All of Me (3 page)

Sighing wearily, his father pushed himself from his chair and put the information about Charlie on Grant’s desk. He gazed briefly into the distance then back at his son. When he spoke, his tone didn’t have the hard edge of before.

“Well, then, we will have to contact our attorneys. There will have to be a paternity test.”

Grant nodded in agreement.

“If this is indeed your child, we will have to arrange financial and custody arrangements with this young woman. For now, I feel it is best if this is kept between us. If it is determined you are the father, we will inform your mother at that time. I’ll clear my calendar for the rest of the week and make arrangements for us to meet with this woman as soon as possible.”

“Charlie, her name is Charlie,” Grant said, meeting his father’s gaze.

He needed to have her named and not be just “that woman.” His father was only doing what he did best —handling a potential crisis—but it didn’t seem right to look at Charlie and her baby as a problem that needed to be solved.

“Make the arrangements, Grant,” his father replied coolly.

Grant rested his head in his hands once his father left. This tension between him and his father was something he’d have to deal with. They’d disagreed over the years, but the feeling he had after his father’s cool reply was new and entirely too uncomfortable. Opening the file he’d had compiled on Charlie, he looked at a picture of her the investigator had taken. Her belly protruded slightly through the gauzy material of her loose-fitted top, as she looked through the racks at a boutique for babies and children. The lighting was off, but he could imagine the glossy texture of her curly hair and the tantalizing sheen of her coppery bronze skin. He couldn’t deny the tug of attraction that drew him to her. It was still there, held at bay by his anger at her silence, but waiting patiently to reemerge to the forefront of his mind.

Grant was caught between wanting the baby to be his and hoping to be set free from the responsibility of being a father. He wanted Charlie to carry his baby purely from a primal aspect of his personality he hadn’t even known he possessed. He’d gone to the right schools and known all the right people, and in that world, wanting to beat his chest and drag her back to his lair because she carried his child was beyond out of character. It was base and low and common and any other adjective his family would use to describe people who were ruled by their emotions and not logic. He should be strategizing, figuring out an angle to absolve him of this inconvenient predicament. Grant knew that would be the right thing to do, the Carter thing to do, but as he traced his finger across the gentle swell of Charlie’s belly where the photo had captured it, all he could think was one word.

Mine.

Chapter Three

“Well, do you want me to respond as your attorney or as your friend?”

“Shit, is it that bad?” Charlie looked at one of her oldest friends, Mary, and chewed at her bottom lip.

“Well, that depends on how you slice it. Damn, Charlie, when you decide to do something you have to make sure you do it big. Do you know who the Carters are? This is some serious old money we are dealing with,” Charlie’s best friend Mary said with a look of concern.

Charlie rubbed her stomach absently. As soon as she got the letter from Grant’s attorneys, she ran to Mary. Mary Fitzpatrick was not only her best friend but also an accomplished lawyer. Working for Public Counsel, Mary believed everyone deserved good legal representation whether they had the money or not.

As she met her best friend’s shocked expression, Charlie couldn’t find the words to explain herself. She’d been gripped with an overwhelming terror since she’d received the letter yesterday, requesting her presence to discuss the issue of paternity of her unborn child. She knew she’d eventually have to contact Grant, she just didn’t expect it to be so soon.

“We didn’t really discuss pedigree, Mary.”

Hell, they hadn’t discussed much of anything except, “harder,” “faster,” and “yes, just like that.” The insistent kicks of her baby caused Charlie to clutch her stomach protectively. She’d had months to come to terms with her decision, and the thought that someone else was trying to sweep in and change all of the meticulous plans she’d made for her and her baby’s life pissed her off even as it filled her with dread.

A man has a right to know he’s a father.

Charlie tapped down the feelings of guilt that dared to voice their opinion. Her father’s words had haunted her on and off, but she was so firmly entrenched in a place of "off", living her life and ignoring thoughts about Grant, that she didn’t think there was a need to rock the boat quite yet. She really was going to tell Grant…eventually.

“Okay, Mama, just stay calm. I’m sure this is just a preemptive measure to make sure you’re not some gold-digging whore.”

Charlie giggled and lightly punched her best friend’s arm. “Is that your professional opinion?”

“I’ll be honest with you, Charlie, not informing your baby daddy about his kid doesn’t make you look that great.”

“I was going to tell him. Honestly. It’s just…I mean…it was a one-night stand.” She sighed and sat back in the office chair Mary had crammed into her cubicle.

“That’s not what you told me,” Mary replied with a mock sneer.

“You know what I mean, pervert.” She laughed, rubbing her belly.

Mary chuckled softly and continued to look at the documents Charlie had received from Grant’s attorney. Her best friend’s humor had helped lessen some of her anxiety but it was still there, waiting to resurface and submerge her in a full-blown panic attack. It had to be the pregnancy hormones. Charlie had never worried about things in the past. Yes, she could get anxious, but the anxiety she’d experienced in the last few months of her pregnancy was entirely foreign. She’d find herself sitting in her kitchen, enjoying breakfast, and out of nowhere an overwhelming fear that something bad was going to happen to her or her baby would seize her, and she’d have to go lie down until it passed. Her mother hadn’t been much help when she’d confessed the emotional roller coaster she was experiencing.

“Welcome to motherhood, kiddo,” she said with a pat on Charlie’s arm.

Charlie had to bite her tongue to prevent her from snapping back at her mother after her glib comment. She knew motherhood was going to be stressful, but no one had told her she was going to lose her fucking mind.

“Okay, this looks pretty straightforward. Standard procedure for protecting assets and some visitation stuff,” Mary mumbled as she flipped through the documents.

“He’s trying to take my baby?”

Mary’s quick look of concern didn’t help settle the ball of anxiety unraveling in Charlie’s chest.

“Charlie, if the paternity test proves he’s the father, he has a right to visitation.” Mary reached over and gently stroked her back.

Charlie knew her friend was being reasonable, but Charlie had crossed over from the land of logical into the realm of possessive and crazy. This was her baby, and she didn’t see why she had to share. They’d never made any promises to each other. They’d had great sex. Period. She didn’t want or require money from him. Why couldn’t he just be a deadbeat or write her a check and be done with it?

“He can’t have my baby.”

“Charlie, I need you to be reasonable. I can’t help you if you aren’t.” Mary continued to rub slow circles across her back. The calm sound of her friend’s voice and the gentle sensation of her back being rubbed helped quell some of the fear leaching her good sense away.

“I didn’t expect it to happen this way,” she confessed in a small voice.

“I know. I know. It’s going to be okay,” Mary said softly, gathering Charlie into an embrace.

“Stupid fucking hormones,” Charlie sobbed into her friend’s shoulder.

“You are a better woman than me.” Mary chuckled, gently stroking Charlie’s unruly hair.

“Never say never, bitch.”

Mary’s throaty laugh helped ease some of Charlie’s tension. She let her friend gently rock her as she cried softly in the crammed cubicle of her friend’s crowded office. Hot mess couldn’t begin to describe what her life had become, but at the heart of all the drama was the little life she’d never thought she wanted, keeping her going. She’d admit that it was unrealistic to think she could have kept her baby a secret for so long. Grant would have had to know eventually, and the process wouldn’t have been any better or worse. Charlie leaned back abruptly, though, when she realized something she hadn’t even thought about.

“Wait, how the hell did he find out?” She wiped at her face with the tissue Mary offered her.

“Private investigator is my guess,” Mary replied with a shrug.

“Why the hell did he have a private investigator looking for me?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he wanted to hit that good shit again.”

“Stop.” Charlie held up her hand.

“What?” Mary replied with an innocent face.

“No. Please, don’t ever say anything like that ever again in life.”

“It’s a valid response,” Mary said with an incredulous look on her face.

“Just, no. Never again.”

Mary grumbled and said what sounded suspiciously like
hater
under her breath before turning to her computer. Giggling, Charlie reached out and squeezed her friend’s hand. The sly smirk her friend gave her in response was the balm she needed to soothe her frayed nerves. She’d have to put her questions about why Grant had hired a private investigator to locate her on the back burner. Even if the thought of him wanting to reconnect caused a delicious ripple of desire to warm her body. Damn hormones.

“Okay, let’s get this handled.” Mary’s confident tone helped anchor Charlie’s wayward thoughts.

As they began to draft the legal document and Mary called the law firm to schedule the appointment, Charlie felt a little lighter. The panic that had initially seized her was beginning to ebb, and she was optimistic about the future. Of course there was a little niggling doubt of guilt, but she wouldn’t let it overpower her.

A man has a right to know he’s a father.

Charlie focused on the questions Mary asked in hopes they would drown out the recrimination of her father’s words. He’d get to know he was a father, and if he were reasonable he’d even have the opportunity be a father. He just had to realize that this was her baby, dammit.

“You do know you’ll have to share,” Mary stated, focused on the computer in front of her.

“But why?”

Mary chuckled as Charlie whined. Her best friend knew her well, and until Charlie was really committed to doing something, she'd find excuses to put off the inevitable as long as possible. Turning briefly from the screen, she pinned Charlie with the steely blue stare that made her a formidable attorney. Charlie tried to meet her best friend’s gaze with a look of defiance but eventually wilted under the pressure of her gaze. Charlie sighed and slumped down in her chair.

“I know I have to share.”

“Jesus, Charlie, it’s not like he’s trying to take your favorite toy. It’s his baby too.”

“Aren’t you supposed to say allegedly?” She smirked.

“No, stop. Don’t ever say that again,” Mary responded in a mocking tone.

“It’s funnier when I say it.”

“Dude, I need you to be reasonable. This can become a total shit show if you decide to make it one.”

The tone of Mary’s voice let her know playtime was over. She nodded and looked down at her protruding belly.

“I don’t want to lose my baby,” she whispered, giving voice to one of her biggest fears.

“You’re not.”

It wasn’t a promise that everything was going to be okay, but it was what Charlie needed to move forward.

***

Charlie sat at a large, polished conference table in a prestigious law firm in downtown Los Angeles. She’d tried to look as professional as her expanded stomach would allow, while still being comfortable. She’d settled on a black sheath maternity dress that went to her knees and a black cardigan. Her swollen feet would only accommodate soft leather ballet slippers, and her wild mane had been tamed into a bun at the base of her head. Mary had given her an approving smile when she showed up to take Charlie to the meeting.

“Nice, you definitely don’t look like a gold-digging whore.”

“Why do I put up with you?” Charlie sighed, trying to ease her way into Mary’s low, compact car.

“Because you couldn’t imagine your life without me.” Mary chuckled as she helped Charlie into the car.

She was right, of course, and the firm squeeze she gave Charlie’s hand under the table helped reinforce that. Grant sat across the table from her, flanked by lawyers and his father, every bit the confident businessman. She felt as if she was going to faint and throw up all at the same time. It didn’t help the baby had been particularly active during the night into the early morning. Charlie hadn’t been able to get a comfortable night’s sleep, and the anxiety of the day’s meeting hadn’t helped either. The last few weeks of her pregnancy were starting to take their toll. She still had two more weeks, and she hoped after the meeting today she’d be able to ride those out in comfort.

The sudden sharp pain at the base of her stomach caused her to grimace and rub her stomach. When she looked up she caught Grant watching her intently. She gave him a small smile and tried to focus her attention on what Mary was saying to one of Grant’s attorneys. Grant had been curt when he walked into the room, only giving her and Mary a minimal greeting. The width of the conference table prevented her from shaking his hand and she’d been thankful for it. She’d prepped herself throughout the night on what their first meeting would be like after the last night they’d spent together. She’d planned to be cool and confident, the reasonable adult Mary kept requesting of her, but the first sight of him caused her to shrink in on herself.

He’d never seemed that imposing that night she’d met him in their hotel bar. Warm and open weren’t the immediate adjectives she would have used to describe him—more like cool and collected—but when he’d pierced her with a cold blue stare, she’d been frozen in place. Right now he was nothing like the man who held her in his arms and gently brought her body to release. There was something sad about the stiff profile of his face and the harsh line his once-lush mouth formed. Grant looked back at her with a frosty expression that quelled any thoughts of desire their last time together may have elicited.

Tuning back in to the proceedings, she could tell that one of the attorneys was completing his lengthy legal jargon. Mary was doing a great job of answering questions and providing the appropriate responses. Charlie hadn’t had to speak at all, and that was good thing, because she didn’t know if she wanted to scream, cry, or do a little of both. She winced as another sharp pain traveled outward from her stomach into her lower back. She’d need to soak in the tub when she got home in hopes it would help with the pain that had settled in her lower back.

“Do you have any questions, Ms. Ambrose?” the ancient attorney across the table asked.

Charlie looked at Mary and nodded at her friend to answer.

“Actually, my client has compiled a document of her own. Seeing as she has never sought contact with Mr. Carter nor has identified him as the father, she would like to relieve him of any possible legal obligation. In this document my client absolves Mr. Carter of any legal responsibility and has also added a non-disclosure clause that will prevent the discussion of their affair and my client’s child’s possible parentage.”

Sliding the document across the table, the two women waited while the men read its content.

“You have to be kidding. You want me to give up the rights to my child?” Grant asked with an incredulous tone.

Charlie watched as Grant’s father read the papers with a furrowed brow. She and Mary had gone back and forth on what her position would be. It was obvious from the request sent by Grant’s attorneys that he and his legal team were interested in protecting his assets and his image. She didn’t care about either of those things and had provided him with the perfect out. Mary warned her that he might not be as much of a villain as she’d hoped and might actually want access to his child. From the look of anger and shock on his face, she’d say her friend was right.