Page 1 of Claimed By the Don

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DAISY

Ipress ‘begin’ on the screen. It will be forty-three hours before we reach our destination but that’s if I drive straight through, which I can’t. With bathroom stops and time to sleep, it’ll be closer to four days, but I’m ready to be on my way.

Liam’s buckled into his booster seat behind me, his forehead furrowed in concentration as he colors a picture of the Paw Patrol pups on his travel tray. I rub my chest just beneath my collarbone, the warmth blooming there when I look at my son. He’s the sweetest, funniest kid, and so precious to me. I switch the sound off on my phone and take a quick picture of him to send my mom.

“I saw that,” he says, lifting one eyebrow in a way that reminds me so much of his dad that I start to feel like my skin is too tight and too hot. I smile at him.

“Can’t help it, buddy. You’re too cute. I have to capture it on film.”

“Film?”

“Okay, on my phone. You don’t know what film is, and that makes me feel about eighty years old. I’ll just drive and we’ll pretend I never said that,” I say, shifting the car into gear.

I’m pulling a rented trailer with our stuff all the way from Washington to New Jersey. Not only have I never driven with a pull-behind trailer, but I also never intended to go back to New Jersey at all.

We haven’t been there since Liam was two, over three years ago. A couple times a year, I get my mom a cheap ticket to fly out and visit us. It’s nice for her to get away from all the noise of the neighborhood.

Our duplex, the one I had to let go, is on a quiet street just a few blocks from the pre-K Liam went to. I loved it here, and I’ll miss the place where I’ve raised my son, but my mom needs me.

As if summoned by my thoughts, she calls.

“I think that boy’s grown a foot since I last saw him,” she admonishes me when I answer.

“Hi Gram!” Liam sings out from the back seat.

“Hi, baby!” she says.

“We just left, Mom,” I say, watching the mirror a little nervously as I merge with traffic.

“Don’t panic. You’ll find your way. There’s no hurry.”

“No hurry. Yeah, you’ll just fall out of your wheelchair trying to reach the icemaker or something before I get there.”

“I’m not stupid, Daisy,” she says balefully. “I’m not going to climb the refrigerator. I was in a car wreck. I didn’t get hurt trying to Cirque de Soleil in the shower.”

I chuckle, “Okay, we’ll be there as soon as we can. GPS says forty-three hours.”

“Make sure you stop when you’re tired. If you need to take longer, I’ll manage. I’d rather you be safe.”

“I know Mom. I’m not stupid either,” I say with a smile.

“Mommy says we’re gonna sleep in a hotel!” Liam pipes up from the back seat.

“That’ll be fun,” my mom replies. “Now keep your eyes on the road. I love you.”

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow and let you know how far we made it the first day driving. Love you,” I say and hang up.

I let Liam be the DJ for a while and listen to as much Kids Bop as I could stand. He naps for a while, and I need to pee but I’m not about to stop and wake him up.

I think about showing him the place where I grew up, taking him to the same cart where I bought ice cream, walking him to the library. I’m excited to show him all that, but dread seeps in and taints my enthusiasm. As much as I want to share my favorite places with him, I dread the chance of running into his father.

When I found out I was pregnant at nineteen, I took off and never looked back. It wasn’t exactly the kind of relationship that could end up with a white picket fence and a happily ever after. I had no desire to live behind bullet proof glass and constantly look over my shoulder.

I had a crush on Benny from the time I was about fifteen years old. He was dark and wicked looking, hair slicked back and a tattoo showing on his bicep. It’s not like I could resist a bad boy, and he was the baddest of them all. He was a bottom-rungthug, working his way up the ladder in the family business. He collected protection fees and shook down guys that owed his dad money. Unless he got out of the business—unlikely—Benny will take over the organization when his father steps down as head of the family or dies.

I fell for him and ended up pregnant and alone. There was no way I would bring a defenseless, innocent baby into that life. I ran away, and now I’m going back.

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