“Fifty bucks says it is.”
“Hey, you’re going to be her godfather. So it’s on you, too, asshole.”
“I feel sorry for her already.”
“Why’s that?”
“Between you and me? There’s no way that girl will ever date. Or see a boy. Or talk to a boy. Or know boys exist.”
Cane’s face lit up. “That’s what I’m talking about! Want to go to the shooting range this afternoon? Sharpen up a little?”
“Kari’s taking Jada shopping today and I’m going to try to meet up with Brielle this afternoon.”
“She need bail money or something?” Cane asked, one eyebrow cocked in the air.
“Funny. No, I just want to talk to her.” I chewed on the top of an ink pen. “I need to get to the bottom of a few things with her. Mom said she was acting weird last night about Kari, so I’m going to call her to the carpet. I don’t know what else to do.”
Cane smiled. “You meet her, talk to her. Because that’s what you do. You’re that guy.”
“I’m starting to get over being ‘that guy,’” I groaned. “So, how’d it go with your attorney?”
He hung his head before looking back up. “It went as good as it can when you are making an ironclad document to keep your mother out of your life.”
I hated this for Cane. When I met him, she’d already been gone for almost ten years or so. He didn’t speak of her much and I didn’t find out the story about her leaving them until we were drunk one night in our late teens. I knew he said he hated her, and I was sure on some level he did, but Cane wasn’t the total hard-ass he liked to pretend to be. In the years I’d known him, one thing I’d learned was that his hard exterior was built to protect the good guy he was inside. Cane hated feeling exposed and probably because of his mom. It had really messed with who he was as a person. And now, all of a sudden she was back.
“I’m sorry, man. I don’t know why she’d be doing this right now.”
“Me either,” he said, shaking his head. “But if Kellie thinks she’s gonna get back in my life, she’s fucking nuts.”
KARI
“This!” I squealed. “Jada, she needs this!”
Jada giggled. “I would agree if we knew it was a girl, but we don’t. And I don’t want to spend that much money on something frilly and pink if it’s a boy.”
“Fine. I’ll buy it.”
“And if it’s a boy?”
“Then I exchange it. It’s not rocket science.” I sorted through the bins of baby goodies, most of which I couldn’t see the point of having. “What would you use this for? I mean come on,” I said, holding up a plastic basket-looking thing.
Jada shrugged. “I have no idea.”
My stomach was in a bit of a knot, knowing I needed to tell Jada what had been going on. If she found out that she was the only one that didn’t know—that even Cane knew—it was going to hurt her feelings more than any of the rest of it.
I tossed it back into the bin. “I think we have enough stuff for ten kids. Cane’s going to have to build you another house to fit it all.”
“Nah, I’ll just pass it along to you when we’re done,” she winked.
I took a deep breath and looked around the store. There were a couple of patrons on the other side, involved in their own conversation about car seats. “Hey, Jada. I want to talk to you about something.”
“Okay,” she said, sorting through green baby blankets.
“I’m just going to cut to the chase, alright?”
She turned slowly towards me and nodded, her eyes suspicious.
“Remember me telling you about a guy named Blaine awhile back? Anyway, we were going to get married and move to California. The day after we got our marriage license, I found out I was pregnant. I literally ran home from the doctor’s office to tell him.” I felt a smile touch my lips, but I pressed forward, not allowing myself to pause and reflect on the memories. I just had to get this out there and be done with it. “I was ecstatic because it wasn’t supposed to happen. The doctors have told me I’m too full of scar tissue and I’ll probably never be able to carry a baby full term.”
“What? I don’t understand?” Jada took a step back and looked me up and down. “What are you telling me, Kari?”
“Blaine left me and I ended up having a miscarriage.”
Jada flung herself at me, tears falling down her face. “Oh my God! How did you not tell me this?”
“Stop it! You’re making a scene,” I half laughed.
“You tell me this here, in the middle of a baby store? And you expect me not to cry? How did you not tell me this before now? I just . . . I don’t even know what to say to you.”
“I’m telling you this now because it seems like everyone knows but you. I didn’t tell you then because you were busy dealing with Decker. I called you a couple of times to tell you but he was being a dick and you were crying and I didn’t want to add to your troubles.”