Chapter 29 #2
“I didn’t know what to expect when I told you about her. I thought you might pretend like she didn’t exist. I never suspected you might fall madly in love with her.”
“No one is more surprised by that than I am.”
“I know, and it’s super cute.”
“I am not cute.”
“You kind of are, and Hadley is a lucky girl to have you for her daddy.”
“I’m glad you still think that after the way I behaved.”
“Hurt people hurt people, Griffin.”
“It’s no excuse.”
“Maybe not, but at least you own it. A lot of guys would still be running from the truth. You confronted it head-on, and I respect that.”
“I’m surprised you told me about her in the first place. That was more than I deserved.”
“I debated not telling you, and then I thought about what you do for a living and how it could go very bad for me if you found out later that I’d kept her from you. And besides, it felt shitty to not tell you.”
“I wish you hadn’t gone through it all by yourself.”
“I wasn’t alone. My mom was here, and my friends were great. I was very well supported.”
“They probably all hate me.”
“They’re aware that you didn’t know about her until after she was born and that you’ve shown up for us from the first day you learned about her.”
“Oh wow. Well… That’s probably more than I deserved from you.”
“I didn’t want my closest people hating on Hadley’s dad. That’s not in her best interest or mine.”
He ventured a glance at her, suddenly feeling vulnerable, which was another new development for him. “How would you see this so-called paternity leave unfolding?”
“Well, I guess you could stay in the guest room and spend as much time as you’d like with Hadley while you’re off.”
“You wouldn’t mind having me around that much?”
“Not at all. It’d be good for her to be able to bond with you and get to know you better.”
“Are babies aware of things like who’s around and stuff?”
“They’re absorbing everything from the minute they first open their eyes, and from what I’ve read, the first year is super important that way. It sort of sets the foundation for who they’re going to be.”
Griffin wanted so badly to be part of that.
“I’ll talk to my dad and brothers tomorrow.”
“You don’t feel like I pressured you into it, do you?”
“No, you opened my eyes to the fact that there’s more to life than work, and my daughter needs me present for her during this important stage in her life.”
“Would it sound condescending for me to say I’m proud of you?”
“That means a lot coming from you. I appreciate that you’re giving me a chance to be here for her.”
“I know you do, but here’s the thing… I won’t stand for you disappointing her—now or ever. If you commit to her, you’ve got to stay for the long haul.”
“Fair enough.”
“If you don’t think you can do that, duck out now before she gets attached. I promise I won’t hate you for that, and I won’t let her hate you either.”
“Don’t let me off the hook, McKenna. Don’t give me an out when I’m looking for an in. I want to be here for her, and I promise I won’t disappoint her—or you.”
“You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.”
“I expect that to be the easiest promise I’ll ever make and keep.”
Carson woke up to something warm and soft on his face.
At some point during the night, he’d turned onto his side to face Ty, looking for some relief from the relentless ache in his chest and abdomen.
Cresley had snuggled up to his back. He, who’d never liked sharing a bed with anyone, was thrilled to sleep with them.
When he opened his eyes, Ty was grinning at him as he rested a hand on Carson’s face.
“What’s up?” Carson asked him.
“Your face is all bumpy.”
“They’re called whiskers, my man, and someday soon, you’ll have them, too.”
His wrinkled nose expressed his opinion on that. “Where are we?”
“My place.”
“How come?”
“The other one is a crime scene.”
“What does that mean?”
“The police are looking for evidence, and when they’re finished, we can go back if we want to.”
“What will they find?”
“Fingerprints and stuff.”
“Why do they need them?”
“To help make the case.”
“Against my dad?”
“Yeah.”
Ty seemed to ponder that. “Will he go to jail?”
“He was going there as soon as they released him from the hospital.”
“Will he have to stay there?”
“I think so.”
“I guess that’s good since he did a lot of bad stuff.”
“I’m sorry if it’s upsetting to you.” As soon as he said that, he felt stupid. Of course it was upsetting to him.
“He knew he shouldn’t have done that stuff, and he did it anyway. He hurt you, and that’s not okay.”
“No, it isn’t, but you know that none of it has anything to do with you, right?”
“It sort of does.”
“How do you mean?”
Cresley’s hand curved around his shoulder, infusing him with her warmth and a sweet feeling of homecoming that took him by surprise since they were in his bed at his home. They’d decided to sleep next to Ty in case he woke up afraid. He was beginning to realize that home was wherever they were.
“If he didn’t have me, he wouldn’t have bothered us or wanted money from Mom or any of the other stuff.”
“None of it was your fault, Ty. He made his own choices, and now he’ll have to live with them.”
“I know. Can I visit him in jail if I want to?”
“I’m sure you can eventually.”
“I don’t know if I’ll want to, but I was just wondering.”
“We can ask about that.”
“That’s okay. I’m mad at him right now. I don’t want to see him.”
“That’s fair.”
“Do you think I’ll always be mad at him?”
“Not necessarily. Things can change with time.” He felt way out of his league having this conversation and hoped he was saying the right things.
“Can we stay here with you?”
“As long as you want to.”
“Don’t tell Mom I told you this, but I don’t think she wants to go back to our house because that’s where you got hurt so bad.”
“I won’t tell her, but it’s probably true.”
“I love our house. I hope we can go back when she feels better about it.”
“I hope so, too.”
“How do you feel today?” Ty asked.
“A little better.” He said what the boy needed to hear, but the truth was he was achy and sore after the arduous ordeal the day before.
“Where’s Mom?”
She raised her hand off his back to wave at Ty. “Right here.”
“Were you listening to us?” Ty asked. “That was guy stuff. You shouldn’t be listening.”
“My apologies.”
“She’s not really sorry, is she?” Ty asked Carson.
He smiled. “I don’t think so.”
“Am I going to school today?”
“Not today, buddy,” Cresley said. “Hopefully, you can go back on Monday.”
“Why can’t I go today?”
“I think we all need a day to decompress before we face the world again.”
“What does that mean? Decompress?”
“Relax and recharge.”
“You mean chill. That’s the word for it now.”
“Oh, thank you for letting me know that,” Cresley said.
Ty rolled his eyes at Carson. “How does she not know this stuff?”
“It’s a mystery to me, too.”
Cresley dug a fingernail into Carson’s back. “I can hear you two.”
Ty’s giggle was the best sound ever after the events of yesterday. “Is there food in this house?”
“I think we’ve got grits and beans and lizard tails in the fridge.”
His eyes bugged. “What?”
“You don’t like those?”
“You don’t really have lizard tails in your fridge!”
“You’d better go check.”
Ty took off out of bed and ran for the hallway.