Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 68459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Why did he always have to take things so literally?
“Yes, Tay. That was a joke. Which obviously went right over your head,” I said to my younger brother. “Are you ready to go?”
Tay shrugged.
Our relationship was… questionable.
Some days I felt like we were making it, others, not so much.
But he didn’t leave.
He stayed around, and he was the only one of my family who didn’t come and ask me for money.
Did he bum dinner off of me sometimes? Yes. But that was a young adult for you.
Humfrid had called last week to say that she’d gotten her fourth speeding ticket, and they’d taken her to jail.
How she’d gotten a speeding ticket on a moped, I didn’t know.
But I didn’t bail her out.
As for my mom and dad? They were at different prisons, serving their twenty-two years a piece.
Mom divorced Dad in the middle of the trials, and Dad didn’t fight it.
Why bother?
They would both likely be too old when they got out to do much more than find a minimum-wage job or live off their government assistance.
I couldn’t wait to see if they tried to ask for a place to stay.
I hoped they would ask Tay.
“Hello?”
I smiled as Garnett answered the phone, sounding excited.
“It’s time,” I said. “I’m driving to the hospital now.”
Garnett squealed. “I’m with Ande. We’ll be there about the same time as you. Tell Quincy to meet us…”
“Quincy isn’t with me,” I interjected.
There was a long moment of silence and then, “Okay. I’ll call him.”
I had a small smile light on my face as I thought about how Quincy would be getting that call from his mom when he hadn’t even realized I’d left.
Okay, so I was a little emotional. Sue me.
The phone tree went fast, and three Carter men were waiting for me at the front door when I arrived.
“I’ll park it,” Gable said.
I waved at him, then waddled my way through the front door.
A screech of tires, and then there was Quinn, dropping Quincy off with a glaring look on his face.
I ignored him and walked inside, checking my own self in.
Gable, Garrett, and Atlas, who were the first to make it since they were closest to the hospital, were trying really hard not to laugh.
My narrow-eyed look had them studiously keeping their mouths shut and their comments to themselves.
Quincy came up behind me and wrapped his hand around my belly, pulling me back into his chest as he bent down and said, “We’ll be talking about this later.”
I ignored the way his voice made me shiver.
The nurse at the triage desk walked us up to labor and delivery, and within ten minutes I was naked but for a gown, and my room was full of Carters.
“She… what?” Germaine looked from me to Quincy and back. “You drove yourself?”
Like I said, I was a little bit emotional.
“I just wanted him to put the freakin’ crib together!” I cried out, throwing my hands in the air. “Is that so bad?”
“It’s bad when your water broke in my living room, and you wanted to drive all the way back home for him to do that,” Germaine said, the voice of reason, like always.
God, the man drove me nuts sometimes.
Why did he have to be so logical?
I couldn’t fight logical.
“Why did you let her leave if her water broke?” Germaine asked Quincy.
Quincy narrowed his eyes. “I didn’t let her leave. I was cleaning up the mess. When I was done, she was gone.”
“And she said Quincy didn’t show her enough attention,” Kinny offered up.
Why Kinny was there, I didn’t know.
He’d arrived shortly after Quincy.
I had a distinct feeling that Kinny was there to get directions on what needed to be done at our house.
In the last month alone, not a single thing had gotten done.
Why?
Because sometimes Quincy Declan Carter was married to his job.
“He didn’t,” I defended myself.
Quincy, who was standing with his arms locked in front of him, rolled his eyes heavenward and looked to be praying for patience.
“He had me stop by and bring you food yesterday,” Quaid offered.
“And I brought by that dry cleaning last week you asked him to pick up,” Atlas offered.
Auden tapped his chin. “I’m pretty sure I went to that bakery you love and brought you the cheese Danish you say is the best thing ever.”
I raised my brow at him, then held up a finger as a contraction stole over my body.
“Fuck, that hurts,” I said through gritted teeth.
“You dummies,” Ande said as she pushed through the curtained off area that led to the hallway. “She’s not saying y’all don’t help her. She’s saying that she would like to spend some time with the man she’s married to.”
I waved out a hand, practically slapping Quincy in the chest, because my eyes were still shut from the pain. “Thank you.”
Quincy caught my hand and placed it over his heart.