Page 96 of The Addendum

I waved my hand. “It’s been a wild ride, Luc. The scene with Ashley. The confirmation she is my daughter. Telling my kids. Dealing with the aftermath of that. Making sure my wife was okay with all of it.” I hunched forward, earnest. “But I could check on all of them—even when Gracie wasn’t talking to me, I knew she was okay because Jaxson would fill me in. But I can’t call Ashley. Or go see her. All I can do is ask you if she is okay. So, I’m asking. How is she?”

“You really care?”

I ran a hand through my hair, exasperated. “Of course I fucking care. She’s my daughter, for Christ’s sake.”

Luc grinned suddenly.

“What?” I snapped.

“She does the exact same thing when she’s pissed. She tugs on her hair and gets the same V between her eyes. She glares at me with the same intensity. It’s uncanny.”

For some reason, I liked that fact.

“Is she all right?” I tried again.

“She’s—better. Back at work, busy.”

“Tell me how to connect with her, Luc.”

He shook his head. “You two need to figure that out.”

“How can we if she won’t talk to me? How can I convince her I’m not the bastard she thinks I am?”

He shrugged. “Time, I suppose.”

“Patience is not my strong suit.”

“That runs in the family. Gracie and Heather aren’t exactly laid-back either. Neither was Penny, if I recall correctly.” He paused. “I guess all your girls got that from you.”

“I guess so.”

He frowned, lost in thought for a moment. “I won’t talk about her behind her back. But I will tell you this. I love her. I plan on marrying her one day. She is going to be part of my life, so if possible, I would like it if the two of you figured this out. But if not, I will choose her.”

“Good. That is how it should be. But Luc, I want to work this out. I mean, I don’t know what kind of relationship we could have, but I would at least like to think we could be in the same room and not feel the hatred rolling off her. I would like her to know her siblings. Like her, they are innocent bystanders in all this.”

“Reed told me Heather and Grace got into a heated argument.”

“Heather stuck up for Ashley and me, and Gracie wasn’t pleased. But they made up. Gracie and I are back on track. I would like to try to extend an olive branch to Ashley, so if she decides she wants to get to know me, us, then she is welcome.” I scrubbed my face. “I just don’t know how.”

He was silent for a minute. “She’s at work today. She just had a huge event she ran that went over really well. She probably deserves to be rewarded. I plan on taking her to dinner.”

“Maybe some flowers to say congrats would be in order?”

He lifted one shoulder. “If they were pink roses, which are her favorite, she would probably be quite pleased.”

“Right.”

“If they were accompanied by a double-shot latte, she might even smile.” Then he held up his hands. “Just musing out loud.”

I stood and shook his hand. “I hear you.”

I turned to leave, and he called my name. “Richard.”

I paused at the door. “Sometimes Ashley has trouble accepting happiness because she fears if she does, it will hurt that much more when it’s taken away.”

“I’m not going to hurt her. And now that I know about her, I’m not walking away.”

“Good. Because as much as I care for you and respect you, I won’t hesitate to put you in your place.”