Then Came You (The Wilde Sisters #2) Read Free Page A

to kill it with a horrid affair.
    “No. I didn’t…” He sighed. “Look, it’s a long, unbelievable story that I’m still processing myself. I wouldn’t believe it if it weren’t happening to me.” His gaze flickered to the mantel and he brushed past her, picking up a picture. It was from Christmas, just a few weeks ago. “She looks…”
    “Yeah, just like you. Congratulations, Dad,” she said sarcastically.
    Grayson shoved the picture in Thyme’s hands and walked out the door.
     
    ***
     
    Grayson
     
    If his life hadn’t already been turned upside down it surely was now. The little girl in the picture was the spitting image of him. And just like his mother when she was a little girl. The woman next to the girl looked vaguely familiar but he wouldn’t have recognized her had he passed her on the street. Six years was a long time to remember a passing face in the night. A night that didn’t involve talking or getting to know each other, except in the most carnal way.
    He was a father.
    “Damn.”
    Grayson sat behind the wheel of his rented Mercedes willing his hands to stop shaking. A father? Grayson? No, he wasn’t ready for this. Sophia Buchanan had mapped out the future of her only grandson and he’d willingly followed the path. With the exception of taking over her clothing empire and majoring in business, he’d been molded into the man his matriarch of a grandmother wanted him to be.
    When she accepted the fact that the fashion industry wasn’t suited for him, she allowed him to follow in his father’s footsteps instead. Yes, allow would be the correct word to use. It irked him how much his parents allowed Sophia to control their lives. They weren’t doormats and had successful careers: Richard was the owner and CEO of his multi-million dollar company Montgomery Designs and Eva ran multiple foundations, raising millions for children and families in need.
    Even with putting his foot down, he still followed the path laid before him.
    Attend his father’s alma mater, Yale.
    Check.
    Major in architecture.
    Check.
    Work for Montgomery Designs.
    Check.
    Attend the galas, charity dinners, and functions his mother organized.
    Check.
    Date women his grandmother pushed upon him.
    Check, check, check.
    Hell, he hadn’t been on a date with a woman of his choosing since…college? No, he barely had time to date back then. He’d been too concerned about making the grades, following his well-determined path.
    To say Grayson was born with a silver spoon in his mouth was an understatement. Both his parents were born in the lap of luxury as well and didn’t know any other way. They weren’t snobs, but they were ignorant to the “other” side. Sure, Eva volunteered in the children’s wards of New York City’s hospitals, and Richard wrote checks to plenty of needy organizations and groups over the years, but neither one of Grayson’s parents ever lived a normal life.
    Hell, Grayson never lived a normal life. But he wanted to. He always felt like the odd duck. His manners were impeccable and that sure didn’t get him in with the cool kids. He wasn’t a rebel, bad boy, or risk taker; that didn’t get him in with the mysterious girls.
    Grayson Richard Montgomery lived an ordinary, boring life. For a rich guy. Or rather, he had an ordinary, boring life. His father would be disappointed in him, his grandmother would be furious for besmirching the family’s reputation. His mother, she’d secretly be elated to have a little girl in the family. Grayson never missed the yearning in his mother’s eyes when she talked about her charity work with the children.
    But what would he do with a daughter? He worked eighty-hour weeks, lived in an apartment in Manhattan—granted, it had two bedrooms—and had no idea what five-year-old girls needed. There was absolutely no way he could care for her.
    Bethany Davenport’s letter said her family was dysfunctional and Madeline had never met anyone on her side. Eric was an