“You have girl trouble written all over you, sweetheart.”
“Mom,” I mutter, rubbing my face because she’s not going to let this go.
“Okay, fine. Kayden told me.”
I sigh. “How d-does Kay-Kay know?” I ask, grimacing because I stuttered.
“You’re going to be upset,” she stalls.
“T-tell me.”
“Gabby told Jasmine and Jasmine went to Kayden so she could check on you and Dom. Only, the doctor put her on bed rest because she’s been having some complications—”
“What kind of c-c-complications?”
“Nothing serious,” Mom says, pressing her head against my chest. “She’s having some mild pains. They want her to take it easy, and Chains is taking that to mean she can’t get out of bed. The doctor says the baby is fine though. They’re watching and monitoring closely.”
“That’s g-good I g-guess.”
Kayden just found out she was pregnant. When she told me, I was so happy for her. I didn’t even think about what would happen if something went wrong.
“She’ll be fine, Thomas. She’s got West blood in her. It’s too stubborn for anything else.” I try to summon up a smile, but I must fail. Mom gives me a tight hug. “I know you’re hurting, but you need to realize that maybe your brother is, too.”
“M-m-mom.”
Her hand comes up and holds the side of my face forcing me not to pull away. “I don’t know the details. I have a feeling I don’t want to know.”
“W-wish I d-didn’t,” I mutter.
“But Jasmine told Kayden that what happened was painful and that Gabby made some really bad choices.”
“Sh-she’s not who I…” I have to stop talking for a minute, my emotions getting the better of me, and when they do, what little control I have over my stutter is gone. “Th-thought she w-was.”
“I’ve personally never thought she was good enough for either of my boys,” Mom says, surprising me. “Her whole life she’s had everything handed to her. Bethie has tried to negate that, but Skull dotes on her. Maybe it’s because he wasn’t there when she was born and there’s some guilt attached. I don’t know. I mean, don’t get me wrong. I think maybe your father was a little too tough on you guys at times, but that’s the mother in me. He’s always made choices so that now, when you’re starting your own lives, you will not only survive, but you will have the tools you need to build a good life. I’d like to think I helped with that, too.”
“I th-think I’m failing.”
“You aren’t. You just gave your heart to a girl that’s not grown up enough to realize what a gift she received.”
“M-maybe,” I allow. “Y-you’re wr-wr-wrong, though. D-Dad d-d-doesn’t think I c-c-can d-d-do—”
“Stop that talk right now, Thomas. Your dad can be hard to understand sometimes. He doesn’t understand that sometimes his grown boys need a hug—”
That makes me laugh. “D-D-Dad d-d-doesn’t hug.” He doesn’t either. He’s more apt to slap you in the back of the head for fucking up. He cares about me. He somehow always makes that clear but hugging? Hell, it’d probably feel weird if he tried. Maybe.
“He’s always loved you, Thomas. I don’t want you to doubt that. He blames himself because you struggle with speech—”
“Asha-ashamed of me.”
“You hush that, or I’ll knock you on the back of the head. Your father is proud of all of our kids, but you most of all”
“Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious. He’s told me that. He says you carry yourself as a man and never back down. He’s worried his family history may have contributed to your stutter. He blames himself, Thomas, and sometimes, guilt colors what he says or does, but you should never think for one minute that he is ashamed of you. I may not know what’s going on between you and Dom, but I know that, and you’re going to have to trust me on this.”
I swallow, thinking about what Mom said. There’s a lot there but none of it that I really want to hash out right now. I’m just not ready.
“L-love y-you, Mom.”
“I love you. I’m going to go get the stuff ready to make the pizzas. You wash up and meet me in there. You can make the crust. My hip is giving me hell tonight because I’ve been on my feet all day. So, I’m going to park my butt on a stool and let you do the hard work.”
“Okay. See you in a b-bit.”
She nods as she leaves. I watch her, frowning. You can clearly see she’s limping. Mom was shot years ago by one of Dad’s men. She almost died. She lost a kidney, and there’s a bone fragment and issues of some sort that cause her constant pain in her hip. Most days, she hides it because seeing it upsets Dad, and she doesn’t want him to feel bad. Other days, she can’t hide it at all.