Broken Series

by Dawn Pendleton

  Everything good?

  I wanted to say no, everything was not good, but Mallory had been through enough of her own shit in the past year, too, which meant I needed to continue to be strong.

  Everything’s great!

  It only took twenty seconds for her to reply:

  Liar.

  I didn’t argue; she was right. So I just ignored the text and got up. The sudden urge to pee reminded me of the little peanut I had to take care of. From that point on, I decided, it was me and Peanut against the world.

  18

  Wolfe

  Court was a pain in my ass, and Dianne’s parents wanted to keep Katie based on some bullshit, but my lawyer managed to get the judge to make his decision right away, and lucky for me, it was in my favor. As of noontime, Katie was fully under my custody. It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders, even as more responsibility was dished onto my plate. After years of thinking I wasn’t so sure about having children, I realized how much a child could mean to me.

  And Katie was my redemption. She restored my belief that having children was the next logical step, and even though I had little to do with her personable attitude and easygoing personality, she was mine now. I’d never let her go, either.

  While Katie was important to me, I also wanted to get Gabby back, whatever it took. If she couldn’t accept my daughter, then I would let her go, but I knew Gabby too well; she wouldn’t deny me because of Katie. She might refuse to get back with me because of the fact that she hated me, but that was something entirely different. She wouldn’t discard Katie, I was sure of it.

  And now that Katie was securely mine, I plotted our trip to Maine. Katie was worried about making friends in a new town.

  “What if they don’t like me?” she worried aloud from the backseat of my SUV, referencing her new school.

  I smiled, ready to reassure her. “They will love you, baby girl. But don’t you worry about that right now. You won’t start school for at least two weeks while we get all your paperwork together, and then they will absolutely love you. I promise.”

  I watched her in the rearview mirror, saw as a smile lit up her eyes. She might be insecure about moving, but she trusted me, something I never expected so soon.

  “Are Annie and Austin moving, too?” she asked.

  “I don’t think so,” I said. “They live here and Auntie Mandi isn’t going to move. It’s too cold in Maine for her.”

  “I think it’s too hot here,” she groaned, which prompted me to turn up the air-conditioning. She leaned closer to the vent and breathed in the cool air.

  I tried not to laugh at her antics, but it was a near thing. I drove straight to my sister’s house, where I planned for us to say our goodbyes. When I pulled into her driveway, Dianne’s parents were waiting for us. Mandi was outside, talking to them, heatedly.

  “Katie, will you do exactly what I say?” I asked my little girl.

  “Sure,” she said, seemingly uninterested in her grandparents.

  “I want you to go in the house with Auntie Mandi and not speak to your grandparents,” I directed, waiting for her to get upset.

  She surprised me. “Sure. They get really grumpy a lot, so I don’t want to do something to make them mad.”

  I gulped. “Hold on.” I stopped her and turned around to look at her innocent face with eyes that mirrored my own. “What do they do when they get angry?”

  Katie looked at her hands for a minute. “I’m not supposed to tell.”

  Rage built up inside me, but I managed to keep my voice even. “It’s okay, baby. You can tell me.”

  “Grampa spanks me a lot. And Grammy slapped my face, too,” she said, as if it was nothing. “But it was my fault.”

  “Baby, it is never, never your fault, and I promise you, they won’t ever hurt you again,” I told her.

  Katie’s eyes lit up again. “Thanks, Daddy.”

  With that, we got out of the SUV and I held her hand while we walked over to where Mandi was arguing with Dianne’s parents. I tucked Katie’s hand into Mandi’s.

  “Take her inside.” I didn’t leave room for discussion and Mandi immediately turned her attention to my daughter, taking her in the house.

  “You only got her by a fluke in the system. You’re not qualified to be a father!” Dianne’s mother, Irene, yelled.

  Dianne’s father, Donald, continued the tirade for his wife. “You don’t deserve her! She’s going to grow up to be a whore like your ex-wife!”

  Their insults continued while Mandi and Katie walked to the front door. I let the comments slide, but only because I knew my little girl could hear everything and would likely remember this day. Once they were through it and the door clicked into place, my entire demeanor changed.

  I stood up to my full height, a threat in and of itself, especially considering Donald was barely five-foot-nine. I stepped toward him and he finally shut up, realizing the predicament he was in.

  “I’m only going to say this once, and then the two of you are out of our lives for good,” I started.

  “We get to say goodbye to our granddaughter,” Irene huffed, apparently not getting the message.

  “No, you don’t. In fact, you’ll be lucky if you ever see that little girl again. You should count yourselves lucky I don’t report you both, for hitting a child.”

  “It was discipline! We didn’t do anything wrong,” Irene argued.

  “No, discipline is taking away a toy, or making a child stand in the corner. Slapping her face, or spanking her ass, repeatedly, is not proper discipline for a five-year-old. So I suggest you both get the hell off this piece of property and never come back. Don’t try to contact my daughter until she’s an adult, and she sure as hell won’t be contacting you. Go!” I demanded, my voice getting louder with each word I spoke, until at the end, I was yelling at them.

  They both shrunk back as I spoke and then yelled at them, but neither of them said a word. Slowly, they turned back to their tiny car and climbed in it, both still silent. It wasn’t until after they pulled out of the drive that I let myself release the breath I’d been holding. I thought for sure they would push, but I was pleasantly surprised by their actions. Maybe they would leave Katie and me alone for the rest of our lives. Doubt it.

  At the very least, it was a step in the right direction. Getting Katie away from her grandparents, both of whom she didn’t seem too fond of, was the best option for my daughter. My daughter. It was strange to think about, but that little girl was mine, and I was never letting her go.

  I went inside the house to find Mandi consoling Katie in the kitchen.

  “I don’t want them to hurt my daddy!” she cried.

  My heart melted. “They didn’t hurt me.”

  She looked up, her eyes bright and filled with tears. She smiled and then ran to me, throwing her arms around my neck when I bent down to her level. She hit me so hard, I almost fell backward. I laughed and she kissed my cheek.

  “I love you, Daddy.”

  Her words were simple and heartfelt but they cut me to my core. A lump formed in my throat even as my heart swelled with pride. This little girl already had me wrapped around her little finger and I loved every second of it.

  “I love you too.”

  She hugged my neck again and then walked away with a smile to say goodbye to her cousins and auntie. I watched, enamored by her presence, as she promised her cousins that they could come visit at our new house, which, she declared, had enough bedrooms for all of them to live there with us forever. It was adorable.

  Even Mandi had tears in her eyes as she came to stand next to me, tucking herself under my shoulder with an arm around my waist. “Don’t leave,” she begged me.

  “You know I have to. There’s too much trouble here, and Gabby is in Maine,” I reminded her.

  “Gabby’s a lucky woman, to have a guy like you, Wolfe. Where the hell is my knight in shining armor?” she asked, wistful.

  I gave her a sarcastic look. “He’s out
there, baby sister. And I’m going to officially extend Katie’s invitation to Maine. Our house will always be big enough for you guys, too.”

  She looked thoughtful for a minute. “This place is all the twins have ever known,” she explained, looking around her home. “But I’ll think about it.”

  “That’s all I can ask,” I said, turning so that I could hug her properly. I gave her a squeeze and said, “Love you.”

  “I love you too, big brother. We’ll miss you guys.”

  She pulled away only when she felt Katie tugging on her shirt. “I’ll miss you, Auntie Mandi,” she said to my sister, who broke down.

  Mandi went to her knees to wrap her arms around my child, squeezing her so hard, I thought Katie might burst. She whispered something into her aunt’s ear and then they both laughed.

  “What?” I demanded to know.

  “Katie told me she was going to keep an eye on you for me,” Mandi said, looking up at me with a twinkle in her eye.

  I laughed along, but I knew I would miss my sister and her children much more than I anticipated. Leaving them was hard, but Christmas had passed and we were ready to move on with our lives. Katie and I left the house hand in hand and I helped her get strapped into her car seat.

  “You ready, baby girl?” I asked once I was in the driver’s seat.

  “Let’s do this!” she squealed.

  I was nervous, but with Katie’s determination, maybe we could win Gabby’s heart and be a real family.

  I was ready to start over with both of them.

  19

  Gabby

  I jumped out of bed and barely made it to the bathroom before I vomited up everything in my stomach, which was next to nothing. Morning sickness was in full swing and it was already pissing me off. I begged the doctor for something, anything, to take to help ease the nausea, but they told me there wasn’t anything they could do. It was all just part of the process. Fuck that, I thought when I finished. I rinsed my mouth with mouthwash and then brushed my teeth, desperate to get the taste of puke off my breath.

  Mallory called an hour ago and said she and Luke were coming over. She didn’t say why, which made me nervous, but once we hung up, the nausea kicked in and I’d been glued to the bed, not wanting to move a muscle in order to prevent throwing up.

  No such luck.

  At the very least, the sickly feeling seemed to be passing and I made it to the kitchen to start the coffee for Mallory and Luke. I gave it up, much to my brain’s dismay. After a week of caffeine withdrawal-induced headaches, I was finally okay without it, though I brewed a pot of decaf every once in a while, just to trick myself. This morning, though, I wasn’t going to make two pots of coffee, so I just stuck to the caffeinated stuff. I sat at the small table in my kitchen, staring longingly at the fresh-brewed pot of deliciousness.

  When I heard a truck pull up, I didn’t even bother to get up, knowing that my friends would let themselves in. I laid my head against the coolness of the table, my eyes on the coffeepot. It couldn’t hurt to have one cup, I thought.

  The door flew open, letting in a draft and snapping me out of my coffee addiction. I glanced over at Luke, who was clad in a heavy jacket and big boots.

  “Don’t you ever run the woodstove?” he asked, making his way into the living area. I heard him pull open the cast iron door and fumble around with the kindling.

  “I just woke up. Bite me,” I replied.

  Mallory took off her boots and jacket after she closed the door and made a beeline for the coffeepot. She poured a cup, added far too much creamer for it to still be considered coffee, and then sat at the table with me.

  “You’re not having any?” she asked, bewildered.

  I laughed a little. “No caffeine for Mama Bear.”

  “Shit, that’s right. I’m sorry. Do you want me to give it up with you?” She looked horrified by the thought, so I waited a full minute before I answered her. She squirmed in her chair.

  “No, I don’t want you to give it up. Although I’m sure you will, at some point. You guys want kids, don’t you?”

  “We aren’t in a rush, though I do want our kids to be close in age, so you never know.” She winked at me. Before I could wonder what the hell that meant, Luke shuffled into the room.

  “Just fucking tell her, Mallory,” he grumbled, pissy at something.

  “Tell me what?” I glanced from Luke back to Mallory and back again. Silence filled the room like a tangible fog. “Someone tell me!”

  Mallory sighed. “I’m preggers, too.”

  “What!? Congrats!” I said. I meant it, too. If ever there were two people who deserved their happy ending, it was Mal and Luke. Having a child was the next logical step for them.

  “Are you really happy or are you just saying that? We waited to tell you because we weren’t sure how things would go down with the divorce and whatnot,” Mallory gushed.

  “Wait, what? How long have you known?”

  Mal looked guilty. “Since before Thanksgiving. Rainey knew, actually, but only because I knew she didn’t have much longer left, and I wanted her to know she was an auntie before she died.”

  Whoa. “Holy shit, guys!” I stood up to give Luke a hug and then turned to Mallory. “So how far along are you?”

  “About four months,” Luke answered when Mallory stayed quiet.

  I looked at my best friend, pride and happiness welling in my heart for the two of them. I sat back down, taking Mallory’s hand in mine. “I can’t believe you kept this from me.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry. It wasn’t planned, but the truth is, we couldn’t be happier. And we’d heard so many horror stories about miscarriages that we wanted to wait to tell anyone. When Rainey took a turn, though, we made the decision to tell her and she was the only one. You are the first person to know after her,” Mallory confirmed.

  “Well, I am just so happy for you guys! And we’ll be pregnant at the same time. We used to talk in high school about something like this happening to us. Although in my dreams, I was usually married.” I gave her a half-smile.

  “Well, you were married when you conceived him or her,” Luke joked, pouring himself a cup of coffee. “That counts for something.”

  “Don’t be a jerk, Luke. Not everyone is as lucky as me to get a man who fights through the bitchiness to still be with me,” she laughed.

  “Ain’t that the truth,” a deep voice sounded from the doorway.

  I looked over at Wolfe, standing there with his arms folded across his chest, his eyes fiery and intense. He probably heard the whole thing and I was mortified.

  “Guys, would you mind taking Katie over to your house? She’s already loaded up in the Jeep. I’ll bring your truck by later,” he asked Mallory and Luke with a smirk.

  “There’s no need,” I piped up, standing. I looked at Wolfe. “We don’t need to be alone for any reason.” It sounded good, like I wasn’t scared to death of being alone with the man who broke my heart, but I was shattering there on the kitchen floor.

  “Pretty sure you’re pregnant with my child, which means we sure as hell do need to be alone, Gabby,” he said to me, his voice dead calm. It worried me.

  “Yeah, we’ll take her,” Mallory said. “We’ll see you guys later.”

  As she turned away, I noticed the small baby bump under her warm sweater. How did I not see it before? I wondered as she and Luke left the house.

  “I don’t expect anything from you,” I said as soon as the door closed behind them.

  “Fuck not wanting anything, Gabby. Why didn’t you tell me when you were in Florida?” he demanded.

  “I was going to. That was the whole reason I was there. I wasn’t even trying to win you back, but then Katie came out, and I kind of panicked. I thought, for just a second, that you hid her from me, but then I remembered that you told me you didn’t really want children anytime soon, so I knew you must not have known about her. Speaking of, you just sent her off with Mal and Luke, people she doesn’t even know�
�”

  “We were at their house last night, and they spent all kinds of time with her. She knows them,” he replied.

  I gulped. “Well, you obviously had a lot on your plate in Florida and I didn’t want to add to it with the pregnancy.” The words were rushed together and I had to take a deep breath after I finished.

  “You’re an idiot,” he muttered half a second before he closed the distance between us and pulled me into his arms. Just as his lips were about to meet mine, he paused. “I want you, Gabby. I’m here in Maine, for the rest of my life. I have no intentions of ever losing you again. Will you marry me again? Will you be the mother of both my children and love this fool until we’re both old and gray?”

  I gulped. My hesitation had him pulling away. “Is that a no?”

  “No, it’s not a no, but it’s not a yes, either. After everything that’s happened this past year, I’m emotionally drained, Wolfe. I don’t want to say yes to being a stepmother now and then when my emotions are normal, change my mind. Plus, dealing with Katie’s mother will be hellish. I may not have firsthand experience, but I’ve seen enough divorces to know that kids are the ones who suffer.”

  He put a finger to my lips. “Katie’s mother died in November. Around the same time as Rainey, actually. And Katie went to live with Dianne’s parents. My sister ran into them and saw Katie, and knew that she was mine.” He gestured for both of us to sit while he explained. “Turns out, Katie is my daughter. And Dianne’s parents forbade her to tell me. They threatened to take Katie from her and basically controlled her life for over five years. It’s a sad tale.”

  “So once I made sure that Katie was mine, I started the custody battle. Honestly, I knew she was mine before the DNA test. I mean, how could anyone look at her and not know she’s mine?”

  “Well, that’s true,” I muttered, my mind reeling.

  “I want you in my life, Gabby. I’m not taking no for an answer, either. You can fight it all you want, but you will be my wife again, and the mother of our children. And when you’re ready, I want you to adopt Katie. I want her to be yours in every sense of the word. She might not be yours biologically, but she will be your child.”