Chapter DNA
DNA
Max
Taylor opens up the back door as I slip into the mausoleum the Kentworths call a home. It makes Antonio and Bonnie’s place look positively warm and welcoming. “He’s waiting for you in the office.”
“Thanks.”
“Do I need to ask my dad what all of this is about?”
Does Ethan know? Probably not, but I wouldn’t put it past him. “We’ll have a family meeting soon.” Either welcoming Everett into the family or figuring out what to do with the kid.
“Oh, goodie. I don’t need to ask if you took precautions.”
Like father, like son. “I wasn’t followed.” Or recorded. A pocket jammer comes in handy.
“You do know a black man wearing a hoodie in this neighborhood probably set all the little old ladies talking.”
He’s not wrong. “And what do they say when you go for a jog?”
Taylor grins. “They stopped calling the police a few years ago.”
“My mom is making dinner this Sunday.”
“You know they are working together to kill us with all that saturated fat.”
“With love.” I grin back at him as we climb the stairs two at a time.
“I’ll be there Sunday. And for Gabe’s game next week. I can’t believe he’s going for another ring.”
“He loves his bling.”
Taylor laughs cause we both know Gabe doesn’t wear any jewelry, not even a gold necklace, like most men in our family do.
“You join the family pool?”
“Got twenty on him being married six months from now. You?”
It wouldn’t be fair for me to join knowing Gabe’s plans. But that didn’t stop me from putting down a twenty. “Eight months. I might have asked Nonna if they had someone in mind yet.”
“That’s cheating.”
I shrug.
“And?”
“They don’t have anyone for him. I probably should have said a year.”
“How is that possible?”
I shrug again as we walk past an open playroom filled with toys from the last three generations. “How have you avoided it?”
“I told Emilia that I wasn’t interested in getting married.”
What? “And that worked?” It never works.
“My ring isn’t on any woman’s finger. Why the shock? Neither is yours.”
Because I was oblivious to all of this for so long. “That might change.”
Taylor stops. “Really?”
“It’s too soon to tell for sure.”
“I thought your dad and grandpa knew right away.”
They did. Love at first sight runs in the family. “It’s complicated.”
“Well then, I'd better start a new family pool.”
Then the buzzards will never give me a moment to breathe, let alone figure out if what I’m feeling is real or returned. “Don’t.”
Taylor laughs. “Kent’s in there.”
“You aren’t going to come in and listen?”
“And miss out on the surprise at the family meeting?” Taylor walks away with a smile and a nod.
I step into Kent's office.
“That’s not acceptable. I want him in Wildflower Meadows this week until the birth.
” Kent says into the phone, holding a finger up to me.
“Tell him I’ll pay triple what he makes in a year.
I don’t care, just get him there…I know she’s only four weeks pregnant.
Get him there anyway. Whatever it takes. ” Kent slams the phone down.
“Congratulations.”
“Thanks.” Kent beams with pride. “We just found out.” He sinks down into a chair. “I’m going to be a father again. Two under two. Depending on whether the baby comes early, we could have two under one.”
That would be the best kind of nightmare. Kent is going to lose his mind. “Where are your two lovely ladies now?”
“At home with my mom and dad. This was only supposed to take a few hours. So whatever it is that you need, it better be fast.”
If Everett wasn’t so sure, I wouldn’t be asking Kent for this favor. “I need a DNA test done.”
Kent’s eyes widen slightly.
“Quietly.”
“How quiet?”
“Like this never happened. There can be no record, no trail, and only I get the results.”
He whistles.
I hold out two baggies. One has Everett’s hair, and the other has mine. “I need to know as soon as humanly possible if these are a familial match.”
Kent levers himself out of the chair and walks over. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.”
“It’s that important?”
“If it wasn’t, I’d find a different way.”
With a nod, Kent takes the bags from me. “I’ll get you the results.”
“Text me one word, yes or no, when you get them.”
He nods.
“Thank you. Send me the bill. I’ll pay it.”
“For this.” He glances down at the baggies. “No charge. It shouldn’t take more than a day or two to get the results.”
“Thanks.” I turn to walk away. “Would an early gift be okay?”
“There really isn’t anything the baby needs.”
The Kentworths’ money is legendary. “My company has developed a patch that babies wear that monitors all their vitals twenty-four seven.”
“Really? I thought those weren’t accurate?”
“They are. They just cost too much for it to be practical for the general public.”
“And you changed that?”
“It’ll be launching next year.”
“Need any backers?”
Like money is an issue. I’m probably worth as much as them, if not more. “Nah, we’re fully funded.”
“Thanks. I’d love it. And if you change your mind, it would work well with some products my labs are working on.”
Makes sense that he became interested in babies when he became a father.
“We’ll talk. Give Liz and Cece my love. We’ll have to fly out and visit soon.”
***
What would it be like to have another child?
Hope was such a good baby. Fiona would make an amazing mom…
Why am I thinking about having kids with a woman who won’t even let me touch her hand? Is that the reason she’s stayed single all these years?
Did they hurt her that badly when she was living on the street?
Why would Nonna let me think it was possible when Fiona is clearly broken?
Mom would hate that word.
Absolutely despise it.
I took the long way home, wandering the streets by my house, trying to figure out a problem with no solution.
You can’t fix something that’s broken.
Ivy taught me that the hard way.
There’s no way I could handle falling for another woman who I couldn’t love. This one would be even worse. She’d be alive but untouchable.
The living embodiment of lost dreams and hopeless love.
Why?
Why?
Why would Nonna do this?
“Why did I do what?” Nonna says from the steps.
“Nonna.”
“They said you saw Fiona today, but then left.”
Who said that? You know, it doesn’t matter what spies my grandmother has. “Why didn’t you tell me she was broken?”
Nonna laughs.
“This isn’t funny.”
“Love is always funny. Especially when we fight it as hard as you are.”
“How is it funny that I’m falling in love with a woman who can’t stand my touch? Because that isn’t laughable. It’s worse than the nightmare I lived through after Hope’s birth. Fiona isn’t capable of love.”
Nonna laughs again.
I want to literally rip my hair out, and this woman is laughing.
“Fiona isn’t broken. She’s bruised. Maybe battered a little bit. But you’d be hard-pressed to find a stronger or kinder woman than her. You’re just afraid she won’t love you.”
“Can’t. I’m afraid she can’t love me.”
“Help me up.” Nonna holds out a hand.
Sometimes it’s easy to forget that she’s getting up there in age.
I walk over and help her up.
“Don’t underestimate her or yourself. A stubborn woman only needs something worth fighting for to overcome any obstacle.”
“But this—”
“—is a bump. You can make it into a mountain, or you can help her hop over it like a small bump in the road. You need to pick a journey. If you’re afraid the mountain is too large, walk away now.
Fiona doesn’t need a man who sees her as broken.
She needs a man who will treasure who she is.
Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you aren’t the man for her.
Hope seems convinced that Gabe would suit Fiona. ”
What?
“Your mother is making lunch. We shouldn’t keep everyone waiting.”
That’s it? Nonna is done? She’s going to try fixing Fiona up with Gabe?
Gabe isn’t right for her.
“Are you coming?” Nonna turns back to me, waiting for me to open the door for her.
“Yes, Nonna.”