Where he and their sister Talena were blond and blue eyed, like their mother, she was like her father, dark haired and dark eyed. She’d told him her mother was Hispanic and spoke very little English, which at the time he hadn’t thought much of, but later he realized Gary had taken advantage of the woman, like he did all women. Gary had married Scott’s mother when he’d been a boy, but the prick hadn’t introduced Angela to them until the summer he’d graduated high school. He often thought his stepfather had hid his past from all of them for some nefarious reason, but once she burst into their lives, it hadn’t matter why. For one thing, she was only there for the summer that first year. For another, he found fucking the man’s daughter he’d come to despise, made him hate Gary a little less, and then he’d left for the military. Now, years later, he and she only saw one another when he flew in occasionally. If they fucked, it was no biggie. They were more friends than anything else. He definitely didn’t look at her like a stepsister, most assuredly not a future mother to his child. Fuck.
“How long have you been sick?” Her wan face, and thin appearance was concerning.
Angela shrugged out of his hold, turning her back to him. “You’re going to hate me,” she whined.
“For the love of all. Why would I hate you? You and I both know we were never a thing, Angela. I’d never hate you for anything you did. Just spit it out and get it over with. You know I care for you,” he said gently. Hell, she was his stepsister. What the hell was she thinking? It wasn’t like he’d ever given her the impression they were more. He could literally count on one hand the number of times they’d hooked up in the last two years and still have a finger or two.
Angela lifted her tear-streaked face, lower lip trembling. He’d known her for over five years and knew every little trick she played. They were almost brother and sister, yet there was no blood relation between them. Angela’s mother had been his stepdad Gary’s second wife. He’d divorced her mom when Angela was five, and although they’d only been married for six years, Angela said Gary had been a good father, until he moved in with them when she was ten. After that, his visits had become few and far between, although he’d made up for it with money. He never said what he thought good old Gary’s reasoning for up and divorcing Angela’s mother was, the timing was too close to his own father’s death and him marrying his mother. Oh, he didn’t think his mom and Gary had anything going on prior to his dad’s death, but he did think the prick had seen an opportunity and took it, leaving his other family to move up in the world. Even though the man appeared to love Angela, he’d left her and her mom for another family.
The first time he’d seen Angel standing next to Gary, her dark eyes had been dancing with knowledge that he’d found hard to ignore. Luckily for him, he’d been in the pool, so his sudden boner was hidden by the water. His stepdad had been a condescending fucker who’d expected him to toe the line, but Scott had never played by his rules. That summer, he’d just graduated from high school and had scholarships to some of the best universities in the country. He had a folder piled with letters of acceptances from colleges waiting for him to choose one. He hadn’t accepted any of them, deciding to enlist in the Army. Which was the complete opposite of what was expected of him. At the time he hadn’t been a hundred percent sure what he was going to do, until he’d looked at Gary in his suit and tie standing on the side of the pool with his arm around Angela, glaring down at him. He’d known right then and there was no way he wanted to be like that fucker and go into business. That had been his dad’s life and maybe if he’d still been alive, he’d have a different outlook, but Gary wasn’t a man he wanted to be like.
He could still remember the fear that had assaulted him before he broke the news to his mother and wondered if that same emotion was eaten at Angela. She’d walked into his apartment with her shoulders hunched, not how he was used to her carrying herself. Yet, just as he’d waited until the end of summer when he’d finished packing his bag to go, he had pulled his big boy pants on, Angela was going to need to do the same damn thing. Because if there was one thing he’d learned, shit didn’t disappear because you put it off. And there was no doubt in his mind that the baby she carried was not his, not even a slim chance in hell.
Of course, that summer all those years ago was different, because he’d looked up from the lap he’d been doing, spellbound by the gorgeous girl standing next to Gary, and he’d known he would have her. If he’d been standing next to them, they’d have seen the way his dick had leapt to life in his swimming trunks. His saving grace had been the fact he’d been in the water so the two of them couldn’t see the hard-on he was sported as he’d looked up, getting a view of her panty-less state. He’d listened to his stepdad inform him his daughter was there for two weeks. All he’d heard Gary say was it was going to be his job to make sure she felt welcomed. Gary had no clue just how welcoming Scott had made her. Angela though, she’d taught him things he hadn’t known. He’d laughed when she’d told him her nickname had been Angel, especially since at the time he’d been balls deep in her. There had been nothing five years ago, nor now, that was angelic about Angela. Not at nineteen, nor twenty-five. Up until then, he’d gotten a few decent blowjobs from girls his age, but she’d shown him that porn stars weren’t the only ones who could do the things he’d seen on DVDs. He’d done his best to take care of her throughout the years, and not just sexually. Shit they hadn’t really fucked much in the last few years since he’d been in the military, yet she always called him when she was in a bind. Like now, but never this extreme.
“Angela, what do you want me to do? I’m only here for a couple more days and then I’m gone again.” he asked, needing her to understand he wouldn’t be here.
“It doesn’t matter. Please, I need you to take care of us.” She put one hand on his arm, the other on her small bump, running the tips of her fingers up to his face.
Scott grabbed her hand, stopping her. “Listen, I’m sorry, Angela, but I don’t know what you expect me to do. Whoever the father is, you need to contact him. If he’s not an upstanding guy or whatever, then you know you can do it on your own.” He released her hand after giving what he hoped was a reassuring squeeze. He was the last man who would be a good father figure. He’d moved up the ranks in the Army to Delta Force. Shit, most of his assignments were so highly classified, he didn’t know where they were going until they got there and wasn’t sure if they’d make it out. The only thing he made sure of before each mission was that he called his mom and Talena.
“You don’t understand. He’ll kill me,” she cried.
He shook his head, seeing the girl he’d known for years doing what she did best. “Look, I know you think this is the end of the world, but you’re twenty-five, not sixteen, Angela. My mom will help you, but I’m not claiming a child that isn’t mine. Hell, Talena loves you, and she’s your half-sister, same as mine. They’ll both help you, but I won’t claim paternity for someone else’s baby.”
Anger flared in her dark eyes. “You’re so stupid. Talena’s no more my sister than she’s yours. God, how could you be so smart, yet so fucking dumb? Your mom couldn’t have kids after you. They adopted Talena.”