I finally found you. It wasn't easy, but don't bother looking for me. It's too late for me, so please, just take care of our girl. ~J
I frowned at the note because I have no fucking clue who J is or what she meant byour girl. "Just stop crying. Please." I picked up the little, crying, chubby bundle of flesh and blankets and removed all three blankets to reveal a pale pink, leotard-type thing. "It's all right," I assured her and held her against my chest. Finally, she stopped crying, and the cabin was plunged into blessed peace once again.
The peace returned and it was so quiet, just the way I liked it, that I didn't realize hours had passed with the little girl pressed against my chest. She slept for hours at a time while I finished dinner, ate, and even dozed on the sofa. I woke up hours later, and it was after three in the morning. Her big gray eyes were wide open as she studied me.
"I can't hold you like this forever, you know that, right?"
She made baby noises as if she understood me, her tiny pink lips parting into a smile, or maybe I just imagined that.
"Seriously, little girl, I can't hold you forever." Even though she smelled like lavender and felt like a little fleshy cloud in my arms, I had things to do around here that couldn't be done with a baby in my arms. On top of my other duties, I had to figure out who this little girl was and who she belonged to, because I was sure they might want her back.
At least, I hoped so.
She opened her little mouth as wide as she could, and a loud cry burst from her lungs. After a full minute—maybe three—of panicking, I made a quick bottle of the formula, but only after a quick Google search on how to do just that. She quieted down quickly and, after letting out a burp that would entertain any ten-year-old boy, fell asleep against my chest.
Again.
"Nate, I need your help." I didn't give a damn about the time or what he was up to; I needed his help, and I quickly explained the situation. "What the fuck am I supposed to do here?"
"Social services?" He laughed as if this were some kind of joke. "Are you sure she's not yours? I mean, the letter makes it sound like?—"
"I know what it sounds like, but I don't even know a J."
"What you mean is you don't know the real name of any of the women you stick your dick into, right?"
Fair point. "She's not mine."
"But she could be," he teased once again.
"Get my lawyer on the phone and get some answers, dammit. Please."
"Holy shit, the monster has manners," he joked before a long silence fell between us. "I'll call Cummings and get back to you immediately. In the meantime, keep her safe."
"What the fuck else am I gonna do?" Someone dropped a baby off on my goddamn doorstep like she was Baby Jesus; the only thing I knew for sure was that I would keep her safe.
And I had to find a way to do that while also tending to my duties on the mountain. "I need another favor, Nate."
"I'm on it. I'll call you back soon," he promised and abruptly ended the call.
I nodded and held her close, inhaling her soft lavender scent and bouncing when she got a little fussy. I ate a bowl of stew one-handed and wasted three diapers trying to change her while I waited. I wasn't used to not being good at things, and this—taking care of a baby—was so far out of my wheelhouse that I felt useless.
But eventually, Nate called back with nothing but a name: Serenity Woods, who was supposed to be some kind of miracle worker. First thing in the morning, I called her and demanded she work a miracle on me.
Chapter 4
Rosalee
Seriously, who in the hell lived isolated on a mountain in the twenty-first century? I mean, why would anyone willingly live without modern amenities like Netflix, food delivery on demand, social media, and the internet? It didn't make any sense to me, but then again, it wasn't my place to judge, not when Serenity had called after what felt like an eternity since the party and said she had a placement for me, but only if I was willing to trek up the mountain to meet with the frantic parent.
Parent. That was her word, but it was doubtful the frantic parent was a mother because she would have gotten the hell off the mountain as soon as possible. Only a man, a father, would choose his way of life over what was best for his kid.
There you go judging again, Rosalee.
"Yeah, okay," I sighed and pushed the accelerator a little harder as the road inclined even more and the rain came down even harder. The sky darkened much faster than it usually did this time of year, and I flipped on my lights to illuminate the road. Minutes later, I had to flip on my brights for any type of visibility. The rain fell so hard that I could barely hear mywindshield wipers as theyswooshedacross the window, doing next to nothing to improve my vision.
"Continue on this road for five minutes. Your destination will be on the left."
"Okay," I sighed and stroked the steering wheel. "Five miles. Just give me five miles, girl, and we'll be good for a little while." I hoped that was true as I slowed into a curve, yanking to the right when another car came barreling down the mountain at twice the speed limit and at least three times faster than the weather allowed. "Shit," I shouted as I returned my gaze to the road and found a tree directly in front of me. Though I wasn't going that fast, it was too fast to avoid hitting the tree, and the sickening crash dashed my hopes of making it to the interview in time.
