Page 118 of Charm

She bolts back up to a straight position to look directly at my face. “Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

“I can’t wait to meet Cindy.” She smiles. “This is the best day ever.”

“It is.” I reach over to grab Greer’s hand. “It really is.”

CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE

Holden

It’s beentwo days since Greer and I told our daughter that I’m her father. I’ve spent as much time as I could with Olive and her mom since. Olive wanted to see where I live so I brought them here earlier for lunch.

Olive insisted on having a grand tour. It only took a couple of minutes because my apartment isn’t large. At the end of the visit, she looked up at her mom and suggested I live with them.

Greer shot me a smile. I gave her one back, but there wasn’t a discussion to be had at that moment.

This is all moving at warp speed, but I want my daughter to have the time she needs to adjust to all of this. Right now, it’s a whirlwind of new discoveries, but we have a lot of lost time to make up for.

I don’t want to rush anything. We have all the time in the world to be a family.

A loud rap at my apartment door tells me Rook and Declan are here. I’ve already had a one-on-one conversation with my brother about the paternity test results and how things havebeen going since then. It’s time to clue Rook into that and reveal to Declan that I’m a dad.

I swing the door open to find my closest friends with smiles on their faces.

It’s almost seven p.m., so I’m not surprised to see a Franzini’s pizza box in Rook’s hands and a six-pack of my favorite beer in Declan’s.

Rook may have an idea of why I called them both here, but Declan is clueless.

I motion for them to come in.

Rook bursts out laughing as he crosses the threshold. “Jesus, Holden. Enough with the twinning. Did you smuggle a phone into my apartment and hand it to my daughter so she can give you a heads-up about what I’m wearing every day?”

Declan and I join in the laughter since I’m wearing jeans and a blue T-shirt that’s just a shade lighter than the one Rook has on.

“I may need to get in on this trend,” Declan says.

He’s still wearing the suit he’s likely had on all day. Since Gilbert was born, he’s gone back to working a few days a week, but he’s making extra time to spend with his newborn.

They cross the apartment to drop the pizza and beers on the dining table.

As soon as they both turn around to face me, I look straight at Rook. “You’re fired. You are no longer my attorney.”

“Screw you!” he yells with a grin on his face. “I’ve never been fired before.”

“You hired him for what reason?” Declan asks. “What kind of trouble did you get into?”

I approach where he’s standing so I can be directly in front of him because I know Declan, and a hug is in my very near future.

“I hired him to give me advice about a personal matter.” I draw out the big reveal. “His advice was solid.”

“You fired him, so can one of you tell me what the fuck is going on?” Declan looks at Rook before he levels his gaze back on my face.

“I’m a dad,” I say proudly. “I have an amazing seven-year-old daughter.”

“What the hell?” Declan stares at me. “Are you serious?”

“Her name is Olive,” I tell him. “She’s perfect, Declan. She’s so fucking perfect.”