‘I should have known you’d pull the baby card on me.’

‘Yep, gotta use it when I can. Come on. Let’s get inside. It’s freezing out here.’ She swung open the door and let Mimi walk in first.

*

Andrea

As she followed Mimi, Andrea touched a hand to her stomach and considered the secret she was keeping. It was true that she wanted Jill to be a part of her baby’s life, but it was a lie that Jill was the baby’s grandmother. She’d triple-checked the dates and there was no denying it. Tony was not the father of this baby.

When Andrea met up with Shaun at that bar, she never meant for things to get so out of control. But everything was whirling through her mind that night. The knowledge that Tony had stolen his father’s book after his death and was using it to make himself rich, successful, popular; the realisation she didn’t know who he was anymore.

She’d seen Shaun sitting in the corner and felt that sting of attraction flash through her body. When he’d kissed her on the cheek, she’d thought she was in trouble. She’d been right.

‘What can I get you to drink?’ he’d asked.

‘You don’t have to buy,’ she’d said.

He’d waved it off. ‘You can get the next round.’

When they were sitting with their drinks in front of them, he’d explained his part in Violet’s life. ‘Heather is my ex. I met her when Violet was four and we dated for two years. Pretty much throughout the whole relationship, it was clear that she was struggling. I kept granting her second chances. I didn’t want to give up on her, but drugs . . . they’re not my thing and I could see they were affecting her ability to look after Violet.

‘Eventually, she broke up with me. I think she worked out if there wasn’t someone holding her accountable, she could do whatever she wanted without consequences. The thing was, I’d been like a father to Violet for those two years and I didn’t want to just leave. I told Heather I still wanted to be a part of Violet’s life, so she made a deal — I could see Violet if I wanted to drive her to and from school every day. I’m sure she figured I’d turn her down, but I said I’d do it.’

Andrea had been amazed at his determination to stay in Violet’s life, at the way he cared for her and stuck by her.

And to be honest, seeing those fatherly instincts in him was a turn on. In the end, they’d had more drinks and started chatting about other things.