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She stumbled back from him. “Goodbye, Johnny,” she said curtly and slammed the door behind her.

Johnny turned and headed down the bridge, a fragile flicker of hope inside him. She wasn’t as indifferent to him as she professed to be. When he stroked her cheek, for just a brief moment, she had turned her face into the caress.

Minutes later Johnny was in his car and headed home, his thoughts filled with Mimi and her little boy. It would be fairly easy to get a paternity test and solve the matter once and for all. But he didn’t want to do that right now. That would be his very last resort. What he really wanted more than anything was to earn Mimi’s trust enough that she would feel safe telling him the truth.

And he was certain Danny was his. The very idea of fatherhood still awed and excited him.

It didn’t take him long to arrive at his house. Home for Johnny was a two-story mansion. Six bedrooms, a large kitchen and living room, a roomy den and four bathrooms, this was where Johnny had been raised by his father.

His father had died of a massive stroke a little over five years ago, leaving the house, the very successful construction company and all his other worldly goods to Johnny. It was a heavy responsibility for a twenty-two-year-old to take on, but Johnny had worked hard to keep the construction company going.

When he left Black Bog, he’d asked his best friend, Frank Fairmont, to move into the house and keep an eye on things. At the time Frank had been recently divorced and was sofa surfing among friends until he got his life together. The arrangement had been beneficial to both of them.

Since Johnny’s return home, Frank had arranged to move into an apartment and was moving out of Johnny’s place in a week.

As Johnny pulled into the driveway of the big house, myriad emotions swept through him. This had really never felt like home. His mother had left his dad when Johnny was eight years old, turning his father into an angry, bitter man. She’d left town, and Johnny and his father never heard from her again.

Johnny had spent his entire life trying to please a man who absolutely refused to be pleased. While his father hadn’t been physically abusive to Johnny, he had definitely been emotionally and verbally abusive.

If Mimi’s son was his, then he would give him all the things his father hadn’t given him. The most important thing would be to make sure that the child knew how very much he was loved and accepted every single day of his life.

He hit the button to open the garage door, pulled in and closed it behind him. He entered the house through a mud room that led into the large kitchen, dropped his keys on the marble countertop and then walked into the living room.

Frank was sprawled on the sofa with a pizza box on the glass-topped coffee table. His blond hair was in disarray, and Johnny suspected his friend had been asleep.

“Hey, I didn’t hear you come in,” Frank said, straightening up to a sitting position.

“Relax,” Johnny replied. He walked over to the black leather recliner and sank down.

“There’s a couple pieces of pepperoni pizza left in the box if you’re interested,” Frank said.

“I’m not, but thanks anyway.” Johnny released a deep sigh.

“How did it go?” Frank asked.

“Not real great,” Johnny replied. “She basically told me she wants nothing to do with me. But I’m more convinced than ever that her son is mine.”

“So, what’s your next move? A paternity test?”

“No, not yet. I don’t want to rush things with her. I would much prefer she tell me the truth on her own,” Johnny replied.

“How are you going to get her to tell you the truth if she doesn’t want anything to do with you?” Frank asked with a raised brow.

“Gramps and I have always been close and that’s a friendship I want to keep.” Still even Gramps had been rather cool to him. And why wouldn’t he be? That was another relationship he hoped to heal.

Once again, he thought of that brief moment when she had turned her face into his caress. Would he ever be able to break through her defenses? Could she ever find forgiveness for him in her heart?

Was it even possible to rekindle the love they’d once shared? Or was he on a fool’s errand? Only time would tell.

Chapter Three

Mimi took a last look at herself in the mirror on the back of her bedroom door. The bright yellow sundress fit her to perfection and her makeup was subtle yet she’d enhanced her eyes with a bit of shadow and mascara. She’d pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and tied it with a yellow ribbon that perfectly matched her dress. With a spray of her favorite perfume around her neck and shoulders, she pronounced herself ready to go. She left her bedroom and walked into the living room where Gramps was reading a story to Danny on his lap.

“You look really nice,” Gramps said with a smile of approval.

“Yeah, Mommy, you look so pretty,” Danny added.

“Thanks to both of you.” She sat down on the sofa to wait for River, who should be arriving at any moment. She’d spent the day playing with Danny and trying to calm the storm of emotions her talk with Johnny had wrought inside her.