A Little Wilder by Serena Bell

Author:Serena Bell [Bell, Serena]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781953498205
Publisher: Jelsba Media Group

24

Kane

I don’t stay long at the party—just another few minutes to say my goodbyes.

When I get home, I slide out of the car and walk toward Mari’s Airstream. It’s not a fully conscious decision. I just know I need to check on her again, make sure she’s okay after all that—Wilder-ness.

I knock, quietly, in case she’s conked out sleeping already.

I hear her feet shuffling behind the door, and she answers in her pajamas—a pair of joggers that can’t possibly stretch another inch and a navy long-sleeved t-shirt that no longer quite reaches her waistband. Her feet are bare and her hair is down. She looks young and vulnerable. If I didn’t know that she was so strong, I sure wouldn’t guess it now.

“Hey.” She steps back to let me in. “I’m glad you’re here.”

The stairs aren’t unfolded, so I take a huge step up to her, closing the door behind me.

She cocks her head. “Can I get you something? Tea? Orange juice? I think I have an old bottle of bourbon somewhere?”

I laugh. “No. I’m good. I just wanted to make sure you’re okay. That was so much. So much Wilder energy. I was overwhelmed, and I’ve known them my whole life.”

She shakes her head. “They’re good people. Really good people.”

“They are—just a lot.”

She’s facing me, but she’s looking past me, at something in the distance. “Kane,” she says.

“What?”

“I still don’t know what I want for myself. Not exactly. But if you—if you want to be—” She presses her mouth into a tight line, tries again. “If you want to raise the baby—”

I don’t know yet whether she means by myself or together, and that question will keep me up nights till it’s answered, but this is a huge step forward for us. For the baby. For me.

“God! Yes!”

She smiles, slow and almost shy. “Then you should. I want that. I want the baby to grow up with a supportive father and a supportive extended family. I want this for both of you.”

I’m feeling so much at once, I don’t know what to do with it. I settle on reaching out a hand.

“May I?”

She nods, then takes my hand and guides it to where her belly bulges, life moving—fierce, determined—under the surface.

“Hello, baby,” I say. “Is it weird if I talk to your belly?”

She shakes her head.

“I’m gonna be your daddy,” I tell the small person inside there. “I love you already.”

Mari makes a small sound. I look up. She’s biting down so hard on her lip that it must hurt.

“You okay?” I ask her.

“Yeah,” she says. “It’s just—that makes it real. I was trying not to—not to let it be real. So it wouldn’t be so hard.”

“I didn’t think about that,” I say. “I’ll stop.”

“No,” she says. “Don’t stop. It’s nice.”

We’re both quiet for a moment, her hand still on mine.

“I’m gonna hug your mom now,” I tell her belly. “Because she just gave me the most amazing gift. Also,” I say, trying to lighten the moment, “she staved off no end of lengthy lawsuits and complicated custody battles.

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