Third Date (26 page)

“I can't believe I didn't see it, I can't believe they were trying to manipulate me into thinking I was their son.” His head fell into his hands, body rolling forward. “I thought I found my family, I thought I was going to get my answers.” I watched him begin to crumble, his life slipping away, his dream getting crushed.

And it hurt, my heart ached for him, my nerves exploding in a sadness that was unlike anything I had experienced before.

My daughter was lucky to at least have memories I could talk to her about Max, she was lucky to know where she came from.

But Layne had none of that. His wonder would press on, his curiosity would fester and bubble over. And his life would still be a giant question mark. It wasn't fair.

“Kin, this whole time I was expecting that I had finally found them, that my life was finally going to be full and hold some sort of meaning. Now I don't even know. My real parents, Anna's real parents...” His hand curved over his jaw, stretching down his throat and reaching around the back of his neck. “This is fucked, I still have no family.”

Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, I pulled him into my belly. “Layne, you did find family. You found your sister, you found me, you found Fay, and...” Pausing, I let my head fall to his ear. “And you created a family of your own, one that's yours. You don't need to keep looking, you've got it already, right here.” Placing his hand on my stomach, he lifted his head slowly.

Searching my face, his brows twisted. “What?”

Letting a delicate smile curl to one side, I kissed his forehead. “You're going to be a father, Layne.”

Layne

P
regnant...

Pregnant...

Holy fucking shit. Kinsley had told me she was pregnant, pregnant... With my child, my own flesh and blood.

Scratching my head, I let the words sink in. “You're pregnant?” Her smile was endless, perched high across her cheeks. “So we're having a baby?” Nodding, her arms tangled themselves around my neck. “Wow. I, I don't... Wow.”

It was the last thing I ever expected, the last thing I thought could ever happen. We had used condoms, except last— No. The first time.

Tugging her stomach closer to my face, I lifted her shirt and pressed my ear against the warm skin of her belly. “How long have you known?” I asked, listening for a sound, a gurgle, shit; I didn't really know what the hell I expected to hear, but my child was in there.

“I found out a few weeks ago, by accident really.” Her fingers tickled through my hair, dragging across my scalp. Kinsley went on to to explain how she had passed out, and through routine blood work, she had learned of the baby.

“Why didn't you tell me sooner?” I asked, still holding my ear to her belly.

“I was going to, the night of that last date.” Cupping her hands over my cheeks, she pulled my head off her stomach and made me look into her eyes. Her gorgeous, sparkling, heated eyes. Her lids lowered, lips parting. “But then you talked about finding your family, and I didn't want to spoil that. I wanted to wait till the right time, and well...” The soft pad of her thumb rubbed against the curve of my jaw. “Well, this was the right time.”

As I looked up into her eyes, her face, her lips; I was hit by a feeling, an emotion—

Love.

I loved the life she carried inside her, I loved the way she cared, she laughed.

I loved her.

For the first time ever, I could say I felt the nerve that fed us all, the desire we all ran to, and craved to have for ourselves.

I felt everything around me. The air tasted sweet, the light was bold and bright and warmed my face, the smell of her perfume hung in my senses and made an imprint of that moment like a scar across my skin.

I loved her.

Staring up into her large brown gaze, I curled my fingertips deep into the small of her back. “Kinsley, I need to tell you...” Searching her eyes, the soft expression eased my nerves. “I love you. I love you and I've wanted to say it but just didn't have the balls to. I love you and I refused to let those feelings warp my dream.” Kinsley opened her lips to speak, but I wouldn't let her stop the flow of words rising off my tongue. “But I realize now that none of that ever mattered, finding my parents never really mattered. And it doesn't matter, because family shouldn't have to be searched for, family is made through bonds.” Picking myself up off the bed, I pressed our bodies together. “I was selfish, and I see that. But I love you, and I will always make sure you know that.”

A single tear cascaded down her cheek, followed by another, then another. The tears began to shed, but her lips stayed in a steady smile. “I'm sorry, it's the hormones.” Laughing gently, she wiped her face with the back of her hand, and inhaled a deep breath. “I love you too, I do. I didn't think I'd ever say those words again.” Sniffling, Kinsley laid her head on my chest. “But you were right all along.”

“About what?” I asked, whispering the words into her hair.

“That I had room in my heart.”

Smiling, I picked her face up with a single finger under her chin. “You'll never have to make room again, I'm never going anywhere. My place is with you, it's with Fay, it's with our little bundle growing in your stomach.” Wriggling my fingertips against her belly, Kinsley giggled, smacking my hands away.

And I knew right then that everything I needed was right there.

It had fallen into my hands, and I had been too blind to see it.

Family.

Layne

“F
ay, breakfast!” I called down the hallway, the sound of her quick feet swiftly following.

“Goooood morning, Dilby!” She yelled, jumping into the kitchen and holding out her arms.

Her smile warmed my stomach, the twinkling in her eyes shined like spotlights in the dark. Fay had become a huge part of my life, I looked at her like she was my own daughter.

Dancing to the table, she tapped her toes against the tiles, and wiggled her body. “What are you doing?” I asked, cocking my head and raising a brow.

“What does it look like?” Fay continued her spastic maneuvers, staring at me with her teeth on display.

“It looks like you have ants stuck in your pants.”

Giggling, she rolled her eyes and threw her hands to her ribs. “No, I'm getting my welcome dance ready for Sweet Pea.”

Sweet Pea was the name Fay had given to her soon to be baby brother—
or sister.
Kinsley and I had decided not to learn the sex.

There were few things in this world that were completely out of someone's control, and for us, this would be a welcome surprise.

“Ahh, okay, gotcha.” Mimicking her moves, I danced my way to the table and placed down her egg sandwich.

“Dilby, that's not it at all.”

“Well teach me so I can do it right. We should be completely in sync to make the dance perfect.”

Fay continued to stomp her feet, flail her arms, and toss her body around. And even though she was insisting it was a dance... I still couldn't shake the image of her having some small critters scaling around her body and making her itch.

“What are you guys doing?” Kinsly's sleepy voice radiated from behind us, her body perched against the wall.

“We are dancing. You can't tell?” I asked, never stopping my moves. “Fay is teaching me the welcome dance for the baby.”

Rubbing her large belly, Kinsley smirked. “Oh, okay, yeah that's good. But how about we eat, the baby is starving.”

Fay's tiny head joggled side to side, eyes slinking into her skull. “Mommy, the baby is always starving, does it ever stop eating?”

“Nope, and when you were a baby, you didn't either.” Popping her lips in a loud smack, Kinsley inhaled a huge gulp of air. “That smells delicious.”

“Of course it does, you haven't wanted anything but eggs for four months now.” Sliding her sandwich across the counter, Kinsley snatched it up and dove right in.

With a mouth full of food, she let her lids fall closed, moaning soft coos to the flavor hitting her tongue. “I could seriously eat these all day every day.” Rolling her head across her shoulders, she opened her eyes and smiled. Her cheeks were fully stuffed with egg and bread, tiny crumbs speckled her lips. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you, Beautiful.” Winking, I picked up my plate and headed to the table. “If you'd like to eat with us, I can always give you mine and make another.” Chuckling, I laid the plate on the table, pulling out the seat, and holding out my hand.

“No, sit, I'll make another.” Her tongue dragged over her lips, as she scuffed her swelling feet across the floor. “One more should hit the spot.”

Fay sat across from me, her chubby little cheeks hitting below her eyes as she ate her breakfast. “Dilby, do you still have the tickets from Kids Bop?” Her fluffy curls bounced over her face, spinning up as she snapped her head side to side.

Scrunching my face, I glanced up at the ceiling, thinking for a moment. “I think so, I think I still have them in my wallet.” Grabbing a napkin, I wiped my hands and pulled out my wallet. “Yup, they're right here.”

“Can I have them?” she asked.

“Sure, they're all yours.” Laying them on the table in front of me, Fay let out an excited giggle, and darted off down the hall.

I didn't think too much about it, her need for the stubs. I had taken her to a concert last weekend, and the girl seemed to have the best night of her life. Fay had been talking about wanting to go to a concert, and had seen some commercial for Kids Bop.

After talking with Kinsley, she was more than happy to let me take her. I had tried to convince Kin to join us, but she so kindly told me that the baby had begun to make her life hell, and since she was due in the next few weeks... She didn't want to chance the loud music popping her water.

So Fay and I went, and the girl was beyond ecstatic to go.

The sound of grease snapped in the background, the fresh scent of eggs started to waft in my direction. “Is Anna coming up next weekend?” she asked, sliding two pieces of toast into the toaster.

“Yeah, she's coming in Saturday night. I have to pick her up at nine, I think.”

After the abomination of a weekend where I was supposed to meet my birth parents, I had planned on cutting all ties, and letting the experience fade into the distant past.

But then I realized that she was as much a victim as myself, and in the end, she was my sister. That wasn't something I wanted to forget, she wasn't someone I wanted to erase from my memories.

Anna refused to contact the police about the Galloways, and I tried to talk some reason into her. But Anna had a made a point to me that was one I couldn't ignore.

They might not have been my parents, but they were hers.

And despite the fact Anna had been stolen when she was little, and that what Charlotte and Greg did was wrong; they had given her a childhood. A great childhood.

She didn't want to lose that, she didn't want to see her parents who were aging and had never done anything but love her, go to jail.

So, for her, I didn't go to the cops either. But I wasn't going to talk to them, or try and build some sort of twisted relationship with the people who had taken my sister from me.

In the end, they were still her family.

And so was I.

That held more weight to me than putting two people behind bars, taking their lives, and sealing them in a tomb that would probably take their last breath before they'd ever see the light of day again.

Was I going to keep searching for my parents?

For now, life was perfect.

I couldn't ask for anything more.

“Good, I hope she's here for the birth, that would be nice.” Lowering into the seat at my side, Kinsley's plate clanked against the wood as she put it down. “Damn, my back is killing me. This is the part I hate, the last month. It always seems to be endless.”

“Yeah, well it won't be forever.”

“That's easy for you to say, you're not carrying around thirty extra pounds, and have feet snuggling under your ribs.” Elbowing me in the chest, she dug into her second egg sandwich.

The tiny patter of Fay's feet scrambled down the hall, her head popping around the door frame with her signature smile. “Dilby, I have a surprise for you.”

“You do?” I asked, angling my head to look at her.

Stepping out from behind the wall, she was holding a notebook to her chest. I heard Kinsley inhale a sharp breath, her hand nestled into the dip between my shoulder blades, softly tracing her nails up and down.

Fay shook her head up and down, stepping closer. “I... I want to share something with you.”

A gentle sniffle floated into my ear. Turning to look at Kin, her eyes were welling up, glistening in tears. But she was smiling, her lips thin and pulled back tight.

“Okay, Bo. I'd love for you to share with me.”

“This, this is my special notebook.”

Our bet from months ago crawled back into my mind. The one I had forgotten about, and lost in the whirlwind my life had become.

“Wait, you want to share it with me?” Nodding, Fay inched closer, still holding her book snugly into her chest. “But I didn't win the bet, I haven't scared you yet.”

“I know, but you gave me something to finally put in here.”

“I don't understand.” Looking between Fay and Kinsley, my eyes were open wide, curious and slightly confused.

What did I do?

Holding out the notebook, Fay said, “Here, look.”

Taking the weathered green book in my hands, it felt like it might crumble under my fingers if I squeezed it to firmly. Gently, I opened the cover, and looked over the first page.

The bright white of the paper was now faded and yellow, stains of dark brown and tan rolled around the edges. Flicking my eyes over the pieces secured in place, it all began to sink in.

This was a ticket book. Fay's special notebook was filled with different tickets from concerts to plays, movies, and musicals. The dates went back to almost twenty years ago, well before her time.

Cocking my head to Kin, her face was flushed, tears trickling over the red apples of her cheeks. “This was Max's book. He saved all the stubs from almost everything he went to. I gave this to Fay for her birthday, so she could fill it herself one day.” Wiping her face, she grabbed a napkin and pressed it to her lids. “I wanted her to have another way to connect to her dad, something special for her.”