Page 66 of Everything We Left Unsaid

Jacob

The drive homeis going to suck. Big time. I get on the road in plenty of time to reach Arlington by noon so I can prepare for my one o’clock meeting, but I find myself taking a detour. I pull into Abby’s driveway just as Ethan steps off his bike. He turns to glare at me as he slips off his helmet, but his features relax when he sees who’s behind him.

“Jacob,” he greets me with a cordial nod. He still hasn’t warmed up to me completely, but at least he’s not trying to kick my ass anymore. I think he knows he was wrong and that I was telling the truth, but he’s not ready to admit it yet. He may never admit it, and I’m okay with that. As long as he treats my girls well and doesn’t try to pick a fight with me again, I can live with it.

When we walk into the house, Abby is pacing, her cell pressed to her ear. Dark circles rim her eyes and she’s chewing on her lip anxiously. She’s exhausted and stressed and I immediately feel guilty. I kept her up way too late last night, but I needed to indulge in her body and her love one last time before I left.

She freezes when she sees me. “Jacob?” she exclaims, her voice near gasping. I open my arms and she walks into my embrace, her phone call all but forgotten. “I didn’t know you were…” she begins, but a voice comes back on the other end of the line. “Yes, I’m still here,” she assures the person she was holding for when I entered her house. “Oh,” she says, her shoulders slumping in defeat. “Thank you for checking.” She listens for a moment before speaking again, her pacing recommencing. “Yes, please. I’d like to place her on the waiting list.” I frown as she says her goodbyes, wondering what the call is about.

She shoves her phone in her pocket and lets out a defeated sigh. “What’s going on?” My instinct to fix all her problems kicks into overdrive.

“Ethan’s not going to be here much longer, and I need to find someone to watch Chloe while I’m at work. She can’t stay here with my grandmother anymore, not after everything that’s happened.”

I mentally kick myself, wishing I’d said something last night so we could have avoided all this stress. “Actually,” I begin, hoping I haven’t overstepped. “That’s not going to be a problem.”

“What?” she asks, whipping her head around.

“It’s already taken care of.” She gawks at me, her expression stunned. “I got a little distracted last night and forget to tell you.” She catches my meaning and her face flushes. Ethan makes a disgusted sound in the back of his throat and leaves the room. I’d forgotten about his presence when I saw how distressed Abby was. Oops. “I’ve already made arrangements for her.” I give her the name and location of the learning center I contacted a couple days ago. With ratings higher than any other facility within a fifty-mile radius and impeccable credentials, it was the only place I felt comfortable sending my daughter.

“You got her accepted there?” she asks incredulously.

“Yeah. I mean, it took a little convincing, but one of the children in her class is only a month away from moving up, so they said they could accommodate an extra student until then,” I explain. I gathered from what I’d heard that this was a highly coveted daycare and preschool, the best the area had to offer.

Her face morphs from shock to irritation. “How the hell am I going to afford that? That’s where all the rich people send their kids!”

I recoil slightly, taken aback by her question and the aggravation in her tone. What the hell? Does she think I expect her to pay for this? I’m her father, for fuck’s sake! I’m not going to leave everything up to Abby.

I take a deep breath and try to clamp down my irritation. “If you haven’t noticed, you’re not in this alone anymore. I’m more than capable of providing for you and Chloe.” She winces and opens her mouth to speak but I cut her off, needing her to hear this… to really hear this and understand me fully. “If you want to quit your job tomorrow and stay home to raise her, I will fully support you. If you want to cut back your hours so you can spend more time at home with our daughter but still keep your job, I’ll make sure you guys want for nothing,” I promise, my voice laced with conviction, hoping she can see that I’ll back her one-hundred percent, no matter what. “But if you want to continue working, then our daughter will go to the best damn daycare in this town,” I assert. “If she can’t be with Ama, then she’ll go somewhere that we know she’ll be well cared for. The cost is irrelevant. But just so you know, the first month is already paid for and they know where to send the bill.”

I inch closer to her during my little tirade. I don’t mean to, but she lit a fire in me. She needs to know where I stand and know that the responsibility of having a child isn’t all on her shoulders anymore. She needs to know I can take care of them, and that I want to. She needs to look into my eyes and know I mean everything I just said.

My body vibrates with tension, anger and disappointment bunching my shoulders and tightening my jaw, expecting a fight. But she surprises me by throwing her arms around my neck and kissing me. My ire evaporates as her mouth opens and her tongue slips inside, and suddenly I groan, my arms encircling her waist. She presses her body against mine, connecting us from chest to hips and I feel my dick jump. I thought I’d gotten my fill of her last night, but I was wrong. Her fervor excites me and all I can think about is getting her naked again.

Finally, she pulls back, her chest heaving up and down. My gaze moves to her breasts, the material of her top stretching over them with every deep breath she takes. “I’m sorry,” she says, and my eyes snap to hers. “I don’t doubt you. It’s just,” she falters, unsure how to proceed. “I’m just used to doing this all on my own,” she explains, and I feel her words like a punch in the gut. “And I’m not saying that to hurt you,” she adds quickly, “or to dredge up the past. That’s all behind us now,” she promises, taking my hand in hers. “It’ll take some getting used to, you being in the picture, knowing I don’t have to do it all by myself anymore.”

I understand where she’s coming from, but it still fucking hurts. I haven’t been there for them, and even though I couldn’t help it and am powerless to change the past, it’s still like a knife slicing straight into my heart.

“I get it. We both have to make some adjustments, and I’m sure there will be some growing pains along the way.” I pull her into me again and tuck her head under my chin. “No matter what, we’re in this together now. We’re a team.” She nods her head in agreement and I relax a little, letting her warm embrace comfort me and soothe the ache that’s settled into my chest.

After a moment, I reluctantly step out of her embrace, knowing my time is dwindling. “I have to go,” I inform her regretfully.

“I know. I’m glad you stopped by. I didn’t think I would see you after last night.”

“I didn’t either, but I appreciate the send-off you gave me.” I shoot her a sly smile to lighten the mood and she giggles.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Both our heads snap up to find Ethan standing at the end of the hallway, his body turning to retreat into the spare room. I’m not sure what he could possibly be doing in there. Ama showed me the room, informing me it was Ethan’s old bedroom but is technically Chloe’s, even though she still stays with Abby. All that’s in there is a toddler bed Chloe has yet to sleep in, a dresser, and a bunch of boxes piled up in the corner.

For some reason, I picture Ethan’s tall body curled up in that little bed with his long limbs bunched up against his chest, and the thought makes me chuckle.

“Ugh, that’s twice now,” Abby laments, shaking her head, her face buried in her hands. I pull them away and bring her body into mine to kiss her one last time. If I don’t hit the road soon, I won’t have time to prep for my meeting.

“I’ll call you tonight,” I assure her. She nods and smiles sadly at me. “I need to see Chloe before I go.”

“Of course.” She leads me to her room. Chloe stirs in her crib when the door creaks open but doesn’t wake.

I reach inside and hold her soft little hand. “Goodbye, baby girl. I’ll see you soon,” I promise. And I will. Things will be different this time. I can feel it. That desperate melancholy I felt last time isn’t there. I’ll see them again. I won’t let anything get in the way of that.

I drive straightto my parents’ house after work. All I could think about during my meeting was finding them and getting to the bottom of what happened two years ago. I stalk up the walkway, determined to find out who’s responsible for keeping Abby and me apart for so long, for keeping the knowledge I have a daughter from me. My step falters at that thought. My parents have no idea I have a child, that they have a grandchild. Shit. I’ll have to rethink my approach. I can’t just barge in there, demanding answers. They’re going to need a moment to adjust to this new reality.

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