Kian (Undercover Billionaire, #1)(8)

He was about to speak when she slapped him again with her words. “You didn’t have to sleep with my sister for revenge, though.”

“It wasn’t revenge. I was doing what I had to do,” he said with a shrug. “And that’s all on my shoulders. But I wouldn’t have been on the prowl for anyone else had you been at my side, where I thought you’d always be.”

Roxie’s eyes filled with tears before she looked down. He glanced at his daughter again, letting the knowledge of his fatherhood truly seep in.

“I missed her first word, first steps. I missed too much,” Kian said.

Roxie looked afraid as she clung tighter to Lily’s hand. His eyes narrowed. If she truly thought she’d keep him away from this child, she was sorely mistaken. Kian knew nothing about Roxie anymore. He didn’t know if she had a husband, a boyfriend, a life outside of Lily. The thought of another man in her life sent a whole new burst of fire racing through him.

He had no claim on Roxie. But he certainly had a hell of a claim on Lily. He was sure Roxie had no other immediate family left. No one else would be trying to make a claim on his child. He also knew, with his power and influence, he could take his child from Roxie within days. She was his, after all. As soon as the blood tests came in, the courts would hand her over, no matter how much Roxie might try to fight it and no matter what it was that Pamela wanted. He didn’t owe Pamela anything, either. She’d deceived him for more than four years. She would have known within two months she was pregnant, and not once had she come to him to do the right thing. Why he should consider her feelings now, he didn’t know.

But Kian didn’t want to go that route. He didn’t understand why he would hesitate to do what had to be done, but he wanted to give Roxie more respect than that—certainly more respect than she’d given him.

Too much emotion and far too many thoughts were clouding up Kian’s thinking. He wanted answers right now, but he wasn’t sure he could remain calm enough to listen. This was a mess, and they would get to the bottom of it, but maybe he would give her a day or two to come to terms with the loss of her sister.

“Maybe my sister didn’t know,” Roxie finally said. It took a moment for Kian to hear her words. He was so stuck in his own head, it was difficult to come back out.

“She knew,” he said with a sigh. “She confessed to me. That’s how I know.” This sentence was uttered with respect. He wouldn’t continue to speak cruelly about her, not when she wasn’t around to defend herself.

“Don’t you think she would have come and asked for help if she’d known?” Roxie pointed out.

“No, because she would have known I could take my child,” he said. He forced himself to calm. “But in the end, she did the right thing. That’s what I want to remember and think about.”

A shudder racked Roxie’s body as she leaned away from him as if trying to protect herself. That enraged him all over again. She in no way needed protection from him. He’d never done anything to harm Roxie—not ever.

“Look, Kian, I know this is a lot to take in, and you’re probably upset right now,” Roxie said, her voice calm as he realized she was trying to placate him. He hated when people tried doing that. It only made his blood boil all that much more.

“Yeah, that’s an understatement,” he told her. What he needed to do was find a punching bag and destroy it, or maybe find some asshole in a bar and start a fight. What he wanted to do was take out his aggression in any form possible. But, instead, he was forcing himself to stand there calmly and look at the woman who’d betrayed him while she clutched his daughter’s hand in hers.

“Were you going to even tell me you were here if you hadn’t seen me?” he asked after several moments of silence. Maybe that shouldn’t have been the question he asked, but he wanted to know if she was planning on hiding from him while here.

“I’m sorry about the way I left, but that was a long time ago, and I don’t think it does either of us any good to dwell on the past,” she said, not answering his question. If she thought he was that easily dissuaded, she hadn’t really known him at all. Maybe she hadn’t.

“You clearly think you have all the answers and know exactly how I might have felt or how I’m feeling right now,” he said. This wasn’t a question; it was a harsh assessment that, in his honest opinion, hit the nail on the head.

“I’m not saying that,” she defended. Then they were both silent for several moments as the two of them tried to find their footing in this traumatic situation.

“I’m going to take a walk,” he finally told her.

The relief on her face as he stood up was another shot to his ego, but he pushed it aside. This wasn’t the time to keep thinking of himself—not with his daughter lying there so helplessly.

He left the room. This night was nowhere close to being over, and the best thing for both of them in this moment was to have a break. And he needed to call his parents. Though they’d be just as disappointed in missing out on the past three years of Lily’s life as he was, he had zero doubt they’d embrace her with all the love they had to offer.

His family was so much more than the money in their accounts. Even if others didn’t realize that, he was sure in that knowledge. It was the first thought all night that put the slightest of smiles on his lips.