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CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Jillian

“Holy smokes,” I murmur. “This is happening so fast. I need to talk to Kimber after school, and let RiffRaff know what’s going on as well since I’m meeting Callum for the first time tomorrow at the DFCS office.”

Right now, however, I’m taking care of the animals and talking out loud. I have my own notepad and pen shoved in the lab coat I wear over my scrubs whenever I’m at work. While I’m in a regular T-shirt and jeans today, the coat pockets hold what I need to take care of each animal, so I don’t have to go back and forth.

Taking out my phone, I call RiffRaff, because this is something he needs to know. He’s explained what being his ol’ lady means, of course, but when he left, I had one kid and now it appears I’ll have two, with the second one not quite five yet.

“Hey, Jilly,” he says when the call connects. “What’s going on, sweetheart?”

I shake my head because I haven’t said a word, but he somehow knows there’s something up. Maybe it’s because we usually text during the day and talk on the phone at night. “What makes you ask that, handsome?” I tease. “Is it because I’m calling hours before I normally do?”

“Yeah, babe, it is. Not that I don’t always wanna talk to you because it’s something I look forward to every night, but to hear from you in the middle of the morning tells me there’s something wrong.”

Quickly, I tell him about the social worker’s unexpected visit, Callum, and that I’m going to be meeting him the next day. I wrap up with, “And I’m worried about how Kimber’s going to take it, to be honest.”

Sighing, I run a hand through my hair, which has it sticking up every which way at this point because it’s not the first time I’ve done it since Jo left my home. Reaching into my pocket, I pull out a scrunchie and do what I can to fix it, ending up with a messy ponytail bun creation on the top of my head.

“Callum, huh?” he muses. “Wonder if he likes fishing. I mean, it’s not as easy this time of year, of course, but it’s possible. He probably hasn’t had much male interaction if his mom was sick that long.” I blanch because that was not a topic I anticipated him talking about. But then, a smile spreads across my cheeks because this man always seems to amaze me.

“You’re a good man, RiffRaff,” I whisper, tears clogging my throat. “I was so worried you’d throw your hands up and decide me being your ol’ lady was too much,” I admit.

“Babe. Listen to me, Jilly,” he demands when I go silent. “Being my ol’ lady isn’t a temporary thing, it’s a forever situation. I ain’t running anywhere and to be honest, I’m kind of excited to help you raise this little guy. I know we haven’t talked about our future beyond that, but I was hoping to move in with y’all since my cabin on the property isn’t big enough and you’ve created a beautiful home.”

“Really? I… I may have already ordered the matching wardrobe for the bedroom suite for your clothes,” I reply. “Because I was going to ask if you’d move in. I know you have to go to the clubhouse for meetings and stuff, but I want you there all the time. Is that okay?”

His robust chuckle soon has me giggling, especially when he murmurs, “Sounds like we’re on the same wavelength after all.”

“Yeah, I guess we are,” I reply.

“Now, you’re not going alone tomorrow,” he advises. “I’ll reach out to Brick so he and Ryleigh can come. This little boy needs to know he’s still got a strong family unit standing behind him.”

Tears are now streaming vicariously down my face at his words, as I attempt to inject Moby with his antibiotic. I blink a few times to find the black cat glaring at me since I’m still scruffing him. “Sorry, Moby,” I whisper before I finish my task and toss the used syringe in the sharps container.

“You at the clinic, babe?” he asks. I can hear his fingers tapping away and know he’s sending a text to Brick. A man I haven’t met yet who is my man’s son. Warmth fills me at how RiffRaff is taking care of me, even though he’s states away.

“Yes, Dr. Webber and Cora are both down with the flu, so the clinic is closed. I’m just here to give out meds, walk the dogs, scoop the litter boxes, then feed everyone. Probably have to do the same thing tomorrow as well, plus Kimber and I will have to return later tonight after dinner for the next round of shots.”

“Babe, I can get Brick to have a prospect come and help. Y’all shouldn’t be there alone after dark.”

“Whatever you think is best, RiffRaff. Oh, God. I have to find out from Jo what Callum wants for Christmas, too!”

“Once you find that out, I’ll get Ryleigh to help. Rory too, most likely. Hell, all the women since they all like to shop. Christmastime is like an addiction to them, and the stores are their drug of choice. Don’t worry, whatever that little guy needs, we’ll make sure he gets, okay, Jilly?”

And just like that, my racing heart settles. “Thank you, RiffRaff,” I tell him. “Right now, I feel like I’ve been tilted off my axis or something, you know?”

“Definitely understand that one. When we realized that Ryleigh was a club princess, it turned the whole club on its head, that’s for sure.”

I briefly wonder what he means then decide to ask once the dust settles from this particular bombshell we’re going through. I’m willing to embrace the MC lifestyle, but there are a lot of terms I don’t understand and ‘club princess’ is one of them. I can presume what it means but want clarity for my own peace of mind.

“Well, I’m gonna go so I can wrap this up and then eat lunch before it’s time to get Kimber and have a heart-to-heart conversation with her.”

“I’ll be waiting to hear from you tonight. Love you, Jilly Andrews. It’s all gonna work out just fine.”

“I love you too, handsome.”

“Kimber, there’s something I need to talk to you about,” I tell her once she’s settled in the car. Then think better of it. We can’t have this intense of a conversation in a moving vehicle. “But I don’t know how you’re going to take it, so we’ll wait until we get home. How much homework do you have?”

“None, Mom, we had a substitute today, so we focused on classwork. I’ll probably read the next chapter and do the questions ahead of schedule, so I don’t have to worry about that when the teacher comes back. Katie and I are hoping we can have a sleepover this weekend either at our house or hers so we can finish making some… things for Christmas.”

“We can talk about that too. What are you wanting for dinner? We need to eat kind of early because we have to go back to the clinic later to give everyone their medicine. Dr. Webber and Cora are both sick with the flu and we have a few patients who are being medically boarded.”

“Do we have the stuff for stir fry?” she asks.

I think about the contents of the freezer and fridge and shake my head. “Nope. Let’s hit the grocery store because I think we need stuff to make some snickerdoodles.”

“Yes! And I found this recipe for something called sour cream cookies.”

“I have a little brother?” she whispers, her lips quivering.

Her face is pale, and I can see the immense hurt in her eyes that her father wasn’t the man she thought he was. I hate that he’s fallen from the pedestal she put him on as a little girl, but those were the choices he made. My job as her mom is to protect her heart to the best of my ability and unfortunately this time, I was the bearer of bad news.

“Yeah, sweetie. He’s almost five years old now and his mom passed away. Since you two are half-siblings, there was no way I was going to say no. I hope you understand.”

“Will it hurt you seeing him because of what Daddy did?” she questions.

“I don’t think so, Kimber. I forgave him long ago even though at first, it killed me.”

I’ve always been honest with Kimber, even with tough subjects. Of course, I keep it age appropriate, but I’m a firm believer in answering a child’s questions to the best of my ability. There was so much I wasn’t taught or shown that I walked into the adult world utterly clueless about so many things it’s not even funny. So, when Kimber was born, I made the decision that I would teach her everything I thought she would need to know to become a productive member of society.

“Why didn’t you tell me about Daddy before, Mom?” she softly asks, curling into my side. She grabs one of the warm cookies off the tray and starts eating it as she waits for me to respond.

“I think… well, because you were your daddy’s little girl and loved him so much, I just couldn’t do that to you. The problems we had were adult problems, not for a child to be burdened with, especially not when you were grieving him so much.”

“I probably hurt you too when I would cry about missing him. I’m sorry, Mommy.”

She throws her arms around me as she sobs while I murmur nonsensical stuff to calm her down. “You didn’t hurt me, Kimber. If anything, my hurt was for you not because of you. I don’t know if I could’ve moved past what he did to our marriage, to be honest, but you had a child/parent relationship with him and shouldn’t feel bad that you spoke your mind back then. Not one bit, you hear me?”

“Do you… do you think you would’ve gotten a divorce?” she queries.

“I don’t know, honey. We had talked about separating while we went for counseling, but if his affair had come out, I can’t say I would’ve been willing to reconcile. Because what he did was disrespectful to me and to the vows we took when we got married. I deserved better than that, and just so you know, you will too when you’re old enough to date.”

She starts giggling and looks up at me from her position in my arms. She’s all legs and arms right now, so her being in my lap is not the most comfortable place, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world, especially right now.

“What’s so funny?”

“RiffRaff told me I couldn’t date until I was forty,” she says, still giggling.

“Forty, huh?” I briefly wonder when she started talking to him outside of when he’s at the house and ask her, “So, you’ve been chatting with him while he’s been gone?”

“Yeah, but it’s secret Christmas stuff right now, Mom. I had sent him a text asking him what he likes so I could buy him something with my own money. Then, out of the blue, when I was telling him about a new boy in school, he told me that there’d be no dating until I was forty. Then he said that he’d be sure to let my dates know that he and my big brother, as well as all my uncles carried and knew how to hide a body so it would never be found,” she replies as her eyes light up with giddiness. Having men of their caliber in her corner is a new and excitable thing for her.

I can’t help it, I burst out laughing because I can picture his fierce face as he tells Kimber what’s gonna happen. “I think I can get him to agree on sixteen, sweetie,” I tell her, brushing back the hair from her face.

“I love him for us, Mom. He makes our house feel more like home now. Not that it wasn’t home before, he just adds something special to it,” she quickly says.

“I’m glad because he’s going to be moving in when he gets home since I’m his ol’ lady now. Let’s head over to the clinic and get that chore done, okay?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

I send a text to RiffRaff to let him know we’re heading to the clinic per his request, then gather my purse and keys before we head out the door.