Page 13 of Tuesday

“Fuck this, I ain’t waiting any longer, come on, lets go meet the newest Tombs,” I say, ready to make a move.

“Wouldn’t she be a Paxton?”

“Nope. Baby girl will always be a Tombs. Same with Chomper and this one.”

I make my way across the room, ignoring the sniggers and Debs backhand to the gut with that tutting noise she does. I got a new grandbaby to meet.

Chapter 5

Chewy

Istare up at Laney-May and give her a little smile. She doesn’t seem to be too frightened by all the people, and she seems to have taken to Rhodie quickly, settling into his big tattooed arms as if she was meant to be there. Shifting my gaze to my Ol Man, I feel my lips pull up into a wide smile, watching him talk quietly to the little girl in his arms. I know that he hasn’t really spent that much time one-on-one with the other kids, but I’ve watched his interactions with them in the past and he’s good with them. Just like he’s good with me. He’s calm and he reads people well. He knows when I’m upset or veering into over-stimulated. He knows how to make the world better.

He angles his head down to look at me and I stare up into his green eyes, eyes the same colour as Laney-May’s, and he grins. A big, wide smile, as he leans down to press a kiss to my forehead.

“You did good, baby, but don’t think I won’t tan your ass later on.”

“Wait, what for?” My brows pull down. What did I do this time?

“For going off on your own, risking your life to find this little girl.”

I rear back, hands on my hips, “I didn’t go off alone! I had Moss!” I spin to point at Moss who is backing toward the door, hands up, shaking his head.

“Don’t bring me into this! I told you he wouldn’t be happy,”

Rhodie glares in Moss’s direction, before rolling his eyes, “Thank you for having her back, Moss.”

He tips his head side to side. “Well, she did dangle a pretty fucking big carrot,” he smirks.

Rhodie raises his brow, the sign he wants an explanation. Before I can open my mouth Marx comes stomping over.

“Chewy, looks like you found what you were looking for,” he peers at Rhodie’s - I mean, our daughter, his beard pulling up in the corners. I think he might be smiling, but it’s hard to tell because I can’t see his teeth.

He reaches his thick finger out and gently touches Laney’s hand. I would call her by her full name but it’s quite wordy. I wonder if Rhodie wants to give her a new name? I look back at Laney and decide that no, that’s a terrible idea. Unless it’s not quite her real name. Maybe I should look into that? I’m about to wander off when I remember that I’m meant to be a mom now, and I guess I can’t just wander off. That’s going to make things a little tricky, but I’m sure with a good routine and schedule I’ll be able to make it work. Before I can arrange the next few hours in my mind my family comes striding toward me.

Shit. I forgot to tell them I was going to find Laney too. Whoops. As soon as Pops reaches me he pulls me into his arms and I snuggle in, wrapped up in the slightly talcum powdery smell of Pops. He also smells just a little spicy, which is whatever deodorant he wears, and it’s a smell that is all Pops.

“You did good, kid.” he whispers in my ear and I smile into his chest before he passes me over to Gus, who does the same thing.

Tav and Jules wait their turns, although Jules just wraps one arm around me and squeezes. He never has done full body hugs, well, other than with Violet and probably all those women he boned, but now that he has Juno he’s retired that side of him.

He stares down at me and we share a look. I know he’s trying to tell me that I can go to him if I need to decompress or ask about child related things, so I nod in understanding. Jules is perhaps the most like me, out of our siblings, so I know if I have an issue he’ll be able to help. Violet walks up to him, giving him a kiss before kissing Juno on the cheek and turning to me, which then dislodges the memory that I have Candice Rogers in the van outside.

“Oh shiiiiii-rts.” My gaze darts to Laney who doesn’t look like she cares that I almost swore. “I forgot Candice! She’s in the van. You’re welcome, Violet!”

Vi’s brows hit her hairline and Nat lets out a snort. “What a lovely present Chewy brought you, Vi.”

Vi’s look of shock fades until she grins at me. “So, what’s the plan?”

“Whoa whoa whoa! Cool your jets ladies!” Marx says, holding his hands up, as if he could hold us back. “First off, we need to get as much information out of her as we can. Chewy,” he turns toward me, “You’ve had a huge day, why don’t you go settle in with your new little family and we’ll take care of it for you.”

“Huh?” I ask, confused. What the hell is he talking about? I’m the DRMC Icer. It’s my job.

Well, actually, technically, it’s Rhodie’s job, but tomatoes, tomahtoes.

Marx steps a little closer, smiling softly down at me. “It’s late Chewy, probably close to Laney-May’s bedtime.”

My eyes flick to the little girl and notice that yes, her eyes are starting to droop a little. She’s snuggled into Rhodie’s hold, and I can’t imagine a better place to be.

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