Invisible Crown

by T. A. Hardenbrook

  “If you actually got up in the middle of the night, I probably would get more sleep. Asshole.”

  Grumbling, I stomped my way into the bathroom. I really needed to shower and get ready before my pre-op appointment this afternoon. Thankfully, the rods were being taken out, and a permanent hard cast was being placed on my arm for the next four weeks.

  “But, you’re so good at it.” Reid chuckled as he walked out of the bedroom with Rain.

  I had to fight every urge in me to not throw something at his massively large, stupid head. It might have hit the baby, and as much as I wanted to knock some damn sense into that man, not at the expense of our daughter. I loved him something fierce, but that little thing in his arms pulled on my heartstrings even more.

  “Are you coming with me to my appointment?” I yelled out the bathroom door.

  “I already told you I had a meeting with Stephanie this afternoon.” Reid called out from the hallway.

  That man had been swamped with meetings for the last two weeks. Everyone and their dog had wanted the inside scoop as to what was happening, and nothing as of yet had been given to the press. Sure, they covered Cassy’s funeral and we had the press lurking outside the gates of the house for the past two weeks, but thankfully, we hadn’t needed to leave the house for anything yet. Rain’s pediatrician made house calls, and Doctor Miritka had thankfully came to the house to check in on me, too. Today would be the first time we had ventured out of the house since bringing Rain home, and it completely terrified me.

  Wrapping a large garbage bag around my arm, I skillfully tore off a piece of tape and slapped it over my skin. The worst part about the whole arm thing had been not getting the damn cast wet. I had smashed it into more things then I cared to remember, but not being able to just jump in the shower hurt more than the random objects. Thankfully, a smaller version was being placed on my arm tomorrow, and it shouldn’t stick out nearly as bad as the metal rods do now. Knocking into one of them sent a jolt clear down to my damn bones.

  Cranking the shower on, I waited a few seconds before it heated up, and climbed in. I still had to keep my arm out of the direct flow of the water, as the garbage bag and tape didn’t totally keep the whole thing dry. There was nothing more difficult than trying to wash your lady bits with only one arm all while trying to keep the other dry. Fucking stupid if you ask me. Someone needed to invent casts that could get wet, because this shit was getting old.

  ***

  After getting ready, I headed down to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Another crappy thing about having a newborn in the house was the whole eating situation. If you didn’t have someone around to help, good luck with getting something cooked, let alone eaten before the child screamed to be fed or changed. I absolutely loved the little creature that was dependent on us right now, but she had forever cured me from pushing one out of my body. Doing the whole infant thing once was plenty, and whoever claimed that I needed to experience the whole pregnancy and giving birth thing could suck a big fat camel dick.

  “Got everything you need in the bag, Molly?” Tiny asked as he rifled through the gigantic diaper bag.

  Whoever thought you could carry one of those cute little designer bags that celebrities were photographed with was a lying sack of shit. For one, nothing other than diapers fit into those things, and everyone knew you needed more than that to take a kid out of the house. There was nothing cute or sexy about the big black bag we had stocked for this trip. Diapers, wipes, formula, bottles, clothes, blankets, meds, more clothes, booties, and whatever else I thought to stuff in there last night was barely fitting. The fact that I had to make this outing alone, without Reid, absolutely terrified me. But, what other options did I have? Have someone come in and look after her? They only other people I trusted in the entire world were Danielle and Megan. Sadly, Megan had taken up all my responsibilities with PD, and while I loved Danielle something fierce, she wasn’t exactly a baby person.

  “I think so.” Grabbing a protein bar out of a drawer, I proceeded to scarf it down before Reid was going to hand over the baby.

  “I changed her,” Reid said proudly, smiling like he had just won the damn Nobel Prize or something.

  “Thank you, babe,” I managed to say without smirking. Even the smallest of accomplishments were award worthy in his book. I could blindly change her diaper in the middle of the night with one hand, and he needed applause when doing it in daylight with both hands. Men.

  “I forgot to tell you that People Magazine is coming over this evening.” Reid passed Rain off to me and quickly took a couple steps back. He knew I wouldn’t snap at him with her in my arms, but damn, he was walking a thin line.

  “Don’t you think that would have been something you should have shared with me?” I seethed through clenched teeth. We had taken caution as to sharing her with the world, and now he wanted to open up our damn home to a massive magazine company and splash our freaking picture on every grocery store checkout line. Our house was a complete disaster with baby stuff, my boxes from the apartment, and we had yet to hire a new maid that both of us could agree on. There was no way a photographer would be coming into our home later.

  “Molly Anne, Stephanie just got the offer yesterday, and we talked about it being a good time to do so. This way, it’s done before the wedding and on our terms.” Reid offered a weak smile, knowing damn well that was fucked up royally……. not discussing the matter with me.

  “I get the fact that the PR team wants to break the story before the wedding, but wasn’t this something that we should have discussed together and not just you and Stephanie? This is our daughter, Reid, not some big publicity stunt.”

  “Technically, she is my daughter,” I heard Reid mutter.

  All I could see was red at the moment. Calmly, I walked over to Tiny and deposited Rain into his arms. There would be no wedding next week if I killed the groom beforehand.

  “Excuse me? She is every bit my daughter since the nurse put her in my arms first. Who has dropped everything to care for her? Who gets up in the middle of the night when she is hungry, or changes her when she is wet? Who took time off from work to make sure she had the best start to the first few weeks of her life, Reid? Just because I didn’t birth her does not mean she isn’t my daughter. I can’t believe you just said that.” There wasn’t an inch of space left between us, and it took everything in me to not throat punch the bastard with my good hand.

  “Molly Anne, I didn’t mean it like that.” Reid knew he screwed up and was back peddling. But, it didn’t matter. The words had already escaped his mouth, and there was no going back on what he said. “She is your daughter, too, and I’m sorry.”

  “You’re right, Reid, she is my daughter, and soon I’ll have the fucking legal paperwork to prove it, too. I love you, but at the moment, I don’t want to see your face anywhere near me.” Snatching the diaper bag off the table, I swung the strap over my head and turned to Tiny. “Are you ready?”

  Tiny nodded his head slowly, refusing to make eye contact with Reid. At least that man was smart enough to let Reid drown in his own stupid choice of words this morning.

  “The car seat is already in the SUV, so you’ll have to take the Porsche, Reid,” Tiny stated firmly as he walked down the hallway with Rain.

  “What time is the magazine company coming over?”

  “Six,” Reid stated. His body posture knew he had screwed up, but he also knew not to reach out and touch me at that moment.

  “I’ll call Danielle and see if she can get someone over here to hide some of the shit on the main floor. See you tonight.” Stepping around Reid, I made sure there was enough space between us so we didn’t come in contact with one another.

  “Molly Anne, I’m sorry. I love you.” Reid called out as I walked down the hallway.

  Stopping, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in before turning around. “I love you, too, Reid. But right now, I really want to punch you in the gonads for that stupid comment. I’ll see y
ou tonight.”

  Quickly, I raced down the rest of the hallway to the garage door. I didn’t want to hear anymore words from that man at the moment.

  “Not my daughter, my ass. I don’t see you taking her with you to your meeting with Stephanie.” Grumbling, I yanked open the garage door and wandered over to the back seat of the SUV.

  “I’ve already got her buckled in,” Tiny said from the driver’s seat.

  “Just double checking.” After tugging on her straps, I was satisfied with the job Tiny had done and carefully closed the car door. Climbing in to the front seat, I situated myself and worked the seatbelt around my arm. “Does he not think?”

  “Molly Anne, you know that man has dick for brains.”

  Snorting, I silently agreed with Tiny. Reid was the love of my life, but if it didn’t have six strings and a strap around it, that man was about as useful as a slug on crack.

  Chapter 22

  Hiding the extra baby wipes with the sex toys seems like a logical spot, right?

  The coordination it took making sure that we were able to get into the medical center without being seen was absolutely insane. How the paparazzi even knew where we could be today completely baffled me. I knew exactly why they were staked outside, though; everyone wanted that elusive picture of Rain. Sadly, she was being sold off to the highest bidder, who, apparently, was People Magazine. Thankfully, there was a parking garage that only allowed access if you had a key card to get into the building, and the windows on the SUV had the darkest tint legally allowed.

  “This is fucking nuts,” I commented to Tiny as he parked on the seventh floor. Security already had a spot reserved for us closest to the elevator.

  “I thought it was hard keeping the groupies off Reid, but Rain brings a whole new level of crazy to the game. I almost miss the slutty chicks compared to these photographers.”

  “Preach it to me, Tiny.” Unclipping my seatbelt, I opened the door slowly, half expecting someone to be waiting there with a damn camera.

  “I’ll grab Rain,” Tiny exclaimed as he exited the vehicle. It was a good thing I had him today, because there was no way I could carry that infant seat with only one functioning arm. How a little eight pound thing and a car seat could weigh so much was a modern day mystery.

  Sliding out of the car, I grabbed the diaper bag at my feet and swung it over my shoulder. This was our first outing, and it kind of felt like a secret covert operation. We rolled up in a blacked out SUV, had security waiting for us to park and guide us into the cleared elevator. Someone would think the British royalty was here in the states with as much security as we had around us. All of it for that little bundle strapped into her car seat and covered with a blanket. This situation was completely nuts.

  ***

  “This way, Miss. McGlenister,” a security officer directed toward the elevator.

  It always amazed me how people treated the rich and famous. Sadly, I was now clumped into that category since being involved with Reid, but I didn’t lose my brain cells when we got engaged. I had always been capable of driving myself, feeding myself, and making sure I got to work on time, too. But, now I usually had someone drive me places, Stephanie kept harping on us to hire a chef, and there was no way I would be hiring an assistant for my personal life. I managed to keep afloat all those years before Reid, and I was pretty sure I could do it without the extra help.

  “Thanks,” I said graciously. Even if I felt the extra help unnecessary, I had always been taught to be polite. Being nice always seemed to get you further than rocking the bitch mode, but then again, sometimes that switch had to be flipped, too.

  Stepping into the elevator, I let out a small giggle watching Tiny peek into Rain’s seat. Our big macho body guard turned to instant mush when he got anywhere near that little girl. I was pretty sure all girls would go completely ape shit over a picture with him and Rain snuggling together. I never understood when people used to claim they were more attracted to their spouse after having children. Now, seeing Rain with Reid made me want to jump the man’s bones and make one of our own little creatures. But, then I thought of all the work that has been, and my legs snapped shut as if they were out of service. Thankfully, my IUD still had a couple more years left in my baby making department.

  Once inside the doctor’s office, the nurses ushered me right into a room, letting me bypass the waiting room. Thankfully, only a handful of people were waiting, and even though I hated to stereotype people, I doubted any of them realized who the heck we were. They were probably pissed that I got pushed into a room to see the doctor before them.

  After setting the bag down in the exam room, I flipped the blanket back off Rain’s car seat and smiled. It was amazing how quickly our lives changed in the blink of a second. Two weeks ago, I was worrying about a new album launch and the upcoming wedding. Now, I had this little life that relied on me for absolutely everything. Like flipping a switch, a person could get overwhelmed at the drop of a hat for the stupidest reasons. I had yet to try on my dress again, but truthfully couldn’t care less if it fit on that day. Hell, the entire wedding could be canceled right now and I would actually be okay with it. I never thought we needed the big fancy event, and now that we had Rain in our lives, taking an entire day just to say I do and sign some papers seemed like a complete waste of time.

  A slight knock on the door broke the silence in the room, and an older nurse opened the door. “Hi Molly, how are you doing today?”

  Climbing up on the exam table, I laid my arm in my lap and smiled. “Good. Excited to get this thing off.”

  “I bet so,” the nurse chuckled. Setting my chart down, she unwrapped the stethoscope from around her neck and pressed it to the inside of my wrist. After a silent minute or so, she placed it back over her neck and jotted down a couple things on my chart. “We need to take a couple x-rays and do a blood panel, but it shouldn’t take long.”

  Rain started to cry from her seat, as I hopped down off the exam table.

  “If you need a few minutes to feed her, I can have the techs hold off for a little while?”

  “Oh, no, it’s okay. I can mix her up a bottle real quick, and Tiny can handle it.” Reaching for the diaper bag, I started to pull out the supplies as Tiny’s big hands messed with the buckles on the car seat.

  “You know, breast milk is the best thing for little ones.”

  My internal patience meter for bullshit snapped at that moment, sending calm, loving, and compassionate Molly right out the damn twelfth floor window. “Does it look like I’m squirting milk from these breasts? Did you ever stop to think that maybe I couldn’t produce breast milk? Or maybe, I wasn’t the one that carried her for nine months? Did you even stop to think at all? A comment like that is completely unwanted nor solicited. But since you decided to open your mouth and spout off information that I know is true, I’ll let you in on a little secret. Yes, breast milk would be the best option for Rain. However, my fiancé knocked up her mother during our little break in our relationship, then proceeded to deny the baby was ever his the entire pregnancy, and then it ended in tragedy that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Her mother died, and now I’m stepping in for the rest of her life as her mother, who had no interest in raising babies until the moment I held her in my arms. So, as I would love for these funbags of mine to fill up with milk and be able to feed my daughter that way, it just isn’t physically possible. But, thanks for the advice.”

  Glaring at the woman, I watched as her face when from shock, to embarrassment, and then horror as a crazed smile spread across my face. The one thing I hated more than my mother was unsolicited advice, and this woman had crossed over that damn line today.

  “Mt apologies, Molly,” the nurse replied quickly, slowly backing up from the exam room door.

  “Yep. Go ahead and let them know I’m ready for x-ray since my tits can’t feed my daughter.” The stupidity of people really shouldn’t amaze me anymore, but then again, a whole other level of ignorance seemed to eme
rge every damn day.

  The nurse closed the door quickly, and I grabbed the formula container out of the diaper bag. “That crotchy loving ferret pimping inbred peasant.”

  “She might need to seek counseling after that encounter, Molls.” Tiny laughed while bouncing Rain in his arms lightly.

  “I don’t understand why people feel the need to open their mouths and give me advice on parenting. Obviously, I haven’t done this before, but I can’t be doing it too wrong if she is still healthy, right?”

  “You’re going to be a total bitch when she starts dating.”

  “She isn’t dating, Tiny,” I stated firmly.

  Dumping the formula into the bottle, I shook the contents until it was well blended and handed the bottle over. “If she is anything like Reid, then she will never see the light of day during her teen years.” I loved my husband, but I didn’t know what was worse. His genes passing on to Rain, or her mothers. Either way, I knew we were completely screwed when she got older.

  ***

  I almost felt bad at the nurse I verbally attacked earlier, but she made herself scarce for the rest of the appointment. On our way out, she started down the hall as we exited the room, but quickly ducked into an open room as we approached her. Maybe what I said would stick with her, and cause her to think a little about the situation before opening her mouth. But, then again, she was human and we tended to beat the dead horse over and over without learning shit.

  “Do you need anything on the way home?” Tiny asked as he pulled out of the parking structure. Only a few photographers were waiting on the sidewalk for us. Obviously, something else had taken precedence, sending the majority of them off on other assignments.

  “No, but I do need to check with Danielle about the house and make sure she doesn’t need anything. Maybe we could swing by that little deli on Market to pick up something for dinner? I don’t really want to cook or make a mess since the magazine is coming over tonight.”