Page 38 of Time for Change

“I just…I guess I’d like to spend time with you and maybe see if we can form a relationship.”

She smiles back at me, her hand latched on to mine. Then, suddenly, she’s moving, standing up and reaching for me. She helps me stand and throws her arms around me so tightly, it’s hard to breathe. “I’ve always wanted a sister, even though I was glad she didn’t have more kids.”

“Me too,” I mumble, returning the gesture and relaxing in her embrace.

When she pulls back, her smile is gentle, so full of hope and adoration. She runs her hand along the side of my head, and even though there’s an eighteen-year age difference and I just met her, I feel as if I’ve known her so much longer.

“Welcome to our family, Stevie,” she whispers.

That’s when I lose the sliver of control I’ve held on my emotions. I burst into tears. They’re hot and freeing, falling unchecked down my face like a warm summer rain. For the first time in my life, I feel like I belong. Maybe it’s simply because they know what that feels like, having searched for it themselves for parts of their lives too.

BJ lets me cry, holding me tightly and refusing to let go, but it’s when I feel another set of strong arms wrap around me, the weight I’ve been carrying around for so long seems to evaporate completely. My knees threaten to buckle, but there’s no way he’d ever let me fall.

I feel it.

I feel them.

My siblings.

Jameson may not be a hugger, but he just freely gave something so much deeper, so much more meaningful than any hug.

He gave me hope.

He gave me him.

Chapter Twelve

Jack

My morning was thrown off by the slight shift in the routine. Usually, on Tuesday morning, I’m making sure their stuff is ready to return to their mom’s after school. However, just a simple change of me keeping them one night has me off my game. It’s not the first time this has happened, but for some reason, I can’t seem to find my footing when our schedules shift.

Case in point: I forgot to start my coffee, Gianna almost missed the bus,andwe are running behind in my quest to get Christian to Miss Libby’s.

Just as I get ready to leave, Christian starts to cry, not wanting me to go. He throws himself at my leg, which is completely unlike him. He’s usually incredibly independent, ready to run off and play with his friends.

“What’s wrong, buddy?” I ask, peeling him off my leg and taking a knee.

He wraps his arms around my neck. “I’m going to miss you,” he mumbles through a sniffle.

“I’m going to miss you too. But the cool thing is I’ll pick you up as soon as I get done with work. You get to spend one more night at my house, remember?”

He nods and sniffles. “But is Mommy going to get sick?”

“Well, we hope not, but I don’t know.”

His eyes are sad. “I don’t want Mommy to get sick.”

I can’t help but pull him into a hug. “I know, buddy. If she does, then you can stay with me a night or two until she’s feeling better. Right now, it’s just Cort who feels crummy.”

“But what if youandMommy get sick? Who will take care of me and give me Cheerios with strawberries in them?”

I run my hand over his head, ruffling his thick hair. “Mommy and I aren’t going to get sick at the same time, but if that did happen, we’d call Nana for help,” I tell him, referring to my mom.

“Nana gives me ice cream,” he replies with a mischievous grin. “And I get to watch race cars with Papa.” Dad is a huge NASCAR fan, and over the last year, Christian enjoyed watching races with him.

“That’s right,” I reply, omitting the part about it being January and the offseason for stock car racing.

“I wanna go to the basketball game tonight,” he states, changing the subject.

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