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“Can I meet him?”
I stared into her icy blue eyes for a minute. I didn’t have an answer because I never thought she would ask that question. I had always assumed that one day, I would tell her about J.R., and then we would go back to life. Of course, this situation forced me into realizing how awful my thought process was.
“You want to meet him?” I asked. My mouth was back to hanging open. I didn’t have much of a poker face.
“If he’s not bad,” she replied, “can I meet him?”
“It’s a little complicated, Knox. I haven’t spoken to him in many, many years.”
She looked sad again. “My friends at school all have a dad. I…I always wondered why I didn’t.”
My heart broke as I realized that she had been thinking about this for a really long time. I had been a fool to think we could live forever the way we had been. I had to have known that one day, she would ask about him. One day, she would want to meet him.
“You have a Kelley. Not everyone has a Kelley,” I pointed out, trying to lighten the mood.
“It’s not the same.” She sighed.
“I guess not,” I agreed.
We sat there quietly for a few minutes. Knox was looking at the picture again. I felt guilty. More than guilty. I actually was not sure how I felt.
“Let me think about it, Knox,” I said finally. “About meeting your dad, okay?”
She looked up at me again, her eyes bright. “Really?”
“Really.” I smiled.
“Thank you, Mama.”
“Knox, if it doesn’t work out, you have to be prepared for that,” I warned her.
“You said he was the best person in the world.”
“I did.”
“Then it will work out.” She smiled, satisfied.
Knox Rose sounded so confident, and I wished I could have some of her confidence. I wished I could be so certain. How would this work? How would I even begin to make this work?
33
Present
“I can’t believe that I have to find out you’re pregnant over the phone,” Kelley yells to me as soon as she walks through the front door of our home.
“It’s nice to see you, too,” I call from the kitchen as I move to meet her in the foyer. “It’s the only way I could get you here, anyway. Adam keeps you awfully busy.”
“That’s not true.” She gives me a hug. “Where’s Knox Rose?”
“Getting dressed. She’s excited for the doctor’s appointment today.” I lower my voice. “She’s not happy about a new baby, though. She’s actually pretty upset. I was hoping you could talk to her. J.R. has tried; I’ve tried. She’s still not happy.”
“I don’t know what I can do,” Kelley says. “She’s kind of got to work it out on her own.”
“Well, it’s been over a week. Maybe she has come around a little; but J.R. couldn’t even get through to her, and we both know she worships the ground he walks on.” I sigh. “She’s pissed.”
“She’ll get over it,” Kelley says, rolling her eyes.
“That’s exactly what J.R. said, but neither of you have to live with her right now. I’m getting desperate.”
