CHAPTER TEN

NOLAN POV

I cleared my throat and tried to sound calm. "Where is your friend right now?" I held my breath. I wished with all my heart that I was wrong. I wished she was not April's friend.

Maybe she had the wrong address. Maybe she was here to see someone else.

I was hoping for any small reason that would prove I had not slept with my daughter’s friend.

She was sitting in the front passenger seat with her backpack on her lap. "We were supposed to come here together, but she got held up."

April had texted me that she was coming by herself, but she didn’t say why she wasn’t with her friend. I could only imagine what had stopped April.

Maybe a new, expensive handbag in a store window. Maybe a cute stray cat on the street.

We kept driving in total silence. My stomach was twisting into a tighter and tighter knot. How would Gwen react when she found out she had slept with her friend's father? And how did this even happen? I thought back to the few times April had talked about her friend.

April had told me that Gwen was serious in her studies, worked hard, and was determined. April never said anything about Gwen going out often or having a busy social life.

Dammit. I remembered thinking last night that sleeping with a man was not something Gwen usually did. And damn it all, I was almost sure she had been a virgin. My stomach churned, and I felt so sick I almost pulled the car over to throw up. Did I take away my daughter's friend's virginity? I tried to stop thinking, because the more I thought, the worse I felt.

I reached the road to our cabin and turned right onto the long driveway. Why did I let April talk me into this trip? We could have stayed in the city for Christmas, and I wouldn't be in this awful situation.

Gwen suddenly spoke. "It turns out she's not coming."

At first, I didn't understand what she meant. Then the words finally made sense. April wasn't coming? She hadn't told me. "What?"

"Right before my car slid on the ice, I got a text from my friend. She said she couldn't make it to the cabin."

If April couldn't make it, why was Gwen still coming to my place? Maybe she wasn't some kind of crazy person, but if she already knew who I was... Maybe she saw a chance to get something out of our night together. Was she planning to blackmail me? Would she threaten to tell April everything unless I gave her money?

"I was looking for a place to turn around. Hitting the ice worked like a charm, and I spun out. But then I got stuck in the snow. Do you think it will be hard to get a tow truck?"

She didn't sound like someone trying to trick me. But that didn't mean she wasn't still hiding something.

"I'll make some phone calls and see if I can get someone to come out here to help."

"Oh, that's okay. My friend's dad will be there, and hopefully, he can help me."

I glanced over at her.

Fk. Fk. Fk.*

I pulled up in front of my cabin and parked near the front steps. I got out of the car and walked around to the back to get her bag. By the time I reached the steps, she was already at the front door, knocking.

I took a deep breath, put my key in the lock, and opened the door.

Gwen looked surprised. "You have a key to Mr. Douglas's apartment?"

I motioned for her to walk inside and then closed the door behind us. I wondered how long it would take for her to understand what was really going on.

I knew the exact moment she realized the truth. Her eyebrows shot up to her forehead, and I could practically scent her shock.

"Oh, my God. You're Mr. Douglas. You're April’s father."