“Fine,” I whispered hoarsely, feeling choked up, but holding back the tears. “But so that you know,” I added. “Once I’m out of here, you’re going to be alone. And…it’s something that you really should have been a long time ago.”
My voice cracked, and I paused to take a few breaths. I had a few words for my mother that I’d been saving for a while. If she was kicking me out, I was going to tell her all of it.
“You’re not perfect, Mom, not even close. It’s no wonder you have no close friends, that you had to turn to your son for comfort when you found out Dad was cheating on you.” She opened her mouth, and I held a hand up to cut off what she was about to say. “I know he might have figured it out on his own, but if you’d said the right thing, he might not have gotten quite as out of hand as he did.”
She looked surprised, and I laughed.
“What, did you think completely none of the blame could fall on you in this? Mom, Dad and Jenny might have been the cause, but the reason he went off the deep end is because of you, you know? Because he was really worried about you. But would you ever think of blaming yourself? Of course not! You’re always criticizing everybody, and putting everyone down. Everyone, expect your perfect little boy. Only he’s gone now, and you’re still doing this.”
I snorted and turned my back on her. “Whatever. Don’t expect me to come back here.”
A part of me had been prepared for how she’d react. Still, it hurt, with every step that I took up the stairs, I could feel my heart breaking into pieces more and more. I’d only pack some clothes and important things then get out.
The second I was in my room, I texted Kevin to get me, instructing him to wait outside the house before I went around packing.
Chapter 21
Kevin
I woke up to an empty bed, though I could hear some noise from outside. The room was different from our old one, and I was still getting used to it. At least, this one had a big enough bed for Stacey and me, though with me still going through my classes and taking a lot of night classes to make up for the time I’d missed, I was exhausted more often than not when I got back, and I didn’t get to do much more than sleep.
Just as well. It would be too fucking weird to be having sex regularly with our parents only a few doors away, even though the new house was big enough to house all four of us without too much awkward invasion of privacy.
I heaved myself out of bed. My phone was sitting on the nightstand, and I picked it up. I groaned when I realized it was still Friday. It was one of the days where I had the morning free, but my afternoon and evening would be fucking hectic.
Whatever, I thought to myself with a shrug. At least I can enjoy the morning.
I got out of bed. I was dressed in a pair of cotton track pants and a t-shirt I usually used to sleep in and decided I didn’t need to be properly dressed just yet. I went down the stairs, and to the kitchen.
“Hello?” I called. “What’s a guy gotta do to get breakfast around here!”
Two voices laughed from outside on the back porch. The back door was open; a sheer curtain hung up on the doorway. Mom and Stacey particularly loved the kitchen, not only because of the porch and a large backyard in the back with a lawn they made me and Paul keep in good condition, but because of the lighting. The room had large windows that showed off the backyard and let in plenty of sunlight, with even the top half of the door being made of glass.
I just thought it would be pretty freaky at night, if someone went down for a midnight snack or a drink of water, and found the curtains open. The shadows at night would scare me.
But, it was their favorite part of the house, and it helped them get along so that I wouldn’t give them any ideas.
“Come out here and keep your girlfriend company,” Mom said, showing up in the doorway, pulling the curtain aside. “I’ll get something for you quickly.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I said, pecking a kiss on her cheek as I passed her.
Outside, Stacey was seated on a rocking chair my mom had insisted on buying for her. The chair swayed gently. She was in a white, flowy dress that tried to hide the bump on her stomach, and failed. She smiled up at me, and I mirrored it, moving to kneel in front of her.
“And how are we this morning?” I asked, kissing her stomach.
She laughed. “Are you asking me, or the baby?”
I shot her a cheeky smile. “Both.”
I laid my head on her thigh and closed my eyes.
After how disastrous her mother had taken the news of her being pregnant, and me being the father, we’d been reluctant to take the news to my mom and her dad. I didn’t see them reacting any better. But, they’d come home unexpectedly to find us on the couch. Thankfully, all we were doing was kissing. It would have been hard to explain away, though, so we’d gone with the original plan and come clean.
At first, there had been disappointment. Mostly for us keeping our relationship secret in the first place, but that had died pretty quickly after Stacey reminded them they’d done the same, with much greater consequence. In comparison, even though Stacey and I hadn't been ready for a child, we were bringing new life into the world. Even with everything going on, it had uplifted everyone’s mood.
It still felt strange to me, how very accepting they’d been of this over the past few months.
“Here you go, Kevin,” Mom said.
I opened my eyes to find her holding a plate full of food on it. She handed it to me and took her seat again. I stayed where I was, but turned around, so my back was against Stacey’s knees. She played with the back of my hair gently as I ate.
“When do you have to go to classes today?” Mom asked.
“I have a class at two thirty. I should make it if I leave after lunch. It’s still pretty early.”
Stacey sighed. “I wish I could go to school with you. Staying at home is nowhere near as fun…”
“At least you’re still taking classes, though,” I reminded her.
Her stomach would only keep growing, until moving around would be uncomfortable for her. But our parents had gone with her to the school and talked things over with the principal so that she could make arrangements with her teachers in her classes. She worked from home, and I turned in and picked up her assignments for her. She still had to be in school for tests, though.
As long as everything went fine, she and I would still graduate together, and just before she had to give birth.
“I know you’ll be missing some of the high school experience, but it really would be better to get it out of the way before having a baby,” Mom advised. “Trust me, later on, you’re going to be so tired from looking after a newborn, and you’ll try to put it off until you find you’re a stay at home mom, and you wonder how that happened…”
I shot her a curious glance. “Is that what happened to you?”
She smiled down at me and nodded. “Your father and I never planned for you, in a way, you were our little miracle. We had to rearrange a lot of things in our lives, and I had to put a lot on hold. And when…your father passed…” she paused and blinked her eyes a few times. “When your father passed away, I realized I’d wasted too much time. I’d kept thinking, ‘later I’ll go back to my studies.’ Until I realized I was out of time, and I had to take on a bunch of jobs while going back to classes so I could get something to earn enough for us.”
Even now, she was still emotional when she talked about that time of her life. I barely remembered most of it, besides the fact that I got to be around Rod a lot because of it. Stacey reached for my mom’s hand and squeezed it in her own, Mom sending her a thankful smile in return.
The relationship between my mom and Stacey was probably the most surprising thing. Even before, Stacey hadn't talked much to my mom, and after thinking that she’d ruined her family… I’d been worried about how they would turn up.
Or, I might have been thinking too much. Mom had told me once she’d want nothing better than if she could have more children, even if
it would be a struggle, and Stacey had always wanted a mother figure she could be close with and depend on. They found what they wanted in each other.
“And how’s the family doing today? Why is everyone outside?”
We looked up to Paul coming outside. He’d quit his old job, starting up a small online company that he could run from anywhere, in case he and my mom still needed to move, though the house we were currently renting was pretty far from the old neighborhood. His schedule was the most flexible, since he pretty much determined his working hours, and he’d been doing quite well.
“Just fine, honey,” Mom said, getting up and going to him. “We were just talking.”
She walked up to him and hugged him. He looked surprised, but hugged her back. It was getting easier, seeing them be intimate with each other. When I looked away, it wasn’t in disgust, but because I wanted to look up at Stacey. She was smiling down at me, eyes looking wet.
The future was still pretty uncertain, but for the first time in a while, I thought we were pretty okay with how things were, each of us slowly adjusting to the loss of Rod and moving on.
None of us would forget him, though. Stacey rubbed her belly, and I had the thought, not for the first time, that if it were a boy, she would name him after her brother.
Epilogue
Stacey
I was disoriented when I woke up. There were noises around me, but I couldn’t immediately place them all. I stirred in bed and blinked my eyes, squinting at the brightness in the room. When I could properly open my eyes, I realized it was so bright, because I was somewhere sunny, and the walls and ceiling were all white. When I looked down at myself, I remembered.
Oh. I was in the hospital.
In the next second, I sucked in a sharp breath and went to get up, only to be stopped by the one voice I wanted to hear at the moment.
“There’s no need to panic, Stacey,” Kevin lightly chided. “Did you think I’d leave you alone?”
My eyes roamed around the room until I found him standing by the door. I remembered being in the operating room, about to give birth, and Kevin coming in and saying something along the same lines. I’d been at home with Jenny when I went into labor, and she’d called Kevin on the way to the hospital. I’d been so scared until he’d shown up.
I remembered a lot of pain and sweat and effort. Then the sound of a baby crying, and things went fuzzy after that. My eyes dropped to the bundle covered by a bunch of blankets Kevin carried in his arms. My arms, of their own accord, lifted.
“Is…is that…” I started hesitantly.
Kevin’s smile widened. “Yeah. You fell asleep before you could meet him properly, didn’t you? He’s been dying to meet you, too.”
He?
“How long have I been out?” was what I asked.
“Not long, maybe a bit over an hour. The doctor said you’d passed out from exhaustion, but I could wait around because you’d wake up pretty soon, as long as you got some fluids to replace what you lost.” He frowned. “It was a nightmare for me, Stacey. Our baby’s born, and suddenly you pass out. I’d thought the worst.”
I tried to arrange my expression into something apologetic, even though most of my attention was on the baby he held.
“I’m sorry about that.”
Kevin just chuckled. “Nah, it’s fine. Anyway, I know what you want, so I won’t keep you.”
He crossed the distance between us. It wasn’t that great, but he was moving so slowly, and my patience was wearing thin. I shifted around so I could sit back on the pillows, and Kevin came to sit by me, holding the baby out to me.
“Stacey, meet our little boy.”
I felt my breath hitch when I saw him for the first time. He was small and wrinkled, with small tufts of dark hair, eyes shut, and hands closed in little fists resting on his chest.
He was perfect.
Instinctively, I reached my hands under him to take him from Kevin. I had a moment of panic when I realized I didn’t know how to do this. I’d never even taken care of babies before. Kevin and I had gone to some classes about pregnancies and babies, but knowing the practical shit couldn’t possibly be enough.
But my hands seemed to know just where to position, one hand supporting his back, my other arms going under his little backside. I brought him close, pressing him close to my chest, and felt my heart swell in my chest.
I glanced up at Kevin. “Where are Jenny and my dad?”
He met my eyes, before going back to staring at the baby, taking one of his little pink fists and carefully playing with it.
“They went out to get something to eat, to give me a little privacy with the baby. The nurse only just handed him over to me when you woke up.” He grinned at me. “Maybe it’s your mommy instincts at play.”
I snorted, but didn’t argue. We spent some time cooing at the baby, quietly. When the door opened, we looked up to see our parents walk in. Kevin immediately placed a finger over his mouth, asking for silence. She nodded and crept over to us on the bed. Dad came behind her, and they cooed at the baby, too.
Then, Jenny turned to me with an apology.
“I hope you don’t get mad at me,” she whispered.
I frowned. She’d been supportive of me when my mother wouldn’t be. I hadn't liked her before, but my opinion slowly changed as I got to know her. So her saying that made no sense to me.
“Why would I be mad at you?” I questioned.
“Because I called Carol,” she admitted with a grimace.
I shared a glance with Kevin, suddenly feeling cautious. I didn’t mind that Jenny had told her. I wanted Mom to know about my son. If Jenny hadn't called her, I would have found some time to go and meet her. Like my brother, I didn’t give up. She would accept my baby if I had to make her.
“And?” I asked, anxious.
“Well…” she drew the word out.
In the next moment, there was a knock on the door, before it opened to reveal my mom standing there. She didn’t look much different than when I last saw her, dressed in a pants suit with her hair raised up in a ponytail. She held a purse in front of her with both hands, like it was her shield, and smiled awkwardly when all the eyes in the room went to her.
“Hi,” she murmured, raising one hand for a small wave. “I don’t know if you’d want me here, but I just really wanted to come…”
She trailed off, looking unsure of herself. It wasn’t a look I saw on my mom’s face often.
“Are you kidding? Of course, you can,” I said, smiling. “You’re still my mom, after all. Come here and greet your grandson.”
She glanced over at Dad and Jenny, giving them both nods of acknowledgment. Kevin’s was a bit slower, but she gave it. The three of them, like it was some cue, moved to stand against the wall, and Mom came to stand beside me, taking their place. Her eyes fell on the baby, and she gasped, a hand rising to cover her mouth.
“He reminds me so much of you and your brother,” she murmured, her words slightly muffled behind her hand. Then her eyes raised to mine, and she removed her hand so I could see the trembling smile on her lips. “I’m…changing, little by little. I know I was…a shit mother, in different ways to both you and your brother. But I want to be a good grandmother. That is…if you’ll let me.”
My face crumpled as my eyes teared up. How could I not? Just hearing from my stubborn mother that she as trying to change, having her there at all meant so much to me. I’d tried forever to get her to want to be closer to me, and she’d brought herself here. Already it was more than I could ask for, and if she were offering more, then I would be selfish and take it.
“I’ll agree that you weren’t the best mom,” I choked out. “But you’re still pretty great.” Rod wouldn’t have loved her so much otherwise. He just got to know her better. I was intent on changing that, and hopefully, she was with me.
Carefully, I shifted the baby, so I was holding him with one arm, extending the other to my mom. Her expression crumpled just like mine had, and
she was careful as she moved to wrap an arm around me. We were both sniffling as we cried, tears of grief, relief, and happiness. And when I looked over her shoulder, Jenny and my dad were wrapped in their world, arms around each other and silent tears sliding down their faces.
Then, my eyes met Kevin’s, and I was pretty sure our thoughts were close together and the fact that we were divided by my brother’s death, and now, brought together by our baby’s birth.
Over my mom’s shoulder, I reached my hand for Kevin’s. He moved closer and to the side of my mom, taking my hand as two single tears fell from his eyes.
Yeah, I thought, looking down at my sleeping baby, my mom in my arms and holding my love’s hand. Rod would be just the perfect name for you.
Check out the rest of the One More series!
Book 1 - One More Kiss
Book 2 - One More Turn
Book 3 - One More Chance
Book 4 - One More Night
About Roxy Sinclaire
Roxy Sinclaire writes steamy, suspenseful romantic stories as the main genre, and this includes a variety of different topics. Some of these include dark romances, action packed romances, mafia romances, and many more. She currently works in customer relations in New York City, but is trying to fulfill her passion in writing and eventually have her dream job become a reality
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One More Night: A Second Chance Romance (One More Series Book 4) Page 12
