Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 88841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
“I’ll deal with them,” Nora says. “My mother warned me not to latch on to you, and I should’ve listened.”
“Fine.” I sigh in defeat. “But I’m not giving you fifty million dollars. One, you signed a prenup, so you’re not eligible to receive a dime without being married for at least five years unless I’ve been unfaithful, which I haven’t. And two, I’ve been recording this entire conversation.”
I lift my phone out of my pocket and shake it. “I can easily take you to court and get custody—and I will because, as you pointed out, I have a shit ton of money—but since neither of us wants to go through all that, I’ll give you five million as a parting gift, and you’ll walk away because my daughter deserves better than you anyway. But understand that walking away means you will have no contact with Addie. Not you or your family.”
It has to be a clean slate. Otherwise, she’ll be confused. One day, this will affect her, and the last thing I want is Nora’s family demanding to see her when her own mother doesn’t want anything to do with her.
Nora glares at me, probably debating whether she should argue and try to get more money, but after several seconds, she nods. “Okay. Five million, and I’m gone, and I’ll make sure my family stays away.”
“Okay, but you need to leave now. Go stay somewhere else while I have my attorney draw up the paperwork. I don’t want you anywhere near my home or my daughter. As far as I’m concerned, you’re dead to us.”
chapter one
RYDER
Eight Months Later
“Dada, up!” Addie lifts her arms, releasing the side bar of her crib, and drops onto the mattress in a fit of giggles.
How my daughter wakes up in such a happy mood every morning is beyond me, but since it’s better than her waking up cranky, I can’t complain—even if waking up takes place at six in the morning.
“Good morning, Chunk,” I say, reaching into the crib and pulling her out.
She squeals in delight as I lay her onto the changing table so I can change her diaper and get her dressed for the day.
Once she’s ready, I make her a bowl of oatmeal with fruit and a sippy cup filled with milk. She inhales it like a champ, laughing and babbling the entire time. My little girl loves to eat.
After I clean her up from breakfast, I set her on her play rug that’s filled with toys while I make my own breakfast. Since she’s now learned to walk, she takes a quick look around and then pops up onto her feet, chasing after me.
“Dada, up!” she squeals, latching on to my leg like the most adorable spider monkey.
And because I can’t say no to her—I know, I know, every parenting book says that’s bad—I lift her onto my hip and go about making my coffee and breakfast one-handed.
As I drink my coffee and eat my breakfast, I watch the morning news while Addie plays with her blocks. It’s a routine we’ve fallen into since I returned to work and put her in our recently opened corporate childcare.
After two months of being home with her—while I loved the time we spent together—it was time for both of us to leave the house. I love my job, and Addie loves going to the childcare three days a week and playing with the other kids.
“Dada, look,” Addie says—the word look sounding like ook since she hasn’t mastered the L sound yet. She points to the block tower she created, hits me with a toothy grin, and then slices her fist into it, sending the blocks flying everywhere.
She falls into a fit of giggles, and I can’t help but join her. Everything about her is infectious—her smile, her laugh, the way she looks at me like I’m her entire world.
The first few weeks after Nora left were rough—mostly because I let the nanny go. I was determined to do this on my own. So, I took time off from work and dove into the deep end of single parenthood. But between the books I read, having my best friends—Julian and Ana—there to help, and many days and nights filled with trial and error while praying I wasn’t fucking up my daughter too badly, I’m proud to say that Addie and I didn’t drown. She recently turned one and is thriving.
Nora took her five million, signed her rights over, and disappeared—despite her family begging her not to and agreeing that she’s going through something. While I hate that my daughter will grow up without her mother in her life, I realize now that it’s for the best. I can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped, and I need to put my daughter first—something neither of my parents ever did for me.