Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
“Why’s that?”
“Because she went and got herself knocked up by another man in the hopes of trapping Elias with a baby, not realizing that he’d had a vasectomy years ago.”
“Oh shit.”
“Yeah, to say it’s been a wild few weeks is an understatement, but good news, it’s a baby girl. You’re gonna have another sister.”
“Holy fucking shit. I need to sit down.” It goes quiet on the other end, but the sound of Jonah’s deep, calming breaths lets me know he’s still there. “You sure she’s really pregnant? She’s not faking it?”
“It’s not as though I shoved a test between her legs and asked her to pop a squat, but there was a visible bump. Only small,” I muse. “This is Mom, though. I suppose anything is possible.”
“I’d be waiting for the blood test results before you start celebrating a new baby,” he says. “But I’m worried about her. If she’s willing to stay with a man like that, then what does that say about her? How the hell is she supposed to raise a baby around that?”
“My question exactly. We can’t allow her to have this baby, not if she’s going to raise it with the same disdain she had for me. I can’t watch it happen.”
“So what? Are you going to take the baby?”
“Whoa. Fuck. Slow down. Pull the fucking reins, cowboy! I was thinking you could take the baby. Not me. I’m not ready to be somebody’s mother. I work like a fucking crazy person and have psychopaths trying to kill me every second Tuesday. But you have a peaceful home that’s already equipped for little humans.”
“Whoa. WHOA! No. We only just found out last week that Emily is pregnant. I can’t be having another one on top of that. That’d be like having another set of twins. Do you have any idea how fucking hard it was to put those kids on a sleep schedule? I was a fucking zombie for the first eight months of their lives.”
“Hold up. Emily is pregnant again?” I ask, making Izzy’s head snap up, her eyes wide with excitement.
“Wait. Shit. I wasn’t supposed to tell you that yet. She’s only a few weeks, but I panicked, and it just slipped out,” he says with a gasp. “Fuck. When we officially tell you in a few months, pretend to be shocked, but nothing super over the top. She’ll see straight through that shit.”
“Can do, big brother,” I say, “but congratulations. Those twins of yours could really use a new baby to boss around.”
“They sure could.”
“Okay, so what are we supposed to do?”
“Foster system?”
I let out a breath, the idea not sitting well with me. “That’s our sister, Jonah.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” he says. “Look, the way I see it, we still have months before a decision needs to be made. I’ll run the idea past Emily and see what she thinks, but I’ve got to be honest with you, Harper, I’m not sure if we can handle it right now. But who knows? Maybe the cops will catch up with Elias and put him behind bars. Mom will have the mansion and a whole staff at her disposal. Maybe she’ll be fine raising the baby herself.”
I scoff. “Yeah, what a wonderful life that would be.”
“Yeah, fuck. I actually feel like a bit of an ass now,” he tells me. “I was calling to see if you’d be able to watch the twins in a few weeks because our usual sitter fell through, and Emily’s parents just can’t handle it, and Mom . . . That’s a hard no, but if I knew everything you were dealing with, I never would have called—fuck. I mean, I would have called . . . eventually. Well, you know, like at some point, obviously. I just mean I wouldn’t have called about that.”
“I can still watch them if you really need me to,” I say, my shoulders pulling back as a wave of excitement flourishes through me. “If you’re okay with the fact that I have Elias currently after me, of course. I barely get to see them. I haven’t even had a chance to teach them bad words yet. Who’s going to show them how to flip off their father if not for me?”
“Nah, it’s alright,” he says. “I really don’t want to put you out like that. I’ll start looking up local agencies or something like that. You’ve got a lot on your plate.”
“Really,” I insist. “I miss the girls. I’m more than happy to watch them, and besides, with the insane protection detail Knight has me under at the moment, my place is the safest home in the country. They’ll have a great time. I swear, you’re really not putting me out.”
“Are you sure?” he asks. “You remember my friend Troy from high school, right? It’s his wedding, so Emily and I will be back in Blackstone for the weekend. We’ll be close if you need anything, and I swear, they’re completely toilet trained and only wake up like . . . three, maybe four times during the night.”