A Stranger's Baby

CASSIE

Cassie rose early, and after feeding Jessie, she packed their belongings and put them in her beat-up Chevy.

She strapped her daughter in her car seat and kissed her on the tip of her nose, then got into the front seat.

She turned the key, but nothing happened. She tried again. Still nothing.

“No, not again,” she groaned, dropping her forehead onto the steering wheel.

She got out and popped the hood, drumming her fingers on her thighs uncertainly as she looked inside. I don’t even know what I’m looking for, she thought, frustrated. ~I don’t know anything about cars!~

“Having car trouble?”

A voice from behind made her jump, and her stomach dropped. She knew that voice.

The blood in her veins froze when she turned around and saw Brad standing there. “Go away and leave me alone,” she cried.

“Maybe I can help. Do you have any tools?” he asked, moving toward the trunk.

Cassie felt herself trembling, and beads of sweat formed on her forehead. She didn’t want him to see the car was packed, didn’t want him to know what she was doing.

“I told you to go away and leave me alone,” she said, her voice shaking. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

Brad stopped. “What’s wrong?”

Then a tiny voice yelled out the window: “Mommy, Mommy!”

Cassie’s eyes squeezed shut in quiet desperation, and a tear slid down her cheek.

Brad’s head snapped back to the car. He walked over and looked inside. A young girl with dark hair and green eyes smiled up at him, showing him her dimples.

He smiled back, then turned to Cassie. “You have a daughter?”

Avoiding his eyes, she replied, “Yes, not that it’s any of your business.”

He looked back at the child, his eyes narrowing with realization. “Wait a minute,” he said. “How old is she?”

Cassie hesitated, but the tiny voice squealed out, “I’ll be four in three months.”

Brad gave the girl another big smile, and asked, “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

“Jessie,” she answered.

Breathing hard, Brad towered over Cassie. “Who’s her father?”

“That’s none of your business,” she snapped.

“Jessie looks just like me. She’s got the same color hair, green eyes, and she even has my dimples. Is she mine?” he demanded.

Something in his voice and the way he stared at her told Cassie it would be a big mistake to lie to him. “Yes, she’s your daughter. Now go. Leave us alone.”

“Like hell I will,” he cursed, his eyes blazing with fury. “Let’s go back inside. We need to talk.”

“No, we don’t. And I said leave us alone,” she hissed, moving to open the driver-side door, but he grabbed her arm.

“Your car is done, Cassie. Don’t be stupid. That’s my daughter. I’m not going anywhere, and neither are you,” he barked.

Cassie stared at him for long moment before nodding slowly. She took Jessie out of the car and held her hand tightly, letting Brad follow them upstairs to her apartment.

Once inside, Brad sat on the sofa with Jessie while Cassie made tea. She watched as the two talked. Jessie was smart for her age and chattered on and on about her dolls and how she liked going to the animal shelter to play with the puppies.

“You like puppies, do you?” he asked, finally getting a word in.

“Yes, I want one, but Mommy says we can’t afford to have one. And our mean old landlord won’t let us get one.”

Cassie went over with the tea and sat down, smiling at Jessie. “Honey, will you please go to your room and color for a while?”

“Okay, Mommy.” Jessie looked at Brad. “I’ll make you a picture!”

“I would love that,” Brad said with a smile on his face.

He watched Jessie scamper happily to her room, then turned to Cassie. “She’s so thin. Are you feeding her properly?”

She glared angrily at him. “I take good care of my daughter. I’m a good mother.”

Brad’s eyes softened. “I’m sure you are. I didn’t mean to imply otherwise. But look at this place, Cassie. How are you supporting the two of you?”

She looked at his expensive watch and designer clothes. His shoes alone cost more than what she made in five months. “I do just fine. I may not have your money, but she has food and a roof over her head.”

“But she’s small for almost being four,” he replied.

Cassie sighed. “She was a preemie, born two months early. Jessie is very healthy and smart as a whip, so you don’t need—”

A loud banging at the door interrupted, making her jump. She stared at the door, not moving. She clasped her hands together to hide them shaking, but she saw Brad glance down at them and frown.

“Are you not going to answer that?” he asked.

She took a shaky breath and stood up, walking slowly to the door. The second she opened it, a heavy-set man wearing a dirty tank top barged in, backing her into the wall.

Waving a meaty finger in her face, he started yelling at her. “I told you no noise. That brat of yours is making too much noise. Shut her up, or I’ll do it for you!”

It was obvious he hadn’t seen the other man sitting there.

Brad jumped to his feet and sprinted over, slamming the man into the door, his hand around his throat. “Don’t you dare speak to her like that ever again, and if I ever hear you talking that way about the little girl, I’ll knock your damn teeth out.”

“Brad, stop it, let him go,” Cassie begged him. She was sure he was going to kill the man.

He let the landlord go and stepped back, his eyes dark and angry as he stared him down.

The man wrenched the door open, yelling, “That’s it, lady. I want you out today,” then turned and fled before Brad could get to him.

Cassie eyes flooded with tears. She looked at Brad and snapped at him, “Now look what you’ve done.”

“You were leaving anyway,” he pointed out.

“That was before my car broke down.”

Jessie poked her head around the doorway of the bedroom, and Cassie’s heart clenched when she saw her daughter was crying.

“Mommy, I’m scared.”

She got down on her knees and hugged the little girl, sniffing back her tears before she spoke. She had to be strong for Jessie. “It’s okay, baby, we’ll find a better place to live. I promise.”

Brad stood back, watching. He took a deep breath, seeming to come to a quick decision, and said, “Okay, you two are coming with me.”

Cassie gave him a dirty look. “No, just go. You’ve caused enough trouble.”

Brad went over and picked Jessie up in his arms. “Hey, munchkin, did you finish that picture for me?”

“No.” She hiccuped.

“Could you go and do it now? Mommy and I need to talk.”

“Okay.” She gave him a hug, climbed down, and went to the bedroom.

Brad turned his attention back to Cassie. “Just listen to me for one minute. You can’t stay here, and your car is not working. You and Jessie can come back to my hotel suite, and we’ll figure out what to do.”

“I said no,” she replied.

Brad paced back and forth, running his hand through his hair. “Why are you being so goddamn difficult? That’s my daughter in there. If I have to, I’ll get a lawyer and sue for custody.”

Her eyes widened in fear, and her voice shook when she spoke. “You wouldn’t. You’ve only known her for an hour. I’m her mother.”

He stared at her. “I don’t want to, but I won’t have my child living in poverty. It’s your choice, Cassie.”

Cassie was exhausted. Her will to fight drained away, and she closed her eyes in defeat. “You’ve given me no choice.”

He placed his hand on her arm, but she backed away, angry and scared. Her worst nightmare was coming true.

BRAD

“I’m so hungry, Mommy,” Jessie said loudly from the backseat of Brad’s car.

“Okay, munchkin,” he answered for Cassie, “when we get back to the hotel, we’ll order whatever you want.”

“Chicken nuggets, chicken nuggets!” Jessie chanted.

Both Cassie and Brad laughed, and he glanced over at her, catching her eye.

Her eyes are even more beautiful than I remember, he thought.

For the rest of the drive, he couldn’t stop thinking how absolutely beautiful she was, how Jessie had inherited her lovely smile.

He thought back to that night when her mouth had moved down his body, softly kissing him. How she had lit the fire in his manhood, and how later she had snuggled in his arms, smiling up at him.

He had felt something that night, something more than just sex. It didn’t matter how much he had tried to tell himself she was just another one-night stand, he had never been able to forget her.

Brad parked the car in the hotel parking lot, then carried Jessie up to his suite.

She ran from room to room, shouting out everything she saw. The suite was huge, with two bedrooms, two bathrooms with clawfoot tubs, a fully equipped kitchen, and a large living room.

Brad showed Cassie to one of the bedrooms. “You and Jessie can have this room. The king-size bed should be big enough for both of you.”

She turned to him. “Just so you know, we’re only staying one night.”

“Listen, Cassie, no one goes anywhere till we get things settled. Jessie is my daughter, and I intend to take full financial responsibility for her. I will make sure she has a decent place to live and is well taken care of.”

“Are you saying I’m not taking care of her?” she snapped.

Brad shook his head in frustration. She was always twisting his words around. “That’s not what I’m saying.”

Jessie came running into the room before another word could be spoken.

“Mommy, Mommy, chicken nuggets, please.”

Brad couldn’t help but laugh. “All right, munchkin, I’ll order us dinner. Why don’t you turn on the TV and watch cartoons?”

Jessie stood with her hands on her hips. “Mommy doesn’t let me watch TV through the day.”

Brad looked at Cassie. “Why can’t she?”

“Children should be playing, or reading. They need to be active rather than sitting in front of a TV set,” Cassie said, her own hands resting on her hips.

He suppressed a smile, seeing how much Cassie looked like their daughter in that moment. “You’re right, and I agree completely. But I think you could make an exception this one time.”

Jessie started jumping up and down. “Can I, Mommy?”

Cassie sighed and rolled her eyes. “I guess it won’t hurt, but just this one time.”

Jessie gave Cassie a quick hug, then ran to grab the remote.

Brad and Cassie moved to the kitchen as the sound of cartoons started up. He poured them both a glass of wine, then picked up the phone.

“What would you like to eat?” he asked.

“I don’t care, honestly. Anything will do,” she said, sitting down at the table and taking a small sip of her drink.

“Okay, I’ll order us something, and after you put Jessie to bed we’ll talk.”