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My heart pounds in my chest, worrying that he’s forever traumatized by what’s happened. God, what if we all are? No, they don’t get to win. Those motherfuckers tried to take everything from me, but my girl is so strong and wasn’t going to let that happen.
We’re stronger than we were before and can face anything that comes our way. I repeat that over and over before the door finally opens and Tripp comes out, holding the therapist’s hand. “We had a nice chat. Come on back and I will share my thoughts with you.”
I hold my hand out to Brook, helping her stand, and we follow them into the room. She points to the love seat.
“Please have a seat. Tripp, you can go back to color while I talk to your dad and Brooke, okay?” She walks him over and he sits down and begins to color.
“You have a very sweet and bright boy. He knows some bad people took him, but Brooke was a superhero and protected him.” She shows us a picture of a stick figure with long hair and a cape.
“OMG. That’s so stinking sweet,” Brooke says quietly from beside me.
I wrap my arm around her again, hugging her into my side. “How is he processing everything that happened?” I’m so afraid of what she might say. “Is he okay?”
She looks between the two of us. “He’s a little scared that the bad people will come back, and that’s completely normal. I’m going to put a treatment plan together and for now, I’d just like to see him once a week. That could certainly change, but I don’t see anything that is truly worrisome.”
We thank her and take off, heading home. We’re all quiet while we head toward the house, but this time the mood is a little bit lighter. Pulling into the driveway a few minutes later, I climb out and open the back door.
Tripp hops down and slips his hand in mine. Brooke meets us at the front, and we head to the door. Inside, she takes him into the kitchen to make lunch. She talks to him quietly and I move closer to hear them better.
“I’m so proud of you. Today was a hard day, but you did it.” I can hear the pride in her voice.
There’s silence and I peek around the corner and find Brooke, holding Tripp as he hugs her tight.
“Now, tell me. Do you think the baby is a girl?” She sets him down.
He smiles at her. “My brother told me.”
My heart hammers away in my chest. How is she going to react? Gage is still hard to talk about. Will this cause her to run? God, I fucking hope not.
“Did Gage tell you?” she asks, brushing his hair back.
Tripp smiles and nods. “He did. He told me I have to protect her.” He leans toward her. “His eyes look like yours.”
Brooke covers her mouth, and I don’t miss the tears that slide down her cheek. She grabs him and pulls him into her arms. “You’re going to be the best big brother?”
I come in and wrap my arms around Brooke, kissing her forehead.
“Daddy, hug me.” Tripp launches himself at me, wrapping around me like a spider monkey. “Are you hungry?” I ask just as his stomach growls. It makes us laugh and for the first time I feel light.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Brooke
“Run, Tripp, run.” Hank stands on the sideline of the soccer field cheering our boy on as he runs toward the ball.
He started soccer a few weeks ago and our boy has a natural gift, or at least I think he does. The uniform is huge on him, his shin guards cover a good portion of his legs, but he looks freaking adorable.
Tripp waves at me as he runs by. I turn to look at Judy. “Can you help me up?”
She smiles widely, stands up, and then helps me. My due date is two weeks away and I’m starting to get anxious.
When I get like that, I just remind myself how far we’ve come these past months since our ordeal. Tripp only went to therapy for a month before she told us that he was doing great, and she didn’t feel he needed to continue.
Hank and I are still going, only because the closer we get to the birth, my panic grows. I’ve been to Gage’s grave almost every day for the past week. I just feel this comfort when I’m there. Tripp hasn’t seen him again, and maybe he never did. It could’ve very well been stress that made him see his brother.
My best friend Riley came to visit a month ago. Dustin and Hank planned it all without me knowing. She pampered me and we spent lots of time snuggled on the sofa, eating ice cream. We redecorated Tripp’s room and decorated the nursery.
We decided to wait to find out what we’re having so the room is painted a soft gray and pale yellow. The crib is white with bedding covered in baby ducks. It’s super cute and perfect for either gender.
