Never Christmas Without You by Nana Malone & Reese Ryan

Author:Nana Malone & Reese Ryan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2017-05-05T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 4

Dash dropped his overnight bag on the floor of his old bedroom and dropped onto the bed.

I’m a dad.

He repeated the words in his head, hoping they would seem more real. Two weeks ago, his only focus was to make partner at his firm.

Suddenly he was responsible for a kid—a small human being who loved him without question. The enormity of the responsibility weighed heavily on him.

Blindsided, he was completely unprepared to be a dad. Unlike his father, he wouldn’t shirk his obligation because the situation wasn’t ideal.

He’d give Maddie everything she needed or wanted, but providing for her wasn’t enough.

In his midthirties, he was still bitter about growing up with an absentee father.

That won’t happen to my little girl.

He’d make damn sure he was in her life every day. Even if he had to fight for it.

How had he and Mick come to this?

They’d maintained their friendship even after her mother remarried and they’d moved away. Despite going to school and living on opposite coasts.

Jess.

Dash groaned. He and Mick would still be best friends if he hadn’t dated her stepsister. He should’ve heeded his sister Kendra’s warning that dating Jess was an incredibly stupid move.

She’d been right, but Jess had given him Maddie.

He smiled involuntarily thinking of Maddie’s sweet face smudged with flour, her curly ponytails dotted with it.

Pain shot through his chest. He couldn’t go weeks without seeing that adorable face or holding her warm, sticky little hand.

He sat up quickly and called his friend Rod, the firm’s family law attorney.

“Yo, Dash. Can’t get enough of this place, huh?” Roderick Evans was still at the office at nearly ten at night. He was the one person at the firm who was more of a workaholic than Dash.

“Rod, I need your advice.”

“Sounds serious.” The man chuckled uneasily. “What’d you do, wake up in Vegas with a new bride?”

“No, but I recently discovered I have a daughter.” The word still sounded odd coming from his mouth.

“You’re shitting me.” Rod clucked his tongue. “You’re the one always warning the interns about—”

“This wasn’t a wreckless one-night stand.” Dash paced the floor. “My old girlfriend Jess was her mother, but Jess died a few years back.”

“Sorry to hear that, man. Who’s taking care of the girl?”

“Jess’s stepsister Mick.”

Papers rustled on Rod’s side of the line. “Is she the child’s legal guardian?”

“She says she adopted her.”

“Why didn’t she contact you before now?”

“Long story.” Dash tried to suppress the anger that rose whenever he thought of what Mick had done. “What are my rights here?”

“How do you envision your relationship with the child, and what does Mick want? Child support?”

“She hasn’t asked for anything.”

“Yet.” Rod pointed out. “After all, she just sprung the kid on you.”

“Not concerned about the money. I intend to take care of my daughter, but I’d also like to be in her life.”

Rod was more than a colleague. He was a friend whose opinion Dash respected. Dash felt bad about not telling Rod sooner, but he’d wanted to meet Maddie first.

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