Page 53 of Fall For Me
“Thank fu—I mean . . .” He looks back towards the living room and winces, then his head swivels back my way. “Thank God you’re here.”
“What’s wrong?” I ask, trailing behind him through the foyer. The second I step into his living room, my jaw nearly hits the floor. “What the fu— I mean what in the world is this?”
“What does it look like?”
“It looks like you!” I hiss, my eyes volleying between the two of them. “A very small female version of you.”
I may have the features and temperament of my Latina mother, but I have the height and build of my white father. I’m not a small man by no means, and to a child who doesn’t know me, I’m sure I look intimidating as hell. I soften my expression and as soon as I reach her, I squat down to greet the little girl staring back at me with the same brown eyes as Aiden’s. “Hi, sweetheart. I’m Sean, but some people call me Mac. What’s your name?”
“Jaiden,” she says in a sweet little voice as she fiddles with the end of her light blue dress. “But mommy nicknamed me Jade.”
I glance at Aiden, taking note of his namesake, then focus back on her. “Jade. That’s such a pretty name. Where’s mommy now?”
“In heaven. Granny says mommy’s a angel a’cause she died.”
Oh, fucking hell. What do you say to a little girl who lost her mom and was . . . I assume dropped off with a man she doesn’t even know?
“My abuela’s an angel too . . . but I bet your mommy is the most beautiful angel.”
“She is. With really big wings and . . . and . . . and she watches over me all the time.”
Way to break my fucking heart, kid.
I need to steer us away from this conversation, and I also need to talk to Aiden without little ears listening. There’s no denying she’shis. Anyone with eyes and half a fucking brain would agree, but he still needs a DNA test and a good fucking lawyer.
“You know, I was wondering, do you like princesses?”
“I’m a princess.”
“Oh, wow,” I gasp, raising my brows and holding a hand to my chest. “You’re a real princess?”
“Uh-huh.” She nods, cracking a toothy smile.
“Woah. Well, your royal highness, shall we turn on a Disney movie for you? Who’s your most favorite princess?”
“Rapunzel . . .” She giggles, tilting her head to the side. “Someone drawed on your arm.”
This is one of the reasons I fucking love kids. They don’t have a filter for shit. Chuckling lightly, I look down at my arm as if I’m just now noticing my tattoos. “They did, didn’t they?”
“Can I draw on your other one?”
“You’d do that for me? I bet your pictures are much prettier.”
“You’re nice.”
“I think you’re nice, too, princess. What do you say we turn on Tangled for you so the grown-ups can talk, and then after that, you can draw a pretty picture on my arm?” I wink.
With a squeal, she bounces up and down in her seat, her long brown ponytail swishing side to side. I stand and turn to Aiden. “Get her settled, then meet me in the dining room.”
While I wait for him at the table, a hunched over elderly woman, shuffles into the kitchen. Her house shoes scuff, and her walker drags along the tiled floor with each step she takes.
Scuff. Drag. Skitter. Clank.
Scuff. Drag. Skitter. Clank.
She looks as though she’s seen much better days and is barely getting around.
Aiden rounds the corner, but I keep my eyes on the old woman. “Is that Jade’s grandmother?” I point in her direction.
