Tisha held up her hands. “Derek, Amanda has proposed a solution. Give up your rights to Gretchen, and give up your claim on her. How does that sound to you?”
He pursed his lips. “You’ll never ask for child support?”
Amanda was pale. “Not a cent.”
“You know I’ll take you to court the second you try to blackmail me with this.”
“I would never.”
“Fine, then we’re done here. I am, anyway.” He stood up and walked out.
The remaining four of us were quiet for a long moment. I wanted to hug Amanda, to be the big sister she needed in that moment. I could see how much she’d once cared about Derek… and still did. And I could see that he had some sort of feelings for her, but that when it was Amanda versus appearances, he’d toss her aside in a second.
All this time, Amanda had been under the impression that she wasn’t good enough for him. She may not have been perfect, she certainly had her flaws… but I could say this much for sure. That man was nowhere near good enough for my little sister.
“So,” Tisha said quietly. “It’s the three of you now. Amanda, how are you feeling? Are you still willing to allow Faye and Jaz to adopt Gretchen, or do you plan to pursue primary custody?”
Before Amanda could answer, I jumped in. “Move in with us.”
Both she and Jaz stared at me. “Huh?”
“The three of us together can get a nicer place… maybe even a house.” I gestured wildly, my thoughts coming together even as I spoke. “Jaz and I will do the parenting, but you’ll be around so Gretchen can have you there. Between all of us, she’ll always have someone to look after her. And she’ll be the most loved little girl in the whole world.”
I should’ve asked Jaz first, but I knew she’d be on the same page as me—and in fact, at my side, she nodded.
She could see as well as I did how it would be better for Gretchen… and for Amanda. I could be the positive influence I should’ve been all along. I’d slacked off on my big sister duties for a while. Now it was time to make up for it.
“You’re saying you would still adopt Gretchen?” Tisha asked.
“Yes. Amanda could have as much or as little responsibility as she likes.”
We all looked at Amanda. “I… I don’t know what to say.” Her eyes were red, and I braced myself for her to freak out. “That would be the best thing that could possibly happen to me.”
My urge to hug her came back, and this time I didn’t deny it. “This is going to be perfect, little sis.”
“Thank you for doing this for me.” Her tears wet my shoulder.
“So we have an agreement?” Tisha asked.
The three of us nodded, and then Amanda leaned heavily into my arms.
“I won’t let you down, Faye. I promise.”
27
Jaz
“You know, it would’ve been nice if you’d gotten my opinion before asking Amanda to co-parent with us,” I murmured behind our bedroom door a few hours later.
Faye looked adorably ashamed. “It was on the spur of the moment. I did look at you first.”
&nb
sp; “And I definitely read your mind through that look.” I gave her a light punch on the arm, then flopped onto the bed. “Totally psychic, as we’ve already established.”
“I’m sorry.” Faye lay down next to me and wrapped me in her arms. “You don’t mind too much, do you? We could always back out…”
“Back out now that she’s agreed to move in with us, sure.” I smiled into her neck. “No, honestly, I think it’s a good idea. I’m not completely sure what Amanda will be like as a co-parent, but I think we should give her a fair shot. And if she’s terrible, we’ll be Gretchen’s primary moms anyway.”