“Regardless, we both know we have to do this. When it’s over, the fact that we saved that little girl from those people will heal the pain I’ll feel from no longer being a part of their family.”
“You’ll always be a part of their family, McKinley.” His voice is scolding.
“You’re right, but not the way I long to be. I know that, and I accept it.”
Aaron nods, he gets it. “Call me if you need anything. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
With one last hug—the kind only my big brother can give—he’s gone. I watch his truck until I can no longer see his tail lights before heading back inside.
Lexi is just finishing her bottle when Kinley finally comes back into the house. “Let me lay her down and we’ll call my parents.”
“Can I come with you?” she asks.
“Of course you can.”
She follows me up the stairs and into Lexi’s room. “Goodnight, baby girl. Daddy loves you,” I say softly, kissing her on the forehead.
I step back, letting Kinley say goodnight as well. “Sweet dreams, Lex. I love you,” she says so softly I almost don’t hear her.
I grab her hand and lead her to my room. Without hesitation, Kinley sits on her side of the bed and pulls her knees to her chest. Taking my cell out of my pocket, I dial my parents. I sit on the edge of the bed beside her and lay my hand on her knee. She covers mine with hers and we wait for them to answer.
“Hey, Mom, can we talk?” I say. She gets Dad on the other line and I proceed to tell them about the letter and about Kinley’s offer to marry me. Her selfless offer to ensure I keep my baby girl.
“Is she there with you?” Mom asks.
“Yeah, she’s sitting right next to me.” Where I’ve longed for her to be since the night I held her.
“Can I talk to her?”
I hand Kinley the phone. “Mom wants to talk to you.”
“Hello,” she says quietly. She listens intently as my mom talks. “Yes, I know what I’m doing. It was my idea. I refuse to let them take her,” she says with conviction.
They talk a few more minutes before Kinley passes the phone back to me.
“Evan, you okay with this?” Mom asks.
“More than I should be,” I say honestly.
“Okay, I’ll call Sarah in the morning and we will take care of it all. I’m so excited to meet my granddaughter.”
I can’t help but laugh at her excitement. “Night, Mom, love you. Tell Dad too,” I add. He got off the call when Mom wanted to talk to McKinley.
“Will do, honey. Take care of your girls,” she says before hanging up.
My girls.
“What did she say?”
“She told me to take care of my girls. She’s going to call your mom and start planning.”
“Good.”
“Should we—-—” she cuts me off.
“Nothing to talk about. We’re getting married. We’re going to prevent those heartless people from getting their hands on that precious little girl. When it all blows over, we’ll annul the marriage and your life can go back to normal. Until then, we’re two best friends doing what we need to do to save your little girl.”
“All right, we should get some sleep.” I go to my dresser and pull out a t-shirt. “You can sleep in this.” I hand it to her.