Page 13 of Tripp

I just had to decide if I wanted to trust him to put it back together again. Could this time be different? Would he leave again after he knew the truth?

I had to push back the fact that he’d hurt me by always leaving.

Running the pad of my finger along Penny’s cheek, my smile grew.

I’d never gotten to be a mother in the formative years—you know, in my late twenties or, hell, even my early thirties, when I was married and had more time and energy.

It turned out to be the best part of those years. I didn’t have to have a child live with a shitty man too. And I was grateful for that.

I was blessed with a baby when I needed her the most. My marriage had dissolved, my ex being a total shitbag. The bastard hit me one too many times, and I’d finally had enough. That last hit was out. The marriage, the years of misery—done. He, of course, said he was ‘sorry.’ I got the ‘it was an accident, you just made me mad.’ And of course, the famous last words, ‘it’ll never happen again.’ It always happened again. If they hit you once, they’d do it a hundred times.

I might be clueless sometimes, but I’ve been to that rodeo. It ends with the bull rider in misery. No thanks. I left the house that night with no real destination in mind. I’d ended up at the bar on the edge of town.

Happenstance put the person I needed in my path. I had no idea Tripp was even in town. And truthfully, I had no idea I’d end up in his motel room.

He probably felt that he’d taken advantage of me that night. Because that’s the kind of man he was. Good from the tip to toe. A great father, even when things were rocky with the ex from hell.

Never fear, he didn’t do a damn thing wrong. Things just weren’t right then for us to be together. I believed things happened for a reason. We couldn’t begin to fathom why, and it wasn’t for us to understand. We lived, learned, and made the life we wanted with what we’d been handed.

That night started so badly and ended blissfully. We’d both been drinking, but I knew what I was doing. I knew what I wanted. Him.

I’d seen the lust in his eyes—I wanted all of him so bad I could taste it. He’d helped wash the sting of betrayal and hurt away. The next morning though, it had been me who’d run off. I wasn’t upset that it had happened. I hated that I’d technically taken advantage of him. Used him to make myself feel better.

I hadn’t said goodbye. Hadn’t wanted to. That night replayed in my mind often. His gentle touches. The love and patience he’d showed me. The love was always wanted, the love we deserved was at my fingertips. So was the fear of denial.

“Does he know?”

I jerked, not having any idea Scooter was there. For a big guy, he moved around like a ninja. I looked up, meeting his gaze.

“Tell him what?”

“Don’t. You know damn well what I mean.”

Shit. “How long?—”

“A few months. Phoenix is the one who asked me about it. That day y’all came by the shop. He took one look at her, and he knew.”

“How?”

“He said she looks just like him at that age. The curly hair, the eyes. It’s kind of obvious once you put it together.”

“I didn’t think tonight was the right time.” I rubbed my neck. “Do you think he knows and just hasn’t said anything?”

He sighed. “No, if he knew, he’d have mentioned it. I thought when he saw her at the station, he’d just know. But there was so much going on. He was solely focused on finding you.”

“I can’t believe you called him—he showed up.”

“If there is anyone on this planet, other than you, that I know I can count on, it’s Tripp. He may have his issues, but loyalty ain’t one of them.”

He had a point there. “I’ll have to talk to him about it; it’s eating me up that he doesn’t know. I’m just scared.”

“That's fair, but, sis, you owe it to him to let him be a part of his daughter’s life. She needs to know she has a father who would move heaven and earth for her.”

I smiled. “He would. I have no doubts about that. I just don’t know where we stand. Will he break my heart again, or would we be enough to spark a change?”

“You won’t know until you talk to him.” Scooter came in, gently took Penny from me, and moved her back to her crib. He then helped me up to my feet, holding my crutches out for me.

“I’ll talk to him tomorrow. Later today. Guess I need to tell Phoenix too. Man, that’s an age difference…” I chuckled slightly.

---