Loving Quinn Novel by North Rose

(Quinn)

Vincent’s call the next morning made my already stressful day even worse. I was just happy his call came in once I was at the office. What he told me was not what I wanted to hear. The

DNA test results are in, but the judge has ordered them sealed un ur court date.

The good news is that the judge moved up the court date to this Friday. Two more days and I will know if Logan is my son. Two more days until my nightmare with Dionne can be put

solidly into my past, where it belongs.

After calling Annie to let her know the news, Aaron and I head down to city hall to go over the last requirements for the outreach center. They needed a few tweaks to the building

plans to appease the Department of Building Inspection.

When we get there, we are happy that it is an easy fix. Once it is done, we head back to the office. I can tell there is something on Aaron’s mind, so I wait until we are back to ask. I have been wanting to ask how his sessions with Dr. West are going.

I have an appointment with him tomorrow morning.

Once we are back in my office, Aaron flops down on my leather sofa, then stares up at the ceiling. I walk out to tell Sherry and Grady to hold any incoming calls, then I walk into the small kitchen to make coffee. When I walk back into my office, Aaron is still on the sofa, but now he is sitting up.

“Here I made coffee.”

“Oh, thank you. I really need this. Sleep is being an elusive b**h.”

“Nightmares?”

I sit down next to him with our coffee, then hand his mug to him. He takes the mug calmly then sits it on the coffee table. He pushes up to his feet, walks swiftly to the wall of windows, then huffs out an annoyed breath.

Not nightmares.

“After the charity auction, I had a flashback of that day. That mother and her, child. When I

came back to my senses, there was a police officer at my car window.”

Holy s**t. That was one of the worst days of his career. I remember the fallout from that.

“What did the officer do?”

“He sent me on my way after thanking me for my service. That isn’t what is bothering me. It is where I went after that.”

When he turns from the window, his eyes are sad, but there is frustration

ten all over his face. I have a feeling that I know where he went. However, I say nothing to him. Instead, I keep silent so he can just get it off his chest.

“She opened the door, took my hand, then led me back to her bedroom. No words were spoken between the two of us. What happened next was amazing.”

“Did you and Rylan sleep together? I thought you wanted time to work on your PTSD with Dr. West first.” I ask.

1 can’t help the surprise that is in my voice.

“No, we didn’t. I would have hated myself the next morning if we did. We both know it isn’t what I need right now. Even though I know it would have been mind blowing.”

I shake my head, then grab my coffee off the table.

“Then what happened if not sex?”

“She stripped me out of my suit jacket, helped me out of me shoes and socks, laid my head on her chest, then just held me while I cried myself to sleep. It was exactly what I needed at that moment. I think that is why I knew it would be safe going to her.”

Wow. That was not at all what I was expecting. It does, however, prove just how right the two of them are for each other. Rylan gave him just what he needed with her quiet acceptance. I am happy she was there for him.

“It sounds like it was just what you needed. What is the problem?”

He runs a hand through his hair, then turns back to look out the window. I watch the rise and fall of his shoulders as he sighs heavily. Did she do or say something the next morning? Or maybe a few days later?

“When I woke up the next morning, I was confused about where I was. I have never slept in a woman’s bed overnight. So, when I looked next to me and saw Rylan, I panicked. I thought

we slept together.”

“What did you do?”

“I tried to get the hell out of there as fast as I could.”

I can only imagine how bad that went. Angry Rylan is scary. If she woke up and he was gone, she would be mad. I am sure she would understand, but she would still be

“Did you get out in one piece?”

“No.”

He spins around to face me with a flustered expression. This makes me want to know what happened even more now. Rylan is the only person who has ever made him like this.

“I stepped on her d**n high heel with my bare f**king foot and let out a yelp of pain despite my best efforts to hold it in. She shot up out of bed faster than I have seen her move in years, then had a knife pointed at me.”

A bark of laughter leaves my mouth before I can stop it. That must have been a sight to see. Rylan is deadly with blades of almost any kinds. She is also quick and quiet, like a snake.

“I have no idea where the f**k she had that knife hidden since she was sleeping in just a tank top and her…” his voice trails off as he shakes his head.

“What happened when she realized it was you?”

“I dashed out of the room after grabbing my socks and shoes. She came out a few minutes later and made coffee. Then she kicked me in the a** with her first words. She thought I was that Paulson guy at first. Then when she saw it was me, she was relieved.”

Anger flares through me at what that man did to her. When what he did spread through the hospital, five more women came forward claiming he assaulted them, too. They kept silent because he convinced them that no one would believe them.

He is facing more charges and is no longer employed at Mercy General Hospital.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“We had breakfast together, then I left. I have been ducking her calls since then, like the jacka** I am.”

Well, that explains the frustrated look on his face.

“Why are you avoiding her?”

Aaron lets out a frustrated growl as he flops down on the sofa next to me. He rubs both. hands down his face, then loosens his tie. The exhausted look on his face when he glances over at me causes me to chuckle.

“When she came up out of that bed wearing barely any clothes, my first thought was to take her back to bed. That would have been a terrible idea. I was so out of it the night before that I didn’t even look at what she was wearing.”

He takes a sip of his coffee, then he pushes back up off the sofa to pace the never sits s

when he is frustrated. Which right now, he clearly is.

1. Aaron

Me***ly, emotionally, and sexually. I saw the hungry looks he was giving her at the charity. event. Looks that Rylan was giving him right back.

“Then just talk to her. She will hunt your a** down eventually, and you know it. She is probably just wanting to know if you are ok after what sent you to her in the first place.”

“Or you can talk to me right now.”

At the sound of Rylan’s voice, I turn my head to look at her. Her eyes are on Aaron’s now stiff back. He is frozen in place with his back to the door. Since this is a confrontation that I want no part of, I get up off the sofa, then walk to my desk to grab my laptop and briefcase.

“I will leave the two of you to hash this out. Aaron, I will have Sherry patch all my calls to my cellphone for the rest of the day. I think working from home is a great idea.”

He nods his head when he turns to face me. There is a pleading look in his eyes, but I can’t help him with this. Rylan is staring him down as I gather my things. As much as I would like to help him, her anger is justified.

“Tell Annora that I will see her on Friday.” Rylan says as I pass her on my way out of the office.

“Will do. She is excited about the party.”

With at, I make a hasty retreat.

I feel bad for Aaron as I step into the elevator. Matters of the heart are almost always complicated. Add in the ghost from his past that will forever haunt him. He has an uphill battle ahead of him. I will be there for the hard road he will be on with the war trauma, but I can only do so much to help him with the rest.

There are issues in my own life that I need to sort out. Drama with a crazy a*** ex-girlfriend

n hope that will hopefully be ended on Friday. Then there is the situation with Grace. All for there is that I keep my cool when we talk about it with the principal. It isn’t all the child’s fault, but do I hold her parents responsible for the end result. O

Three hours latet, I am still in my home office when I hear Grace’s laughter through the slightly open door. I am on a conference call with G&C’s department managers when Grace runs past my office, then down the hall. The library is further down the hall, so I suspect that is where she is headed.

“My girls are home earlier than I expected, so can we continue this meeting first thing tomorrow morning?”

I get unanimous agreements, so I end the call. After closing my laptop, I exit my office, then turn towards the library. I can hear Annora, and her mother talking from the living room as I hunt down my daughter.

When I walk into the library, I find Grace sitting on the floor with a large plastic bag next to her. There are books on the floor in front of her and she is pulling more out of the bag as I watch her from the doorway. They seem to have bought out a small bookstore.

“What is all of this?”

Her eyes snap up to mine when I speak. There is a huge grin on her face as she pulls another book out of the bag. I can’t help the curiosity running through me. Having my daughter share a love of books with me has been amazing!

“Did you rob a books store?” I joke.

“No, mom and grandma bought them for me.”

“Well, let’s see what you found.”

I sit on the floor in front of her, then we go over each of her new acquisitions. The joy in her voice and the smile on her face as she shares her books with me make me so happy. This is

much better than the anger from last night’ revelations.

Grace’s enthusiasm for her books leads to us snuggled up on the couch while I read from her new book. We dive into the world of Alice in Wonderland. A book that I have never read

before, but I am enjoying it.

“There you two are. I have been looking in all the wrong places, it seems.”

I glance up from the book at the sound of Annora’s voice. She is standing in the doorway, staring at us with a smile on her face. I close the book after sliding a bookmark into our place. Grace gets up then runs out of the room screaming that she is starving.

“Dinner is ready. We are having lasagna, thanks to my mother

“How did your spa day go?” I ask as I get up and walk to her.

“It went well. I think another one is in order but for only adults. I called Shawna and Rylan about it earlier and we plan on going to do that on Sunday. How long were you home before we got here?”

I pull her to me, then plant my lips on hers. She sighs as I kiss her more firmly. Soon she opens her mouth for me. I take the kiss deeper as she presses her body closer to mine. When

I break the kiss, then kiss her nose, she just blinks up at me with eyes that have gone

dark

with need.

“I needed that. Come, let’s go eat dinner. You and Grace can tell me about your day and then I will share mine with you when we are upstairs.”

“That bad?”

“Not at all. At least not for me.”

She gives me a curious look as we walk down the hallway.

“I will tell you all about it later. I promise.”

Two hours later, after dinner is done, everything is cleaned up and the leftovers away, we put Grace to bed, then head upstairs to our room. Once we both have brushed our teeth and changed for bed, she curls up beside me as I tell her about my day.

“So, we will know the results of the DNA test on Friday?”

“Yes. If Logan is not my son, then Vincent is going to motion for the cased to be tossed out. He already presented the abortion records to the court that show reasonable doubt, then when you add Evan’s statement, it all proves that I left because of what she did.”

“Had you known she was pregnant again, would you have gone back?”

“Never. The minute she told me she aborted our child because it was an inconvenience to

her plans, she killed whatever I felt for her. I would have stepped up for our child if I knew, just like I will now if Logan is mine. However, Dionne can rot in hell for all I ca

She looks at me with a thoughtful expression.

“If he is yours, then we will fight to bring him home. With us. Where we know he will be loved. Did you see her with him when we were at the clinic? She is a stranger to him. They must rely on that nanny to care for him.”

The anger in her voice makes me know she will love him no matter what. She is an extraordinary mother and I love her more. If he is mine.

We will know on Friday.

Two more days.

ts

Heather Walsh

at this point I’m hoping Logan is Quinn’s son so at least he’ll be loved by someone