“I am so sorry. I promise that I will do anything and everything in my power to make sure the two of you are safe,” he whispers. And for the first time in five years, I let myself pretend this is where I belong.
I lift my head from him and scoot back to put some distance between us. “He said if I wasn’t back tomorrow he would come find us and take what belongs to him. He has never acted like this. I don’t know why he is doing this now.” I watch Jaxon narrow his eyes at me.
“He threatened you?” he asks.
“I don’t think he would ever hurt Ava, but he seems determined not to lose her,” I say.
“Give me your phone,” Jaxon says holding his hand out.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I whisper.
“He will not threaten the two of you. Give me your phone, please,” he says again. I hand my phone over to him because I don’t want to fight with him and for right now he is making me feel safe. He slowly gets up and walks out the door. I should probably follow him, but right now I don’t have the energy to get up and follow him. I just want to get to my daughter as soon as possible.
Jaxon
I try not to look and see how many phone calls she has made to Trent. Other than the one to Callie and a few to some girl named Jenn, they are all to Trent. Not even her parents. I never imagined they would completely turn their back on her because of me, especially when she needed them the most. I’m definitely not happy about her being with him all this time, but I know all of this is my fault because I never listened to her, and I will pay the consequences for that decision for the rest of my life. I will always know that it’s my fault I have missed out a lot of amazing milestones in my daughter’s life.
I do believe her when she says she never slept with him though, but that doesn’t explain the pictures. Whatever reason he had for doing what he did, won’t fly with me. I’m beginning to think Trent is a psychopath and I have no idea how I missed it all those years. I scroll through the numbers and hit call on Trent’s name.
“Maya, you better be on your way home.”
“Hello Trent,” I say.
“Jaxon, congratulations, it’s a girl,” he actually has the nerve to say to me.
“I’m only going to say this once. Stay away from Maya and stay away from my daughter. I don’t know how you orchestrated all of this, but I do know if you come anywhere near either one of them, I will kill you this time,” I threaten.
“You really think I could break up your happy marriage and steal your wife. You are delusional. And as for Ava, I’m the only father she knows and if I have any say in it, I’ll continue being the only father she knows. Why would she want you, a man that actually looked at her pictures and didn’t want her? So Jaxon, I’ll only say this once, if Maya and Ava aren’t on my doorstep tomorrow, you will regret it. Have a good night with my family,” he says, before hanging up. This is going to be a lot harder than I thought. That man has definitely lost his mind.
“Hey,” Callie says coming outside. “Sorry to bother you, but Leighton called and the girls are hungry. I need to go feed them.”
“Okay, I’m sorry about all of this,” I say.
“You have nothing to be sorry about. It was an honest mistake. Just make sure you don’t lose her this time. I really want all the family around we can get,” she says smiling. It definitely wasn’t an honest mistake. More like a nightmare mistake, but at least she is trying to make me feel better about it. Maya walks out and I hand her phone back to her. She doesn’t ask how my call went I’m sure she knows him well enough to know it was bad.,
“Are you ready to meet your daughter?” she asks. I smile back at her and nod. I have never been more ready for anything.
Callie and Ash ride with Brody since Leighton took her jeep with the car seats. Collin took my truck and I drive Maya in her car. Thankfully she didn’t argue with me when I asked for her keys. The fact that she’s being so nice to me after she has every right to hate me only tells me how scared she really is of Trent. I’m not sure if she has always been scared of him or if it’s just the events of today, but I’m trying really hard not to upset her anymore.
“Why did you come back to town?” I ask, mostly out of curiosity.
“My grandmother died.”
“I’m so sorry. I had no idea or I would have gone to the funeral,” I say. I always loved her grandmother. Unlike her parents, she always welcomed me with open arms.
“There wasn’t a funeral. You know my family. We don’t need to remember people when they die. We just need to keep their memories alive without seeing them at their worst. They didn’t even tell me until a week after she was buried. They sent me a letter from their lawyer saying I had one day to go through her house and get anything I wanted. That was yesterday,” she says sadly.
“That’s awful, I am so sorry. I always loved your grandma, she was awesome. Did you lose touch with her too?” I ask.
“No, at first I talked to her a lot. She even came to Atlanta when Ava was born and stayed for a week. She was a life saver. I begged her to move there to be with me a few months later, but she was already in such bad health, she didn’t want to burden me by having to take care of her too. She moved into a retirement home near my parents, so unfortunately I eventually lost touch with her too.”
“Have your parents ever met Ava?”
“No, I sent them pictures when I sent you pictures, but I never heard back from them either. After having Ava, I can’t imagine ever treating her like that no matter how bad I thought her choices were,” she says. I pull into my parent’s driveway and turn around to face Maya.
“Thank you for being you. I know I don’t deserve this, but thank you for letting me meet her even though I treated you so badly. I will never forgive myself for not being there for you, ever.” She nods her head at me and gives me a small smile. “How do you want to do this?” I ask her, giving her complete control of the situation.
“How about I go in and bring her out here to you. I love your family, but I think this just needs to be about you and her right now.”
“Okay, one question. Have you ever told her about me?”
“I told her that you were on a very long trip. Honestly, she’s still little and I don’t think she completely understands it all. She’s had Trent all her life, but she doesn’t call him daddy if that’s what you’re asking,” she says, making me smile big.
“Go get her, I’m so ready to meet her,” I say, not being able to control my grin.
“We will be right back,” she says, getting out of the car. I watch her walk up my parent’s porch and go inside. I don’t think I ever really understood how brave and strong she is. She is walking in and facing a room full of people who have thought the worst about her for the past five years to get our daughter, so I can meet her. She is truly amazing.
Not even a minute later, I see the door open and Maya walk outside holding hands with the most beautiful person I have ever laid my eyes on. Aside from her mother of course, it’s a close race though. Ava is beautiful. She has my dark complexion and dark hair, but that face is definitely all Maya. She has the most perfect face and she has her mother’s amazing green eyes. They could pass for twins if Ava had Maya’s blonde hair.
I get out of the car and start walking toward them.
“She wants to see the horses, if that’s okay,” Maya says.
“Of course, right this way, ladies,” I say, walking them out to the barn. When we reach the fence, Maya picks Ava up and sets her up on it.
“Ava, I want you to meet somebody,” Maya says. “Do you remember when I said your daddy had to go on a trip and I didn’t know when he would be back?”
She asks. Ava nods her head, but never takes her eyes off of the horses in front of her. “This is Jaxon and he is your daddy,” she says. Slowly Ava turns her beautiful green eyes to me and smiles.
“Hi, I’m Ava Rose Taylor,” she says smiling.
“Hi Ava Rose Taylor, I’m Jaxon,” I say q
uietly.
“I thought you were daddy,” she says confused.
“I am your daddy, but my name is Jaxon.”
“Okay, can I call you daddy?” she asks. I look at Maya, but she is staring at Ava with tears rolling down her cheeks.
“You can call me anything you want to,” I say, moving my hand over to touch her head. She turns around and reaches for me so I pick her up and hold her probably too tight although she doesn’t complain about it at all.
“Can I pet that horse?” she asks, pointing at one of them.
“You sure can,” I say, trying to hold back my own tears. How could I have been so stupid to miss out on so much of her life? There is no way I can ever let go of her now. Luckily right before I’m about to jump the fence with Ava, one of the horses makes its way over to us. When I reach my hand out to pet her, the horse stops and Ava sticks her little hand out to pet her too.
“I like her,” Ava says.
“Me too,” I whisper.
“What is going on?” I hear my mom demand from behind me. I guess we should have given her a little warning. I probably should have asked Maya what she said to them when she went inside to get Ava.
I turn around to find my mom standing there with her hands on her hips and my dad a few feet away from her.
“I’m petting a horse,” Ava says, totally oblivious to all of the tension around us.
“I can see that. Do you like horses, Ava?” my mom asks her. I don’t know what Leighton has told her about whose little girl this is, but I am actually feeling sorry for my mom right now.
“I’ve never seen a real one. I have a stuffed one I sleep with at night, it’s softer than this one,” Ava says. She looks over at Maya before pointing at my mom. “That’s Mrs. Nindy, she makes the best cookies, mommy,” Ava tells her. I guess her s sound is more of an n sound.
“Mommy, she’s yours?” my mom asks her. Maya nods her head at her and I can see the tears pooling in her eyes.
“Yep, she’s my mommy and this is my daddy. He’s been on a long trip, but he’s back now,” Ava says innocently to my mom.
“Jaxon,” my mom whispers. “What’s going on?”
“Hey, let your mom hold you for a second. I’ll be right back,” I say, handing Ava to Maya. She goes to her without question probably because she can’t seem to take her eyes off of this horse for very long. I should definitely buy her one.
I walk over to my parents and get far enough away so they can’t hear us. I don’t want Ava to hear any of this conversation.
“Is she really yours?” my mom asks. I nod my head at her. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, it’s a long story. It’s completely confusing and I’m not sure what all is going on yet, but I do know one thing, Ava is mine.”
“How could she keep her from you for so long?” my mom asks, sounding angry.
“She tried to tell me, I just wouldn’t talk to her. It’s my fault I have missed out on everything and it’s my fault they may be in danger right now. I promise to explain everything later, but right now, for tonight, I just want to forget about all of that and enjoy getting to know my daughter, your granddaughter. Okay?” I say.
“Okay,” my mom says before walking over to Maya and Ava. “I have a huge supper ready if y’all are hungry. We would love to get to know Ava too,” she says and I am once again very thankful I was blessed with an amazing mom.
Maya
I have no idea what Jaxon said to his parents, but I am so thankful that they have always been so wonderful to me. After I married Jaxon against my parent’s wishes, they took me in and never treated me any differently than their sons or Molly. I always dreamed of marrying Jaxon and living on a farm with him and all of our kids. I wanted a family as large as his, because holidays are awful when you are an only child with no immediate family, and your parents have always treated you like the mistake you probably were. I never want Ava to feel for one second she was a mistake. Even having to do it all without Jaxon by my side, I have never regretted having her for a second. She definitely makes all of my days so much brighter.
After chatting a little more with Bo and Cindy and watching Jaxon and Ava play with the horses, we decide it’s time to go inside and eat. Ava is so excited she gets to go back inside to play with the babies. I get sad every time I think about Ava having to grow up without siblings.
We walk inside and find Callie and Leighton in the kitchen finishing supper up. “We thought y’all might want to talk. I think everything is ready,” Callie says, pulling an apron off. This girl definitely fits right into this family. Molly never did and I’m beginning to wonder how none of us ever figured that out before now.
“Where’s Molly?” I ask, noticing I have not seen her at all and no one has even mentioned her.
“She lives in Nashville. Unfortunately, she doesn’t come home very often and visit,” Cindy says, sounding sad. How odd would it be to welcome a new daughter and find out you raised someone else’s.
“Does she have a family she’s getting to know like you are?” I ask Callie.
“No, my parents died when I was sixteen. I don’t have any other living relatives. I’m sure that’s been really hard on Molly,” she says.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” I say quietly.
“It’s okay. I’ve had Leighton since then and now I have my own huge family. I’m really thankful I finally decided to meet them.” She says this like she took a while to make that decision.
After an amazing supper, we are all sitting in the living room chatting about nothing stuff. I had forgotten how amazing this family was and how much I miss them. All of them.
“Hey, are you okay?” Jaxon asks quietly, sitting down beside me. I didn’t even realize I had tears running down my face until he said something.
“I’m good,” I say trying to give him a smile. “So, when’s the wedding?” I ask Leighton and Brody getting the attention off of me.
“In two weeks,” Leighton says smiling. “I wanted sooner, but I really want to get married at our house and the new barn won’t be ready until next weekend, so we will have to wait.”
“Our wedding was in a barn,” I say, wishing I could take it back. I don’t know why in the world I would mention a wedding that everyone here would probably rather forget. The room goes quiet until Leighton finally finds her voice again.
“Really, maybe you can give me some pointers on how to decorate. It’s hard to imagine it when I’m not really sure what it will look like.”
“Of course, anything you need, just let me know,” I say.
“She can take pictures, she’s a photographer. Has her own studio and everything,” Callie says, winking at me. I knew I liked this girl for a reason.
“That would be great. I already have one booked, but anything you want to take would be great. I want lots of pictures to remember this day,” she says smiling.
“Where did you and Ash get married?” I ask Callie. She smiles big at me before replying.
“Vegas,” she says with a grin.
“Seriously?” I ask, watching her nod at me. I can’t believe this family would let them get away with that.
“They didn’t tell anyone either, were married quite a while before we found out,” Brody says shaking his head. Wow, I thought this family told each other everything. I guess some things change.
“Can I hold a baby?” Ava asks Cindy who is holding one in her arms.
“If your mom doesn’t care, you can,” Cindy says, looking at me.
“If it’s okay with Callie,” I say. Callie just stands up and picks Ava up to settle her in a chair. She grabs a pillow and puts on the side of her and takes the baby from Cindy to give to Ava. She lays her down in Ava’s lap, but she’s propped up on the pillow.
“Can I hold the other one too?” she asks. Callie nods her head at her and takes the other baby from Brody and props her up on another pillow on her other side.
“You need to be really still,” she says to Ava before walking back
over to the couch. I’m just praying Ava doesn’t decide to jump up any time soon.
“I don’t have a sister,” Ava says to the babies. “Trent says I will one day though,” she whispers to them. The room goes completely silent and all eyes turn to me. Even though Jaxon isn’t touching me, I can feel his body tense up and the tension pouring off of him.
“Ava,” I say softly. “You know Trent and I won’t have babies. I don’t know why he told you that, but it’s not going to happen.”
“Okay,” she says sounding satisfied, until she decides to open her mouth again. “Will you and daddy get me a baby sister?” she asks innocently.
“Ava, no baby sisters any time soon. You will just have to play with them. They are your baby cousins, okay sweetie?”
“Okay mommy,” she says, staring down at the babies. Oh my. I love my baby girl more than anything, but the child does not know when to be quiet.
After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, my phone starts ringing. I grab it out of my purse and look down to see Trent’s name. I quickly push ignore, turn it off, and throw it back inside my purse. I turn around to look at Jaxon.
“Can I talk to you outside?” I ask quietly. He nods his head at me and stands up to head out of the door.
“Can y’all watch Ava for a few minutes?” I ask. Cindy nods at me barely taking her eyes off of her three granddaughters sitting together in a chair. What a mixed up family this is.
I follow Jaxon outside to where he is sitting in a swing on the front porch. I don’t sit down beside him, instead I lean back on the rails of the porch.
“You know I’m going to have to go back to Atlanta. My job is there, my house, everything,” I say. He sits and stares straight ahead. He’s not looking at me and he’s not saying anything either.
“I’m sorry,” he says so quiet I barely hear him. I don’t say anything back. He has so much to be sorry for, that I can’t figure out what he is talking about. “I never should have….” He stops talking then. I look back at him and he is shaking his head and has tears running down his cheeks. I have known Jaxon a long time and I have never once seen him cry. He wipes his face with his hands and looks up at me. “How do you not hate me right now?”
Forgiving You: A Switched Series Novella (The Switched Series Book 3) Page 4