Pulling out of his touch, she gripped her crutches even harder. “And you’d make a fantastic father. You had a choice, Wayne. You chose not to take it. You tell me to think about what I wanted to be. What about having love, Wayne? Didn’t you feel it once with Timothy?” She couldn’t bring herself to ask if he felt it with her.
This was just too damn hard.
“He wasn’t mine.”
“He could have been,” she said. “That’s the point. Timothy could be yours now. Do you even know if they’ve found a home for him? If someone even cares that he’s alive or dead?”
She watched him flinch at her words. “You haven’t, have you?”
“I’ve got my life back.” The coldness was back. The only problem for Temperance was she no longer believed it.
“I thought you were a cold-hearted bastard in the beginning. Then you began to tell me things. Were they the truth or just words thrown together to make yourself feel less cold?”
He didn’t say anything, and she shook her head.
“You know what’s worse, I knew you’d break me. I knew, and yet even with that promise of absolute pain, I still took the job. I was a fool.” She began to move past him, and this time she didn’t look back.
Tears filled her eyes, but he didn’t once call her name or stop her. Pressing the elevator button, she stood, waiting for the ride that would take her down to Lilah.
“I didn’t lie,” Wayne said, making her look behind her. “I didn’t lie once. Everything I said to you, Tempe, that was the truth. It was real. I couldn’t lie to you even if I wanted to. Crazy, huh?”
“Why are you at the hospital?” she asked.
“I had things to do.”
The elevator opened and she entered the cab, pressing the ground floor button. She didn’t say anything else.
“Goodbye,” she said.
The doors closed, and she slumped against the far wall, taking a deep breath as she did. She’d tried to phone child services about Timothy, but they wouldn’t divulge any information to her. In her gut she knew that Wayne would be able to get anything he wanted.
Wayne.
Seeing him had filled her with so much pain, joy, and love.
God! She loved him, and even after everything that had happened, she still wanted to love him, to take care of him.
Rubbing at her eyes, she forced the tears back as the elevator doors opened. Lilah waited for her by her car with a big smile on her face.
“How was your day?” she asked.
“It was great.”
“Well, guess who just landed a guest appearance on an awesome medical drama that could be a little something more depending on how it goes?” Lilah asked, giggling.
Temperance burst out laughing as her friend squealed her name, danced around, and then hugged her close.
“I’m so happy for you,” she said, holding her close.
“I can’t believe it. My luck is finally turning, and it’s going to be so awesome.” She fist-pumped the air before helping Temperance get into the car, taking the crutches from her and placing them into the back. “I’m so excited. You’ve got to help me learn my lines, and you know, bake those wonderful chocolate chip cookies that are awesome.”
All the way home she listened to Lilah talk about the audition process, and reading the script, and the absolute secrecy that the company demanded.
By the time they got back to their apartment, Temperance had a little headache, so when she saw Robert waiting outside of their apartment, she couldn’t contain her sigh.
“Do you want me to get him to leave?” Lilah asked in a whisper voice.
“No. It’s fine. Thank you.”
Once inside the apartment, Temperance watched as Robert took a seat opposite her. “How was your doctor’s appointment?” he asked.
“It was fine.” She didn’t correct him that it was in fact her physical therapist. She didn’t think for a second he cared enough.
“I know I’m nagging. We’ve tried other nannies, and we’re really at the end of our tether with this. Honestly, we need you back, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get you there.”
She stared down at her hands. No wedding ring. Nothing.
This was her life. She had to accept it, and there was no way she could come away from it.
“Weekends will be my own,” she said. “I’ll come back here. I won’t stay at the house.”
“That’s fine.”
“I don’t know when you want me to start. Providing I don’t do anything wrong, I should be good to go after another three weeks. The break was really rather minor.”
“We’ll take you now. The kids want to see you, Temperance. I’m so sorry about what I did.”
She shook her head. “Don’t worry about it.”
Even though Wayne had broken her heart, she couldn’t be upset by what happened between them. Wayne had made it easy for her to fall in love with him, and for that she would never be angry with anyone.