The next two weeks moved at an insane pace. Declan practically slept at the office. After chatting with all my siblings, plus Reese and Kimberly, they all agreed to my plan: buy the neighboring building. Without access to that building, he couldn’t build the spa at all, so then he couldn’t sue us for loss of business opportunity anymore.
Since Dean Hanks, the owner of the neighboring building, was involved in the lawsuit too, he wasn’t too keen on talking to me and Declan at first.
But he was very keen on selling us the building once we told him how much we were willing to pay for it. It was twenty percent above market value. We lost money on it, but it didn’t matter.
“Your phone chimed. I think it’s a message,” Lexi exclaimed on Monday morning. We were both in the bedroom getting ready for the day. It was the first day of school for both her and Paisley. Lexi hadn’t moved in yet officially—her lease was expiring at the end of the month—but she spent almost every night here.
I grabbed the phone from the nightstand.
Declan: The judge dismissed the case as soon as I told him the sale went through. I’m going to sleep for a month.
I turned the message to Lexi, who squealed, immediately moving her hips in that funny way she did when she was happy about something.
I gripped her waist, keeping her flat against me. Her breasts pressed against my chest. Feeling her nipples get hard was such a damn turn-on, even at 6:00 a.m.
“You’re the only thing keeping me sane these days,” I murmured against her skin, mapping her neck with my mouth and her back with my fingers. I meant every word I said. Coming home to Lexi this past week had been the highlight of every single day.
“Hmmm… it was an insane week. So, it’s over now?”
I pulled back, clearing my throat. “I have to talk to Declan, but we sent Malcolm and the Halsey Group back cowering. That’s what they get for messing with the Maxwells. No one hurts my family and gets away with it.”
“They certainly don’t. I can’t believe you bought the neighboring building.”
“It was merciless, but I have zero regrets.”
She sighed, tugging at my tie. “You’re so sexy when you say things like that.”
“But we only solved the problem with Gran’s building. Tyler’s still suspended, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
“I don’t think you can, but I like that you want to. You’re this badass tough guy, but then in a few minutes, you’re going to be downstairs, making breakfast.”
“I have many talents.”
“You look sexy, all alpha and tough,” she whispered. “I like it.”
“I’ll give you sexy.”
I kissed her against the wall, biting her lower lip before claiming her mouth and exploring her until she clenched her thighs and rolled her hips against me. I was already semi-hard. If I didn’t stop this, I was going to lose my head.
I pulled back, touching her lips with my fingers. Her mouth was a bit swollen. I liked seeing her like this—bearing my mark in one way or another.
“Come on, let’s go downstairs before Paisley wakes up,” I said.
“Yeah, a word of warning. She’s going to talk your ear off about the birthday party. We’ve been making some changes.”
I laughed. “Of course you have.”
She loved it even more than Christmas—probably because it was her day. And it seemed that Lexi was enjoying it just as much.
During breakfast, both of them pulled out lists. The party was the only topic of conversation during breakfast.
“Lexi, I think Dad has stopped listening again,” Paisley said in a conspiratorial whisper.
I cleared my throat. “Not at all.”
Lexi put a hand on her hip, smiling wryly. “Okay, then repeat the last sentence.”
I racked my memory but came up blank.
Lexi and Paisley exchanged a glance.
“Can I do it, Lexi?”
“Oh, yes please.”
I knew exactly what she wanted to do: employ her technique for making me tell the truth—tickling me. But I deserved it.
I fessed up ten seconds into the tickling session, and then I paid attention for the rest of the morning. Afterward, I drove Lexi to her school first before dropping off Paisley, and then I headed downtown.
I was in a good mood when I arrived at work. I went directly to Declan’s office, intending to celebrate with him, but he wasn’t there. Remembering he said he was going to sleep for a month, I headed to my own office and started my day by going through the most pressing emails.
At eleven o’clock, my phone buzzed. Paisley’s name popped up. This was weird. She was still at school; why would she call me? I answered right away.
“Morning, sweetheart.”
“Hey, Daddy.” She sounded beat up. My stomach bottomed out.
“What’s wrong?”
She sighed. “I spoke to Mom.” She sighed, and her voice was uneven. ‘She said she couldn’t come to my birthday.’
Anger shot through me. I curled my hand into a fist, forcing myself to draw in a breath. What the fuck? She barely remembered to call her daughter, canceled on their vacation, and now this?
‘Baby, when did you talk to your mom?’
‘She texted me right before break, and I called her back.’
She knew I never wanted her to give Paisley bad news if I wasn’t around.
‘You’ll have a great party anyway. All your friends will be there.’
“I know, Daddy.’
‘I’m sorry, baby, but how about this? I promise this will be the best birthday you ever have.’
“You promise?’ she asked, and I could feel that smile in her voice.
‘Yes. And remember, Lexi will be there,’ I added, hoping that would make her smile as much as it made me.
“I love her. She makes me feel special, Daddy.”
“I know, baby. She does that for me too.”
‘Can I have as much ice cream as I want?’
I laughed. Of course she’d use this moment to ask me for something she wasn’t allowed. When I wanted to comfort her, my girl knew how to use her weapons. I should have been proud of her; she’d make a great lawyer or negotiator if she wanted to.
‘We’ll talk about this when I pick you up,’ I said.
‘Okay. I have to go. Ms. McDonald says we aren’t allowed to use the phone after break ends.’
‘Bye, Paisley. I love you.’
After hanging up, I rose to my feet again. Anger crawled through my veins. What was Nora thinking? I called her immediately. She had the good sense to answer after one ring.
‘Before you get annoyed—” she began.
I cut her off. ‘I’m not annoyed. I’m fucking mad! What do you mean you’re not going to come here for your daughter’s tenth birthday? And why the hell would you talk to her before talking to me?’
‘Well, I knew you were going to get into a state.’
‘It doesn’t matter if I get into a state, Nora. The point of me being next to her when you give her bad news is so I can pick up the pieces. But you wouldn’t know that because you’re never here!’
‘Look, she’s not a child anymore.”
“She’ll be ten,’ I said through gritted teeth.
‘Yes, exactly. She can handle news like this.’
‘Really? Where did you read that? Because kids don’t react according to books, Nora. Paisley is sensitive. She cares, she hurts, she loves, understand? She has emotions and she needs parents that care about her and her wellbeing. And you can’t seem to be able to do that, can you? ‘
She snorted. ‘Why do you always think the worst of me. I’m doing my best—”
“Come to her birthday,’ I said, completely ignoring her rant.
‘Look, it’s impossible. I have a photoshoot with Vogue that day.’
“I don’t care. Reschedule.’
‘I can’t reschedule. I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for years. I can’t pass it up.’
‘It’s your daughter’s birthday party. The one you only see once a year, if that. Remember?’
Nora sighed. ‘Look, I’ll make it up to her, okay? I’ll come later, and the two of us will have fun, and I will explain it to her. She’ll understand.’
‘No, she won’t. She’s a kid.’ What was so hard to understand? “This is important to her.’
“Vogue is important to me too. Can you be supportive at least once?”
“Not if it means you’re disappointing our daughter.’
‘I heard you’re dating her nanny.’
I stopped pacing at the abrupt change in topic. ‘Where did you hear that from?”
“Paisley. Why didn’t you tell me?’
‘You said you weren’t interested in my personal life.’
‘No, I’m not. I just… well, I assumed that whenever you were serious about someone, you’d tell me.’
‘It doesn’t concern you. And Paisley is happy with it.’
‘Yes, Paisley can’t stop talking about Lexi. I’m glad she’s bonding with her. I really hope it lasts.’
I scoffed. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘You know how you are, Tate. There’s always some drama in your family. I saw the video about Tyler. I’m guessing that’s taking up some time. Besides your meetings, obviously. I don’t know if that’s going to be enough for any woman.’
Nora was always able to get a rise out of me, but this time, her words missed the target. I felt completely calm as I answered. ‘Or maybe I’ve finally found someone who accepts me for who I am and who likes my life and everyone in it.’
As I said the words out loud, I realized Nora and I never had that. Even though we’d been married, our bond—if we’d even had one—had never been as deep as what I had with Lexi. Not even close.
‘For your sake, I hope you’re right,’ Nora said. ‘Now I have to go. I’ll make it up to Paisley, I promise. I already switched things around so I can take her on vacation.’
That calmed me down, but only a bit. “Good. You’d better not cancel.”
“Tate, we both know our marriage was a mistake. We were too young when we decided to get married, and, well, frankly, I don’t think we were really in love. I’ll admit that I was dazed by the Maxwell name.”
“Finally you admit it.”
“And when I got pregnant, it was all so unexpected. I was never the maternal type, but I thought perhaps I’d feel different once I was a mom. But I didn’t. I just saw my career slipping away. And then after the divorce, I realized it was easier to be away. I know it’s selfish.” She hesitated before adding, “I think Paisley is getting to a point where she’s used to me not being a big part of her life.”
“She was very upset on the phone.” But even I couldn’t deny that lately, Paisley asked less about her mom. She’d even forgotten about their calls these past few weeks.
“I know. And I understand that her birthday is a big thing for her. I’ve never missed one before. But this is Vogue. If I don’t do this, it will all be for nothing.”
“Goodbye, Nora.”
After I finished the phone call, I paced even more than before as I replayed our conversation.
Something clicked in my mind. What I had with Nora didn’t fall apart because I hadn’t been able to make her happy. We were simply two people who got married when they had nothing in common. Paisley was never going to be Nora’s first choice. Even I couldn’t make that happen. But it didn’t matter. I’d been fixated on the idea that Paisley needed a connection with her mother, but since meeting Lexi, I realized a mother didn’t necessarily have to be the person who gave birth. Paisley had me, and now she had Lexi, who was amazing.
***
In the afternoon, I went to pick up Paisley. I was going to take her out for ice cream. Yeah, I was going against my rules, but sometimes you just had to break them.
I parked in a spot next to the school and walked up to the front door. Kids were playing in the courtyard, waiting for their parents to pick them up. I couldn’t see Paisley anywhere. Maybe she was still inside. I saw her teacher, Ms. McDonald, at the other end of the courtyard, so I walked in that direction.
‘Where is Paisley?’ I asked.
She looked around. ‘She’s not here. Maybe she’s inside. I’ll go look.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ I said.
The inside of the school was empty, as it usually was at pickup time. We went to the locker area, but Paisley wasn’t there.
‘Let’s check her classroom. Maybe she stayed behind or came to get something,’ she said.
‘Sure.’ I walked after her, wondering where Paisley was.
‘Okay. She’s not here either,’ she informed me after poking her head in the classroom.
My heart rate accelerated. ‘She’s not here, and she’s not in the front courtyard. Where could she be?’
‘I’m sure she’s with the other kids. Maybe they’re playing hide-and-seek.’
That didn’t sound like Paisley, but I didn’t say anything as we returned outside. I glanced around the courtyard, taking in every face, but none of them belonged to Paisley.
Ms. McDonald stopped in front of a blonde girl. I recognized Elena, Paisley’s friend.
‘Elena, do you know where Paisley is?’ she asked.
‘Yes, Ms. McDonald, she wanted to get tacos. She said tacos always make everything better.”
I swear to God, my heart stopped in my chest. ‘Where did she go?’ I asked, trying to control the desperation in my voice.
‘She said she was going to the food truck down the street. They sell tacos there.’
Hell.
I immediately strode toward the front gate, and Ms. McDonald ran up to me. ‘I’m sure she couldn’t have gotten too far.’
I turned to her, narrowing my eyes. ‘How was she able to leave at all? You have a doorman, and you have cameras. How can any child get away?’
‘I assure you it doesn’t happen very often. It didn’t happen at all last year. You know how unpredictable kids can be.’
“That’s exactly why you need a better security system in place.”
