AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’d rather do this in person.”
“And I’d rather hash this out now because the last time you had this tone of voice I was standing in this same fucking room, and you told me you were getting married. So, whatever you have to say, you can say it right now.”
“Goddamn Jenna, it’s not what you think.”
“So, what is it?” I brace a hand on the wall, mentally preparing for his next words.
“Gina’s in town.”
I purse my lips to stifle the nausea boiling in my stomach. I blink once, then twice, squeezing my eyes shut to wake from the nightmare.Gina’s in town,I repeat to myself. Why? What does she want? Have they been in contact this whole time?
“Do you know more than one Gina?”
A soft laugh comes over the phone. “No, only one.”
I curl my arms around myself, grasping my elbows and I bend forward to drop my head between my knees. Taking a deep breath, I hold it for a few seconds before exhaling and rising. “What’s she doing here? Bar slut convention in town?”
“Jenna,” he chides.
“Don’t you dare defend her. Have you guys been talking this whole time? Did she come to the house? Is she there now?”
“I’ve already told you I haven’t talked to her in a long time. I randomly got a call from her today, she said she is in town and that we have a lot to talk about.”
“I’ll fucking talk to her for you.” What could she possibly need to talk about after all these years. She can’t be pregnant and trying to dupe him again. She wouldn’t dare come sniffing around, looking for the family she abandoned.
Or would she?
“It doesn’t matter what she wants, right? Because you aren’t going to give her custody or anything.”
Emmett releases some sort of growl of frustration. “That’s what I want to talk to you about.”
He continues talking, but I can’t concentrate on the words, my whole body becoming prickly, the room too warm with my winter clothes on. What if she does want to be a part of Allie’s life? Would Emmett give that to her? Images flash through my mind of Gina and Allie building forts together, dancing to Disney songs and spending hours painting rocks. Of split weekends where Gina gets Allie for holidays. What if Gina gets to be the one Allie goes to when she has her first crush, when she wants to learn to paint her nails.
My lower lip starts to quiver, and I fall to the ground in a heap. Who was I to think that I could be Allie’s mom? Even if Emmett loves me, and Allie loves me, I still couldn’t take the place of someone's biological mom. I’ve never been enough for my own flesh and blood family to love; why would I be enough for someone I’m not related to?
“You’re coming over after work, right?”
“Yeah,” I lie, standing again. “Hey, I gotta go, Meg needs something. I’ll talk to you later.”
I push through the heavy metal door and take the stairs down two at a time. Once I reach the safety of my car, I scroll through my contacts until I find his name.
It’s late, but if I remember right, Jeremiah never stops working. The phone rings two, three times, and I start to think he won’t answer when I hear his familiar accent.
“Jenna, my favorite travel nurse, how the hell are you?”
“Jerry, I need a favor from the recruiter that trumps all recruiters.” I pull out my keys and stick them in the ignition, starting the car and cranking the heat on high. “How quickly can you find me a gig?”
The clack of his computer keys echo in the background, and he’s quiet for a moment before answering, “I thought you were done with the traveling life.”
“So did I, but it looks like things have changed. Any last-minute assignments available? Give me your worst. The worst of the worst, as long as it starts now.”
His fingers whizz over the keys again. “I could have you in Arizona by Tuesday.”
I pause to think for a moment, staring out of my windshield as yet another snow fall begins. I’m willing to bet that there isn’t any snow in Arizona. Or manipulative ex-wives.
“Sign me up.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
