Ran Away Pregnant Came Back Alpha Heiress (Amelia and Damien) novel Chapter 208

Chapter 208

Jake’s POV

+25 Bonus

“Not both,” I said. I’d already decided to prioritize Amelia’s happiness above all else. Unfortunately that meant I hadn’t given much credence to her child. Perhaps it was time to correct that.

But, Damien? Amelia had such a miserable time when she had lived with him, hoping to escape him.

I looked at Damien, in his grief. Amy might save him, and as his last connection to Amelia, Damien would certainly take care of that child.

“I’ll think about it,” I said, promising nothing yet, but… considering it.

So I did. All through the service, I kept glancing over at Damien, trying to picture the kind of father he would make.

I wasn’t sure if I could fully trust him with a baby. I’d want visitation and regular checkups from Dr. Wyatt and Healer Eve.

But Mom was right, Amy couldn’t just stay at the hospital. And Amelia had wanted Damien to be a part of her baby’s life.

Maybe I was just being stubborn, trying to control everything by keeping a father from his daughter. I was already controlling so much already, rewriting Amelia’s entire past. I’d had good reasons for that, but what were my reasons for keeping Amy a prisoner in the hospital?

They were not so justifiable.

Little Amy deserved more careful consideration from her uncle, even if that meant pushing her out of our lives. What was best for her?

Was it her father’s love?

I waited until after the funeral, when most of the other congregation had departed, then my parents and I approached Damien.

He didn’t look up from the ground, but he did acknowledge us. “Thank you for allowing me to attend. I only ask that I may take Amelia’s ashes and perhaps a keepsake to remember her and my unborn child by.”

Mom and Dad both looked at me. Dad’s expression was cool, expressionless. He was hiding what he really thought. Mom, however, was less neutral. She was pleading me with her eyes, begging me to tell him about Amy, to make the right choice.

“Damien,” I said, unsure how to proceed. It wasn’t easy to tell a man that you allowed him to believe his daughter was dead when she wasn’t. The only way, I supposed, was to push through the dread and be honest. At least about this one thing.

Damien finally lifted his gaze to look at me. I didn’t know what he expected. I wasn’t sure he knew either.

Swallowing down my regret, I asked, “Would you like to meet your daughter?”

Damien startled, his eyes wide with disbelief. “She’s alive?”

Damien’s POV

My emotions were a hot mess as I went with Jake and his family to the pack hospital. I felt like I was being pulled every direction at once, like my skin could barely contain me anymore.

1/3

Bonus

Jake and his parents didn’t say much to me during the short trip, and I didn’t say anything back either. I was in shock, I thought.

I genuinely thought our daughter had died with Amelia. It never occurred to me that the baby had yet lived and that she was thriving.

Finally, in the elevator up to the nursery, Lillian told me, “We named her Amy, after her mother.”

“I love it,” I said, and I did. Amelia should be remembered.

And now, with her baby still alive, Amelia could live on as well.

The elevator doors opened and I followed Jake into the hallway. But then, through the glass window, I saw her, tucked away in her little hospital cradle. There were many babies there, but I knew which one she was at once.

“I’ll get her for you,” Lillian said.

I stood, staring at my precious little girl through the window as Lillian went inside and picked her up. Then Lillian came back out into the hallway and gently placed the baby into my arms.

She was light as a feather, so fragile and delicate. But absolutely perfect. When she blinked her eyes open, my heart soared and cracked at once. She had her mother’s eyes.

“She’s perfect,” I said.

Lillian, Martin, and Jake all shared a look. Then Jake said, “We thought you might like to raise her. She is your daughter after all.”

Never in my life, when I was coming to this funeral, did I think I would be leaving with my daughter.

Not only was she alive, but she was to be mine?

“Do you think you can handle it?” Lillian asked, and she did so kindly, even if the words were harsh.

I understood her concern. I hadn’t been of the most stable mind lately, consumed by my grief.

But I could do better. For Amy, I would pull myself together.

I would be a good dad. The kind of father that Amy deserved. The kind of man Amelia wanted me to be.

“Yes,” I said. “I will love her forever.”

Lillian smiled at that response. Martin nodded. Jake seemed unsure, watching me closely, but I squared my shoulders while still holding Amy gently, in an effort to show him I was capable.

“I’ll only ask that our doctors check on her regularly,” Jake said. “And my parents as well.”

“Of course,” Damien said. “She should have all the family she can.”

That further satisfied Lillian and Martin and seemed to placate Julian somewhat.

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