Destined To Be A Dad (Welcome To Destiny Book 9) Read Online Free PDF Page A

am.”
    “Yes, here you are.” And here he was waiting for his first love to explain how he—they—had a child he’d never known about until today. “After all this time, not hearing from you, I can honestly say I never expected something like...this.”
    “I can understand. Please, let me start at the beginning. Well, the most recent beginning.” She sighed, her gaze lowered. “My father passed away suddenly from a heart attack on August first.”
    “I’m sorry,” Liam said automatically, surprised at how little emotion was in her voice considering that was just three weeks ago. “Was he ill?”
    “Thank you, and technically he wasn’t, but it was his third attack in the last ten years. Not completely unexpected, especially as he refused to give up his cigars and brandy.” She paused and pulled in a deep breath. “I was going through his desk after the services, clearing out paperwork and whatnot, when I came across a file that contained the DNA test we had done just after Casey was born.”
    “April twelfth, a week after your birthday.”
    She looked up when he said that. “Yes.”
    “She told me. That was nine months after we’d last—after you returned home.”
    “Yes.”
    “Almost nine months to the day, if memory serves.”
    “Yes.”
    “Missy, why didn’t you tell me?” Tired of her one-word answers, Liam leaned forward, bracing his forearms against his knees, his fingers laced tight around the glass. “I know things ended badly, but as soon as you knew you were pregnant you should’ve gotten in touch with me.”
    “I wanted to, but I didn’t... I didn’t know if I had the right to.”
    “The right?” Now he was really confused. “What does that mean?”
    “Oh, Liam, I was such a mess when I left Destiny all those years ago.” She set her glass on the table, stood and then walked to the porch railing, keeping her back to him. “You and I had that terrible row. All my plans and dreams were gone. I was angry and lonely and...”
    “And?” He prompted when her voice faded.
    Her shoulders rose and fell as she pulled in another deep breath before turning to face him, her arms tight across her middle. “And I spent the night with my old boyfriend. The lad I was seeing before I came to America. Before you.”
    The fine Kentucky whiskey now burned in his gut. “Stanley.” The name popped out of his mouth before he could think to stop it.
    “Stanford. His name was Stanford Dobbs.”
    He vaguely remembered her telling him all those years ago about a college guy she’d been dating back in London. Hearing his full name—with the same surname as Missy and Casey—had him taking another long swallow of liquid courage. “And this happened soon after you got back that summer?”
    She jerked her head in a quick nod, the affirmation tearing at his insides. How crazy was that?
    “The following week,” she said softly. “It...it was only that one time. After that, I knew I had to pull myself together, get my life back on track. Get back into school. Get over you.”
    To hear her speak calmly about sleeping with someone else so soon after they—after she returned, despite all the time that had passed, bugged Liam more than he wanted to admit.
    Leaning back in his chair, he offered her a casual salute with his glass, his knuckles white. “Well, that was a step in the right direction.”
    She bit hard at her bottom lip, and then continued. “I didn’t realize I was pregnant until almost Halloween.”
    Now it all made sense. “And you didn’t know who the father was.”
    “No, I didn’t.” She returned his stare, unflinching. “It took me another month to find the courage to tell Stanford...and my parents. They, of course, expected a hasty wedding, but when I told them that there was no way to be sure—”
    “Boy, that must’ve made Stan a bit upset.”
    Up went that delicate chin again. “Stanford still wanted to marry me. He said he didn’t care if the child was his or