Chapter 9
Kayla
I blink, barely registering the slam of a door before a screech pierces the air, startling us both. I sit up, Beau’s arm falling off of me as he groans and follows me.
I’m sure my hair is sticking up all over the place, having let it air dry after the shower last night. This time I made Beau move the couch closer and pull out the sofa sleeper portion because I wasn’t going to sleep on the floor again.
My head snaps to my sister standing in the archway between the living room and the foyer.
“I can’t believe this!” Kendall screams.
My mom has her hand over Theo’s eyes, tugging him out of the room as Beau and I try to grab clothes to cover ourselves.
“Kendall—” I try to say, since Beau hasn’t spoken at all. In fact, the man doesn’t even look ashamed.
Kendall screeches again, surging toward me and pushing me harshly. “You fucking bitch!”
I stumble, falling back onto the couch with wide eyes. It’s not like I don’t deserve it, but I’m still surprised.
Beau grabs her arms when she tries to lunge again. “Calm down.”
She struggles against his hold, glaring at me. “You couldn’t just let me have this one thing. I’d finally won, and you just had to take it too! I fucking hate you!”
My mouth parts, tears pricking the back of my eyes.
Beau frog marches her to the other side of the room. “What do you mean ‘you won?’” he says.
Her head snaps to him, and I watch as her anger drains to a fear that has me frowning.
“What?” she says.
Beau lets go of her to cross his arms. “You said ‘you won.’ What does that fucking mean?”
Kendall’s eyes shift while she thinks of an answer, before she huffs out a breath. “I just meant that I got married before her. That she got knocked up, and is a single mom, while I was going to be the married wife with a house.”
My heart squeezes, realizing how low she thought of me, and by association, my child.
Beau nods slowly. “Did you know who I was?”
My shoulders stiffen, blinking away the tears as I watch her. I don’t know why Beau is making this assumption, but I still hold hope that she’s not that cruel. That she wouldn’t purposely withhold Beau’s child from him, and deny Theo having his father in his life.
“Please tell me you didn’t know who the father of my child was this whole time!” I cry out when she stays silent.
Kendall glares at me. “Why? So you could have baby trapped him into being with you instead? He was interested in me, not you.”
I let out a hollow laugh, shaking my head. “If Beau wanted to be with you, even after learning about Theo, I would be overjoyed. Life isn’t a competition, Kendall. It never has been for me.”
She rolls her eyes. “Of course not, because it’s all just been handed to you.”
“What was handed to me?” I yell. I don’t mean to raise my voice, but I’m truly struggling to see her side. “Are we talking about Dad? Because I tried to stop that, and you lied. You did! So don’t continue to blame me.”
She sneers. “Of course I lied! You don’t get it, you never get it!
If I ever admit what Dad said to me, then I’d have to admit that he was right, and that he did treat me unfairly.
And I’d have to admit to myself how much of a fucking failure I am.
So excuse me that for once in my life I finally got to win, and you were a second choice. ”
I shake my head. “You know how many times I apologized to Mom because I thought you didn’t invite us to the wedding or any kind of ceremony because of our strained relationship.
I guess I was apologizing for the wrong thing.
The reason you didn’t invite us is because you were trying to keep my child from his father! ”
“Oh, please, it was never about Theo,” she snaps.
“It should have been,” Beau growls out, his jaw clenching in anger. “Forget about you and your sister’s relationship. You deprived an innocent child of his father; you deprived me of my child. That’s cruel, unhinged, and unforgivable.”
Kendall goes to say something else, but Beau waves his hand.
“I cheated. I did, and I can’t take that back.
I don’t want to, but any guilt I’ve felt is appeased.
You went after me because you knew of Kayla and my connection, and instead of possibly seeing if we could have worked out naturally, you manipulated us all.
What did you think was going to happen when we got here?
That we wouldn’t address who Theo is? That we'd just go back home and I’d pretend I don’t have a child living states away from me? ”
“You married me,” she whispers.
He nods. “I did. I was lonely, and you were lovely. But it was all a lie, wasn’t it?”
She shakes her head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Beau smiles at her, and it’s not a nice smile.
“I’ve been thinking about it more since coming here and seeing Kayla.
I’m not sure if you thought I wouldn’t connect the dots or you thought since we went to a courthouse and signed a piece of paper that my feelings would just be gone.
But you want to know what I keep thinking about? ”
Her eyes skirt around the room as if looking for an escape. My stomach turns, sickening dread washing over me because something tells me I’m not going to like what Beau has to say.
“I keep thinking about how there was no reason for you to be at that conference that day. Your work has nothing to do with us, and it’s not like it’s a casual bar you’d hang out at since it’s forty minutes away from your place.
So I have to wonder what you were doing there?
And how you seemed intent on me that night? ”
Kendall shakes her head. “You cheated on me!”
I squeeze my eyes shut. That’s all I need to hear, avoidance of any responsibility while she tries to think of a way to lie her way out.
I push off the couch, both of their heads turning to stare at me. My eyes shift from Beau to my sister, then I huff out in resigned disappointment. “The guilt of keeping a small child’s father from him would eat me alive. Do you even care?”
Kendall’s jaw tics, but she doesn’t say anything. So I lick my lips and turn to Beau. “I’m going to check on Theo. Take—” I wave my hand between them “—whatever this is outside.”
He grabs her arm instantly, pulling her out to the front yard. She starts cussing and yelling again, and I don’t take a breath until it’s muffled by the door.
I’m shoving the blankets in the washer when my mom finds me. My eyes shift to her before briskly looking away, my cheeks heating with shame.
“Got Theo set up with his tablet and headphones for a bit so we could talk,” she says gently.
I nod, focusing on my task as she moves into the laundry room, closing the door until there’s a crack. There’s a moment of silence where my sister’s screeches outside can still be heard. I clear my throat, starting the washer and drowning out the noise.
My mom is still watching me when I finally face her, and a teasing smile graces her lips.
“So that’s Theo’s dad, huh? Quite handsome.”
“Oh my god. Don’t start,” I groan, dropping my heated face into my palms. Tears well in my eyes, and my mom’s arms wrap around me, rubbing down my back.
“I wasn’t making fun of you, Kayla. Just trying to lighten up the mood.”
I sniffle. “I’m a whore.”
She cups my face, forcing me to stare up at her. “Hey, so you did a shitty thing. Don’t we all? But… I can’t even begin to condemn you if what Beau suspects is true. To keep a parent from their child… I can only imagine the pain you two are going through.”
“I still slept with my brother-in-law before we knew all that. Like a lot, mom.”
Her nose wrinkles. “It’s okay, honey. It takes two. Beau is just, if not more, to blame since he promised to commit to your sister.”
A laugh bubbles out of my mouth. “If anything, he shows no remorse for it. He pursued me more than anything.”
“Okay then share some of this guilt with him,” she says, tucking my hair away from my face.
My smile back is bitter. “Shouldn’t you be concerned about Kendall?”
My mom sighs. “I am, but I’m also not blind.
Well, not anymore. Both of you are my babies, both of you are hurting, but over the years I’ve tried to undo the marks your father has left.
It may have been too late.” She looks away before swallowing harshly.
“I should have paid more attention when you girls were younger, but you’re also no longer children.
I can scold you for fucking a man you shouldn’t, but it pales in comparison to actively manipulating and deceiving our entire family. ”
I nod, biting down on my lip. “I know, I get what you’re saying. I just can’t stop thinking about when Theo gets older, and he hears about how we got back together. It’s not a pretty picture.”
She snorts with a shrug. “It is what it is, honey. We all are living life for the first time; we’re going to make mistakes and they’re not going to be glamorous.”
We stay like that for another moment, just letting my mom hold me while the tears dry and my heart settles. She steps back, rubbing down my arms.
“I’m a bit selfish, but have we thought about how to introduce him to Theo?”
I shake my head. “I honestly pushed it so far from my mind. I did everything I could to not think about it this morning while spending time with Beau.”
She chuckles. “I understand. Let’s go and see how everyone is doing and then go from there.”
I blow out a long breath and follow her out. My eyes catch on my son calmly watching his tablet on the couch before straying over to the man watching him from afar. Walking over to Beau, my heart squeezes when I see the slight sheen of tears in his eyes.
“Hey,” I say softly.
“Hey,” he whispers, wiping at his eyes before facing my mom and me fully. “I tried to stop her, asked her to wait to calm down before driving off, but she was determined.”
My mom nods. “I’m sure she’s just driving over to the neighbors. The roads were still slick when we came up this morning, but I’ll call and check.”
“If there’s anything my sister values, it’s her life. She won’t risk it simply because she’s upset. She’d rather stick around, scheme revenge and inflict more pain.”
Beau flinches. “It feels like I never really knew her.”
“She’s perfected being whoever that person wants from her,” I say sadly. “No fault of her own, my father made her that way.
My mom sighs. “Beau, I’m sorry you got caught up in our family drama. At the end of the day, only one person is truly hurt by this.”
All of our attention goes over to Theo. He’s laughing at something, and my nose tingles with the need to cry again. Beau wraps his arm around me, and I lean into his chest.
“Maybe this is the way it was supposed to be. I didn’t want to move on from you, but I knew I had to.
She was the first one to draw my interest, and maybe that’s just what was meant to happen.
She led me to you and Theo either way. I can hold resentment for the deceit, but I’d never take back this weekend.
I’m thankful for the way it turned out, and now I believe this is how it should be.
I want you, and I want Theo. I want to be a part of this family. ”
My throat aches at his words and I nod, hugging him tighter.
“Perhaps we should let Kayla and Theo have their time together and you can help me prepare lunch, Beau?” my mom offers.
Beau kisses my forehead and lets go to follow her into the kitchen while I head to my son. He looks up as I sit on the couch by his feet. He pulls his headphones off with a smile.
“Hi, Mommy!”
It tugs at my heart and I grin at him. “Hi, baby. Did you have fun the last two nights with Grandma and Auntie Kendall?”
He nods. “We had lots of soda.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Did you? Huh. Well that’s exciting.”
Theo looks toward where we were standing with Beau, and frowns. “Who is that, Mommy?”
Patting the cushion next to me, he moves closer, snuggling into my side. I stroke his hair away from his forehead. “Remember how I said your daddy was super far away, and he couldn’t get home just yet?”
He nods, his eyes widening with earnest hope.
My stomach turns, knowing everything is going to change going forward, and while I can assume it will be for the best, we still don’t know. I must take too long to answer before he sits up.
“He’s my daddy!” Theo exclaims.
A laugh escapes my throat. “Yeah, buddy. He’s your daddy, and he’s been very excited to meet you. How do you feel about meeting him?”
Theo nods excitedly, then his little face crumbles a bit. “I don’t know.”
I pull him into my lap, hugging him tightly. “It’s okay to be a little scared. How about I stay with you the entire time? I’ll hold your hand.”
The tiny child that holds my heart gives me a weak “okay” before sliding off my lap to stand.
I grab his hand, bringing him into the kitchen.
Beau looks up from where he’s cutting tomatoes, swallowing harshly before looking down at Theo.
He sets the knife down, wiping his hands on his pants and coming around the counter peninsula.
He kneels in front of Theo, keeping his arm at his side.
“Hi, Theo. My name is Beau.”
Theo squeezes my hands, and I squeeze back before kneeling at his side.
“Can you tell Beau ‘hi’ back?”
He shakes his head, tucking his face into my neck. I give Beau a small smile, and he smiles back, watching me with our son.
“No worries, buddy. How about you go back to watching your videos, and then maybe we can sit next to each other at lunch? How does that sound?”
Theo looks up before giving him a small nod. My mom puts her hand to her chest before whirling around to get back to cooking. Beau grins wider.
“Awesome. I’ll save you a seat then.”
Theo rushes back to the couch, and I stand slowly, giving Beau a bruised look.
“Sorry that didn’t go better.”
Beau shrugs. “I’m a stranger. I’m glad he’s wary.”
I bite the corner of my lip. “I guess that’s true. He’s only really asked about his dad once, and I only briefly said that he was really far away. I didn’t want him to have any false hope.”
He nods. “I understand that. Thanks for not writing me off entirely.”
We stare at each other until my mom snaps her fingers.
“Someone help me. You can make googly eyes at each other later,” she says with a teasing smile.
I point my thumb over my shoulder. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to hang out with Theo. I’ve missed him.”
Beau shakes his head. “Of course. I understand completely.”
“Plus, it gives Beau and me time to talk, discuss what the future of this family looks like since I’ll more than likely be stuck in the middle,” my mom teases.
I give her a sad smile. “Sorry we ruined Christmas.”
Her eyes widen. “Are you kidding? Theo has his daddy. This is the best Christmas surprise.”
A laugh escapes me. “Right, a full-on miracle, huh?”
Beau gives us both a small smirk. “Maybe it just worked out the way it’s supposed to.”