Page 73 of The Stepbrother 2: Noah

A memory flashed in my mind—Jason telling me he may have gotten Ana pregnant on my wedding day. I hadn’t thought about it much after he said she wasn’t his.. “Let me see her,” I said, holding out my arms for Noah to place her in them.

I stared down at the little face. She was a soft shade of brown with peach undertones. I examined her face, searching for family features. I found none. Family didn’t all the time look a like though.

She was heavy. I laid her on the sofa, , she didn’t stir a bit. We were a family of heavy sleepers. I pulled my phone from my pocket and called Jason. He answered on the first ring, which surprised me. After he’d skipped out on rehab, nobody could get a hold of him.

I kept my voice down. “Hello,” I gritted out through clenched teeth. “Ana left your daughter on my doorstep in Atlanta.”

He just sighed. “I told her to take her to Mommy.”

My breath caught in my throat. “What thefuckdo you mean you told her to take her to Mommy? She can barely walk. How isshe going to take care of a toddler? Do they even know you have a child?” Jason was so selfish and dense, he never thought of anybody but himself these days.

“No, and you act as if Daddy’s not there to help her. I’m not ready to be a father,” he spewed.

I hung up the phone after he said that stupid shit. "Stupid ass," I muttered, shaking my head.

Noah had been close enough to hear everything. When I looked at him, he caught my gaze. “We can move back to Florida. You can run Compton Ave from anywhere. We’ll buy a place close to your parents. It’s going to be difficult with you being pregnant, but we’ll be okay adding her.”

I slipped my lip from between my teeth, trying to process everything.

"Just like that? We raise my brother's child while we traipse around the world?" I don’t know how Jason had gone from arranging our parents tour to reverting back to a teen. He couldn’t blame it on Maines death, he’d been going down heel before then.

Noah nodded. "Just like that. I knew you were keeping her by the end of you reading that letter. You’re looking at her like she came directly from you," he said with a shrug. "We’re already a patchwork family—might as well add another layer. He shrugged,

My father’s going to be thrilled. He’d rather play grandpa than his guitar."

And just like that, he answered all the questions running through my head and eased all my worries. But I had one question of my own. “How did you know I was pregnant?”

He chuckled. “I didn’t, but I suspected. You just confirmed it.” Picking up a pink rolling suitcase, he turned with a sly grin on his face. "Let me go fix Akane something to eat before she wakes up in case," he said before disappearing into the kitchen.

I looked down at my niece and sighed. She was going to have to be strong to survive in this family. Her eyes popped open as if she could read my thoughts and had worried herself awake. She stared back at me, and I could see the strength in her nearly pitch-black eyes. I was almost positive she’d be okay.

Epilogue

Noah-

Dr. Avery looked around the room, a slight smile on her face as she took us all in. "It's good to see everyone here together. It’s odd since you all are usually behind my screen," she said, chuckling. We had all gotten busy and hadn’t had sessions for about a year. Troy suggested we start again since we were all in the same place for once.

Dr. Avery adjusted her glasses and turned to me first. "Noah, how are you doing? How has this past year been for you?"

I shrugged, leaning back in my chair. "I'm fine," I said, feeling Creed’s eyes on me. "For once, I feel… steady." It was the simplest way to say it, and I meant it. After everything we'd been through, it felt like we’d finally found some stability—even if it was barely hanging by a thread. I still found myself thinking about Maine and my mother sometimes and feeling overwhelmed with grief, but those days were becoming less and less frequent.

Dr. Avery smiled, nodding, before turning her attention to Scarlett. "And you, Scarlett? How are things with you and Troy?"

Scarlett glanced over at Troy, her hand finding his and giving it a squeeze. "He gets on my nerves, but we’re doing okay," she saidwith a small smirk. "We’re communicating better, finally. And… well, we’re getting married again."

Dr. Avery raised her eyebrows. "Congratulations. It sounds like you’ve both made some progress."

Troy chuckled, his usual grin lighting up his face. "We’ve learned a thing or two," he said. "Mostly that we drive each other crazy, but hey, that’s what keeps it interesting."

Jason laughed, and Creed rolled her eyes.

Dr. Avery looked over at Jason, who was sitting with his hands folded in his lap, looking as if he was hoping she'd notice him. "Jason, how does it feel to be a dad?" she asked.

Before he could answer, Creed chimed in. "He wouldn’t really know, since Akane lives with us, but… he’s trying, I guess."

Jason’s face morphed into a scowl. "Hey, I’m doing the best I can.”

Scarlett jumped in. "Don’t do him like that, Creed. He’s come a long way."

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