Page 127 of Julian

“Sounds good.” She looked over at Kiara. “I’ll see you later.”

Realizing that Kiara was nursing TJ, Julian sat down in the chair Lucy had vacated, rather than get close to the baby.

“How was your night?” he asked.

“It was okay,” she said. “I really don’t understand what people mean when they say they slept like a baby like it’s a good thing because this baby was awake every two hours to feed.”

“How is the feeding going?”

“The nurses seem to think it’s going well. They said his latch is good.” Kiara looked down at the baby and gently cupped his head. “I’m sore, but they say that’s normal.”

“Are you in a lot of pain overall?” Julian asked, not wanting to specifically name parts of her body.

“I’m in some pain, but the painkillers I’m taking keep it manageable.”

“You did such an incredible job,” Julian said. “I don’t think I would have done as well handling that level of pain.”

Kiara gave him a weary smile. “I wasn’t sure I could do it, but I didn’t really have a choice.”

“It sounds like Duncan and Elizabeth are going to come home in a few days, so Angela will likely come with them. They want to give you some time to adjust before they show up.”

“I appreciate that,” Kiara said. “I think we’re going to be discharged tomorrow.”

Julian noticed some papers on the table and leaned forward to look at them. Picking them up, he skimmed over what was written on the paper.

“Do we need to fill these out for his birth certificate?” Julian asked. “I can do that for you if you’d like.”

“I think we need to wait until after the test.”

Julian looked up at Kiara. “Test? Is something wrong with the baby?”

“No. Not that kind of test,” she said, then hesitated briefly. “The paternity test.”

Julian frowned. “We don’t need to do that. I believe that he’s mine.”

“I want the test,” Kiara said, her gaze dropping to the papers in Julian’s hands.

“Why? If I believe that he’s my son, why do we need the paternity test?”

“I just… I want it.”

Julian stared down at the papers, trying to figure out what to do. He would have thought that she’d be happy that he trusted her and believed what she said about what had happened. Her response didn’t make any sense.

“Is this a joke?” he asked, frustration rising inside him for some inexplicable reason. Her insistence on having the test done just felt wrong. Like the closeness he’d thought they were developing was all an illusion. “Is the test going to show he’snotmy son, and all of this will have been for nothing?”

“No! Of course not,” Kiara said. “It’s not that. I just want the test done.”

Julian put the papers back on the table and got to his feet. His unreasonable frustration felt overwhelming, and he was afraid of what he might say.

“I’ll be back,” he said, his voice tight.

Walking out, he didn’t know where to go, so he ended up in the waiting room. Lucy wasn’t there, but both men got to their feet as he approached.

“Is everything okay?” Anthony asked, obviously reading his upset expression.

“No.”

Julian dropped into a chair. Elijah sat down beside him, while Anthony remained standing a few feet away.