“And you jumped to the conclusion that it was his?”
“He picked the child up and cuddled it, kissing its head. He had the look of a man attached. He handled the infant with confidence. Have you ever known him to pick up other people’s babies for cuddles?”
“But…I don’t know what to say or think, really.”
“The girls and I are undecided as to what to do. Should we tell Gray or not? Should we confront Ciar? There’s a chance, but given his bizarre behavior recently, the chance is slim that it wasn’t his child.
“His best friends live in Dublin. His father and uncle live in Dublin. He’s opened up that swanky pub, and it’s in Dublin.
“He won’t be able to keep himself permanently in London. Gray will have to see him again, and if the baby is his, he won’t be able to hide its existence forever.”
“Why didn’t you want Daniel to know?” he asked again.
“Both of you are compassionate and fiercely loyal, but where you might sit on this information for a few days, dissecting the best course of action, Daniel would immediately fly to London tobeat the shit out of Ciar and immediately thereafter, call Gray. His conscience wouldn’t allow him not to.”
Her assessment wasn’t wrong.
However, he didn’t need days to figure out what to do. He knew exactly what needed to happen. He swallowed the last of his shot and sighed, watching Blair finish off her Guinness—how someone so tiny could handle the boldness of that black tar was a mystery.
“I’ll call Ciar tomorrow morning. I’ll tell him he was seen with a baby. He doesn’t have to know it was you three. If I ask him pointblank, he won’t lie.”
“And if he has a baby?” Blair asked.
“I will give him an ultimatum. He can tell Gray, or I will.”
He and Blair took an Uber back to their townhouses, and unfortunately, Daniel was sitting on their front steps smoking a cigar. Blair stiffened next to him. She hated cigars. Passionately.
“He’ll have questions. You go on inside as if you’ve not a care in the world. I’ll handle Nancy Daniel Drew’s inquiries.”
Blair waved to Daniel as she climbed her own stairs. Jonathan leaned against the balustrade close to Daniel. “Nice night for a smoke, huh?”
“Why is Blair with you? Thought you had a date with that smoking hot model.”
“She was terrible. I knew Blair was at school late. Trinity is close to the restaurant, and I asked if she wanted a free meal.
“Food was excellent by the way. Blair loved her salad and salmon. I’m off. I have several reports to go over before I speak to Dad tomorrow. We still meeting for lunch?”
Daniel was silent for a beat. “Yes.”
His cousin was definitely suspicious. By tomorrow, the whole Ciar scandal would hopefully be proved wrong, and he could tell Daniel.
twenty-seven
CIAR
Ciar lethis head fall back against the car’s headrest and groaned. He’d gotten a lift to work and for once was on time.
Imogen had gone through weeks of night screaming, which Tina assured him was colic and very normal. Imogen’s doctor confirmed. Last night was perfect silence. He’d even gone in to check, fearing the quiet, but his sweet girl was sound asleep and breathing normally.
Thank God he hadn’t woken Tina. He learned the hard way that waking her up was a no-no. Tina shared the small bedroom with his daughter’s crib and had assured him, multiple times, that she didn’t need his assistance taking care of a child.
He groaned at the reminder that he needed to source a larger flat, but London wasn’t where he wanted to raise his child. His family and friends were in Dublin, and he was desperate for them to meet her.
Before she was born, he’d hoped that he, Gray, and Imogen would move into the home he bought when they were in Colorado.
It was absurd for him to expect that outcome, considering he never explained anything about Marie or Imogen to Gray, nor the reasons behind his actions.
He didn’t even know if Gray was back from Zurich. No one mentioned her to him, and he was too ashamed to ask after her.
