Page 46 of Protecting Addison
“I want to meet her,” Brady said.
Immediately, Addison’s stomach tightened. She wasn’t ready for this. And she definitely wasn’t going to spring Ellory’s father on her out of the blue. She’d just opened her mouth to tell him that now wasn’t the time when she was saved by a nurse coming into the waiting room, calling Ellory’s name.
“We have to go, sorry,” she told Brady as she stood, not feeling sorry at all.
“Wait—”
“Can’t, we have an appointment.”
“Can I call you?”
She wanted to say no. That he hadn’t shown any interest in his daughter for twelve years, and she didn’t see why now would be any different…but the fact of the matter was, the manwasEllory’s biological father. If her daughter wanted him in her life, that was up to her. But within boundaries that Addison put in place. She wouldn’t allow Ellory to get hurt. Not with everything else she had to deal with.
She reached into her purse and pulled out a receipt and a pen, quickly scrawling her number on the back. “Here’s my number. Text me later so I have yours, and we’ll talk about it.”
“Great! Thanks. It was good to see you, Addison. You really do look great. Maybe we can go out for dinner or something and catch up.”
“Sorry, I’m married. Talk later.”
It felt amazing to be able to say that to her ex. To not have to make up an excuse about why she didn’t want to have dinner with him. Addison hurried over to where Ellory was waiting in the doorway with the nurse. She looked back before the door shut behind them and saw Brady staring at their daughter. He had a look in his eyes that she couldn’t interpret, but she didn’t have time to think too much about it; she needed to concentrate on Ellory and her appointment.
But for some reason, an uneasy feeling settled in her gut. Brady hadn’t been the best boyfriend, and he was obviously a horrible father. She reluctantly had to give him credit for immediately asking to meet his daughter. She had no idea what would happen in the future in regard to him and Ellory…but like everything else in life, she supposed she’d just have to hang on for the ride.
* * *
“How’d it go?” MacGyver asked when he saw Addison’s name on his caller ID.
“The visit with the doctor…good. He went over the results from the upper GI. She’s going to start the bowel rest protocol today. Liquids first for a few days, then lots of high protein, high but good fats and low to no fiber. If that doesn’t help alleviate some of her symptoms, we’ll see about extending the fasting.”
“Is that healthy?” MacGyver asked worriedly.
“We’ll monitor her closely. And she’ll need to go in to see the doctor for blood tests regularly. The main concern is her weight.”
“Right. So…what else happened?”
“What do you mean? How do you know something else happened?” Addison asked.
“You said that the visit with the doctor went well, indicating that something else didn’t?” MacGyver said.
She sighed. “It’s not something I want to talk about over the phone.”
“Are you all right? The other kids?” MacGyver asked urgently.
“We’re fine. I just ran into someone from my past today, and I want to talk to you about it. Later.”
“Okay. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’m sure. How’s your day been? Any more word?”
MacGyver knew Addison was going to ask that. And he wished he had a definite date when they’d be headed out on their mission to the Middle East, but tensions were high there these days and the Navy had a lot of irons in the fire. So things were pretty fluid right now. But the truth was, the entire team was ready. They’d studied and researched and trained and were ready to head out to take down the HVT, the high-value target they’d been tracking. He wasn’t a good guy, and no one would be sorry when he was gone.
“Soon, sweetheart. That’s all I can say right now.”
“Okay. Anything in particular you want for dinner?”
MacGyver adored this woman. He supposed it was partly because she’d been a single mother for so long, but she could go with the flow so easily. He had no worries about leaving her behind when he was deployed. Well, no worries about her being able to handle four kids, a business, and keeping her sanity. He definitely worried about her well-being, but he did that every time he left her side. It was an odd feeling, one he’d never had about anyone before, but after talking with Kevlar, Safe, Blink, and Preacher, he realized that it was simply a part of loving someone more than you could ever imagine loving another human being.
Love.
