Page 2 of Winning You
“I understand. She’s medically complicated as well, so there would be assistance if you needed it.”
“Medically complicated? What does that mean?” Something hot and heavy settled in his chest.
“I don’t have all the information here with me, I’m afraid,” the woman said. “I’m sure they can give you more details at the hospital. I’ll have one of my agents there to take care of paperwork if you choose to take guardianship of her.”
Her. Elodie. His baby sister.
“I need to go. Um. Thanks for the call, I guess?” Hanging up, he tossed his phone onto the desk and stood up, pacing the room. Fuck, this was not happening.
Proposing to Eddie, getting married after five years of living entirely separate lives, had been a whim. It had been a fear that with the shift in politics, they might lose the chance. Frankie didn’t want that. He had come to Eddie asking as a sort of business proposal.
Think of the taxes. Think of the benefits. Think of the protections we might need as we get older.
Eddie was a logical man. He saw reason. But he was less than thrilled with the amount of time Frankie’s brothers spent coming in and out of his house. He didn’t think Eddie was going to take to having a goddamn baby around. Especially a medically complicated one. Whatever the fuck that meant.
Turning back toward his desk, Frankie picked up his phone again. His thumb hovered over Eddie’s contact, then went lower. He wasn’t going to bother Fallon with this. The last thing he needed was one of Frankie’s crises while he was in the middle of finals week.
Fenton wouldn’t love him either for dumping this on him, but he had the most free time. He answered on the third ring. “Does this have to do with the random missed call I got from CPS?” he said by way of answering.
Frankie sighed. “It’s Mom.”
“Fuck off.”
“The baby’s six weeks. She’s in the hospital.”
“A sister,” he said quietly. “Jesus Christ. Have you seen her?”
“I’m going over there in a few minutes. They want me to take custody.”
“I can grab Fallon and meet you if you want me to?—”
“No.” Frankie shook his head, rubbing a hand down his face. “No. God, this is going to fuck everything up.”
“Eddie’s not going to be happy. He can barely tolerate me, and he won’t even look at Fallon.”
Frankie felt a wave of irritation rush through his gut. In truth, he knew damn well that his husband’s reaction to his brothers was probably going to spell the end of their marriage sooner or later. No one, not a single person on Earth, was more important than Fenton and Fallon.
“Her name is Elodie,” he said suddenly.
“She abandoned theFs?”
Frankie chuckled, the sound hoarse. “Looks like it. Anyway, I’ll call you if I need you, but don’t worry about this shit, okay?”
“Yeah, sure.”
Frankie knew that tone. That was the tone his brother used when he planned to ignore every single thing he said. He’d used it a lot when he was younger. A bit less now that he was grown up and out of college.
He hung up without a real goodbye, then shot a text to Eddie before heading out to his car. The drive to the hospital was long and slow, mostly on autopilot. He pulled into one of the visitor spots, then made his way in before realizing he had no idea where he was supposed to go.
He assumed the pediatric ED since she’d been brought in after his mom was arrested. But maybe they’d admitted her.
He went to the information desk instead and smiled at the woman who gave him a flat, unamused stare. “Uh, hey. So, I got a call from, um…” He glanced to his right, then to his left.“CPS. My—” It felt weird to call her a little sister. He didn’t even know her, and hell, he was almost forty. “My mother was sent to jail, and my little sister was admitted. She’s six weeks. Elodie Paisley.”
The woman typed for a bit on the computer, then looked at him with narrow eyes. “ID.”
It was a demand, not a request. He fumbled with his wallet, willing his hands not to shake, though that was impossible. But he managed to draw the card out eventually, sliding it over to her. She stared at it like it was written in ancient Phoenician before pushing it back toward him.
“Wear this at all times.” She pulled out a large book filled with bright red stickers that said VISITOR on the front. She scribbled his name, then tore it off and gestured for him to take it. “Fifth floor, room five-fifteen. You can call at the double doors to be let in.”
