by Sandi Lynn
“I’m so excited to have a grandson,” his mother spoke as she hugged me tight.
Later that night after we put Lily to bed, Stefan and I climbed under the covers, and I snuggled my body against his.
“We need to start thinking about names,” he said.
“I think we have time for that.” My lips pressed against his bare muscular chest.
“I like the name Liam.”
“That would be a great middle name,” I said.
“Middle name? What are you thinking for a first name?”
I lifted my head as the corners of my mouth curved upward.
“Henry. Henry Liam Kind.”
“You want to name our son after my father?”
“Why not? I’ve always liked the name Henry.”
“I’ll get back to you on that one.” He smiled.
“Okay. I was thinking about the colors for Henry’s nursery.”
He let out sigh. “We’re naming him Henry?”
“We’re naming him Henry.” I grinned as I reached up and kissed his lips.
“Henry Liam Kind it is.”
“I love you.”
“I love you more, baby.”
I laid my head back on his chest and closed my eyes.
Chapter 42
One Month Later
Stefan
I grabbed my phone from my desk and slipped it into my pocket as I headed out of my office to meet Sam at a job. Pushing the button to the elevator, I waited for it to come up. The ding was sweet music to my ears as I was already running late, but when the doors opened, I stared at the woman staring back at me.
“Hello, Stefan.”
“Monica?”
“I was hoping you were here. Can we talk?”
I was in shock to say the least. The last time I’d seen her was six years ago after she dropped Lily off at my house.
“No. We can’t. I’m running late for a meeting. What the hell are you doing here?” I asked as I stepped into the elevator.
“I want to see our daughter.”
“Well, that isn’t happening. You were stripped of your parental rights. Who the hell do you think you are coming back here after all these years?”
When the doors opened to the parking garage, I stepped out and headed to my car.
“I just want to see her. Please, Stefan. I’m begging you.” She followed behind.
I stopped, turned around and pointed my finger at her in anger.
“You lost your right to see her when you dropped her off with me and never came back,” I spoke through gritted teeth.
“Everyone makes mistakes. Please, Stefan. Let’s just talk. I need to know how she is.”
I reached my car and placed my hand on the handle of the door. Taking in a deep breath, I turned and looked at her as her eyes filled with tears.
“She’s amazing, Monica. Absolutely amazing. She’s happy and that’s how she’s going to stay.”
“Please,” she whispered. “Can we please just talk?”
It was against my better judgement, but I hesitantly agreed.
“Fine. Meet me at Four Kinds tonight at seven p.m. We can talk there.”
“Thank you, Stefan. Thank you.”
I shook my head, climbed in my car and took off to meet Sam.
“You’re fucking late, bro.” Sam stood there with his hands tucked in his pants pockets. “I have other work to do.”
“Don’t.” I put my hand up.
“What’s wrong?”
“The reason I’m late is because I had a little visitor as I was leaving the office.”
“Who?” His brows furrowed.
“Monica.”
“What? What the hell does she want?”
“She wants to talk to me, and she wants to see Lily.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I told her I’d meet her tonight at Four Kinds to talk.”
“You’re seriously not going to let her see Lily, are you?”
“I don’t have any intentions of letting that happen, and I’m telling her tonight. Alex is working tonight, so can you and Julia watch Lily while I do this?”
“Yes. Of course.” He placed his hand on my shoulder. “What do you think Alex is going to say about this?”
“I don’t know, but after I leave here, I’m heading home to talk to her. I don’t need this shit, Sam. I don’t need that woman trying to walk back into my daughter’s life.”
“I know, brother. But you’re not alone in this. You have all of us backing you.”
After I left the job, I climbed in my car and dialed Sebastian.”
“Talk to me, bro.”
“I need our family table tonight. I’ll be in around seven.”
“Okay. For you and Lily?”
“No.” I sighed. “Monica paid me a little visit today.”
“What the fuck? Why?”
“She wants to talk. So, I told her to meet me at the restaurant. You’ll be there, right?”
“Yeah. I’ll be here tonight.”
“Good. I’ll see you later.”
When I got home, I walked into the kitchen and Alex looked at me with a smile on her face.
“What are you doing home already?” She wrapped her arms around my neck.
“I have to talk to you about something.” I kissed her lips. “Where’s Lily?”
“Maddie’s mom took them shopping. What’s going on, Stefan?”
“Monica paid me a little visit today.” I turned and planted my hands on the kitchen island.
“Lily’s mom?”
“Don’t call her that. She’s not her mother.”
“Okay. The woman who gave birth to her. What does she want?”
“She wants to talk, and she said she wants to see Lily. I told her to come to Four Kinds tonight at seven and I’d listen to what she has to say. But if you don’t think it’s a good idea, I won’t do it.”
“I think it won’t hurt to listen to her. You stripped her of her parental rights, Stefan, so, there’s nothing she can do. I’m working tonight, so I’ll be there if you need me. I also think if she wants to see Lily, that’s up to Lily to decide. Don’t get all worked up over this. Listen to what she has to say and then we can go from there. I got you, babe.” The corners of her mouth curved upward into a beautiful smile.
I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into me.
“I don’t know what I’d do without you. I love you so much.”
“I love you too.”
“Did you feel that?” I broke our embrace and placed my hands on her growing belly.
“How could I not.” She laughed.
I got down on my knees, lifted her shirt and pressed my lips against her belly.
“I’m not going to let anyone, or anything disrupt this family of mine.”
Chapter 43
Stefan
I arrived with Alex to the restaurant at six thirty. I needed a couple drinks in me before I met with Monica.
“What’s your pleasure, Mr. Kind?” Alex asked with a beautiful smile as I took a seat at the bar.
“Martini. You know how I like it.” I gave her a wink.
“Hey, Alex.” Sebastian smiled. “Bro,” he placed his hand on my back. “How are you holding up?”
“Just dandy.”
Alex set my martini down in front of me and walked away to help other customers.
“It’ll be okay.” Sebastian gave my back a pat.
“Hey, bros.” Simon smiled as he sat down on the stool next to me.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I came for support. Sebastian told me you’re meeting Monica. So, I thought I’d sit here and keep an eye on you in case you got out of hand. I don’t need you going to jail tonight.” He smirked.
“Good idea.” I let out a chuckle. “Thanks.”
“Hi, Simon. What can I get you?”
“Hi, Alex. I’ll have a single malt scotch, 17 years.”
“Coming right up.” She smiled.
“I thought I was going to be late with all that damn traffic.” I heard Sam’s voice from behind.
“Really?” I cocked my head. “You’re all here?”
“Of course.” Sam’s brows furrowed. “I told you we’re all here for you.”
I finished off my martini and walked behind the bar to give my beautiful girlfriend a kiss.
“Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need it. You got this. Don’t forget I’m a pregnant hormonal woman. I’m here if you need me to take control.” She grinned.
“I will keep that in mind.” I pressed my lips against her forehead.
I walked over to our family table and looked at my watch. It was five minutes after seven. Maybe Monica changed her mind. One could only hope. Sam and Simon were seated at the table across from mine, and I was grateful they were here.
I was looking down at my phone when I heard Monica’s voice.
“Hi, Stefan.”
Looking up at her, I spoke, “I didn’t think you were going to show.”
“I’m sorry.” She took the seat across from mine. “I forgot how horrible traffic is around here.”
“Hello, Monica.” Sebastian walked over to the table. “What can I get you to drink?”
“Sebastian. It’s good to see you again. The restaurant is beautiful.”
“Thanks.”
“I’ll have a cup of coffee.”
“Have Alex make me another martini,” I said.
“Coming right up.”
“So, you wanted to talk. Talk.”
“I know it must have been difficult for you when I never came back. I need you to understand why I did what I did.”
“I’m listening.”
“I met this guy, and I fell in love with him the moment I met him. I thought he was the best thing that had ever happened to me. The problem was, he did a lot of coke, and he got me hooked. The day I was supposed to pick Lily up, I was on my way to Florida. Steven had told me a few days before that he was moving there to work for a friend of his. He wanted me to go with him but told me that if I did, I couldn’t bring Lily.” Tears streamed down her face. “I’d known him for three weeks, and I chose him over my daughter because the thought of losing him scared me.”
I sat there and listened as the rage inside me grew.
“We went to Florida, and it turned out he wasn’t the man I thought he was. He became controlling and abusive.”
“How long were you with him?”
“About a year. One night we were at a party. We had been drinking and doing drugs and I saw him making out with another girl. I confronted him about it when we got home, and he started screaming at me. When I told him I was leaving, he beat me and almost killed me. If it wasn’t for my neighbor calling the police, he would have. But when he heard the sirens, he fled. They eventually found him and threw him in jail. The night before his sentencing, he hung himself in his cell. I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders when I’d found out. The first thing I did when I got out of the hospital was score some coke. I had been clean for two weeks and I couldn’t stay that way. I was too weak, and I did horrible things to feed my addiction. My life was such a mess and I prayed to God every day to help me. A few months later, I bought some coke from this guy, and it was bad cocaine. Really bad. I almost died from it. When I woke up in the hospital, there was this woman sitting in the chair next to my bed holding the picture I carried around of Lily. She asked if she was my daughter and asked me where she was. I told her my story, and she told me hers and how she was addicted to drugs back in the day and lost her son.”
“Who was she?”
“Her name was Hattie, and she was a substance abuse social worker. After we talked for several hours, she convinced me to get into a treatment program in Maine. She bought my plane ticket, helped me pack my things and sent me on my way. I had never been so grateful to anyone in my life. I felt like God sent her to me as my guardian angel.”
“And?” I spoke in a stern voice.
“I got the help I needed, met and married an amazing man, and I’ve been clean for over four years. I went back to college, finished the classes I needed and got my degree in marketing.”
“Good for you. Why are you here? Why now?”
“Because I want to see her, Stefan. I want to see the little girl you raised.”
“Then you should have thought about that six years ago before you decided to choose some loser and drugs over her,” I spoke through gritted teeth.
“I’ve made mistakes, terrible mistakes. But I have never once forgotten about her. I think about her every single day.”
“Okay. Like I said, why now?”
“Because I wanted to get my life together before I saw her again, and I’ve done just that. I’m her mother, Stefan.”
“NO, YOU’RE NOT!” I jammed my finger into the table as I raised my voice.
“Hey, bro. Let’s keep this civil,” Sebastian said as he walked over. “We don’t want to disturb the other customers.”
“Do me a favor and go get Alex.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I’m sure.” I looked up at him.
Chapter 44
Alex
“Hey.” Sebastian walked up to the bar and placed his hand on my back. “Stefan needs you. I’ll get Samantha to cover. It’s slow tonight anyway.”
“Is Monica still here?”
“Yeah, and things are getting a little heated.”
I took in a deep breath, walked over to the table and placed my hand on Stefan’s back.
“See this woman right here? This is Lily’s mother. You are only the woman who gave birth to her, nothing more.”
Oh boy.
“Hi. I’m Alex.” I extended my hand as I sat down next to Stefan.
“I’m Monica. How far along are you?”
“Twenty weeks.”
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
I couldn’t believe how much Lily looked like her.
“Let’s go, Alex. I’m telling Sebastian your shift is over.” He stood up from his chair. “We’re done here, Monica.”
“Please, Stefan. You don’t even have to tell her who I am. Just let me see her and talk to her.”
“No. You are not coming here and disrupting my daughter’s life.” He walked away. Sam and Simon got up and followed Stefan out of the restaurant.
I stared at Monica as tears streamed down her face. Being pregnant, I felt for her. Pulling a pen from my pocket, I handed it to her and slid a napkin across the table.
“Hurry up and write down your number. Let me talk to him and I’ll call you.”
She quickly wrote down her number and handed me the napkin.
“Thank you, Alex. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll be in touch.” I got up from my seat.
Walking behind the bar, I grabbed my purse.
“I’m sorry,” I said to Sebastian.
“Don’t be. You go and be with him. He needs you. I’m just finishing up here, and I’ll come over after.”
When we climbed in the car, I reached over, grabbed his hand and gripped it tight.
“I know you’re upset, but when we get home, we’re going to talk about it.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. She’s not seeing Lily. End of discussion, Alex.” He pulled away from the curb. “She was going on about how she met this guy. He got her hooked-on coke and he almost beat her to death. Then she overdosed and almost died, but now she’s been clean for four years, met and married some guy and got her degree in marketing.”
“Sounds to me like she put her life back together. I understand your hesitation, but you have to think about Lily.”
“Excuse me?” He glanced over at me. “I am thinking about my daughter!” he shouted.
“Oh hell no. You’re not going to shout at me, Stefan Kind.”
“I’m
sorry. I love you.”
“I know and I love you. That’s why we’re going to talk about this calmly.”
We went into the house, and Stefan grabbed a beer from the refrigerator. Simon and Sam followed us inside.
“We can go if you don’t want us here,” Sam spoke.
“No. It’s fine. You heard everything she said, right?”
“Yeah. We heard,” Simon said. “Unfortunately, I see that shit every day. Don’t think I’m defending her, bro, but she seems to have turned her life around.”
“Simon is right, Stefan.” I placed my hand on his arm as he leaned against the counter. “You have to look at this situation in a different perspective.”
“Really, Alex? Why don’t you tell me how I need to see this?”
“I’m going to.” I smiled. “But I’m going to wait until you calm the hell down first.”
“I am calm.”
“No, you’re not. I know when you’re all worked up. That little vein in your forehead pulsates like you’re going to explode.”
“She’s right,” Sam said.
“Shut up, bro.”
He took his beer outside on the patio, and I asked Sam and Simon if they could leave us alone. After they left, I grabbed a blanket and stepped outside. Taking his hand, I led him down to the beach, spread the blanket out by the shoreline and made him sit down.
“You said you’re thinking about Lily, but you’re not. You’re thinking about yourself.”
“What? How can you say that?”
“You may think you’re protecting her, but you’re not. Your actions right now will come back to bite you in the ass when Lily get older. She may even hate you for it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Monica is her mother, whether you like it or not. She’s her biological mother, and Lily will be curious about her. It’s natural, Stefan. And what are you going to tell her when she asks? Are you going to lie to her to protect yourself?”
“The truth. I’m going to tell her that she left her for some abusive guy and that he and drugs were more important to her than she was.”
“And you don’t think that’s going to hurt her? What about when she finds out she wanted to see her, and you wouldn’t let her?”