Page 61 of Love In The Spotlight

Bringing up images in her brain of what she would have wanted out of her father.

If her father had been around.

Or if there weren’t seven other kids he had to spread his attention out to on those rare times he was home.

Her father did the best he could and she knew it. He was a great father when he had the chance to be one.

“Do you know the story behind why he has custody of his daughter?” West asked.

“I do. I know you don’t know it all,” she said.

“I know that Penelope’s mother isn’t alive,” West said. “Nothing more.”

“That’s right. It doesn’t matter.”

“It does as his business partner if it’s going to affect things,” Braylon said. “You know that.”

She let out another sigh. If it was anyone else, she’d agree with that.

“I don’t think it’s going to affect anything. Penelope’s mother never wanted a child. You know that. He told me he told you.”

“He did. He said he brought his daughter home from the hospital. He named her and she has been only his from the moment she was born.”

“That’s right,” she said. “And then the woman who carried her died months later. End of story. It’s not Penelope’s mother. Penelope doesn’t have a mother and I’m not going to refer to that woman as such since I know the facts.”

“How do you feel about the fact that someone is always going to have more of his attention than you?” Braylon asked. “That a child will come first?”

She wanted to argue that was mean to say but wouldn’t. It was an honest question.

“I’m fine with it. I don’t think I’d want to be with a man that put others before their children. Not this young. I think of how much it would have hurt us if Mom found some man when we were all home. If she put him before us. I can look at it from the other side since we were all pretty much raised by a single mother even when Dad was alive.”

“She has a point,” Braylon said looking at West.

“Are you going to tell Mom?” West asked.

“At some point. Why?”

“Just asking,” West said.

“We’ve had to go through it,” Braylon said. “You know she’s got it in her mind that you should be trying. Maybe save yourself more comments. She made a few at Christmas. And that stands to reason why you didn’t say anything a few weeks ago.”

“Because there wasn’t much to say,” she said. “Maybe we were just at the flirting and feeling it out stage.”

They’d kissed but nothing more. She was trying to block out that kiss and it wasn’t happening.

She wondered if Jamie hadn’t sent her that text on Christmas Day if she would have made the move.

“Does he know you’re telling us?” West asked.

“Yes. Full disclosure. Penelope came up. I know he was on the fence telling me the truth of it all. I offered an olive branch and said this wasn’t a fly by night thing in my mind. No one knows what will happen, but at least I’m trying. If we can figure schedules out.”

“His work schedule will be lighter in six weeks,” Braylon said. “Once the Super Bowl is over.”

“And I’m trying to clear things up so I can spend more time here too. We’ll see how it goes. Just know that work and what we’ve got outside of work won’t cross over or interfere. Your investment is safe.”

“I never doubted that,” West said.

“Thanks for that at least. You only doubt my choice in men?”

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