AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"King changed that. You were different when you called last fall. Then, you met with Rhys over Christmas break. I didn't want to push you. I could sense that something was stilloff, but you were more yourself than the previous years."
"Have you always been this insightful?"
"I'm your mother," Mom deadpanned.
"You can't tell me that you were happy finding out about King." I peered toward the hallway. With my luck, she'd show up right then.
"Was I happy to find out from your aunt? Who had read it in some gossip magazine, of all places? No. No parent would. But then I called Denielle and Heather."
"YOU DID WHAT?" My voice went several octaves higher—a pitch I didn't realize I was still capable of. Den was in deep shit.
"You didn't give me a chance to ask questions. Heather called Lilly to send the jet. She met us at the airport and told us about King while we waited. She had spoken to her during the wedding last week. Heather had nothing but kind words for the girl."
A whoosh of air left my lungs.
"Did I picture being a grandmother at forty-seven? You can guess that answer."
"But?" I didn't dare inhale fresh oxygen.
She pursed her lips. "But nothing. I still think I'm too young to be a grandmother. But I will make the best out of it. I'll be the coolest grandma this baby girl can have."
"Cool?" I spluttered.Jesus Christ.
She swatted my arm. "You know what I mean. You made your bed; you will sleep in it. Though, from what I've observed, the two of you have found each other for a reason. King is good for you, and you for her. And this baby will bring out the best in both of you."
Warmth seeped through my chest the longer she spoke.
"It won't be easy. Especially with you still in school," Dad stated sternly.
I opened my mouth to defend myself, but he held up a hand.
"With that being said, I have no doubt in my mind that everything will work out in the long run. Your girl is a fighter, and so are you."
Between both of them, I had to swallow over the lump forming in my throat. This day turned out nothing like I had expected when I woke up alone this morning.
I propmyself up on my elbow and peer down at her. Drink her in. "You are so beautiful."
"You're not so bad yourself, Mr. Sheats." The corner of her mouth turns up.
"We haven't had a chance to talk about—"
"There is nothing to talk about," she interrupts and pushes a strand of hair from my forehead.
I study the crease between her brows.
"I'm okay." She softens her features. "Nothing has changed from when I agreed with you that Gray needs to be in jail." She draws in a long breath and peers at the ceiling. "I lost my father a long time ago." She turns back to me. "I mourned him."
"How do you feel about his…"God, why can't I form the words?
"Murder?" She pulls her brows up.
I press my lips together, unable to even confirm the word.
Her thumb strokes over my cheekbone, and the motion sends a tingling sensation down my spine. "No one deserves to get their life cut short, no matter the evil they harbor inside. Gray should've faced a trial and gone to prison for his actions. That fact will always make me sad. But I cannot mourn a man I didn't know."
This woman.
I stare into her ice-blue eyes, my heart fluttering in my chest.
