One to Tell the Grandkids (31 page)

Her family.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“S
o let me get this straight.”

Caleb spared a glance at Slate before he returned his eyes to the road. “You and straight have never gone together well.”

“Har. Seriously, bro. You threw an epic hissy fit over the idea you were falling too fast and hard for my baby momma. Then, the day after she forgives you and takes your sorry ass back, the day after you enter a serious relationship with a woman who has just given birth to another man’s child, you ask her to move in with you.”

“She didn’t say yes until last night, though. We took our time and made sure it was the right decision for all three of us, including your daughter, of course.”

Slate held his hands up in a placating motion. “Hey, I was just giving you a hard time. You don’t need to be defensive about it.”

“It sounds stupid when you say it out loud like that. You think I don’t second-guess myself? I’ve known Taryn for a little longer than I knew Lisa before I asked her to move in with me but not by much.”

A smile tugged at his lips as he stared out at the road. “It’s different, though. It couldn’t be more different. It feels rude to say, but Lisa was convenient. I cared for her, and I did love her, but it isn’t enough. Love is never enough on its own, I think.”

“I can dig that,” Slate said.

Caleb drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “Taryn is more. I love her, but more than that, we’re good partners. She understands me more than Lisa did, more than anyone does.

“So yeah, long story short, it might be the same setup as before but for the right reasons. What’s the point of waiting to move in together when we know we work and it’s the most financially advantageous thing to do?”

“You make it sound so romantic.”

Caleb glanced at his friend. “That, little brother, is something we should all grow up and learn. Romance is fantastic, but there needs to be a little common sense thrown in there somewhere. Romance doesn’t make for a good lifelong partnership. Besides, Taryn isn’t a chocolates, flowers, and fancy dates type of girl.

“Now, speaking of common sense.” He pulled into a parking space in the civic center’s parking structure and turned off the car. “Are you ready for this?”

Slate tugged at his borrowed tie. “Yeah. Should be simple, right?”

“Yes. You’re not a criminal, Slate. Just a jackass who forgot to go to pay a ticket. And didn’t go to the court dates set. Or the class that would have gotten the ticket reduced.”

For being twenty-four years old, Slate could still look like a chastened child when he wanted to. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I should have told you about it. You would have kicked my ass to get it done. The second court date was right when everything was first happening with Taryn, though, so . . .” He gestured helplessly.

“It’s all good. Sometimes we learn things the hard way, right? That’s how we know not to let it happen again.”

“It won’t.” Slate’s tone was fervent and certain. “I could have missed my kid being born. It won’t happen again.”

“Tell it to the judge.”

Caleb finished unbuckling the car seat and pulled it and Rory out of the car. He straightened and reached his free hand for Taryn, kicking the door closed with a bump from his butt. She had that look on her face again, like a kid sitting outside the principal’s office. He gave her hand a squeeze. “You’re not doing anything wrong.”

“I know.” She pressed her side briefly against his before they started up the walk. “That’s part of what frustrates me. I hate coming here with news. It’ll be the same thing as always. Mom and Dad will make those faces like they have no idea how I could make such a ridiculous decision, and Mike will tell me how stupid I am. They only see the black and white of it. But life is in high-definition color, man. I like my life. I like my job. I like Slate. I have the most beautiful, smartest baby on the planet.” She tugged him to a stop so she could give him a kiss. “I like you.”

He kissed the tip of her nose. “I like you, too.” He kept them moving up the front steps. “They’ve been better this last month, but if they have something to say, we’ll deal with them. Together.”

The second they walked in the door, Lucas swept in. He hardly spared a hug for his daughter before he’d taken the car seat from Caleb’s hands. He had Rory unbuckled and in his arms faster than they could blink.

“Should it worry me how easily people can abscond with my baby?” Taryn asked, staring after her father’s retreating figure.

“Family gets an exception.”

When they stepped into the living room, there were kisses and hugs all around. Mike had the kids that weekend, so the house was full and happy. Caleb and Taryn sat on the couch, smiling at each other as they watched Bailey toddle after her big brother. Caleb wondered if Taryn had the same daydream he did, that one day it would be their baby chasing after Rory, just dying to do everything big sister did.

When they sat down to dinner, the conversation inevitably changed to Taryn’s upcoming move. She’d found a job and was starting when her maternity leave was up in another two weeks.

In the end, after all her angst about what to say, Taryn got straight to the point. “I’m moving in with Caleb.”

There were those I-don’t-understand understand looks Taryn hated. Caleb rested his hand on her knee under the table and gave a squeeze of support.

“I thought you said Caleb’s place is a one bedroom,” Lucas said, his tone even.

Caleb cleared his throat. “We’ll only be in the one bedroom for a few weeks at most. I’m in the market for a new house.” He kept his tone light and conversational, as if what he was saying was only obvious. He hoped for Taryn’s sake her family would follow his lead. “I sold my mother’s house. I’m going to use that money to get a new place. Slate is going to rent my current house. It’s a better idea for him for the time being, so he’ll be able to keep the baby without worrying about his roommates. Hopefully by the time she needs a little more space, he’ll have found a more permanent solution.”

Lucas and Faye exchanged glances. Surprisingly, it was Mike who spoke. “Well, that’s great. A house has some advantages over an apartment. It’s nice for a kid to have their own backyard to play in.”

Taryn stared at her elder brother. “That’s it?”

He raised an eyebrow. “What? You want me to say it’s too fast? It’s too complicated? It’s a little weird? It might be.” He shrugged and winked at his sister. “You got this, kid. You’re going to land on your feet. You always do. It’s not like you’re running off with a drug-addicted criminal.” He looked to Caleb. “You’re not a drug-addicted criminal, right?”

Caleb laughed. “No.”

“Well, there you go.”

Taryn lunged out of her seat and flung her arms around her brother so hard they both nearly tumbled to the floor.

“You’re hovering.”

Taryn jumped, caught in the act of spying on Caleb and his dad. She shouldn’t have been surprised. Her mottled family and friends were all in attendance, helping her and Caleb move into their new house.

She whirled around and shushed Robin. Tossing one last look over her shoulder, she grabbed her friend’s hand and dragged him down the hall into the master bedroom.

“I’m not hovering,” she said when they were out of earshot. “I was just checking on them. They were supposed to report back when they were done with the crib, and that was hours ago.”

“Tare, I’ve been watching you for five minutes. It didn’t take five minutes for you to figure out they were talking. So tell the truth now. Why were you hovering?”

“I’m worried, that’s all. Caleb gets impatient with his father very quickly. One minute they’re fine, the next minute John says something to set him off. I’m worried for him. He really enjoys spending time with his stepsiblings. Whether or not he admits it, he enjoys spending time with his father. I don’t want him to lose that.”

Robin slung his arm around her shoulders, drawing her closer. “Honey, that’s just family. Any family. Listen to yourself. You could be talking about you and Mike. They’ve got some healing to do is all. Again, not unlike you and Mike.

“Now, on to much more important things. I need to tell you a story.”

Taryn sighed and settled herself on the floor where she’d been sorting clothes. “Am I going to like this story?”

“I think you might have a certain appreciation for it.” He sat cross-legged in front her and began folding the gigantic pile of clothes she’d set aside for charity. “As you know, I have a penchant for adorable boys.”

“I can confirm you have a penchant for boys.”

“Hah. Anyway. The point here being, I found this beautiful, adorable boy.”

“I sense a twist coming up.”

Robin sighed dramatically. “Such a twist. Turns out this adorable boy knocked up my best friend.”

Taryn stopped what she was doing, all the breath leaving her in a whoosh.

“Exactly. So I told myself, hands off.

“Problem with that was, the more exposure I had to the boy, the worse this crush of mine got. I didn’t want to ask my best friend if I could complicate her life more. You’re not supposed to upset pregnant women. Still, I argued with myself. I was so mad at you when you said you didn’t like Slate like that. Stupid I know, but true. How could you not like Slate?

“I didn’t want to hope we had a chance. Maybe later when all the dust had cleared.” He crossed his arms over his chest and gave Taryn a pointed look. “Then you started sleeping with
his
best friend.

“That should have been good for me, right? But no. No. His bestie had to make things complicated and dramatic and poor, love-sick, impatient me has to wait. Again.”

Taryn pressed her lips together, unsure whether she should laugh or apologize. Before she could do either, Robin went on. “So tell me how this story ends, Tare. Do I get to woo the man or not?”

For a full three seconds, Taryn couldn’t speak at all. Then she laughed so hard she fell over.

“I’m serious,” Robin protested. “I don’t know the protocol here, but it seems only fair I ask you. How is this supposed to work? Is this like that unwritten rule you can’t date your friends’ exes?”

Taryn straightened up and smiled at her friend. “Slate was never mine, and that’s a bullshit rule anyway. Have at it, buddy. I approve. You’re good to your dates, and Slate deserves that.”

Robin’s eyes lit up. He was on his feet so fast Taryn hardly had time to process it. “What? Right now?” she asked, craning her neck to follow his race for the door.

“Hello? I’ve been pining for almost a year now.” And with that, he was gone.

“This I have to see.” Taryn climbed to her feet and hurried after Robin. She got to the bottom of the stairs just in time for the show.

Robin plucked Rory from Slate’s arms and handed the baby over to Melanie. He grabbed Slate around the waist, pulled him forward, and planted a big kiss on him. Taryn heard a few gasps. Mike, coming in the door, dropped the box he was carrying. Something cracked.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds before Robin pulled back. He smacked his lips and grinned at the dazed, gape-mouthed look on Slate’s face. “You want to go out some time?”

By then, Taryn was dying. She plopped down on the steps laughing at everyone else’s expressions.

“What the heck just happened?” Caleb asked, coming to sit on the step behind her, his legs framing her.

Taryn leaned back against him, tilting her head back against his chest. “Robin is about as a subtle as a freight train.”

Melanie came to sit beside Taryn, trying to untangle her long hair from Rory’s grip of death. “It’s a good thing Jerry Springer is off the air. You guys could take up a whole episode.”

“Nah. We’re fine. It could always get weirder.”

“I guess it could. You know, if you want to keep everyone in the family, I could always hit on your brother. He’s about to be single right? That would round everything out nicely.”

“What?” Mike asked, catching the tail end of that conversation.

Melanie winked and flashed a lascivious grin. “Nothing. We’re talking about you, not to you.”

Taryn wound her fingers together with Caleb’s. “Go for it. Why not. Stranger things have happened, and besides, I like it this way. I don’t have a family tree—I have a family forest.”

Acknowledgments

To Betsy, Jess, Ele, Christine, Tiffany, and Tamara. Thank you for your painstaking read and all your insight.

To Erika and Michele, who edited this for me. Thank you for your patience, your willingness to discuss, and your expertise.

To you readers who read my fanfiction and took a chance on my original characters. You have no idea how much your kind words and reviews have meant to me.

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