Because of who he was and whose granddaughter Clair was, like when Isaiah had been hurt, Clair’s near fatal allergic reaction received national attention. It’d been on the news those whole first terrifying days. The news vans had lined up outside the hospital, likely waiting to be the first to report she’d passed.
There was no way AJ would know, and if he did, she was certain he would’ve said something, but Fred had been calling Addison nonstop since the news broke. She’d been so caught up with Clair at the hospital she hadn’t bothered to answer his calls or return his messages. It wasn’t until he threatened to show up at the hospital to see his daughter that she’d finally called him back.
She explained to him what had happened. In no way did she make it sound like it was AJ’s fault or that she blamed him. Yet the very next day a reporter outside the stadium in Baltimore asked AJ if it was true he was to blame for Clair’s allergic reaction. Impressively, AJ had kept his cool, ignoring the question until the reporter followed up by asking him if he planned on adopting Clair if she made it. AJ had reacted to the tactless comment as only he could. They had to pull him off the guy whom he nearly choked with one hand.
That, of course, made the headlines as well. The footage of it had been played over and over. Fred assured Addison he hadn’t said anything to anyone about AJ being the one who’d shared his possibly contaminated ice cream with Clair, but she knew better. Fred wasn’t nearly as upset about what happened to Clair as he was that AJ was being billed as her stepdad in some reports. Addison had smiled bittersweetly while listening to one radio’s broadcast announcing they’d have an update on AJ Romero’s stepdaughter after the commercial break. But like the reporter who questioned AJ, speculation ran rampant that perhaps AJ would be adopting her.
As usual, it was all Fred cared about. He was suspicious that maybe there was some truth to the reports. He was still talking about moving out to California, which worried Addison. But worse yet, he’d already made clear in not so many words that he wouldn’t be signing off his rights to Clair so that AJ could adopt her. Addison had assured him the topic had never once been discussed. She’d been so worried he might start with other threats that she’d let him in on something else: that she and AJ were no longer romantically involved.
Instead of that lessening the calls and texts from him like she’d hoped, he seemed to be getting more relentless. Though she didn’t answer or respond to them all, she did want to stay on his good side, so she responded every now and again. Today she’d responded to a message saying it was his travel day and he’d be in town. He wanted to see her. He said he needed to discuss something he thought would be better if they discussed in person. Clair had been an afterthought as usual.
“Maybe you could bring Clair too, and we can finally formally meet.”
Out of the question.
Addison was still holding out hope that it would never be necessary. For that reason, she agreed to meet him alone, using Clair’s still delicate condition as an excuse for why she couldn’t come along.
They were meeting at Lou and Mickey’s again. It just felt safe for the same reasons she’d explained to AJ when she’d had to come clean about meeting him the first time. It was the only good thing about not being with AJ anymore. She didn’t have to feel guilty about sneaking around, nor did she have to think about having that dreadful conversation with him again. The promise was that she’d keep him in the know if she planned on letting Fred into Clair’s life. So far it didn’t appear she’d need to. It’s why she was here tonight in hopes of negotiating.
The waitress had just dropped off her tea when Fred arrived. Addison had made her concern of being spotted very clear on the phone before meeting him. They were in one of the furthest-to-the-back and darkest booths in the place. She also made sure to get there earlier than she said she would so there’d be no danger of being seen arriving together. It had nothing to do with her not wanting this to get back to AJ.
Since the news broke about Clair being rushed to the hospital, the speculation of who her father might be started up again. It was another thing that had rubbed Fred the wrong way. AJ had since answered the question everyone was asking. His statement had been, “If that amazing little girl was my daughter, I’d be an idiot to keep it to myself. I’d want the whole world to know it.”
Fred had taken it as a jab. “That asshole’s calling me out,” he’d said in an angry message he’d left Addison.
Again, Addison had to scramble to assure him that wasn’t the case. He also suspected that AJ knew who he was. Addison assured him with all certainty that that wasn’t true either. Still, it was beginning to feel like she was losing the battle to have Fred keep his identity under wraps. She was hoping tonight she could regain some ground.
She glanced up at him and smiled as genuinely as she could. The evening was chilly and he wore a beanie, but she was sure it wasn’t because he was cold. It wasn’t that cold yet. He’d also dressed down in a black jeans and a black tight T-shirt. She’d asked him to be as inconspicuous as possible and, thankfully, he’d obliged.
The man wasn’t bad-looking by any means. Admittedly, aside from him being an up-and-coming ballplayer, it’d been initially what had attracted her to him. He’d only grown into his own over the years, filling out very nicely. She was sure it was why he’d worn the T-shirt that showed off every bit of his impressive physique.
He sat across from her and ordered a gin and tonic, making sure, as usual, it was top-shelf gin. “You look amazing,” he said as soon as the waitress walked away.
Addison took an extra-slow sip of her tea in lieu of a thank you. She’d dressed just as inconspicuously but purposely dressed down as much as she could in jeans and an old baseball T-shirt with her hair in a ponytail and baseball cap. There was nothing amazing about the way she looked tonight, and they both knew it.
“Can you please explain what it is you need to discuss with me that can’t be done over the phone?”
“There’s something I wanna show you, but I thought we could have a few drinks and talk a little first.”
“This is all I’m drinking,” she said, pointing at her cup of tea.
“That’s fine.”
“It’s not what I’m here for, Fred. I’m not here to socialize. You said you needed to talk to me. The only thing you and I have in common is Clair. She’s the only reason I’m here.”
“Why do you have to be like that?” he asked, sitting back in his seat and thanking the waitress when she dropped off his drink. “We have a kid together—”
Addison shushed him, glancing around completely annoyed. Fred laughed, picking up his drink. “You really think you’re gonna be able to keep my identity a secret forever?”
Feeling the panic sear through her, she toned down the annoyance in her words. “I’ve managed to this long, haven’t I? As long as you don’t say anything, no one will ever have to know. It’s what you’ve always wanted too, right? I’m not trying to be a bitch or anything. I just have a lot of work I need to get back to, and I need to be home for Clair. She’s still not a hundred percent, and I don’t like leaving her for too long.”
“All I’m saying is,” Fred said, sitting up, “can’t we just try being friends. Try being social? Don’t you remember you did like me once upon a time?”
He smiled at her, tilting his head sideways, the twinkle in his eyes reminiscent of the way he used to look at her so long ago. It was probably something that still worked for him with the girls, but at the moment, all Addison felt for him was disgust. Didn’t he get it? Clair was her world. She just mentioned needing to get back to her, and he still had yet to ask her so much as how Clair was doing. He was doing it again, showing exactly what the only thing he was interested in was. He’d use Clair to get Addison to agree to things like this—being here with him now—agreeing to be friends. Yet, he was too stupid to realize if he showed even an iota of interest in the most important thing in her life, his daughter, that maybe he’d have a better chance of getting in her good graces. Instead, it only made her hate him more and remind her how special AJ was.