Page 18 of The Archer and his Rosebud

“My sister boring? No way.”

I cry harder with a soft chuckle. “I miss you guys so much.”

“I know, sis. We miss you, too.” He pats my back before steering me inside and dropping his bag on the floor. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but it’s just me. Mom’s got some leadership conference this weekend which is why she agreed to let me come.”

“Aren’t you missing football practice being here? Isn’t your first game next Friday?”

“It is, and we have the weekend off.” He kicks off his shoes and glances around. “Where’s my favorite girl?”

Her smacking lips and coos make my answer unnecessary. Crossing my apartment, my brother drops to his haunches.

“Man, she’s grown so much.” His face lights up as he makes faces at Clem.

“Now that I’ve got my diet under control and my milk isn’t hurting her tummy, she’s eating more. Plus, she was barely seventy-two hours old when you and Mom went home. So…yeah.” The memory of their leaving isn’t a pleasant one. I had a panic attack sitting in the spot he’s kneeling. With a pink alien at my breast and my body aching, my mind took the moment the front door closed to kick into high gear, throwing all my future failures at me. I was twenty years old. I was on my own. I was unqualified to be a mom, an adult who couldn’t make a living to support herself, let alone a child.

“Will?”

I jerk out of my reverie. “Sorry, did you say something?”

“I asked if you think she’ll let me hold her.”

“I don’t know.” I glance at the time on the microwave. “You might as well give it a try. It’s close to her normal feeding time, so you can give her a bottle if she gets too fussy.”

Devin talks gibberish, tickling Clem’s thighs, and I use his distraction as a way to return to the kitchen and finish making dinner.Dinner! Archer. I scan the mess I’ve made in the kitchen. I’ve been prepping ingredients whenever Clem would allow me the time. Should I call him and cancel?

“Sooo, Arch?” Devin hints, walking into the dining space with Clem bouncing where she rests on one arm while gnawing at his other. “Should I assume you meant Archer? The neighbor?”

Of course, he picked up on that when I opened the door. “Yeah, we were supposed to have dinner and watch that show, Age of Vikings. I can cancel.”

“Don’t cancel because of me. I have to eat too, you know. I want to meet this guy, make sure he’s better than the last.”

“We’re just friends, Dev. Barely friends, really. We’re neighbors who share a meal here and there.”

“Mmm-hmmm.”

“He’s a divorced business owner with two boys. You think he’d have any interest in this?” I wave my hand indicating the entire messy package that is Clem and me. “Ty certainly wasn’t.”

I slap my palm over my mouth the minute the words come out. Devin stills, his brown eyes narrowing.

“I wasn’t expecting to discuss him within the first hour of my arrival, but since you brought him up, let’s do it.”

“Let’s not.”

“You refused to talk about him before, and I let it slide because you were dealing with a lot, but it’s time. What happened, Willa? Why isn’t he helping?”

I pull out two sheet pans and begin spreading the slices of sweet potatoes. “You know the answer to that.”

“Bull.”

“Can we not talk about this right now? You just got here.”

“He should be paying child support. You shouldn’t be doing this on your own. It’s not fair to you or Clem. And it’s not like his family can’t afford it. He—”

“He didn’t want me, Devin!” Clem’s body jerks in Devin’s arms, and I lower my voice. “He broke up with me before I even knew I was pregnant, and when I found out, he accused me of doing it because I knew he’d lost interest.”

My brother’s jaw works from side to side. “Uh, did you seduce him while he was incapacitated? Because last time I checked, it takes two.”

I laugh in spite of myself. “I know. He’s an ass, okay? That’s all you need to know. He didn’t want us, so I will not ask him for a dime.”

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