Josie was sitting up in bed, cradling the sweetest littlebundle in her arms. “Everyone meet Stella Carter Hayes,” she said. Her smile was wide, brimming with the newfound joy of motherhood. “Eight pounds, six ounces. Twenty-one inches long.”
Lincoln and Bishop stood back as we inched closer. Stella was perfect. There was a dusting of dark hair across her head, something she’d likely inherited from both her parents. Her little pout already rivaled her aunt’s. There was no way she wouldn’t have every single person in this room wrapped around her tiny little finger before the end of the hour.
“I’m so proud of you,” I said, coming around and pressing a kiss to Josie’s forehead. “You did good, momma.”
She passed the baby over to our mom, letting her and Dad fuss over Stella as Josie took my hand and squeezed. “That is the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” she said, leaning back on her pillow. Her eyes never left her daughter’s. “But my god, she is perfect.”
“She really is,” I agreed. “And she will be so, so loved.”
Josie nodded, pulling her gaze away to give me a soft smile. “She’s gonna need some cousins to run around with.”
Every muscle in my body tightened on instinct, but I forced myself to relax. I needed my smile to stay bright and happy for the sake of everyone else around me, even if it didn’t reflect how I felt on the inside.
“I think you’ll have more luck with those two,” I said, lifting my chin toward Lennox and Bishop. He’d left Lincoln’s side and was standing behind our youngest sister, staring down at Stella like she hung the moon. There was so much awe in his gaze. So much wonder. Lennox stared at her fiancé, whispering something that had him pressing a kiss to her temple.
I knew the feeling well.
“Okay, fair point,” she said with a chuckle. “But I’m still holding out for you.”
I shook my head. “I know you’re sleep deprived right now,but need I remind you it takes two to tango and I don’t have a dance partner?”
She shrugged. “Who knows what could happen? Maybe that hot ex of yours will come rolling through again.”
I scrunched up my nose. “Way to ruin the moment.”
Talking about Grady was the last thing I wanted.
Despite my feelings at the time, there’d been the tiniest spark of hope after speaking with him. I’d convinced myself I could hear him out, that itmightbe different than last time. He said he was staying, after all. He deserved that much.
But I was wrong.
After Dad’s emergency, he’d packed up his van and hightailed it out of Ashwood without so much as a goodbye. Not that he owed me anything, let alone an explanation. Still, the whiplash was hard to wrap my mind around.
That’d always been his problem. It was one of the many reasons we’d broken up in the first place. I’d lost count of how many times I’d made excuses for him. After a while, I didn’t want to do it anymore. I couldn’t.
Waiting alone in a restaurant on my birthday had been the final straw. The killing blow.
Maybe I should’ve gotten used to it, but it didn’t make the knowledge of his leaving any easier. Even if I’d wanted him to stay, it didn’t matter. He was married to a beautiful, talented woman, with a little girl who was the spitting image of her father.
And after everything we’d been through, I could never be his friend.
cleo
. . .
16 Years Old
“Mom,I’m going to the barn!” I called out over my shoulder.
“Okay, baby. Tell your dad lunch is ready. I didn’t have time to make it this morning,” she said as I stepped into the Texas summer heat.
It might’ve only been the beginning of June, but it was already nearly a hundred degrees at noon. How Dad and the cowboys did it, I would never understand. It was so dang hot. I was probably out of my mind for deciding to do my chores right now, but I couldn’t stay in the house anymore.
This morning had been rough from the get-go. Josie woke the whole damn house up with her screaming. We all ran in to find her crying on her bed, staring at her arms and legs, which were covered in itchy red spots. It took Mom about thirty minutes to calm her down so she’d listen when we told her she wasn’t going to die, and that chicken pox was normal.
After her bath, Mom had all but threatened to duct tape kitchen mittens to Josie’s hands so she would stop itching, which only caused her to start crying again.
Meanwhile, I was trying to keep Lennox entertained, but it hadn’t gone well. All that girl did was cause chaos. I startedfollowing her around and cleaning up messes so Mom didn’t have to worry about it. Not that it ultimately mattered. Just like a tornado, Lennox swept back through and destroyed everything I touched.
