“You’ll figure it out. That’s why you get the big bucks, and that’s Dr. Kelley to you. I more than earned that title.” I smiled and didn’t stop until I jumped into my car, feeling victorious.
With a bag full of fireworks, I rang the doorbell to his sprawling home on a hill overlooking the city. I’d only been here a couple of times because his condo was closer to the hospital. I loved both of his homes and hoped that one day we would live together in matrimony. Here, he seemed more like a dad than at the condo.
An older woman with long locs, wearing a billowy caftan with class and a fantastic sense of style, opened the door. Her eyes crinkled at the corners like her son's.
“Ms. St. Patrick?” I asked.
She smiled in greeting. “And you must be Dr. Brooklyn Kelley. You brought fireworks.” She clapped her hands. “Yes. We needed something else besides watching sports all damn night.”
“Brooklyn is fine.” I chuckled and stepped forward to hug her with one arm. “So good to meet you.”
“Likewise.” She looked me up and down, seeming to approve of the jeans, the loose beige off-the-shoulder shirt, and dangling earrings I chose. “Now, I see why my son is all twisted up.”
“Um...I...”Did he tell his mother about our disagreement?
Ms. St. Patrick nodded in understanding. “You’re fine. He’s being stubborn. Always has been.” We walked side by side through his foyer. “He talks about the rough time he’s had with E, but he’s only getting back what he used to do to me. Glad you’re here. Come meet the children. We’re in the kitchen eating. Stan...Carter is in his mancave, probably sulking.”
“He told you what happened?”
“Enough for me to know that he needs to get over it. He has an ex-wife and a baby mama for God’s sake.” She waved her hand. “I feel energy, and I like yours. Liked it from the photo of you two on his social media.”
We entered the large kitchen where his three beautiful young adults were laughing and eating around the table. Sekani noticed me first and waved. Ethyn was the spitting image of his father as a younger man, and Elle was the type of pretty that warranted vanity with her bronzed skin and hazel eyes. Except that she seemed humble yet confident. Easy going. The warmth of their smiles greeted me, and I knew I found my new family.
“I’m Brooklyn.” I waved to all of them and held up my bag. “I got fireworks. More in the car.”
They shouted their approval, and lingering doubts on whether I had made the right decision to be here with them disappeared.
Even when their passive-aggressive father strolled into the kitchen and picked up a plate his mother had prepared for him after we’d all finished eating, and kissed my cheek lightly before leaving again, I was still glad to be there.
I excused myself. “Think I need to check on him.”
Ethyn grinned. “Don’t take too long. We have fireworks to light.”
“Leave her alone.” Elle slapped the back of his neck while Sekani snickered.
He stared at his grandmother. “You’re going to let her hit me like that?”
Ms. St. Patrick chuckled. “You deserved it.”
The laughter continued despite Carter’s obvious dark mood.
I didn’t bother to knock on his door and entered his lavish mancave, full of his trophies and memorabilia. He had a pool table, a small basketball court, and a media system. An oldportrait of him in his Rams uniform covered one wall. The room was dark browns and reds and reeked of alpha masculinity.
Carter sat in a recliner with his tray of food, watching some football game. He continued to stare at the screen until I blocked his view. “I probably lost my residency today since I walked off the job to be here with you, and you barely speak to me?”
“And if we don’t work out, are you going to blame me for losing your residency? I wouldn’t expect you to do anything to jeopardize your career. If you did it as a grand gesture for me, you didn’t need to.” His eyes lacked their usual warmth.
“I did it as a grand gesture for me. I was hiding behind my residency. Didn’t want to deal with life, so I threw myself into work and became less of me.”
Carter sighed and moved his tray to the side. “Why are you here, meeting my family when I said what I needed to say on the phone? You and I need to figure this out first.”
“Are you mad I didn’t listen?”
“I’m not mad.”
“Then you’re pouting like a grown spoiled man. You heard the doorbell and my voice. Still didn’t come out of this room for almost an hour and didn’t introduce me to your children.” I folded my arms. “Did you tell your children we were done?”
“No, I didn’t tell them anything about us. And I thought it was redundant to introduce you when you were laughing and talking at dinner with them when I went into the kitchen.”
