Chapter Fourteen
Sheridan
TODAY HAS BEEN a roller coaster of emotions.
For the last two weeks, I’ve spent every second possible in the NICU with Leo and Axel.
It’s been easy because I’ve been in the hospital and just walk to the NICU and spend hours with Leo.
Thankfully, our son got over the infection he had and is thriving once again.
He’s gaining weight, eating, and doing everything he should be.
The only drawback is his oxygen levels continue to drop at night.
That’s the only reason he’s not being discharged.
The doctors can’t find any particular reason why his oxygen levels are dropping, they simply do.
It’s not as bad as when he was first born so their only guess is his lungs weren’t quite developed as much as they should have been when he was born and they’ve been focusing on taking care of that.
Anyway, I’ve been discharged and today will be the first time I go home when visiting hours end.
Axel and I won’t be in the hospital with our boy in case something happens and we need to get to him immediately.
My back is bothering me, however I don’t need another surgery to fix any damage.
It was injured in the accident, but the swelling has gone down and the pain is slowly receding to the normal levels I’m used to.
The doctors aren’t concerned any longer with that since it’s what I deal with on a daily basis.
There’s nothing more they can do for me.
I’ve got all the pain medicine and muscle relaxers to help me cope with everything like I do normally.
It’s something I’ve learned to deal with on a daily basis and only use the medicine I have on hand when it’s absolutely necessary.
Now, I hardly use it because I want to breastfeed my son.
I’ve been pumping when we can’t be with him and the nurses from the maternity ward take it into the NICU so Leo has it overnight with the nurses.
All of my other wounds have healed with the exception of my wrist. I still have the cast on and it’s a burden I can’t wait to get rid of.
Thankfully, I don’t have that much longer with the cast on and then I’ll have to strengthen my wrist again.
“What’s goin’ through that head of yours, Little Fairy?” Axel asks me as we sit in the room with Leo.
I look up to find Axel holding Leo against his bare chest. I’ve never seen a better sight in my life.
Axel is an extremely good looking man and I’ve always looked at his body when he’s worn nothing more than shorts while working out.
Now, seeing him take care of our son makes him look that much better than ever before.
For a moment, I get lost in staring at the man I’ve loved for longer than I’ll ever admit to anyone else.
“Today is gonna be hard when visiting hours are over. I won’t be going back to my room here in the hospital. I’ll be leaving the hospital entirely. Leo will be here all alone,” I answer him honestly, tears filling my eyes with the thought of us leaving him here.
“Little Fairy, he’s not gonna be alone. Knuckles and my dad are stayin’ here overnight.
They volunteered so I can take you home and get you settled in at the house.
Mom and the other ol’ ladies have been cookin’ up a storm and have filled the freezer and refrigerator with food.
If anythin’ happens to Leo, Dad or Knuckles will contact us immediately.
They’re not gonna let him out of their sight,” Axel informs me and I really shouldn’t be surprised because no one in the Dirty Slayers will leave our son alone.
“That makes me feel slightly better, but it’s not the same,” I tell him as the first tear slides down my face and lands on my arm.
“I know it’s not the same, Little Fairy.
However, it’s time for you to leave the hospital.
Time to start livin’ your life again and think about the classes you’ll be startin’ in the new semester.
Mom and the other ol’ ladies have already said they’ll watch Leo so he doesn’t have to leave the compound while you’re in class or on campus.
I don’t know what your plans are so we’ll have to figure that out.
I’ll fully support whatever decision you make though.
I know how important gettin’ your degree is to you and will do everythin’ I can to help.
For now, you need to focus on healin’ the rest of the way and bein’ here for Leo the second we can be,” Axel says, walking over and handing our son to me.
I hold Leo’s small body close while Axel helps me pull my gown down so I can get some skin-on-skin time with him.
Axel pulls my gown down while I move Leo’s body so he can get it down from between us and then he grabs the blanket Jolene made for Leo and places it over us.
Once he’s sure we’re settled and don’t need anything else, Axel takes a seat in the second rocking chair and looks at me.
“When we leave here, can you take me to the lawyer’s office? I have something to take care of and need it to happen now. This isn’t something I can wait on taking care of,” I ask him, knowing that my mother will soon be trying to get her hands on my money once again.
I know without a doubt she’s behind the accident that just happened.
If she isn’t, then Jess is. Though, my gut is telling me it was my mother behind the entire thing.
She’ll try to kill me so she can use my death to steal my money.
That’s not going to happen. Everything I have will be left to Leo with Axel as the representative.
If anything happens to me, our son and Axel will be taken care of for the rest of their lives.
And, Leo will always have a home with the house I have from my grandparents.
That’s one of the things we went over when I was in the lawyer’s office.
It’s also something my mother knows nothing about.
As far as she knows, the house was sold and the funds were added to the trust that was in my name.
She has no clue there’s a home I have in my name and can move into at any time.
The house is on the outskirts of town and has a large amount of land attached to it.
It’s perfect to turn into the ranch I want to eventually start to help kids and animals once I finish school.
When I was young, I used to love going to my grandparents and exploring the land to find all of its untold secrets.
My dad and grandpa would spend hours with me as I explored and found all sorts of treasures.
I’m sure most of them were put there by them as a way to see me excited and full of wonder only found in the innocence of children.
However, these are the memories I’ve cherished for so many years and will never forget.
“I’ll take you there. Everythin’ okay?” he questions me, sitting up straighter in his rocking chair and more alert than I’ve seen him in days.
“Yeah. I’m just putting a Will together and need to make sure my lawyer knows exactly how I want everything.
You know about the trust I had from my grandparents.
My mother hasn’t once changed and has been trying to get her hands on the money.
Now that it’s fully mine, she’s already called and threatened me about giving it to her.
The will is to ensure everything goes to Leo with you as the representative so his future is set and he won’t have to worry about anything,” I say, my voice void of any emotion because my mother is horrendous and if I allow myself to think of her, I’ll get pissed off and that’s not something Leo needs to feel from me.
“The fuck?” Axel says, keeping his voice low but full of shock as he turns more toward me and leans in closer. “Why would you make me the representative, Sheridan?”
“You’re Leo’s dad and if something happens to me, you’ll need it to raise him.
I’m not saying you don’t have money of your own, but this is a safeguard to ensure she can’t get her hands on the money and take it all away because she’s a selfish bitch who can’t stand the thought of not having the money she wants to keep her in whatever she’s doing these days,” I say calmly as I rub my hand up and down Leo’s warm back.
“We’re talkin’ about this when we get home, Sheridan. Nothin’ is gonna fuckin’ happen to you on my watch and I need to know exactly what you’ve been dealin’ with to want to take things this far,” Axel says as a nurse walks in to check on Leo and we end the conversation.
I knew he’d demand answers from me and this isn’t a conversation we’ll be able to push aside like we’ve been doing with everything else. There’s a lot Axel and I need to talk about and things we have to figure out between the two of us now that Leo is here and we’ll be living with Axel.
***
We’re finally at Axel’s house on the compound.
I’ve showered and changed into a pair of sweats and one of Axel’s old football tee shirts.
Now it’s time for us to have a conversation that’s going to be harder than I ever truly thought it would be.
Walking out into the living room, I find Axel sitting on the couch with his phone in one hand and a beer in the other one.
He appears to be zoned out and not truly paying attention to whatever he’s looking at.
However, I know he’s watching me walk over to the couch and take a seat in the corner.
Without a word, he hands me a blanket and pushes a large glass of water toward me.
There’s two plates of food on the table in front of us and it smells amazing.
Taking a closer look, I see the roast Jolene used to make when we were younger.
Gravy covers the meat on my plate. There’s mashed potatoes, peas, and two rolls I know she made from scratch.
This has always been one of my favorite meals when I would eat with them.