“Of course.” I take the hammer and make way too much noise hammering in the huge nail. Or at least, I assume I did because Lincoln comes in and asks if we’re okay. Then he sees what we’re doing.
“Oh,” he says. “Good spot.”
“Maevey is going to get me another one for our other house.”
Lincoln nods, slipping his hands in his pockets. He looks like a cool drink of water, I’ll tell you what. My mouth has watered anytime I looked at him today in anticipation of tonight and what I know is coming. I meet his eyes and he seems to know what I’m asking.
“Do you have any questions about what this means?” Lincoln asks, sitting next to me on the twin bed. “What Maeve adopting you means?”
He shakes his head. “No, it just means she’s my mom.”
I swallow hard. “And you don’t have any questions about your birth mom?”
Turner seems thoughtful as he stares at the paper and my heart leaps to my throat. “She only had me so she could give me to you. She knew you were best.” I cover my mouth with my hand.
Lincoln chokes up. “You’re exactly right, little man. That’s exactly right.”
Kids get it even when they don’t have anything to go on. Because Turner has always been loved deeply by Lincoln, I don’t think he ever questioned why he didn’t have a mother until one showed up. “I am best,” I say, finally believing it. “Come give me a hug.” Turner hits me at full speed and knocks me back on the bed with his hug. His hands are sticky and warm on my neck and his heart is racing along.
“You must be sleepy from a long day,” Lincoln says as we sit up. “Grandma and Grandpa will be here in the morning when you wake up, okay? Maevey and I will be here before lunch tomorrow to pick you up in the morning for our vacation to the beach.”
“Yes!” he exclaims, making a fist and bringing it down in celebration. “I can’t wait for our honeymoon.” There’s no way we had the heart to leave him behind. Especially when he found out it was the beach… where there were pools.
“Let’s get you tucked in,” I say, as we shift off his bed. Lincoln pulls the covers down and he hops in, grabbing the stuffed animal I gave him from on top of his headboard. I have one more gift for him, and I pull the dog tag from my hoodie pocket and connect it to the collar on the stuffed animal. “I thought this guy needed something to celebrate today with.” It says, ‘Forever and Always, Love Mommy.’ He won’t know what it means until he’s older and I’m ready to tell him the whole story, but that stuffed animal I gave him was the only thing I had my entire life. Autumn Glass gave it to me when I was born and by some miracle it stayed with me throughout all of the years bouncing around the system. It was the only thing I was able to keep. It collected my tears and most nights was my only form of comfort. The animal was the only constant in my life. I talked to it. Told it my secrets. Cried to it when my life seemed too unfair to be real—when I wanted to end it all because the world was better off without me.
I had a hard time looking at it when I first pulled it out of the box because it held so many memories. By giving it to a boy who knows nothing but love, I’m giving that sad, outcast girl, a new existence. Late at night when I’d be telling it about my day, like a diary or sorts, I’d always end by whispering Forever and Always, Love, Maeve. As Turner reads the tag and smiles, I think, actually, I know, I am right. This is everyone’s second chance. We kiss Turner and leave the door cracked as we head into the living room.
The kitchen is bustling as Ramona and Lincoln’s mom clean, but the living room is empty. I go up on my toes and kiss him. “Get a room, you two,” Lincoln’s dad grumbles from the couch. “Better yet, just go to your room.”
I laugh. Lincoln replies, “Are you trying to send me, a full-grown adult, to my room?”
He’s not even smiling, just staring at the television. “Yes,” he deadpans. Now Lincoln laughs.
“Today was spectacular,” he says, focusing on me.
“The best day ever,” I counter
“It’s going to be the best week ever. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been to a beach? I’m literally itching to get there.”
“To soak up the sun?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “To see you in a bikini.”
I narrow my eyes and peek at his dad who is still not paying us any attention. I whisper, “Well, you’ll be able to see me full-on naked if we get these people out of our house.”
He fans himself. “Ms. Wilds, you’re making me hot.”
I chuckle, tipping my head back. “I like the sound of that. My new name.”
“No one likes the sound of that more than me,” he counters. “I’ve got you hook, line, and sinker.”
“Or, I’ve got you.”
“We’ve got each other,” he says, tucking hair behind my ears. “Six and three.”
I nod, feeling the warmth of his hands against my neck and cheek. Familiar chattering from the television interrupts my thoughts. It’s the news, because Lincoln’s dad always watches the news, except it’s an update on Rena’s case. My stomach drops, but I remind myself that this is a good thing because it means she’s still locked up and safely ensconced in a prison cell where she can’t reach us again.
Rufio sung like a caged canary after Rena was caught and they were able to pin everything on her and the kingpin boss she was with. He was discovered not long after Rena was arrested and the entire wing of the cartel was taken down. It’s been dismantled, but the way it works is when one boss is out of the picture, a new one rises up. They don’t know the details about me, her sister, or about why Rena behaved so erratically in the end, but they’re thankful she was caught. She confessed to everything in a chilling videotaped interview they’ve played on prime-time news for weeks. I never watched the whole thing because her empty, blank eyes reminded me of Autumn and it was too much.