Page 31 of Silver Fox's Baby

Fran’s face is lighting up the screen. I almost choose not to answer it, but maybe the distraction will make everything a little less bleak.

“Hey, you.” Her voice is bright. “I was just wanting to know how your brother is. And you.”

“Um.” I try to muster up the strength to fake being okay. “He’s not in so much pain anymore.”

“Well, that’s great. And how areyou? You sound exhausted. Are you hungry? Can I bring you food?”

“We’re three hours away.” I swallow hard. “And we’re going to be released soon. I’ll see you at work tomorrow. I might actually even make it back for a late shift at the Golden Pony.”

“Um, no. You need to go home andsleep,Mel.”

Sleep? I don’t think I’ll ever be able to sleep again. I have an eighty-five-thousand-dollar surgery to pay for.

“We’ll see.” I’m too tired to argue. All I know is that I need to figure out how to help my brother. Iwanthim to be normal.

“Can I do something for you? Anything? I’ll come and clean your house or something,” Fran pleads on the phone. “You sound so down.”

“I’m really just tired.” I try to pick my tone back up. “I also got an email from Dr. Banks. He’s not letting me stay after class anymore since I missed.”

“What an asshole! What kind of decent human being would do that after you’ve been in the hospital with your brother?”

“One that doesn’t know.” I sigh. “I forgot to let him know that I wouldn’t be there.”

“Well, you have a good reason! Do you want me to go tell him? I’m right outside of Andreas Hall anyway. I’ll march right in there and let him know.”

I smile. “No, that’s okay. I’ll tell him.”

And hopefully survive doing so.

10

Aiden

“She’s not going to take your son,” my brother, reassures me on the phone. “Madeline wouldn’t last two weeks having to be a full-time mom. She’ll wind up hiring another nanny.”

“Yeah, I know, but that’s very well what she might do,” I grunt, unlocking the lecture hall and flipping on the lights.

Class starts in thirty minutes, but I’m running early, since Connor had to be picked up from Maddie’s early. Go figure.

“It’ll never stand, bro.” Landon’s voice is firm. “You and I both know that she’s never been that great of a mom. I told you that even when you were still married.”

“Courts always favor the mom.”

“You’re being negative for no reason. You’re going to have to just ride this out and see what happens. I have no doubt that it will work out the way it’s supposed to. Besides, we both know that evenifConnor had to go with her, he’d come right back the moment he was legally able.”

The thought still sends my heart into a panic.

I don’t know what I’d do without my son being here. “I guess I’d have to just move there, too.”

Landon laughs. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“I don’t know.” I sigh, pulling out the chair at the small desk a few feet away from the podium. Most have their teacher’s assistants sit there while they lecture, but I don’t have one.

“Just have a little faith that things will work out the way they’re supposed to. That’s what I tell all my kids.”

“Yeah.”

“And Jasper is killing it with Tess.”

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