“It’s not just her, Cadence. It’s you too. You’re her mother. My family is your family. You’re my family.” He leans in close and kisses the corner of my mouth. “I’m not letting you leave me again,” he says, pulling me into his arms.
We lie together, holding onto one another as his words filter through my mind. I know we need to start getting ready for the day, but I never want to leave his arms, or this apartment where, for the time being, he’s not just a memory, he’s all mine.
All ours.
Chapter Eight
Trevin
It’s Sunday night at six, and I’m still in Indianapolis. I have a long three hours’ drive back to Lexington, but I can’t seem to make moves to go. I hate the thought of leaving here, leaving them. It’s pulling at my heart, and I hate it.
“Don’t you need to get on the road?” Scott asks.
“Yeah,” I agree, not taking my eyes off Cadence and Hazel, where they sit on the couch with my sister and nephew, Clint.
“I can’t believe Cadence is your dream girl.” He smiles. “It’s a small world. At least now I know it wasn’t just some drunken dream,” he comments.
“Hey.” I turn to face him.
“There he is. Now I have your attention.”
“I don’t want to leave them here.”
“They’re going to be just fine. I’m next door, and I’ve been watching out for her since the moment my wife declared Cadence as her new bestie.”
“It’s my job,” I say, irritated and thankful at the same time that my best friend has been looking out for my family.
My family.
“Maybe I can convince her to come with me?”
“Nah, she’s got a good job, which she never misses unless it’s for Hazel. She saves all of her time off for that little girl.”
“She’s a good mom.”
“She is.”
“I’m in love with her.” I see him nod from the corner of my eye.
“Figured as much.”
“It’s crazy, right? One night, and then this weekend, and my heart feels as though it could explode from how much I feel for her.”
“Is it maybe just because she’s the mother of your daughter? And by the way, no paternity test?”
“No. She’s mine. I feel it.”
“She looks like you. I don’t know how Thea and I didn’t put it together before now. Well, I do. I knew about your dream girl, and so did Thea.”
“Yeah, thanks for that,” I say to him, but he keeps going.
“She also knew about Cadence’s situation. I’m shocked she didn’t put two and two together.”
“She probably would have, but I never told you where I was when I met her. I didn’t tell you it was my last visit.”
“That’s probably it. You know my wife, if she even suspected, she would have been all over that like a rat on a Cheeto.”
“I do know my sister, and you’re right. She would have been,” I agree. Cadence and I both have regrets from that night. We both have to live with them, and move forward. That’s exactly what I plan to do. Move forward as a family. Leaving him, I go to my girls, lowering myself to the floor to sit next to them. I offer Hazel my finger, which she latches onto immediately.
“Are you ready to go?” Cadence asks.
“No.”
“You have a three-hour drive,” Thea reminds me.
“I know. I’m not going.”
“What do you mean you’re not going?” my sister asks.
I ignore her and look to Cadence. “I can’t make myself leave the two of you.” I hear my sister say “aww,” but I continue to ignore her. “Do you think you can take a day or two off and come with me?”
“I don’t know. I save that time in case Hazel gets sick.”
“You’re not doing it all on your own anymore, Cadence. You have me, and I promise you I’ll be there for every minute. Please?” I’m aware of the pleading in my voice, and I’m not the least bit ashamed, not when it comes to my girls. I’ll do what it takes.
“Babe, have you seen my phone? I need to record this. Trevin Hubbard is begging.” Scott chuckles.
Raising my hand in the air, I flip him off, making him laugh. Hazel turns to look at me, and I move to take her from Cadence. “Hey, baby girl,” I say softly. “Tell Momma you want to take a road trip with Daddy,” I tell my daughter. She just smiles and coos. “See, babe. She wants to go.”
“I can’t just call in, Trevin.”
“How much time do you need?”
She’s quiet so long I think she’s going to flat out turn me down. I’m surprised when she pulls out her phone and taps the screen before putting it to her ear. “Hi, Debbie, this is Cadence. Something has come up, and I was hoping to take a few days off. I know I have patients scheduled, but—” She stops and listens. “Really? Are you sure? Thank you so much, Debbie. I’ll be back on Monday.” She hangs up and looks at me. “That was my boss. It turns out she was going to offer me some time off this week. There’s a new therapist starting, and she wants her to take my schedule for the week, while Debbie works with her to show her the ropes.”
“Why not just have you train her?” Thea asks.
“Debbie likes to get firsthand knowledge of how her new hires are with patients. She always trains herself. The last time she did this, I got caught up on charting and did some continuing education classes.”
“You said Monday.”
“Yeah, I’m free this entire week.” I don’t even try to hide my smile. My girls are coming home with me, which means I don’t have to be without them. I’ve already missed so much time, the thought of leaving them even temporarily was tearing me in two.
“Come here.” I motion for her to lean closer. As soon as her lips are close enough, I kiss her, not giving a damn that we have an audience. “You’re coming home with me?”
“For a few days.”
“That’s all I need. Come on.” I manage to stand, still holding Hazel. “We need to pack what she’s going to need for the week. I read that it’s best to travel when babies are sleeping to not interrupt their routine. If we leave here around eight, we can make it to my place at eleven, feed her, and maybe she’ll sleep for the rest of the night.”
“You read? Why have you been reading about babies?” Scott asks.
“Because I’m a father.”
“When?” Thea asks.
“While my girls were sleeping the past two nights.”
“Trevin,” Cadence whispers. I can see the wonder in her eyes, and the disbelief. I don’t care how long it takes, I’m going to prove to her that I’m in this. That she and our daughter are my world. I know it’s fast, but when you know, you know, and I am certain that she is who I want. I want us to raise our daughter together, and have more babies that I’ll be there for every step of the way.
“I needed to know what to expect, how to take care of Hazel, and help you. You’ve had the entire pregnancy and the first three months of her life to get up to speed. I had some catching up to do. I still have some catching up to do.”