41. BONUS EPILOGUE
BONUS EPILOGUE
KINSLEY
A nother six months later.
Carter: Why hasn’t anybody texted yet?
Jill: Because they’re still at the hospital.
Carter: How long does this sort of thing take?
Logan: I’m sure the doctors know what they’re doing. Be patient.
Carter: What happens if it’s serious, though? Shouldn’t we be there?
Andy: Dude, what’s going on? I’m trying to study over here.
Jill: Ethan and Kinzie took Collette to the hospital in the middle of the night.
Andy: Shit. What happened? I’m running to my car right now.
Mom: You three are the cutest.
“Have you seen the text messages?” Ethan asks as he carries our sleepy little girl to the truck.
I nod, helping him get our chubby-cheeked four-year-old girl into her car seat. “The best part is watching how anxious Carter gets.”
“Do you think we should say something?”
I shake my head. “Let him sweat it out a bit. He’ll have to get used to this sort of stuff soon enough.”
“You’re evil.” Ethan chuckles, brushing a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
“Mmm.” And exhausted. We’ve been up all night with Collette due to a fever that wouldn’t break. Around one a.m., after hours of crying, Collette started tugging at her ear. Instantly, those maternal instincts everyone talks about kicked in.
Yes. I have a kid. I might not be her biological mother, but for now—though we don’t know how long we’ll have with her—I get to be a mother to this little bundle of joy sleeping soundly in the back seat of our truck.
When we pull into the driveway, the sun is just cresting over the horizon. Ethan pulls Collette carefully out of her car seat, and miraculously, she doesn’t wake.
“I’ll tuck her in. You should get some sleep.” He kisses me on the cheek.
I’ve just stepped over the threshold when my phone vibrates in my hand. At the sight of the name on the screen, I freeze. Dread pools in my belly. I want to ignore it. I want to pretend I don’t notice the call. DCFS already spoke to us at the hospital. The only other reason they’d be calling me right now is to place Collette with a family member, and I am not ready for that conversation. Not yet. Not after a night like last night.
But I can’t keep Collette from somebody who might be looking for her. We’ve been told that both of her parents are incarcerated and have given up their rights since they’re serving such long sentences. The likelihood of finding a family member who can take her in is slim, but it’s not impossible.
Reluctantly, I answer the call. Avoidance won’t prevent the inevitable.
“Mrs. Tate?” Becky Sanders says, sounding almost as tired as I feel.
With a quick yawn, I say, “Good morning, Becky. What can I do for you?”
“Are you and Mr. Tate still willing to foster another child?”
My heart thumps against my chest, and chills run down my spine. “Yes. Absolutely,” I say, instantly wide awake.
Ethan steps into the room, eyeing me with a curious expression, so I put Becky on speaker.
“Well.” Becky clears her throat. “I know Collette has only been with you for a few months, and you may still be adjusting, but we have a five-year-old boy who needs immediate placement, and we figured—”
Ethan’s eyes brighten. He smiles and nods vigorously, as if I’m not already doing the same.
“Yes,” I say before Becky finishes her sentence. “Yes. Bring him here. We’ll be waiting.”
When I hang up, Ethan pulls me into his chest and crushes his lips to mine. “I love you, Mrs. Tate.”
My heart swells every time he calls me that, but this time, my love for him is uncontainable.