Page 137 of The Nanny and the Nerd
“That’s different,” he answered with a weary sigh.
“It’s not, Rowen. Love is love.”
“You sound like my mother,” he answered as a prickling sensation rippled through his body. “And who are you to lecture me on love? The only thing you know about me is that I own that building,” he finished, pointing toward Gale Gaming.
“I know you better than you think I do,” the man replied, then pulled a domino from his pocket. He slid the tile across the table. “Look at it.”
Rowen shook his head. “I’m not in the mood to play,” he answered.
“I’m not playing,” the man replied, his tone firm.
Rowen touched the tile. “It’s just a domino. There’s nothing special about it.”
Chuck held his gaze. “That’s where you’re wrong. Turn it over.”
Rowen flipped the tile, then froze. He blinked, unable to believe what was right in front of him.
RT
His pulse kicked up. “Where did you get this?”
“I kept it because I liked knowing that I had a little part of you. I couldn’t be there for you when you were a kid. But I’m here for you now.”
“Who the hell are you?” Rowen asked, his voice trembling.
“You know who I am. I’m your friend.”
“When did you become my friend, Chuck?” he asked, staring into the man’s blue eyes. But he knew the answer.
“I grew up with your mom and dad, Rowen. Not the Gales, your birth parents,” the man began, folding his hands in his lap. “I know what you must think of your biological parents—the drugs and the neglect. But you don’t have the whole story. They weren’t always like that. They got clean when they found out they were having you. Your mom was so excited, but I’m sure you know the rest. There were complications with your birth, and sadly, she didn’t make it. It was too much for your dad. He tried, but eventually, he fell back on his old ways.”
What?
The breath caught in Rowen’s throat. His heart pounded. “I didn’t know that about my mom,” he replied, his voice barely a whisper.
Chuck’s bushy brows knit together. “You didn’t?”
Rowen shook his head. It was as if he’d been thrust into an alternate universe. “When I was old enough to understand I didn’t have a mom, I asked my dad about her. It put him in such a rage. He’d beat me to a pulp. He wouldn’t tell me anything. He made me swear to never ask about her. I figured she took off and left us because he was so awful. I hated her. I assumed she’d abandoned me. I never looked for her. The only thing I know about her is her name: Joanne P. Teagues.”
“The Gales didn’t say anything?” Chuck asked, his beard and cap unable to conceal his shock.
“I didn’t want to talk about my old life. They didn’t push me.” He stared up at the sky. “Jesus! I don’t even know what my mother looked like. There was nothing of her in the house.”
Chuck nodded, then pulled his wallet from his pocket. “Now you do,” he said, removing a creased photograph and handing it over.
Wide-eyed, Rowen stared at the picture of three smiling people: his father, the kind stranger from his childhood, and a pregnant woman.
His mother.
“That’s her?” he whispered, unable to look away.
“That’s her. That’s Phoebe,” Chuck answered.
Rowen reared back. “What?”
“She went by her middle name. ThatPstands for Phoebe.” Chuck glanced at the playground. “Serendipitous, isn’t it? You get to have another Phoebe in your life who loves you.”
Rowen released a shaky breath as he stared at the woman he’d never met.
