at least frighten her into being honest. There was a damn good chance even she didn't know whose baby it was, but they were going to find out.
'You ready?' Damian asked Carter.
'As I'll ever be.' He rolled his shoulders beneath his sport jacket.
The kid had dressed up for the occasion. Damian glanced down at his ripped jeans and good-luck jersey and shrugged. It wasn't like he wanted to make a good impression at the moment. As for Carter, Damian had to admire the kid for going after what he wanted, this time in an honest way.
Poor Carole wouldn't know what hit her when Carter got down on one knee. Damian had no idea how she felt about the rookie and though he shouldn't care after what Carter had put him through, he couldn't help but hope Carole would see some good in Carter and give him a chance, for her sake as well as the baby's. No matter who the biological father turned out to be.
Damian drew a steadying breath and knocked on the door. He heard Carole's muffled voice and then the door swung open wide.
'Damian?' Her gaze shifted to the man beside him. 'Carter?' The color drained from her cheeks. 'What are you doing here?'
'I take it you mean what are we doing here together?' Damian asked.
She didn't reply, just stood and stared. Obviously she hadn't been expecting company because she wore no makeup, a pair of baggy sweats and an oversize T-shirt that accentuated her breasts, made even larger by the pregnancy.
He didn't think he'd ever seen her looking so…real. For the first time, Damian saw beyond the artificial persona she deliberately put on and caught a glimpse of the woman Carter had fallen in love with. For his sake, Damian hoped Carole's heart was equally real.
'I don't think you want to have this discussion in the hallway,' Carter said, stepping forward. He grasped her elbow.
She squirmed and waved her hand, gesturing for them to enter.
Damian understood her discomfort. He felt it, too, and he stood by the window while Carter made himself comfortable on the couch.
Beside him, Carole clasped and unclasped her hands. 'I can't imagine why you're here together,' she said, letting out a nervous laugh.
“Oh I think you can,' Damian muttered.
'You were with both of us around the same time,' Carter said calmly. He grasped her hand. 'Now I don't hold it against you, babe. We just want to know whose baby you're carrying.'
She blinked, as if stunned by the statement. 'I told you it's Damian's.' Her voice rose to a high pitch.
'Yes, you did. Unfortunately those are just words. We need proof.'
Damian remained by the window, separated from the couple and distanced emotionally, but his heart pounded a mile a minute and his throat was raw. 'We used protection,' he reminded her.
'So did we,' Carter said.
Damian paced the length of the window, turned and walked back again. 'So unless you have a magic way of determining whose kid this is, we need to run a paternity test'
'No!' She shouted the word and both men jerked their heads her way. 'It's Damian's,' she insisted.
Damian saw the other man's jaw clench and could practically read his mind. Once again Carter was coming in second to the almighty Damian Fuller.
'Why is it so damn important that he be the father?' Carter asked.
Carole wiped a tear from her face and then another.
Sensing she had reasons he didn't need to hear, Damian stepped toward her. 'I'm going to leave you two alone to talk. And when we're finished, I would be grateful if you came back to New York with Carter so we can have the test done. If not, we can do it down here, but Carter would miss a game and that's really not fair to him-or to the team. They need him.'
Shock registered on Carter's face. Unadulterated awe. 'You mean it?'
'Hell, rookie, of course I mean it. In the last week, you've become more than a man I just might be able to admire one day. You're a damn good player.' As much as Damian spoke a growing truth, he said the words for Carole's benefit. Because she seemed leery of the notion of having Carter's kid.
She was selling the man short, Damian thought. Not that Carter hadn't done everything to earn the reputation, but he was changing and he deserved the benefit of the doubt.
Carole hadn't met Damian's gaze. 'Carole?' he said
She lifted her damp eyes.
'I mean what I said. I want that test done even if I have to get a court order to do it.'
She blinked. 'Don't do this, Damian.'
'It won't be an issue,' Carter promised, his hand still covering hers, only now he squeezed it tight.
Damian nodded and headed for the door, trusting Carter to handle Carole. He hoped like hell his gut instinct was right and the kid not only had a good heart, but finally had grown up, too.
Carter waited until Damian walked out before turning to Carole. With no makeup and everyday clothing on, she appeared frail and vulnerable. He'd never seen her look more beautiful. It made him all the more anxious. Because if he didn't get every word right, he'd lose her forever.
'We're alone. So how about you explain to me why it's so important that Fuller be the baby's father?' he asked.
Her hands shook as she reached for the box of tissues on the end table. 'You have to understand that I didn't set him up. I didn't want to be pregnant.'
Carter nodded. 'I understand. So…'
'He's established. He has his career set and he's financially more than able to provide-'
Rick felt as if he'd been sucker punched. 'So that's it? He's got money and I don't?'
“My mother never knew who my father was. We never knew where our next meal was coming from. Each guy she met she hoped would be Mr. Right Most of them couldn't put a meal on the table.' She shook her head, the tears flowing down her cheeks.
Carter swallowed hard. 'I'm not as wealthy as Fuller yet, but I more than get by.”
She raised her moist gaze to his. 'What if you get hurt before your first big contract? What if you have a bad season and nobody wants you or arbitration doesn't work out?'
'What if I get hit by a bus crossing the street? Babe, life is a risk. All you can do is live it the best way you know how and be happy doing it.'
'When did you become so philosophical?' She sniffed and he pulled a tissue from the box and gently wiped her tears.
'About the time I realized I might lose you.' Carter knew he'd come this far, not just in miles but in personal growth. He might as well risk it all. 'I love you, babe. Even if the baby is Fuller's, it'll be okay'
Carole stared at Ricky Carter in shocked disbelief. 'Love?”
One minute her childhood poverty was rising to suffocate her and the next minute this man was trying to make her fears disappear. But as much as he tried, he couldn't do the one thing she needed and that was guarantee her she wouldn't end up alone and on welfare, reliving her mother's unstable life.
'Yeah. Somehow during all this, I ended up falling in love with you. And let's face it, we are alike enough to make this work.'
“Two peas in a pod?'
He nodded, his dimples showing as he smiled. 'Listen, babe, we're both driven. We're both not above using other people to get what we want. You knew this baby could be mine and you would have passed it off as Fuller's.'
She winced as he laid out her sins. 'I never meant to hurt you.'
'And I never meant to hurt you when I called the papers and told them Damian was going to be a daddy. I was just so angry he was getting something else I wanted again-'
'You told the papers? Something else you wanted? I don't know which statement makes me angrier. That you'd betray me or-'
'In the heat of the moment,' he said, his eyes downcast, his remorse seemingly honest.
