Chapter Eleven #3
Laura gasped. “Oh, god. Seth, I’m so sorry. If I’d known…”
“It…was a long time ago. You been okay? It can’t have been easy raising Hudson alone.”
“It wasn’t until I got married a few years ago. But my husband, Ted? He and Hudson butt heads, especially since our daughter was born last year.”
That explained a lot. He could guess how a new baby made Hudson feel.
Where did that leave the kid? Where did he feel safe? Where did he belong?
Silence descended as Seth’s head spun possibilities and scenarios—all of which meant change.
“You must be in shock,” she finally offered.
“I’m…processing.” Seth pinched the bridge of his nose. “Laura, do you know why he’s here? What he wants?”
“Not exactly. He hopped on a plane without my permission. Since he finally called to tell me where he’d gone, I’ve been asking myself that. All he told me is that he wanted to meet you.”
Seth hadn’t talked to Hudson much, but his gut told him he wasn’t here merely to satisfy his curiosity.
“What do you want me to do? Keep him for the weekend and send him home? He must have school…”
“When he actually decides to go. He’s gotten so big and so rebellious, I can’t make him do anything anymore.
He’s taller than my husband, and Ted doesn’t want to get in the middle.
” Laura’s heavy sigh carried across three thousand miles.
“I’ve tried to be both mother and father, but I’m at the end of my rope.
He’s become impossible, Seth. So angry all the time.
I’m hoping meeting you will give him some answers. Some closure…”
“He’s more than angry.” That was obvious. “I’m late in being his dad, but what can I do? What does he need?”
“Honestly? Structure and discipline. I keep trying but—”
“What if…he stayed with me for a while?” Seth blurted the question.
He had no idea how he’d handle having the kid around, or if he was even ready for that.
And how would Beck and Heavenly feel? But he couldn’t let his own flesh and blood flounder or feel insecure.
“I could get him in school and straighten him out.” I think.
“What do you know about raising teenage boys, Seth?”
“The summer after we met, my dad was killed in the line of duty. Over the next decade, I raised my four younger brothers. They’re all productive members of society now.
Well, mostly. The verdict is out on my youngest two, the twins.
They’re seniors in college, and they’re crazy…
” He was rambling, and he made himself stop.
“But if there’s one thing I know well, it’s teenage boys. ”
“You just met Hudson, and you would do that?” Her voice was thick with unshed tears.
“He’s my son. That was obvious at a glance.”
“No denying he looks exactly like you.” There was almost a smile in her voice. “He’s not a bad kid, but he’s mouthy.”
“He’s sixteen. He’s a normal teenage boy.” But Hudson had other reasons to be angry and off-balance. Since Seth had failed Tristan in every way, he didn’t want to compound that by letting Hudson down.
“Hormones, right?” she tried to joke.
“Yeah.”
“You have room for him?”
“Plenty. I’m in a big house. Hudson could have his own bedroom and bathroom.”
Laura let out a sigh of relief. “He needs privacy. Our place is only two bedrooms. Now that the baby is sleeping through the night, she really needs a room of her own…”
And what teenage boy wanted to share a room with his baby sister? “He’ll have plenty of space and privacy here.”
“Heavenly won’t mind if Hudson stays? She seems very sweet, by the way.”
Laura was fishing, and Seth didn’t blame her. If his kid was staying with a relative stranger, he’d want to know who else would be hanging around. “Probably sweeter than I deserve. And she won’t mind. We also live with a doctor friend. A vascular surgeon. He’s good with it, too.”
And Seth wasn’t divulging more about his relationship than that right now.
“Wow, that’s…amazing. You’re truly willing to keep him for a bit?”
Everything felt so sudden, but what other decision could he make? “Yeah. But we’ll need to call our lawyers. If my name isn’t on Hudson’s birth certificate, I need to be legally named as his father.”
“It’s not.”
Seth swallowed back useless anger. “Fix it. We’ll need a custody arrangement, too.”
“You’re right. I don’t have a lawyer, but my mom had one who put her will together. I can call him tomorrow. If he can’t do it, he’ll give me a referral.”
“Once you’re in contact, have your attorney reach out. I’ll put him in touch with mine, and we’ll take it from there.”
“Thank you.” The tears in her voice were unmistakable.
“W-would it be too much to ask for me to come out and visit him? I promise I won’t be in your way and—” Her trembling exhalation told him this was hard for her.
“I don’t think I can go too long without seeing Hudson.
I love him so much, but he just…doesn’t believe that right now. ”
Seth’s heart hurt for her. She’d been a single mom for so long, and she was unprepared to handle a testosterone-laden man-child. “I’ll be in New York next month. My mom is finally getting remarried, and I’ll…probably bring Hudson with me to meet my family. You could visit with him then.”
“Really? If you could bring him out, that would be great. I…can’t tell you how much I appreciate all this.”
He could hear the gratitude in her voice. “We’ll get the details figured out. I’ll be in touch.”
“Thank you for…everything.”
“Of course.” Seth hung up.
What the hell had he just agreed to? This morning he’d been struggling with the idea of becoming a father to a hypothetical baby he might have with Beck and Heavenly.
Fast forward a few hours, and he had a teenage son who needed him—right now.
Seth had just volunteered to parent the defiant kid… whether he was ready or not.
Shit.
Heaving a sigh, Seth trekked back inside and tried to gather his words. He had to break the news to Beck and Heavenly. He had no idea how they’d take it…
How would Hudson? Probably with more attitude and pushback. That didn’t bother Seth; he could handle that. But he had to prove to Hudson that he’d be there as a father. Even if this arrangement was temporary, blood was forever.
“All right,” he addressed his son. “Your mom and I agree—you can stay here for a while. But there are conditions.”
Seth caught Beck’s eye over Hudson’s head. Beck gave him the slightest nod. Heavenly was already looking at him with that soft, understanding expression. Somehow, they were on the same page without even a word. Thank fuck.
Hudson bristled. “I never said I wanted to stay.”
“If you don’t, hey. No sweat. I’ll put you on a plane back to Connecticut tomorrow.”
Hudson growled, shoulders stiffening. “I fucking hate Cromwell.”
“Well, here or there are your only two choices. What’s it going to be?”
“Jesus, you’re way more of a hard-ass than Ted.”
“I’m not your stepdad. He might treat you with kid gloves. I won’t. Tell me what you want.”
“Fuck.” Hudson rolled his eyes. “Fine. I’m staying.”
“Good. I don’t know the situation at home, but here you have rules. You’ll talk to your mother at least once a week. That’s nonnegotiable. And if you’re staying, you’ll be going back to school. Also nonnegotiable. So is respect. You either knock that chip off your shoulder, or I’ll do it for you.”
“I’ll help,” Beck quipped.
Seth tried to repress a smile. “And you’ll be especially respectful of Heavenly, or we’ll have a major problem.”
“Fuck, I’ve known you for thirty minutes, and already you’re a buzzkill?”
“I’m not your bestie; I’m your father. And watch your mouth. You either fall in line, or you’re going home.”
Hudson groaned like Seth was torturing him, but they spent the next hour negotiating—curfew, chores, acceptable behavior, and expectations. Hudson pushed back, clearly unused to boundaries, but Seth held firm.
Finally, Hudson threw himself back against his chair with a dramatic sigh. “Okay. Whatever. Geez. At least going to school will be better than hanging around and watching Beck and Heavenly pretend they don’t want to fuck each other constantly.”
The room went dead silent.
Seth glanced Beck’s way, then turned his stare on Heavenly. “They do, and I’m glad you noticed. Now we don’t have to hide anything. Beck and I are both engaged to Heavenly. That a problem for you?”
Hudson gave him a long look, then pointed between him and Beck. “You two gay?”
“Would it bother you if we were?”
“No.”
Seth didn’t believe Hudson, but he figured there was no sense in yanking the kid’s chain. His life had just been uprooted, too. “We’re not gay.”
“We don’t…what’s that phrase?” Beck put in. “Cross swords.”
“Ever.” Seth nodded.
“So you two…share her?” He tossed his head in Heavenly’s direction. “Well, at least I know where I got my kinky streak.”
Great. Another problem to contend with. Seth tried to keep the oh-fuck off his face. “Have you shared a girl?”
“No.” Hudson grinned. “But I’m damn good with rope.”
Holy shit. His teenage son apparently took after him in more ways than one.
Heavenly gaped. “You’re only sixteen!”
Hudson’s grin widened. “What can I say? I’m adventurous.”
Beck clapped Seth on the back with a grin. “Well, like father, like son.”
Seth dropped his head into his hands, then glared up at Beck. “You’re not helping.”
That just made Beck laugh.
He and Heavenly were being understanding, but Seth knew they must be asking themselves the same obvious questions he was. How was this going to change their dynamic? Their plans? Their future?
Seth had no fucking idea. All he knew was that his carefully constructed life had just been blown apart, and he was going to have to figure out how to put the pieces back together.