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“Yeah, Knox. We are. Go back to New York City.” Those last words hurt him. I knew they did the minute I said them. I wasn’t surprised by my brother’s reaction. It was what I’d expected. I’d just hoped for better from him.
“Wait,” I said when he stood to leave. “Dad, can you give us a minute?”
“I won’t be far, and I better not be able to hear you.”
“Sit back down, Knox,” I said when my father pulled the curtain closed behind him. “You’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you, but I want you to listen to me anyway.”
He sat and folded his arms.
“Look at me.” I waited until he raised his head. “I’m not a child, Knox. I’m a woman, as is evidenced by this.” I put both hands on my belly. “Here’s the part you’re going to hate. I’ve loved Tackle since the day I met him. Head-over-heels loved him. I may not have understood the emotions I was feeling, but somewhere deep inside, I knew he was the only man I’d ever love. The only man I’d ever be with. Do you understand what I’m saying, Knox?”
“He took advantage of you, and for that—”
“That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Have you met me? Do you really believe that I would let anyone take advantage of me?”
I heard my dad clear his throat from the other side of the curtain and lowered my voice.
“I don’t know if Tackle will ever feel the same way I do. I don’t even know how much of a role he’ll play in our baby’s life. What I do know is that I’ll still love him and I will never, ever regret having his baby. I haven’t met her yet, but I love this little girl so much. I want you to be in her life. In order for me to allow that to happen, you have to promise me you’ll take a step back, think about this from my point of view, and understand that none of this is about you.”
“You’re having a girl?”
I smiled. Of everything I’d said, that was the one thing I wanted him to focus on, and my brother hadn’t disappointed me. I was having a baby girl, and she was all that really mattered.
“Knock, knock,” I heard an unfamiliar voice say. The curtain opened, and a man in scrubs stepped in. “I’m here to take you up to the fourth floor if you’re ready.”
“I’m ready.”
“They’re admitting you?” Knox asked.
“Just overnight. The doctor said she thinks I’ll be able to go home tomorrow.”
When the man wheeled me out, I looked around for Tackle, but didn’t see him. “Um, wait,” I said and he stopped. “Dad, do you know…”
He nodded. “I’ll see if I can find him.”
“Let me.”
“Knox, please—”
“I need to, Sloane. He and I need to talk, and I promise not to use my fists this time.”
“You promise?”
“I do.”
34
Tackle
Halo didn’t have to look far. I was in the bay next to Sloane. Ben knew it too, and I appreciated that he hadn’t said anything.
I’d heard every word Sloane said, and a lot of them hurt worse than her brother’s punches had.
Hearing her say she didn’t know how much of a role I’d play in our baby’s life almost killed me.
From the second I realized she was pregnant, I’d done everything I could to let her know I would be there for her and for the baby. Most of it, I didn’t handle the right way, especially in the very beginning, but the time we’d spent together in the house in Chestnut Hill, I thought, had been magical.
I understood why she said she didn’t know if I’d ever feel the same way about her as she felt for me. I’d never told her I loved her, but I did. I don’t know exactly when I realized it. Maybe it wasn’t until today, but I’d felt it.
