Page 133 of Already Home

“We just heard. I’m so sorry. I really loved your mom. She wasvery special.”

Jenna didn’t bother pointing out Serenity wasn’t her mother.Somehow in the past few weeks, that had changed. She’d learned it was possibleto have two mothers. Even if one of them had just died.

“I’ll get Ellington,” the girl said, grabbed a tissue andwalked to the back.

A few minutes later, Ellington came up to the waiting area.Without saying anything, he took her hand and led her through the main hallwayto a small patio next to his office. When they were alone in the dappledsunlight, he touched her cheek.

“How are you holding up?” he asked.

“I’m angry.”

“At me?”

“Partly.” She crossed her arms and turned her back on him.“It’s not just you,” she said dully. “It’s that everyone knew. Tom and Dragonand Wolf and Jasmine. They all knew and no one said anything.”

“She’d asked them not to.”

“You’d think one of them would have taken me aside andwhispered a hint.” She spun back to him, remembering. “You hinted.”

“No.”

“You did. I remember. But I didn’t get it. I wasn’t expectingthis.”

Frustration built inside of her. She walked the length of thepatio.

“It doesn’t make sense,” she told him. “I’ve been asking andasking, why now? Why did she choose this moment to get in touch with me? Now Iknow. She wanted to meet me before she died, which I get. She claimed that I wasimportant to her. She talked about me to my brothers and celebrated my birthday,but she never bothered to pick up the phone. How am I supposed to believe her?She said she was waiting for me to get in touch with her. So this is myfault?”

Ellington didn’t answer her. It was not as though he had anymiracle information to share.

“If she wanted to know me, why did she wait so long? She couldhave contacted my parents years ago. Or me. I’m not that hard to find.”

“Life takes different turns for different people,” he saidquietly. “I can’t say what drove Serenity. Guilt maybe. I always wondered if shefelt she didn’t deserve to know you—not after giving you up.”

Deserve? “That’s crazy. She was a kid who got pregnant. Shegave me to a warm, loving home. I don’t have any regrets.”

“But you’re not the one who gave away your child. Serenityloved with her whole heart. She gave everything. Perhaps giving up a child madeher look at herself in a way she didn’t like. Maybe it wasn’t about you so muchas her.”

“We’ll never know,” she said, feeling sick to her stomach. “Idon’t like this. Any of it. If I’d known, I would have asked differentquestions. I would have asked for the truth.”

“If she’d wanted you to know, she would have told you.”

She whirled to face him. “That’s supposed to be good enough? Ishould believe that?”

“You don’t have a choice.”

She shook her head. “I don’t accept that.”

“Not accepting doesn’t change what is.”

“Don’t you dare go all guru on me, Ellington. You’ve had yourtongue in my mouth.”

He gave her a smile. “That puts things in perspective.”

There was a moment when she didn’t feel quite so horrible, thenthe pain and anger descended, leaving her sad.

“I don’t know what happens next,” she said. “Do I stay in touchwith my birth family? Do I not?”

“You don’t have to decide today.”

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