12. Chapter 12
Chapter twelve
“Like growing teeth?”
Justin called their mother, Allie, and gave her a brief rundown of the situation. But he, Lucia, and Marti all needed to leave, so Abe was alone on the couch when Allie arrived. She knocked once, then came through the door.
She rushed to the couch, then put a hand to her mouth when she saw Kai. “Oh my gosh.”
Kai dropped the wooden spoon Abe had given him to play with, then held his arms out to Allie. Her eyes filled with tears as she took him from Abe. “Come here, you precious thing.” She hugged Kai, then looked at Abe.
He scowled. “Sorry, Mom.”
“You had no idea?”
“No, ma’am.”
She bounced Kai up and down while he fingered the buttons on her blouse. “We will figure this out.”
“Just like that?”
“Of course.”
“You don’t want to reprimand me or call me an idiot?”
“Of course not. I’m not so old that I don’t realize these things happen no matter how careful you are.”
It sounded like she was talking from experience, but Abe wasn’t about to ask her to elaborate. “I had no idea he existed.”
“I know you would’ve done the right thing if you had known.”
Why was she being so understanding? Allie tickled Kai’s thigh, making him giggle. The woman loved children. She had six of her own and now had five—make that six grandchildren. His mother was a natural and would help him through this.
“Thank you, Mom.”
She smiled at him. “None of that. I’m not going to raise this child for you. But I will help you until you get adjusted to the situation. Then, while you’re at work, he can stay with me. But for any of your outside activities, you’ll need to find help.”
“Yes, ma’am. There is still a chance he’s not mine.”
Allie looked at Kai, then at Abe. “This child is definitely yours.”
“Damn.”
She covered Kai’s ears. “You’re going to need to work on your language, Abraham.”
He said, “Yes, ma’am,” again, then got to his feet. “How am I supposed to raise a baby here?”
“The two of you are going to stay with me until you get this place baby-proofed.”
“Baby-proofed?”
“Gentry can help you with that. Does Kai have anything aside from what he’s wearing?”
“He came with a bag and a car seat.”
“That’s a start. I have some of Levi’s things. We’ll fix this little darling right up. Now, go pack some things for yourself, and we’ll go home.” When Abe didn’t move, she looked at him. “Honey?”
“I don’t think I can do this, Mom.”
“Of course you can.”
“I don’t know if I want to do this.”
She cocked her head. “That you don’t have a choice on. Careful or not. Surprise or not. The minute you did what you did to create a child, he became your responsibility.”
Abe refrained from saying, “Yes, ma’am,” and just nodded his head.
“Now go. I’ve got dinner to prepare for your father.”
“Does he know about…him?”
“I told him what Justin told me before I came over.”
Abe got his feet moving and headed for the bedroom.
“Honey, why are you limping?”
“Limping?” He looked down at his leg. “I had an accident about a million years ago.”
“Accident?”
He waved a hand at her. “It doesn’t matter anymore.” He started walking again but stopped when Kai said, “Papa.”
He turned back. “That’s what he called his grandfather.”
Allie smiled. “He wasn’t talking to his grandfather, honey.”
Abe motioned toward the hallway. “I’m going to…”
“Go ahead.”
Abe was pretty sure his father would have a few more questions than his mother.
He went to his room and threw some clothes into a leather tote.
A few hours ago, he was planning a first date with Maggie.
Now? He zipped up the bag, then sat on the bed and rubbed his face.
Now there was a tiny human in his living room who just called him Papa.
It wasn’t the word so much as how it made him feel.
He rubbed his chest. “Maybe I’m just having a heart attack, or a stroke.
I’m young. I’ll recover.” He sighed. “And you’d still have a kid.
” A kid? He had a kid? He thought about Lizzie and how upbeat and full of life she’d been.
She was the parent Kai deserved. Abe mumbled, “Papa? Unbelievable.”
When he returned to the living room, Kai was on the floor banging on the trunk in front of the couch and giggling like it was the funniest thing he’d ever done.
Abe stopped and couldn’t help but smile. “He can walk?”
“Of course he can walk. This boy can run.”
“Is he still in diapers?”
“Yes. But not for long. Once he’s settled in, we’ll get to work on that.”
“Bottles?”
“I didn’t see any in the diaper bag. Just a sippy cup.”
“Hmm. He’s damn near a kid.”
“He’s closer to being a kid than a baby.”
Kai was still banging on the trunk with drool running from one side of his mouth. “Sure looks like a baby to me.”
“Pick him up and let’s go.”
Abe set his bag down, then went to Kai, who looked up at him and grinned. “Papa?”
“Yeah, I’m afraid so, kid.” He picked Kai up, then grabbed his bag and followed his mother outside.
“We’re going to put the car seat in my car for now. You’ll need to get rid of your truck.”
“What? No way.”
“Or get a second vehicle. He needs a backseat to ride in.”
“Why?”
“The airbag.”
Allie secured the car seat in her backseat, then she took Kai from Abe and buckled him into it. When she closed the door, she looked at Abe. “What, honey?”
“So I have to buy a car?”
She patted his chest. “A nice, manly SUV will work just fine.”
Abe scowled. His life was basically over. He peered in at Kai, who was blowing saliva bubbles. “How can he produce so much spit?”
Allie laughed. “He’s probably teething.”
“Like growing teeth?”
“Yes.”
Kai was lost in his own little world of spit bubbles. Abe sighed. “Gross.”
Abe checked the time on his watch. Three hours. It had only been three hours since David Montgomery had knocked on his door. In three short hours, his whole life had changed.
Allie took his arm. “Do you want to come with me?”
Abe sighed. “I’ll follow you on my bike.”
Allie wasn’t the fastest driver in the world, and on any other day, Abe would get frustrated following her. But today, he wished she’d drive even slower. He tried to ignore the pain in his leg while he prepared himself for what his father might say.
When Allie’s brake lights came on, she swerved toward the middle of the road as a deer ran in front of her. Abe slowed down and flashed his lights, and she pulled over to the side of the road. He pulled in behind her and jumped off the bike, then jogged to her window.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, honey. It was just a deer.”
Abe glanced back at Kai, then opened the back door. “Hey, buddy.” The baby smiled at him, and Abe sighed. “Okay. You’re okay.” He picked up the toy Kai had dropped and handed it to him. “Here you go.”
Kai said, “Dog,” then put the small stuffed cat in his mouth.
Abe smiled. “Close enough.”
He closed the door and looked at Allie again. “Sorry, I just…”
“It’s fine, honey. Everybody is fine.”
“I’ll go back to my bike now.”
When they arrived at the farm, Allie told Abe to go talk to his father while she fed Kai and started dinner. John was in the three-sided garage attached to the Quonset hut, working on one of the tractors.
Abe approached his father, walking over years of oil soaked into the ground. The garage smelled like gasoline and the distinctive scent of the homemade cleaner John used on his hands to remove the grime from whatever vehicle he was working on.
John gave him a nod. “Hand me the three-quarter-inch socket, son.”
Abe picked up the tool and held it out. John took it and cranked down on the bolt he was tightening.
“What’s wrong with the tractor, Dad?”
John backed up. “Nothing now. Hop up there and turn her over for me.”
Abe climbed into the seat and turned the key. It was something he’d done a hundred times over the years. The tractor started and idled quietly.
John closed the engine compartment. “Good as new.”
The tractor had been around as long as Abe could remember, but John was a skilled, self-taught mechanic who could keep anything running.
As a teen, Abe had spent hours in the garage, helping and learning from his father.
By the time he left home, he could keep most things running, too.
He wasn’t as good as his father, but he’d rebuilt several motorcycles and three trucks.
John wiped his hands on a towel, then went to the sink in the corner of the garage. He washed his hands, using a generous amount of the magical hand cleaner, then ripped off a paper towel to dry them. He tossed the paper towel into the trash, then turned to Abe.
“So, knowing your mother, she assured you that you could do this.”
“Yes, sir, she did.”
“Are you convinced?”
“Not in the least.”
John nodded. “Okay. I’m going to give you my take on the situation.
You have two choices, son, and no matter which you make, this family will stand by you.
But whatever choice you make has to be final.
That child recently lost his mother and today lost his grandfather. He doesn’t need to lose anyone else.”
“I agree.”
“So, you either embrace this and accept that you are suddenly a father and everything that comes with it, or you choose not to, and the boy gets placed with the state. Being young, he’s bound to find a good family. But there will be no changing your mind down the road.”
“Yes, sir.”
“So, take some time to figure out what you want to do. Not too much time though. The boy is bound to get attached quickly.”
Abe cleared his throat. “I um…I don’t need time. I’ll do right by him.” His answer surprised him more than it seemed to surprise his father. What the hell are you saying?
“Take some time anyway. Take the night and think on it. This is a lifetime commitment we’re talking about.”
“I understand. But my mind is made up.” It was like his mouth had a mind of its own.
John nodded. “Okay, then. In that case, I’d like to meet my grandson.”