A Man with Nerves of Steel (Joseph Hart) novel Chapter 18

Chapter 18

In the past, Joseph would have just found Natalie’s cheeky attitude kind of cute-more like a friend than a kid. Being friends with one’s child, he’d always thought, could narrow the generation gap and make living together a lot more comfortable.

But after finding out the paternity test results, he had a completely different interpretation. If Natalie wasn’t his biological daughter, then of course she wouldn’t feel close to him or have any respect for him. Now, her rebellious streak was pure ingratitude and emotional distance.

He was about to speak when his phone rang. It was Walt, asking him to head to the hospital regarding follow-up on yesterday’s cholera patient. An idea flashed through his mind-this was the perfect excuse to get away from the girls.

He agreed, ended the call, then turned to Natalie and said, “I have to get to the hospital, so I don’t have time to look after you three. Take your sisters home.”

Natalie was already disgusted with this cheap motel and didn’t want to stay another second. She shot back, “You think I wanna be here? It’s just that the queen has spoken. If we don’t bring you home, we’re not allowed to go home, either. Be a decent guy and just come back with us, Joseph.”

Selena nodded in agreement. “Natalie’s telling the truth, Dad. Mom is seriously pissed. If you don’t come home, then the three of us are sticking with you. Wherever you go, we go. Whatever you eat, we eat.

“As long as you don’t go home, we’re not allowed to, either. Those were Mom’s exact words. And when she said that, she looked really serious. I think she means it this time.”

Kimberly had already kicked off her shoes and was bouncing on the bed. “Then we just won’t go home! I

like it here with Dad.”

Joseph frowned. This was exactly the kind of dirty trick Cora would pull-using the girls to tug on his guilt and paternal instincts. Well, if this was how she wanted to play it, then she couldn’t blame him for what happened next.

As he packed up his things, he told Selena and Kimberly to stay in the room. Then, he took Natalie downstairs with him to check out. In the elevator, he asked, “How did you get here?”

“Mary drove us. She dropped us off and left, so don’t get any weird ideas. If you don’t go home with us, the queen is going to make our lives miserable. Look, I’m begging you. Just do us a favor and come back. ”

“You’re really going through with it? Why?”

“Because of you.”

“Me? Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do your problems with Mom have to do with me? Don’t dump all your crap on me… Hold up. Did you cheat, Joseph? Did Mom catch you with some other woman? With how domineering she is, there’s no way she’d ever forgive you. That’s gotta be it, right?”

Natalie’s mind leaped straight to that conclusion. Some of her classmates’ parents had divorced for that very reason-the father had cheated and done all kinds of horrible things to make everyone furious. The only outcome was divorce. If her own parents were splitting up, surely there had to be some equally messy drama behind it.

Joseph took out another copy of the paternity report from his bag and handed it to her. “Last time you asked me for money to buy a car, which I couldn’t give to you. You said I wasn’t your real dad. Turns out, you were right. We don’t share a single drop of blood.

“Cora made someone else your father-your actual, biological father. You’re a smart girl. Now that you know the truth, you know what you should do. I don’t have to spell it out for you.”