“It was scary.”
“Scary as hell.”
“Will it happen again?”
“At the moment there’s zero chance of that.”
Rainbow’s voice became quiet. “I want a brother.”
Aww… Sweetheart…
“I know having a sibling would be fun, wouldn’t it? You want a brother because I have a brother? Your mates all have little siblings, don’t they? That isn’t in the cards at the moment. I’m not in a position to have a baby right now. I would be a single mum again, which is hard. I would want to be in a relationship first, and have saved up a nest egg. Getting equal custody of you in October has got to be my main focus now. No distractions. After that, hopefully everything will settle into a rhythm and feel more relaxed. Good plan?”
“I want to live with you.”
“Ditto, baby. Your mama will still have you half the time. We’ll live at grandad’s while I look for a place. We have to think about what’s best for you long term. Who can provide the best resources for you, what school you want to go to, that sort of thing. I might have to buy cheap land further out in the Outback, who knows. I might not be able to stay in Lionheart forever.”The closest professional footy team’s two hours away.“The judge might ask me to take parenting classes or something for all I know. We’ll see how it all shakes out.”
“Are you changing your mind?”
“Not at all. I’m all in, babe.”
“Why can’t we live on the farm?”
“I said ‘a farm,’ not ‘the farm,’ babe.”
“But I want to ride Brighty…”
Nev pointed to her watch. It was midnight.
“You have school tomorrow,” Ronnie said. “I have to let you go.”
“Awww…”
“Call me any time. If I don’t answer, call back. Goodnight, babe.”
“Tell Nev I say goodnight.”
She turned to Nev. “Rainbow says goodnight.”
“Tell her I say tootle-oo.”
“Nev says tootle-oo.”
“Love you, mum.”
“Love you.”
Ronnie felt lighter after she tossed her phone on the duvet. Rainbow had named the embryo Riley of all things. The ectopic was a distraction, but it had reminded her how precious this relationship with her daughter was. Rainbow was the ball and the goal.
Time to move past the lost years, let go of what had been stolen from her, and focus on making the most of the years theyhad left. Rainbow wouldn’t be a child much longer. Puberty was a critical time in a girl’s life. She would be there for her daughter in a way her own mother hadn’t been.
“You look like you figured something out,” Nev said.
“She’s so great. I love her so much.”
“She’s a keeper,” Nev agreed.
“So are you.” A vision of the future she wanted, shifting into focus. “You’re my person. You’re not a substitute or a placeholder. If I was dating someone, I’d still be here with you right now. You’re my bezzie. This is where I want to be. I don’t care if it’s childish to have a best friend. I don’t ever want to stop doing this. There’s things I share with you that I wouldn’t share with a girl I was dating. We’re past that. We’re approaching family territory.”
