbroken, terrified, and every protective bone in my body is on alert.
“You have exactly two seconds to get out of here,” I say coldly.
Surprise crosses his features, and it’s an expression I’m sad to admit I’ve already seen on his son’s face.
“Look, this is a hard situation—God, I don’t even know the situation,” he stumbles around his words, “but can you please just tell me the truth? Is this my son?” he asks, looking down at Caleb asleep in the crib.
His face softens as he looks him over.
“Is he sick?” he asks the nurse.
“Would that make a difference?” I ask coldly.
I’ve already checked Caleb’s face and fingers for any scrapes, any signs that he was hurt. He looks perfect, and Sasha’s doctor assured me that he is.
“Of course, it makes a difference. What kind of person is okay with a child being sick?” he says. “Why is he here?” He glances at the nurse. “I’m sorry, maybe you can catch me up on the details. I got a phone call saying my son was here, and I wasn’t aware until that moment that I had a son.”
I let out a sound of derision and both Weston and the nurse turn to glare at me.
“Ma’am, I’m not sure who you are, but visiting hours are for family only,” the nurse says.
“I am his family. More than this guy is.” I stare at her defiantly and she backs down.
“Well, I’ll ask that you keep your differences outside this room,” she says haughtily.
I feel Weston’s eyes on me like a weight dragging me to the bottom of the ocean. The need to pick Caleb up and bolt with him is so strong right now.
Dr. Williams walks through the door, and I sag in relief. The nurse leaves, happy to leave Dr. Williams to deal with this. His expression is full of sympathy when he looks at me.
“You can see for yourself that Caleb’s fine, Sadie,” he says softly.
Tears drip down my face and I nod. “Yes, thank you.”
Dr. Williams turns to Weston and his eyes widen in recognition.
“I’m Dr. Williams,” he says.
“Weston Shaw,” Weston answers, shaking Dr. Williams’ hand. “Is the baby okay?”
“I recognize you,” Dr. Williams says, smiling kindly. “And yes, he’s just fine. Not even a scratch on him. It’s remarkable really. I’m just so sorry for your loss.” He glances at me, his expression grave. “We did everything we could for Sasha.”
“Sasha,” Weston repeats. “Who is Sasha?”
His eyes fly to mine, and I can see when it all lines up for him. I’m a year and a half older than Sasha and my hair is darker than hers. She is a few inches shorter than me and has always hated that.
Was a few inches shorter.
Was.
There’s no way I can think of my sister in the past tense.
No one has ever confused me for Sasha, but we look like sisters, like family.
I wonder if Weston’s thinking about their night together or the way he avoided her calls afterward. If he has any idea what she went through to have this baby.
“So you’re not the mother?” he asks. “Are you related to Sasha?”
Unbelievable. He doesn’t even remember Sasha?
“Do I look like someone you slept with?” My hands are shaking, just from being in the same room with him. I hate that I’m having to talk to him at all, especially right now.
Dr. Williams turns to Weston in confusion.
I scroll through my phone until I find the picture Sasha sent of her and Weston at the bar the night of their one-night stand. When I hold it up, Weston’s face pales.
“Now, do you remember her?” I spit out.
Weston swallows hard and he nods slowly.
“Can one of you please tell me what’s going on?” Weston asks.
“Sasha and Caleb were in a car accident early this morning,” Dr. Williams says. “Sasha’s injuries were extensive and unfortunately, she passed an hour ago. We went through the usual protocol of trying to notify family and saw that Sasha and Caleb had been in this hospital before. We found the birth certificate first and got your name from that,” he tells Weston before looking at me, “and then found your name, Sadie, from when Sasha was admitted for delivering Caleb.”
“I was in the room with my sister when she had him,” I whisper. The tears just won’t stop falling. I look at Dr. Williams pleadingly.
Dr. Williams is paged over the sound system and he gives us an apologetic look. “Excuse me,” he says, bolting from the room.
It’s quiet for a few seconds as we both look at Caleb.
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Weston says. “Your sister. I…I can’t imagine.”
I’m caught off guard by how genuine he seems. But in the next second, my anger flares hotter.
“This is an opportunity for you.” I grip the crib until my knuckles are white. “You didn’t want to deal with Sasha when she was pregnant, but now you’re all over this? No, you don’t get to do this now.”
He takes a step back. “I had no idea she was pregnant. And if I’d been told, I wouldn’t have abandoned her. I’m not that kind of guy.”
A caustic laugh erupts out of me and my face crumbles. I put my head in my hands. I’ve just lost my sister, and as complicated as she was, I loved her with all my heart.
I feel a hand on my shoulder and I go still. It’s huge and warm and it’s been a long time since a man has touched me. I’m running on fumes and no sleep, and if I could, I’d pretend I didn’t despise the man for this moment of comfort, but I can’t.
I’ve been working nonstop for the past two months because my sister couldn’t and because this man wasn’t in the picture, and I’m tired.
My eyes lift to his and my expression makes his hand drop from my shoulder.
“Don’t trouble yourself with us,” I say. “We’ve been just fine without you, trust me.”
“Sadie, if Caleb is my son, I’m not walking away.”
He stands taller and I just thought his height was intimidating before. When his eyes drill into me this way, the soft edges disappear and I see the man I’m usually watching on the TV screen when he’s facing an opponent out on the field.
He walks closer to Caleb and stares at him for a few long moments.
“He’s so tiny,” Weston whispers.
Caleb is a two-month-old baby. I’m not sure what the guy expected.
He reaches out and touches Caleb’s fingers, and his eyes are glassy when he looks at me again.
“My legal team will be here shortly. We’ll do a paternity test to be certain. They’re equipped to handle it and the results will be faster through them.”
I roll my eyes. “It doesn’t matter what the test says. You haven’t been here. I have. And I’ll be the one taking care of him.”
“You don’t know me yet, Sadie, but you will. I’m a decent person. I’m kind. Compassionate. I’m a good brother and son. A good friend. I’m not perfect. I give my friends shit, but it’s all in fun. I know how to take it from them too. I don’t have a great track record with women, but it’s not that I’m dishonest or that I treat them poorly—it’s that I haven’t had the time or the desire for a committed relationship and I’m clear about that from the start. What I’m not is someone who doesn’t take his responsibilities seriously. I’m not the enemy here, and there is no way in hell that I’m walking away from this little boy now that I know about him.” His eyebrow lifts as he finishes. “Got it?”
I curse under my breath.
A thread of uncertainty weaves through me. What if he’s telling the truth? What if he didn’t know all this time? I grip the edge of Caleb’s crib even tighter to keep standing. The one person who could set all of this straight is gone.
Would Sasha have lied to me about something as serious as this?
It wouldn’t be the first time.
But no, I watched her call him. Right? She said she called him at least ten times.
She also claimed she didn’t put his name on the birth certificate, and that wasn’t true.
Fear settles in my chest. I’ve given up a lot to take care of this little boy, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
But I don’t have a legal team. My parents are crazy about Caleb, but Sasha never told them the father’s identity, and they’re not in a position to help me fight this with a millionaire quarterback. Our landlord Jess has been kind to Sasha and me, but it’s not like she could say or do anything that would back me up in court. They always pay their rent on time. How much weight does that hold?
Am I really going to lose my nephew to this playboy asshole?
I don’t know how to stop it, but I know I can’t ever let that happen.