Hardly.
He was almost relieved when his phone rang with a call from Griffin.“Hey.”
“Jules… The kid is mine.”
Griffin Remington had beenin complete shock since he’d received the call from McKenna’s attorney letting him know the paternity test results revealed that he was her daughter’s father.He had a child, and his entire world had spun out of control the second he got the news.
“Griffin.”
“Yeah, I’m here,” he said to Julian, who’d been his first call.His eldest brother always knew what to do.
“Where are you?”
“At home.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“You don’t have to?—”
“I’m already on my way.I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
Griffin put down his phone and dropped his head into his hands.How in the hellwas it possible he had a kid and hadn’t known she existed until a few days ago?
He hadn’t moved when he heard his front door open and close.All his siblings had the code to his beachfront condo in Malibu, and he had codes or keys to their homes, too.
Julian landed next to him on the sofa and put his arm around Griffin’s shoulders.“What can I do?”
“Tell me this is some sort of weird dream and that I don’t actually have a kid?”
“Is that what you want me to say?”
He looked over at the brother who’d always been there for him and the others.Julian was usually their first call when shit went sideways, and his shit was most definitely sideways and upside down at the moment.“What am I going todo, Jules?”
“You’re going to be a father to a child who didn’t ask to be born but is here now and needs both her parents in her life.”
“I’m not ready for this.I have no idea what to do with a kid.”
“You’ll figure it out the same way everyone else does.”
He buried his head in his hands again, not wanting his brother to see the tears in his eyes.The thought of being responsible for a baby… a little girl… was terrifying.What if he screwed it up somehow?
His phone vibrated with a text.
“You’re going to want to look at that,” Julian said.
Griffin was almost afraid to take the phone from his brother.The message was from McKenna.I’m sorry, Griffin.I know this isn’t what you wanted.I have no idea how this could’ve happened.Trust me… It was as big a surprise to me as it is to you.We don’t need anything from you.I just wanted you to know about her.She’s the sweetest little thing.If you ever want to meet her, you know how to get in touch.Her name is Hadley Jane, and she was born on December 23 at 6:35 p.m.She was seven pounds, six ounces and nineteen inches at birth.Here are a few photos of her.
He scrubbed at the stubble on his face, afraid to look at photos that would make her real.“Her name is Hadley Jane.McKenna sent pictures.”
“Are you going to look at them?”
“Yeah.”Griffin felt like he was having a heart attack, or something equally dramatic, as he called up the photos.Upon first glimpse at her tiny, precious face, the one thing that stood out to him was that she looked just like him.“Oh my God.”
“She’s you all over again.”
The massive lump in his throat made it impossible for him to say anything.Hell, he could barely breathe as he stared at the photos.“I’m a father.”
“Congratulations.I’m an uncle.”
