Page 84 of See You at the Finish Line

“If that’s the case, I’ll guard the door while you fight her.”

A laugh huffs out of me.

“I appreciate the backup, Ashford.”

He looks at me briefly before turning back to the road, and I know he wants to ask but won’t push.

“My mom died during surgery for a brain tumour just over a year ago,” I say under my breath. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to say the words out loud, and they hit my heart with a brutal force. If Leah dies, I am going to murder her. She’s all I have left.

“I am so sorry, Paige,” he says, his voice breaking. I watch as he swallows.

I want to tell him about my mom, but the hold music stops and a new voice is on the line. I immediately put my guard up, ready to fight with this person too.

“Ms. Harrison?” another female voice says.

“Yes, I’m Leah’s sister and Levi’s guardian in her absence,” I say firmly.

“I have been made aware of that. My name is Ashlynn and I am the social worker on Levi’s case.”

“Are you aware that Ian is no more than a sperm donor?”

“Yes, I am now aware of that as well after reading his file and I want to apologize for the confusion. Ian introduced himself as Levi’s father and his name is on Levi’s birth certificate,” she explains. That little shit. “We have asked Ian to clarify the situation, and he told us it was true. Again, I am very sorry.”

That they had to corroborate my story with him bristles my already shredded patience. At least he told the truth. “All I care about is that Levi is safe until I can get there tomorrow.” And that my sister lives, but she can’t help with that.

“Of course. He’s currently sleeping, and I assure you, the doctors were thorough. He is fine and suffered no more than a few bruises. Your sister’s attention to proper car seat safety saved his life. That’s not always the case.” I laugh, relief flooding me.

Leah was obsessed with watching all the videos and reading the horror stories about car seats. She made sure I knew that Levi was to never ever wear a snowsuit in his car seat. When I made a joke about it, she sat me down and made me watch the videos so he would be safe when I was babysitting. I couldn’t exactly argue with a fire breathing, nine-month pregnant woman, so I sat through over an hour of videos. I’ll never make fun of her for it again.

“That’s a relief to hear.”

“And we will, of course, keep him overnight and wait for your arrival.”

“Thank you.” I breathe. A fresh wave of tears, this time of relief, washes over me. Adam reaches over to place a steady hand on my thigh, and I instinctively lay my hand on his, holding it there.

“Okay, if he wakes up and is fussy, he loves ‘Wheels on the Bus’ and ‘Fight Song’ by Rachel Platten.” I see Adam smile from the corner of my eye and the social worker laughs. “He will absolutely lose his mind if you try to feed him the wheat cereal, he’s a bougie baby and only likes the oat kind. His stomach also can’t handle the powdered formula, so it has to be the premade stuff. Trust me, your laundry service and your ears will thank you.”

“This is very helpful, Paige, thank you. Ian wasn’t able to give us much.”

“Yeah, that’s because he’s a dipshit who skipped out on my sister as soon as the stick showed two lines.”

“I understand,” she says reassuringly.

“Oh and if he starts missing his mom”—my eyes well up and my nose stings—“she lays him on her chest so he can listen to her heartbeat. It settles him right down.” As the tears fall, Adam squeezes my thigh.

“I’ll let the volunteers know. He’ll be well taken care of.”

“Thank you.”

“Is there anything else?”

“I think that’s all for now. Do you have any news about my sister?” I ask desperately.

“I’m sorry, Paige, I don’t. Do you want me to transfer you back to the nurse’s station?”

“No, they don’t know anything either.”

I hang up, feeling a tiny bit better knowing Levi is safe.

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