Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
M iniature golfing should be fun, but Scarlett’s mind was everywhere but on hitting that tiny yellow ball into an equally tiny hole. After leaving Cynthia’s house over an hour ago, all Scarlett could think about were those unbelievable five words—Ask Antonio to adopt Bella.
No matter how many different ways the words sounded in her mind—the idea was ridiculous. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. Yet, as she glanced at her baby girl grinning up at Antonio after he helped her sink the ball into the fifteenth hole, the idea didn’t seem so crazy.
“Yes! I did it!” Bella screamed, jumping up and down as if she’d won a million dollars for her efforts. Then again, to let Cynthia tell it, Bella might become a multimillionaire before she was an adult.
Ugh!
How has this become my life ?
Scarlett was thrilled Bella’s great-grandmother wanted to leave her a sizable inheritance, but not if it came at the expense of Bella’s childhood. But no matter how Scarlett pleaded with Cynthia not to put her or Bella in a compromising position, the woman didn’t listen. She insisted Bella deserved her inheritance, and Scarlett shouldn’t worry.
How could she not? The woman tells her that Ezra’s parents are ruthless and money hungry, yet she still insists on leaving Bella practically her whole estate. There’s no way those people won’t contest the will or, worse, come after them. Especially when or if they find out that Bella is their grandchild. They might insist on being in her life.
Scarlett didn’t want that. She didn’t want them anywhere near her child.
If Bella became a Jenkins, would they still be able to find her?
Ugh, stop!
“I need to stop thinking,” Scarlett murmured under her breath. She was going to drive herself nuts. She needed to focus on enjoying the evening with Bella and Antonio, and nothing else.
“Scarlett?”
Scarlett jerked her head up and met Antonio’s concerned gaze. He pointed to her yellow ball that was at least six feet from the hole. Even Bella was beating her, and this was her daughter’s first time playing miniature golf.
“Oh, sorry,” Scarlett said and moved up to her ball.
As she stood above it with her putter in hand, she glanced from the ball to the hole several times, hoping it was lined up perfectly. Trying not to hit it too hard, she tapped the ball, careful not to put too much power behind it.
Go. Go. Keep going. She willed the ball to keep rolling.
“Yay, Mommy! You…” Bella’s words trailed off when the ball curved sharply to the right, then stopped a foot away from the hole. “Oh, that’s okay, Mommy. You can hit it again,” her sweet baby said encouragingly.
Three tries later, and holding up the people behind them, Scarlett finally sank the ball in the hole. She couldn’t wait until this little adventure was over, even if Bella was having a blast.
When they’d finally made it to the last hole, Scarlett had had enough. The last hour or so had been pure torture, and it didn’t help that Antonio was watching her intensely. He’d been trying to get her to tell him what was wrong since they left Cynthia’s place. Scarlett assured him all was fine, but it was clear that her acting skills needed work. She had no doubt that the moment they were alone, he’d want answers.
That was one difference between him and Ezra. While Ezra wasn’t the most observant, Antonio noticed everything. Her moods, how she was dressed, if she had something on her mind, hell, he even knew when she wanted a kiss. Scarlett didn’t have to say a word. He was attuned to her as if he had some sixth sense where she was concerned.
If she was honest, it was a little creepy. Okay, maybe not creepy but… different .
“Now what are we going to do?” Bella asked but got distracted when a family with five kids entered.
All Scarlett wanted to do was go back to the house, pour herself a stiff drink, and hide out in the bathroom. It would be the perfect time to try out Antonio’s soaking tub.
As they were walking to the rental car, Antonio slid his arm around Scarlett’s waist and pulled her close. She liked the way his hand rested on her hip as if he had every right to have it there. She also loved being hugged up against his hard body.
“I don’t know what happened back at Cynthia’s, but you and I are talking once Bella goes to bed. All right?”
Though his tone was authoritative, there was also concern in his voice, and it made Scarlett teary eyed. God, she was falling hard for this kind, generous man. He popped into her life only a few months ago, and he was already chipping away at her defenses.
She really liked and cared about Antonio. As of late, he was the person she wanted to tell everything to, even about the conversation with Cynthia. Not just because he was at the center of it, but mainly because she trusted him.
Instead of speaking, Scarlett nibbled on her lower lip and nodded. Yeah, they needed to talk. Sooner than later.
“Whatever’s going on, we’ll work it out. I promise,” Antonio said, patting her hip while placing a kiss on the side of her forehead before releasing her.
It might have been a simple peck, but in that moment, Scarlett felt cherished. Like she was important to him. It had been a long time since someone made her feel this way. What surprised her more was she wasn’t tempted to run mentally or emotionally at what this meant. She truly wanted to see where things went with Antonio.
On the way to the house, Scarlett debated on how to tell him about the conversation from earlier. She still thought Cynthia’s idea was overkill, and Cynthia might be exaggerating her concerns regarding Ezra’s parents.
But what if she wasn’t exaggerating? What if Theodore and Alberta tried to use Bella for their own gain? Or attempt to steal her inheritance? Or worse, what if they were crazy enough to try to somehow take Bella from her?
Theodore was a politician and Alberta was a defense attorney. They had as many connections, good and bad, as Cynthia. But unlike Cynthia, they’d use their power for evil.
Then there was Antonio.
Scarlett had always wanted Bella to have a father. Someone to love her, protect her, and someone to scare knuckle-headed boys away when the time came. She had also wanted her to have a father like the dad she and Mahogany had growing up.
He was the best, and he always put her, Mahogany, and their mother’s needs first. Her dad had been the type of man who worked a nine-to-five instead of having a ton of jobs that kept him away from his family. He worked a regular job, with regular hours, and always came home for dinner. He also made it to every one of their dance recitals, soccer practices, and anything else they were involved in. No, they hadn’t been rich, but they’d been financially comfortable and wanted for nothing.
That’s the type of dad Scarlett wanted for Bella.
That was the type of father—and husband—Antonio would be. He might have grown up without a mother, but his dad and extended family were there to fill the gap. He had learned firsthand the power of having strong family bonds and being there for each other when needed.
Yep, that was the type of man Scarlett would love to raise her child with, but there was one big problem. Well, there were several problems, but the first one which came to mind was that Antonio wanted kids of his own, as well as marriage. No way would he ask someone to marry him who wasn’t in love with him.
Then there were the cons of asking Antonio to adopt Bella. Scarlett would have to share her daughter. Adoptions were permanent. Was she willing to share her baby girl?
“I had fun, Uncle Tony,” Bella said from the back seat, her sweet voice cutting into Scarlett’s thoughts.
“I’m glad, Baby Doll. I had fun too, and the day isn’t over. How about we order pizza for dinner and play Uno?”
“That sounds awesome! I love pizza, but I only played Uno one time. I can’t remember how to play.”
“No worries. I got you,” Antonio said. “I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”
Damn this man and his ability to say just the right words at any given time. Sure, he wasn’t talking about what she’d been thinking, but Scarlett knew he would always look out for her child. He would always treat her like his own no matter the relationship.
But how would he feel about being a father to a child who wasn’t biologically his?
* * *
Later that night, Antonio eased out of Bella’s room and closed the door behind him. She had insisted on him being the one to tuck her in. When she announced that after playing several rounds of Uno, his mind had been blown. Sure, they’d had a connection from the start, but to ask him to read with her until she fell asleep had been huge. It was something he fantasized about doing with his own kids one day.
He and Bella took turns reading a page, and it felt like the most natural thing to be doing together. They cracked jokes, laughed, and like she’d done to Scarlett the night before, Bella peppered him with questions.
Did you ever want a sister?
How many cousins do you have?
Can you teach me how to make my own birthday cake?
Do you have a YouTube channel?
Some of the questions were random. Still Antonio enjoyed every minute of their time together. He even learned some of her likes and dislikes when it came to food, kids in her classroom, and clothes. It was safe to say she would be into fashion like Scarlett.
Now that he and Bella had bonded, Antonio needed to work on creating that same bond with her mother. He wasn’t sure what Cynthia had said to Scarlett earlier, but he was sure it had something to do with him. He hoped the woman wasn’t trying to break them up.
When Cynthia had asked about his intentions toward Scarlett and Bella, he thought he’d given a good answer. What he’d wanted to say was that he planned on marrying Scarlett, and the three of them would live happily ever after. But lunch with Bella’s father’s grandmother hadn’t seemed the time or the place for that type of declaration. Especially before he had a chance to win Scarlett’s heart. Antonio just hoped he’d get that chance.
Standing in the hallway outside of the bedrooms, Antonio listened, trying to determine what part of the house Scarlett was in. He and Bella had left her in the kitchen cleaning up, but that had been an hour ago. Maybe she’d still be in there, or better yet, maybe she was waiting in his bedroom for him.
Antonio almost laughed out loud at the thought. If Cynthia had tried talking Scarlett out of dating him, the last thing she’d be thinking about was getting naked with him. Then again, when she asked to use his tub, he had joked about washing her back. She hadn’t said no. Instead, she kissed him so thoroughly he almost forgot his name.
Had it not been for having Bella in the house, Antonio would’ve followed through on the backwashing offer and more. However, it was probably good Bella was there because he had to keep reminding himself to go slow with Scarlett. He didn’t want to scare her away, and more than anything, he wanted their relationship to progress naturally without him pushing her toward something she might not be ready for.
When Antonio made it to the living room, he found Scarlett on the sofa with her legs tucked beneath her, and a glass of dark liquid in her hand. There wasn’t much left in her glass, and he didn’t know if that was how much alcohol she’d started with, or if she had already begun drinking.
What really surprised him was seeing the bottle of Hennessy on the table in front of her, as well as a glass for him.
Ahh, damn. It’s going to be that kind of conversation .
Might as well get this over with, but Antonio should warn her. If she was thinking about breaking things off with him, he wasn’t going to make it easy. Two days of claiming her as his own wasn’t nearly long enough. He wanted forever.
He poured himself a shot of the cognac, thinking a bit of liquid courage wouldn’t hurt. Bringing it to his lips, he tossed back the alcohol and cringed at the way it burned on its way down his throat.
Goodness . He wasn’t a big drinker of hard liquor, but tonight he’d make an exception.
Antonio poured another and took a sip as he sat next to Scarlett. “I’m not letting you go,” he said. “If Cynthia thinks I’m not the right person for you, she can take it up with me. You and Bella are mine .”
Scarlett, eyes wide with her mouth hanging open, looked at him as if seeing him for the first time. Antonio didn’t know what was going through that gorgeous head of hers, but this was nonnegotiable. He planned to fight to be with her. If it made him come across as nuts, so be it. He knew without a doubt that she was the one for him, and he wanted her and Bella in his life.
“Say something,” he said, the words coming out more aggressive than intended. His ass was supposed to be taking things slow, and here he was telling her that he was playing for keeps.
Way to go, Antonio. If this doesn’t have her running for the hills…
“I-I… wow,” Scarlett stuttered and slammed back the liquor that had been in her glass and coughed. “Good Lord!” she croaked. “How’d you do that when it’s so strong? I think it burned a hole in my throat, my esophagus, and my stomach.”
Antonio couldn’t help it, he burst out laughing. The two of them were something else. Like inexperienced teenagers trying liquor for the first time and attempting to drum up enough courage to ask the other to go steady.
After a brief coughing fit, Scarlett cleared her throat. “Okay, I’m just going to ask. Will you adopt Bella?”