Page 74 of Dare to Dance
Before I sat down, I glanced out through the window then the doorway, hoping Ruby would return. All I saw were the workers. I joined Raven, crossing my legs underneath me, although I wasn’t as limber as she and her mom were.
Mr. Matson readied his test, removing a long Q-tip from a package. “This won’t take but a second.”
Ms. Waters made herself comfortable in the only adult chair in the room. She watched as though she was taking mental notes on the interaction between Raven and me.
As we waited for Mr. Matson, I dumped out the LEGOs I’d collected earlier. As Raven began sifting through them, my phone vibrated. I pulled it out of my back pocket. The text from Kelton read,Kade and I will be there in five minutes.
I’d forgotten all about my brothers joining me. They were salivating to meet Raven. My parents were as well. But we didn’t want to overwhelm Raven too quickly, at least not until the paternity results were back. Plus, Ms. Waters recommended that we keep the introductions to a couple of family members for the time being.
“Ms. Waters, you’re still okay with my brothers joining us today?”
She nodded. “It’s fine. It’s also uncanny the resemblance between you two.” She gestured at me and Raven with a painted pink nail.
I grinned while I set my gaze on Raven. She was engrossed in building something with the LEGOs. I’d seriously thought she would go for the dolls. I couldn’t wait for my brothers to meet her. My heart was firing on all cylinders just knowing she could be my daughter. Scratch that, shewasmy daughter. If that DNA test came back with results saying I wasn’t her father, I would flip out. Then I would have a serious chat with Kody and Kelton. Because this little girl was a Maxwell.
“I’m ready.” Mr. Matson proceeded to swab my mouth first. When it was Raven’s turn, he said, “Open wide.”
She did as he instructed. After he was done, she giggled. “That didn’t tickle.”
“Easy peasy,” I said. Then we dove into playing with LEGOs.
“There’s a rush on the order,” Mr. Matson said as he packed up. “Results should be ready within the week.”
“Thanks.” I snapped a LEGO together, silently thanking Mr. Davenport as well for helping me to get the ball rolling.
Kade and Kelton ambled in as Mr. Matson took his leave. Kelton was carrying a box covered in a black cloth. I smirked, knowing what was underneath.
Kade and Kelton eyed Raven. With her legs stretched out, she was absorbed in everything LEGOs.
“The daddy thing suits you, Bro,” Kade said low, not taking his eyes off of Raven.
Kelton’s mouth dropped open as he too fixated on Raven.
Ms. Waters came over to them. “Hi, gentlemen. I’m Ms. Waters.”
Raven looked up. I couldn’t tell if she was staring at Kade or Kelton, but in one second, she crawled the six inches over to me and sat in my lap. I would have sworn that my heart burst open.
She pointed at Kelton. “How come he looks like you?”
“Those are my brothers. The one that looks like me is a triplet.”
Kade had tears in his eyes, while Kelton still had his mouth open.
Raven touched my face. “What’s a triplet?”
“Triplet means three. And three of us look exactly alike.”
“He doesn’t.” She pointed at Kade, who was blinking as though he was either trying to dry his tears or keep himself from breaking down. I knew the feeling all too well.
“Kody isn’t here,” I said, wanting to tell her everything about our family.
After Kade and Kelton managed to snap back to reality, they acknowledged Ms. Waters as they found a spot on the floor with Raven and me. With our large physiques, Kade, Kelton, and I seemed so out of place in this small room. Yet we were so at home and at ease hanging out on the floor with a kid, surrounded by toys. Weird.
“What’s in your hand?” Raven asked Kelton.
His blue eyes flashed with excitement. “I heard you like lizards.”
Her head of thick black hair bobbed up and down as she curled a small arm around my neck. I was a goner. She had me hook, line, and sinker.
