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For her to be willing to give her mom that much money just to get out, things must have been pretty desperate. I stilled, thinking up worst-case scenarios. “She didn’t—”
“Not that. But she’s volatile. And the guys she hooked up with weren’t exactly upstanding citizens. Some of them were handsy, which I can handle. Others knocked her around. And no matter what happened, she always found a way to blame me. I knew we had to get out before I couldn’t protect Lenny anymore or she threw me out, leaving him on his own.”
“You’re not paying another cent. Mick is going to take care of her.”
Sitting up, her glassy eyes met mine. “What if he can’t?”
“Then we’ll figure it out. Together. No more running away. Promise me.”
She placed a light kiss on my mouth. “Together.”
“Man, not again. I leave for five minutes and this is what I come back to.”
Lenny’s groan was enough to snap the tension that had been building. Ariel giggled, sliding off my lap but settling onto the couch right next to me.
Perusing the board, Lenny frowned at Ariel. “You didn’t make a move.”
She waved him off. “Because we both know you’ve already won. Now let’s watch a movie and pretend my twelve-year-old brother isn’t smarter than me.”
Mom joined us halfway through, bringing chips, cookies, and popcorn with her. She settled down on the floor next to Lenny. “So, what are we watching?”
He’d already inhaled two cookies and was stuffing a handful of popcorn in his mouth when he answered. “Shrek. It’s one of our favorite movies. Have you seen it before?”
“Can’t say I have. But I’m excited to watch it.”
Grabbing the remote with one hand, still putting more food in his mouth with the other, he stopped the movie. “I’ll restart it so you get to watch it from the beginning.”
Mom beamed at him, and Lenny grinned back.
Ariel fell asleep soon after, and I shuffled us so I was on my back on the couch and she was on her side, pressed against me. Her cast rested on my abs, her injured leg on top of mine.
Mom spread a blanket on top of us, then leaned in, brushing her hand over my hair. “I’m happy for you, honey.”
“Thanks for giving her a chance.”
She smiled at Ariel. “Impossible not to.”
We stayed in the living room for the rest of the day. Ariel woke up once we were on the next movie. We ate dinner together before going back to my room after Lenny went to bed. And I fell asleep with my world in my arms.
27
ARIEL
I walkedinto the intimidating courtroom, wondering for the millionth time if I was doing the right thing putting Lenny through this. My mom and her parents were already there, talking to their lawyer.
Mom and I looked a lot like my grandmother, whose name I didn’t even know. She’d never been interested in having any contact with us, and I couldn’t understand why she supported Mom now after all these years.
Jude was a steady presence on one side, and Lenny was on my other. They gave me the courage to continue when all I wanted to do was run back out. Mick was in front of us, walking to our seats with steady strides.
The black fitted skirt and lilac blouse I wore were my outfit when I had to speak to Lenny’s school and wanted to look like a grown-up.
Lenny called it my battle armor, because usually when I got called into the school, he’d gotten himself in trouble.
But I could use armor today, since the looks my mom was shooting at me were like pinpricks against my skin. Her parents sat next to her with stoic faces, their bodies like statues, their attention on the front of the room.
We made our way to the other side of the judge, sitting in our assigned seats. Lenny’s hand found mine as soon as we sat down.
Jude ruffled his hair, earning a slap to the side in response. “You okay, buddy?”
