KANDY

One thing I loved was that no matter the circumstances, my parents visited as often as they could. Unless Dad had to work late, they were always there and always hogging Chance.

Mom constantly came bearing new gifts, like bottles and clothes and even playsets. She loved spoiling him. They loved their grandson so much and had definitely put their differences with Cane behind them for the most part.

“I know I say it all the time, but he’s perfect,” Mom said while we all sat in the den. She was holding Chance, watching him sleep.

“He seriously is,” Lora agreed. “I love his chunky little face.”

Miss Cane and Mom hummed in agreement while Dad and Cane sipped their beers.

“Oh, Kandy, I found the perfect decorations for the arch,” Lora said, coming to sit next to me. “I don’t want to show you just yet. I want you to be surprised, but just know it is going to be amazing!”

“I really love how you are handling everything for the wedding. Seriously, with Chance and schoolwork, I don’t think I would have had time to do much of anything as far as planning it.”

“You sure? I feel like I’m being an overbearing bitch.” Lora’s voice was playful, but in her eyes I could tell she was really worried that she was overstepping.

“No—not at all. I swear. You run your ideas by me, and I agree or disagree. I like that! Also makes me feel less stressed.”

“I like that you’re doing it too,” Mom chimed in. “Knowing Kandy, she would have just gone to the courthouse and gotten it over with. She needs something special.”

“Same with Cane, and I wasn’t having it!” Lora declared. “I got your back, Mrs. Jennings. This wedding is going to be one for the books.”

“Is wedding planning something you’d like to pursue for a career?” Dad asked. “Totally fits you, with all the wild hair colors and your go-getter mentality.”

“Hmm…I don’t know. I do like decorating things and piecing stuff together, but I’m looking at this as more of a hobby thing. It’s fun, but doing it for real means I’d have to deal with bridezillas, and I’m not up for that shit.”

Dad laughed. “I guess I can understand that.”

“You’d probably give an annoying bride a black eye right before her wedding day,” Cane joked.

I snickered at that one. “I definitely see that happening,” I teased, nudging her with my elbow.

Lora simply shrugged. “Hey, it is what it is. I’m a bitch with an attitude.”

I really was happy having Lora do most of the handy work. All I had to do was say “Yes” or “No” to her options, and she was handling the rest. She and Cane were setting up the guest list, but I did tell her to add two people to it that I hadn’t seen in years, as well as Frankie and Clay, if he wanted to tag along with her. Lora, Mom, Miss Cane, and I were going to spend a day trying on a collection of dresses I’d picked out at a local boutique, and I was super excited about it because it was something hands-on I could do, and one step closer to the big day.

Later that night, when my parents left to go home and Cane and I were in our room with Chance, Cane brought something up that I was not expecting.

“You know what?” he asked.

“What?”

“There’s been something that has been bothering me for a while now. It’s almost like you’ve forgotten about it, or let it go, but I still think about it,” he said, and his eyes had changed, his face slightly more serious. “It comes to mind at least once a week for me.”

“What is it?” I asked, bringing Chance over my shoulder to burp him.

“Well, the shit that happened at Notre Dame, with you losing your scholarship because of the people who ratted us out…”

“Oh, God.” I groaned and closed my eyes for a split second. I hated reliving that horror. “I haven’t forgotten about that. Trust me,” I mumbled.

“But you damn sure don’t talk about it.” Cane extended his arms, reaching for Chance. I lowered him, carefully shifting him from my arms to his dad’s. Cane cuddled him into his chest and rubbed his back to get him to burp, and there was always something about that gesture that made me all fuzzy and warm on the inside. Chance burped and his eyes drooped. Cane rocked him softly, putting his focus back on me.

“I don’t like thinking about that for a reason, Cane. When I do, I just get angry all over again. I used to constantly wish I could go back in time to stand my ground a little more, you know? I guess I just felt like I had no options back then; I didn’t want you outed or your reputation ruined. If it happened right now, I would absolutely call them out.”

Cane sighed. “Well, you know how I am, and you know it’s hard for me to let shit go.” He looked me in the eyes, and that look alone—the one where his eyes turned a slight shade darker and his eyebrows were drawn together—said it all. He’d done something that he knew I wouldn’t be pleased to know.

“Oh, no. Cane, what did you do?” I straightened my back and he looked away, turning with Chance in his arms.

“It’s not that bad,” he mumbled. “Not harsh enough, really.”

“Just spit it out.”

He faced me again, exhaling. “Okay, look. When that shit happened, you were so upset, and I’d never heard you get so mad at me before. You’d never called me and broken down like that—or even talked to me that way. It was years ago, honestly, and I didn’t want to tell you because I did what I did out of anger…”

“What did you do?” I demanded.

“Kandy, that school let you take all the flack for what happened between us, which was fucking personal and happened off campus. And what really pissed me off was that they didn’t contact me about what happened to confirm it, and they didn’t even give you a fair chance to stay, and you worked your ass off for that scholarship. It was all some made-up, textbook bullshit about school conduct, and to be honest, they played favorites. You were new, and not many people knew you, but they knew the kids who ratted on you very well, knew they were good at the sports they played, and they chose their side. I looked into those kids, and the girl was a big player on your team, and the boy, Brody,” he gritted through clenched teeth, “he was a good football player. They chose their athletes over standard.”

“Oh my gosh, Cane. Seriously, what are you getting at?” I pushed up on my knees as he turned for the bassinet, placing Chance inside it carefully. Chance was fully asleep now, his little mouth hanging wide open like he worked a nine-to-five job.

“Look, I called your mom around the time it’d happened and asked her if she could look into the board hearing, the coach, and those students. Mindy didn’t hesitate. She was still fired up about it, and she knew you weren’t going to act on it, so she took matters into her own hands.” He lowered his gaze, drawing in a slow breath. “Let’s just say your mother is a damn good lawyer.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean…for her to only make one simple threat with big words, and for the board to actually take it seriously and to follow through, she’s damn good. She listened to that hearing, looked into the school’s code of conduct, and she talked to a few of your former teammates. Several of them said Sophie was not nice to you at all. She insisted that your former teammate and that boy were bullying you, and their first rule in their code of conduct is to treat everyone as their neighbor, and to not shun those whom are different. Basically, the school is supposed to have a zero tolerance policy on bullying, and your coach didn’t think to mention that when she gave her testimony. Your mom said she wanted the coach fired and the girl and the boy to have their scholarships revoked too, and if the school refused, she guaranteed she would make a spectacle out of it . Of course it was an empty threat, because she didn’t want to drag you through any more hell, but she sure as shit made it feel real.”

“Wow.” I was so shocked to hear that. “Wait…when did all of this even happen? You weren’t close with my parents anymore after I got kicked out.”

“It was back when your parents and I weren’t on very good terms. I called, and she picked up the phone. It was the day when you didn’t tell them where you were after the school kicked you out. I told her you were fine, and when I told her you didn’t deserve what they’d done to you, she agreed. She went on a rant about it, saying she wanted to do something. So we talked about it…and she took action. She clearly told me she wasn’t doing this for me, but that it was for you. She kept me updated, though, and I was glad to hear something had happened a few months later. So much was happening to us, and it never felt like the right time to tell you what we did. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about it but never could remember when it was an appropriate time.”

My mind was boggled. I couldn’t believe this. “So Brody and Sophie lost their scholarships?”

“Brody’s got revoked, and Sophie was pulled from the team and expelled. She can’t even say she has a degree from Notre Dame. I don’t think anything is worse than that.”

“Oh my God, Cane.” My words came out winded. I climbed off the bed. “You did that?” I didn’t know whether to be really fucking happy and glad my man had my back, or upset because he may have possibly ruined their lives. I wasn’t a spiteful person. I believed Karma would do her job, so I left it alone. That was how I found peace in that situation.

“I couldn’t leave it alone. And technically, your mom was the one who got it all in motion. She looks out for you a lot more than you realize. She always has.”

I lowered my head, blinking my tears away.

“I normally keep a level head when it comes to things like that, but when it comes to you, I lose it. I never want to see you hurt, and if there is a way I can safely and legally give payback, trust me, I will.” He grabbed my hands and brought them up to his lips to kiss them. “That goes for you and my son.”

He pulled me in for a hug, and I closed my eyes, hugging him back. “I’m going to end up marrying a madman.”

He belted out a hearty laugh, and with my ear to his chest, I could hear the laughter and steady rhythm of his heartbeat. “A madman who loves you.”

“I guess I don’t talk about it because it’s in the past. I can’t change anything now, so it’s pointless to even get upset about it anymore. What they did was wrong…but it led me to you again.”

“Yeah, but at a cost. And if it hadn’t been for me going there, it never would have happened.”

“I don’t want to think like that. If you hadn’t come, we wouldn’t be where we are now.” I pulled away, looking toward the soft-green bassinet. “We wouldn’t have Chance.”

Cane looked with me and sighed. “No,” he murmured with a smile. “I suppose we wouldn’t.”