I stood in the doorway to Sam’s room and bit my lip. The thought of actually packing Sam up and moving our lives into Ramsey’s house was a mix of excitement and terror. If it were just me, I would have already told Jack I was leaving the house. But with Sam, it was a whole different situation. He had been amazing with it all so far. His sweet, little mind completely understood who his father was, who Ramsey was, and how everything worked. I was sure questions would eventually come, but until then, it was comfortable. That was the strangest part. Finally feeling comfortable.

“You know he’s here, right?”

I turned my head and smiled at the sight of Ramsey coming down the hallway.

“I know,” I said. “I’m just standing here. Doing a Mom thing.”

“And what’s a Mom thing?” he asked.

Ramsey still stole my breath at the sight of him. Standing there in a dark red t-shirt, unable to hide the muscles that he used to hold me at night when I needed it the most. His eyes were forever partially closed, like he was ready to explode with anger. Yet at the same time, when he looked at me, he always smiled. In some way. I’d never had someone look at me like that, where I could feel his attraction and his love.

“I’m just thinking about too much at once.”

“Well, I don’t want you to do that,” Ramsey said. He reached with his right hand and touched my hair. Gently pulling it away from my neck, forcing it to my right side. He leaned down, his breath touching my skin. “Worrying about things you can’t control will only let you down.”

I shivered as I heard his words and felt them against my neck.

His lips pressed against my neck… once, twice, three times…

I swallowed hard and tilted my head to the right, letting him kiss my neck as many times as he wanted.

“There’s just a lot happening at once,” I whispered. “Sometimes I can’t help it, Rams.”

“I can’t help myself around you,” he said from the back of his throat, almost growling at me.

His hands eased around my body and he pulled me close. I could feel all of him and I sucked in a breath.

He continued to kiss my neck, the kisses getting louder.

I reached back with my right hand and dug my fingers into Ramsey’s hair.

His left hand moved down while his right hand moved up. My toes curled against the carpeted hallway. I let out a long breath, feeling myself slipping under Ramsey’s powerful spell. Downstairs I heard the faint echoing of cartoons. That meant Sam was on the couch, just relaxing. That meant Ramsey and I could sneak into the bathroom. Keep the door open.

“I literally can’t get enough of you, darling,” he said, his lips flirting with my ear.

The scruff on his face had the appeal of sandpaper against my skin, yet I liked it. It was like I became someone else around Ramsey. My mind, heart and body struggling to fight wants and needs.

I turned my head so I could kiss him.

Our eyes locked before our lips could touch.

And we both just froze in place, staring at each other.

We didn’t speak, instead, he brushed his lips against mine. Lifting his nose to mine. Flirting with me. Causing things to happen in my body that should have made me blush. Only he made me feel safe and comfortable in my own body that I didn’t need to blush. It felt good. It felt really good.

I made a move for him, trying to kiss him, but he inched back. I tried again and bit at him, snagging his bottom lip for a split second. He came forward and kissed me hard. With our lips touching, he spun me around and pinned me against a wall in the hallway.

My hands grabbed for his face, pulling at him. My back arched as my hips rocked at him, wanting him in the worst way. He gently touched my sides and held me there. With one last kiss, he inched away, grinning.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“You’re wild when nobody is looking,” he said. “I like that.”

“I blame you for that.”

“Blame yourself. You make me like this.”

My hands opened, and I held his face.

“What’s on your mind, darling?” he asked.

“Everything and nothing all at once.”

Ramsey laughed. “Are you sure you’re okay with going to Aunt Millie’s by yourself?”

“She asked me to,” I said. “I can’t say no to her, right?”

“You’d better not.”

“It’ll be fun. Norah should be here any minute to watch Sam.”

“You could take Sam with you. Aunt Millie will probably get pissed at you for not bringing him.”

“I don’t want to impose,” I said. “Plus, if he’s there all day and then stays for dinner… that’s a long day for him. Without his toys and routine…”

“What are you going to do when she wants to keep him overnight?”

“What?”

“I mean, as things keep going here, she’s going to want to watch him. Spoil the hell out of him. And there won’t be a thing you can do about it.”

My heart fluttered at the thought of Sam having someone like Aunt Millie in his life.

“Well, Norah is already on her way,” I said. The doorbell rang. “There she is now.”

Ramsey snuck an extra kiss and walked down the stairs.

When Aunt Millie offered to have me help her cook what she called the late turkey day dinner, I couldn’t say no. I warned her that there were times in life when I struggled with boiling water. She laughed it off and insisted I help her. And as scheduling would have it, Uncle Tom and Ramsey were going to be working too. So, the plan was to cook while they worked. Then I was going to come home to get Sam and meet Ramsey so we could go over for the big dinner.

The entire planning of it all had this enjoyable family feel to it.

It was no longer me planning everything in my head fifty times over, working on ten contingency plans for when something went wrong.

“Brought my boyfriend some lunch,” Norah said when I opened the door.

She had stopped at a fast food place for her and Sam.

“Aunt Norah!” Sam yelled when he saw her.

“Hey, little man,” she said with a big smile.

Norah was dressed like she was going out for the night. I kept my mouth shut, appreciating her being there when I needed her.

Ramsey came from the kitchen as Norah put the bag of food on the coffee table. She looked back at me, raising her eyebrows, then looked at Ramsey.

“And hey, big man,” she said.

“Hey there,” Ramsey said.

“Visiting or staying?” Norah asked Ramsey.

“Norah,” I said.

“I’ll go with somewhere in between those two,” Ramsey answered without hesitation.

Norah turned her head again. “Lucky you.”

“Lucky me,” I said and rolled my eyes.

She was just trying to get me flustered. Which she had the ability to do for some reason. Maybe because she had it so easy with guys and didn’t have to worry about taking care of a child.

Then again, I had Ramsey. Those brooding eyes devouring me, even in front of my son and my best friend. Reminding me that he wanted me and nobody else.

“Well, I’m going to get going here,” Ramsey said. “Last thing I need is Uncle Tom there calling the shots and adding more work to things.”

He walked to Sam and they slapped five. Then Ramsey ruffled Sam’s hair and he giggled.

That was their version of goodbye.

Ramsey’s to me was a little different. A hand around my waist and a kiss to my cheek. Still respecting that I had a son and not kissing me on the lips in front of him. Which at this point wouldn’t bother me, but it meant a lot that Ramsey still took Sam into consideration for everything he did.

“See you around," he said to Norah.

“Don’t I get a kiss?” she asked so boldly.

I felt anger rise up in me.

“I’ll give you five and mess up your hair,” Ramsey said without missing a beat.

I smiled as the anger cooled.

And to my shock, Norah blushed.

Ramsey was my protector, lover, and my heart wanted him to be the man to properly raise Sam.

* * *

“I wasn’t lying when I said I could mess up boiling water,” I said, showing my hands to Aunt Millie.

Her cheeks were round and her eyes a dark blue color, making me wonder just how beautiful she must have been as a young woman. Not that she wasn’t beautiful now, but I was sure she must have had a lot of guys chasing her back in the day.

Her long fingers wrapped around my hands. “Good news is that I have the water already boiling. I just need you to peel and cut the potatoes.”

“Peel and cut… got it.”

Aunt Millie touched my left cheek. “You’re so beautiful, Jordyn. And I adore that name.”

“You’re going to make me blush.”

“Own your beauty and name.”

“I used to get made fun of for my name,” I said. “Since it’s also a boy’s name.”

She waved a hand. “Kids are cruel. Then again, so are adults. To hell with them all.”

I laughed as I walked to the island and took out the first of several potatoes from a large white bowl. I grabbed the potato peeler and started to get to work.

Next to me, Aunt Millie hummed as she worked on what would be a green bean casserole. She had all the food carefully planned and in a strict order. An order that I would never dare to question.

“So, Jordyn, tell me about Sam,” she said. “Everything.”

“Sam? Oh, he’s a handful. In a good way. All boy. All the time.”

“That’s wonderful. He’s such a handsome boy. And well mannered. You’ve done a great job.”

“Yeah? Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it.”

“Why not?”

“I just… eh, I don’t know…”

I broke my stare from Aunt Millie and looked down to the large potato in my hand. I made one swipe with the peeler before she placed her hands to mine and forced me to put the potato and the peeler down.

“Jordyn,” she said. “You are a great mother. I want you to know that.”

“Single mother… struggling…”

“You’re supposed to struggle,” Aunt Millie said. “That makes the love worth more.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.”

“Why didn’t you and Uncle Tom…” I shrugged my shoulders, not wanting to finish the question.

“Oh, well…” Aunt Millie swallowed hard and put her hands flat to the island. “When I was much, much younger than this, I made a terrible decision. I was with the wrong man at the time. Well, to be fair, he wasn’t even a man. He was a boy. But he was handsome. He was dangerous too. My parents hated him. That only made things more exciting for me. Did you know I went to college to become a nurse?”

“No, I didn’t know that,” I said with a big smile.

“That’s right. I was going to become a nurse and have a good life. With a lot of kids. That was my dream. But I had this one side of me that wanted adventure. To spare you the details, I got into his car one night after he had been drinking. I foolishly knew he’d been drinking and I did it anyway. He ended up crashing his car into a tree.”

I gasped. “Oh, Aunt Millie…”

“He was hurt and never the same,” she said. “I was spared the worst, but did suffer some injuries to my… belly area.”

“Oh, no,” I whispered.

“As I was recovering, I started to walk. And one day on a walk, a man drove by in a beaten-up truck. He stopped and waited for me to catch up. He asked me if I was okay and if I needed a ride. Without hesitation, I told him about the accident and my injuries. It was strange because I looked at him once and just started talking.” Aunt Millie reached for my hand. “And Tom will tell you I haven’t stopped talking since.”

My heart gushed. “That’s how you met Uncle Tom?”

“Correct. And to actually answer your question, we tried to have a family several times and it just wasn’t to be. The injuries from that accident, well, they lived on longer than I ever thought possible. And poor Tom, he had some issues too. Then his back started to give out and time kept slipping by…”

Aunt Millie’s eyes grew misty.

I rushed around the island and slid my arm around her shoulder.

She took a deep breath and fanned herself. “Oh, Jordyn, look what you have me doing here. Talking like an old fool.”

“No. I needed to hear this. And I’m sorry for bringing it up.”

She looked up at me and inched away. “It just never happened. And Tom’s brother had two boys of his own. Tom loved Ramsey and Brian. He tried so hard to be in their lives, but his brother was just…” Aunt Millie shook her head. “When poor Brian was killed, I told Tom we would need to keep an eye out for Ramsey. I never intended on taking in a moody teenager, and not one like Ramsey. By then, he was so far grown up for his age, I couldn’t blame him for the way he acted. But I had to keep him in line. But I also showed him love.”

“He knows that,” I said. “You are the most important person in his life.”

“Oh, I doubt that,” she said with a smile. “You’d better keep working on those potatoes, Jordyn.”

“Right,” I said.

I walked back around the island to my spot and got back to peeling and cutting.

My eyes kept looking at Aunt Millie.

“What else do you have on your mind?” she asked.

“This may sound silly, but I appreciate you not judging me for my situation. I mean, having Sam and not being with his father.”

“Why would I judge you? I assume you had to make a difficult decision.”

“I could hug you for saying that,” I said.

I finished two more potatoes and started cutting them into uneven cubes.

“Jordyn, you’re too hard on yourself,” Aunt Millie said as she began to put dishes into the oven. “Now it’s my turn to ask you a question.” She shut the oven and turned to face me, slipping her matching oven mitts off her aged hands.

“Ask away,” I said.

She set the oven mitts down and joined me to peel and cut potatoes.

“Why did you leave him? Sam’s father, I mean.”

“Keith?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it wasn’t a good life for Sam. Or me.”

“Why?”

“Keith and I met in high school.”

“Did you know Ramsey back then?”

“I knew of him. He and Keith never got along.”

“Probably makes life now even more interesting.”

I laughed. But not a happy laugh. My mind flashed with the images of Keith confronting Ramsey at the hospital that night with Sam. And then again when he came to pick Sam up for the weekend.

“It’s always interesting,” I said.

“So why did it not work out?” Aunt Millie asked.

“Keith sort of never grew up,” I said. “He drank a lot. He did other things. I worried about him being alone with Sam.”

I looked at Aunt Millie, realizing the way Keith acted was the same way Ramsey’s father acted, resulting in Ramsey’s brother’s death.

My heart ached.

It could have been Sam.

“Keep going,” Aunt Millie said.

“I felt like I had no choice but to leave. I mean, of course I had a choice. Screw that. I left him.”

“And you should have if things were that bad,” she said. “I can’t imagine the courage it took.”

“Sometimes it’s hard to think about. I stayed with my friend Brenda, but only for a little bit. I didn’t want to impose on her life. Her husband Charlie was good to us. I think because of us living there for that short time, it jump started their want for a family. They have a little girl now.”

“See, there’s some good for you,” Aunt Millie said. “There’s always good in the bad. I know I’m an old woman here, but I’m understanding of how things are these days. Sometimes things don’t work the way they should. And that’s okay. You made a decision to make a better life for your son. You have a job. A house. You’re doing amazing on your own.”

“Thank you,” I said. “That means a lot coming from you. I know we don’t know each other all that well…”

“Yes, we do,” Aunt Millie said. “I’m not hard to figure out. Don’t bullshit me and I won’t bullshit you.”

“You should get that on a sign for the kitchen,” I said with a laugh.

“That’s a good idea,” Aunt Millie said. She took the bowl of peeled, cut, raw potatoes and started to slide them into the water. “You know, Jordyn, forcing yourself to love someone is probably the worst thing you can do to your heart.”

“I hope that doesn’t refer to you and Uncle Tom.”

She snorted. “I love that big fool more than life itself. I was talking about what happened with Ramsey…”

She suddenly hesitated.

“It’s okay,” I said. “He mentioned Sarah before. “That things moved fast and he wasn’t sure of how he felt.”

“I blame myself for that,” Aunt Millie said. “I was so excited for him. Pushing him into a world he didn’t want. At least with her. And before I knew what I was doing, they were getting ready to walk down the aisle…”

I froze. I shook my head.

Walk down the aisle…

“I hated that her heart got broken like that,” she said. “With everyone there, waiting and watching to see her in her dress. I had to tell her everything…”

My head spun a little as I tried to follow the story.

“What are you…”

Before I could finish my sentence, my phone lit up and started to vibrate against the counter.

It was Norah calling.

“Is everything okay?” I asked as I answered the call.

“No,” Norah said. “Keith is here… and I think he’s drunk.”

* * *

… and I think he’s drunk…

That’s what stuck in my mind as I hurried back home. I told Aunt Millie there was a problem with Sam and she made me promise to call her as soon as possible. I sped the entire way back to my house, trying to picture Norah dealing with a drunk Keith. Which she had done before. Of anyone I knew, I trusted Norah to handle Keith and protect Sam.

But the idea that Keith was drunk… after being sober for so long…

It also meant he was drunk and driving, which was a whole other situation of stupidity.

Keith’s car was halfway up on the curb across the street. Lucky for him and everyone else he didn’t hit any cars or a mailbox while trying to park.

It didn’t take me long to hear Keith before seeing him on the porch.

“He’s my fucking son,” his voice growled across the front yard.

Norah had managed to keep him on the front porch, which was the only blessing I was able to find at that moment.

“Keith, what are you doing here?” I called out.

Norah had a hand on the door and the other pointing toward the steps of the porch.

Keith turned at the sound of my voice.

“There she is,” he said.

He walked and missed the top step of the porch.

Watching him reach for the railing and still end up smashing his ass off the steps, sliding down to the third step before stopping, brought back years of old memories.

He made an umph sound and just sat there, his head rolling left to right.

I approached with caution and looked up at Norah.

Her eyes were wide, and she shook her head. “He just showed up. Banging on the door. Scared me and Sam.”

“Where is Sam?”

“He’s upstairs in his room,” Norah said. “He’s playing with some toys.”

“Thank you,” I said to her.

“I’m not going back inside until this moron leaves.”

“Fuck you, bitch,” Keith said.

“Keith, call someone to come get you,” I said.

He wrestled himself to his feet and looked at me. That’s when I realized it wasn’t just booze messing with his head. I knew that look in his eyes.

“You’re a mess,” I said. “What did you do to yourself?”

“Whatever the hell I felt like,” he said. “And I want to take my kid. It’s my weekend.”

“It’s not your weekend, Keith.”

“Every weekend should be,” he said. “I want to take him from you.”

“Not like this,” I said.

“You ruined everything, Jordyn,” he said.

“I didn’t ruin anything, Keith. You did that on your own.”

“You left me.”

“To protect our son. And myself.”

“No, you didn’t. You wanted the story.”

“The story?” I asked.

“The single mom story. To tell everyone how broken you are. And so you could rip Sam away from me.”

“Door’s always open,” I said. “You just choose when you want to use it. And you don’t even get out of your car to pick him up. The only time you did was when Ramsey was here.”

“Fuck that guy, Jordyn,” Keith said. He stumbled toward me and reached for my hand. “I can tell you shit about him. He’s not good for our family.”

“Our family?” I asked, laughing. “Goodbye Keith. Call for a ride or I’m going to call the police and have them take you away. And I’m going to call a lawyer about this. I don’t want you near Sam if you’re drinking and using again.”

I hurried up the porch steps, my urge to find Sam and hug him becoming uncontrollable.

“Leave him be,” I said to Norah. “Fucking burnout.”

“Jordyn…,” she started to say.

“Do you even know about Sarah?” Keith called out.

I curled my lip and spun around.

Norah caught hold of my hand. “Don’t. Let me handle him. I’ll get help. You go inside.”

I pulled away from Norah.

I stood at the top of the steps and looked down at Keith.

It was sad to see. The boy who never really became a man. His aged face, five o’clock shadow, with a desperate and scared look in his eyes. All messed up and nowhere to go, but rush to me with his demons since they were dancing too hard for his liking.

I hated him. And through Sam I would forever have a piece of him in my life.

“Don’t come here and try that on me,” I said. “You’re not going to sabotage something I have. Just because I’m happy…”

“He’s a bad person,” Keith said. “That’s why I’m here. To stop you from making a mistake.”

“I’m good at making mistakes on my own, Keith. And your advice while you’re like this isn’t needed. Hell, even if you were sober, I wouldn’t want to talk to you.”

“He took off on her,” he said. “And he’ll do the same to you. I know Sarah. I talk to her. I called her.”

“You did what?” I asked. I stepped down a step. “You called Ramsey’s ex to get dirt on him?”

“Not dirt,” Keith said. “The fucking truth. And you should hear it.”

“The truth about what?”

I looked away from Keith and saw Ramsey standing at the end of the front yard.

“Rams,” I said.

“There he is,” Keith said. “He can tell you the truth now.”

“What the hell is this?” Ramsey asked.

I shook my head.

But Keith wasn’t done talking.

“Go ahead, Ramsey… tell Jordyn how you left a woman standing all alone at the altar on the day of her wedding.”