“Shit. Let me know what’s goin’ on. I’ll be there no matter what,” I tell him as we make our way to the kitchen.
Knuckles starts helping his ol’ lady as she tries to pull the lasagna out of the oven. She has a tray full of garlic bread ready to go inside and my mouth waters at the delicious smells filling their home.
“How are you, Tease?” she asks me, a smile on her face as she turns toward me.
“Been better. How you feelin’?” I return, leaning against the island as I look at the salad she’s been preparing to go withour dinner. There’s also two pies sitting there and I know she’s been in the kitchen all day long again.
Janessa cooks and bakes up a storm when she’s pregnant. She’s at the five month mark now and soon their freezer in the garage will be filled with prepared foods so she doesn’t have to worry about cooking a full meal when she has this baby. It’s what she did when she was pregnant with Matty. They had more than enough food and all Knuckles had to do was grab something and throw it in the oven each day. I joked with her and told her she made enough to feed an army for a year with how much she cooked in preparation for the birth of their child.
“What’s goin’ on?” Knuckles questions me after setting the lasagna on top of the stove and putting the tray of garlic bread in the oven.
“I don’t even know where the hell to start,” I say, sighing because I know there’s no hiding this situation from the two of them. “A little over seven months ago, I slept with a girl I’ve known for a long time. The condom broke and she assured me she was on birth control. I never checked in with her after that night and told her it was a one time thing between us.”
“Sheridan? Didn’t you go to school with her?” Knuckles asks me, walking to the refrigerator and pulling out two beers and a bottle of water for Janessa.
“Yeah. She’s one of the few people I let in back then and knows all about Marcus and the hell it was when he died. Anyway, she’s pregnant with my son and we’re not talkin’. If there’s anyone in this world who knows I can’t stand liars, it’s her,” I say, adjusting Kaden in my arms. He’s getting heavy and I need to move him so my arms don’t fall asleep.
“You know birth control isn’t a hundred percent effective, right?” Janessa asks, opening her water while looking at me.“And you know if she’s taken other medicines, especially antibiotics, it could interfere with the birth control?”
“She said she was on an antibiotic and that’s how she ended up pregnant. I’m not sure if I’m buying it though. Sheridan was never the type to lie or be manipulative when we were younger, but I haven’t seen her in years. Not enough to know how much she’s changed since we graduated from high school. I honestly know nothin’ about her life now when we were close before,” I inform them as Kaden lifts his head from my chest and looks at his mom before reaching out to her.
I hand him over to her across the island as he nestles into her and wraps his little arms around her neck. Janessa isn’t huge, but she does have a little belly where their third child rests. Sheridan is huge as I look at my cousin’s wife and remember when she was as big as Sheridan is now. Janessa had a hard time moving around and everything was more difficult for her. Sheridan is taking classes and all on her own while Janessa had my cousin to help her when she needed it. Pain fills me because I know I should be there for her, but I can’t bring myself to take that step.
“You really think this girl is tryin’ to trap you or something?” Knuckles questions me as he turns to check on the garlic bread in the oven.
“Sheridan isn’t tryin’ to trap me at all. She told me she doesn’t want anythin’ from me and would raise our son or daughter on her own. Didn’t want to come to a strip club or the clubhouse to tell me when she already knew I wouldn’t want anythin’ to do with the baby. I went to her last doctor’s appointment with her and got to watch her have an ultrasound. That’s when we found out we were havin’ a son. Sheridan had to go over to the hospital directly after the appointment to be hooked up to an IV and given some kind of medicine. Shegoes back again in a few days for her next appointment and ultrasound. I guess she’ll have one of those each week until the baby’s born and the doctor said her pregnancy was high risk. No clue what the hell that means,’ I inform them as Knuckles removes the bread from the oven and sets it next to the lasagna.
“Why did she go to the hospital for medicine and an IV?” Janessa questions me as she takes Kaden to the table and sits down without putting him in his high chair or booster seat.
“She can’t keep anythin’ down and is dehydrated. They give her some kind of medicine so she can eat. Apparently it’s not the first time it’s happened. She was taken out of school for the remaining time of her summer classes,” I say, taking my seat across from Janessa and next to Knuckles’ seat at the head of the table.
“Did you go with her? Do Hammer and Aunt Jolene know about the baby yet?” my cousin asks as he carries the food over to the table and sets it down close to his wife so she doesn’t have to reach with Kaden still in her arms.
“I didn’t go to the hospital with her. Her dad took her. I mean he was there to give her a ride. She said she’s not drivin’ right now because she keeps gettin’ dizzy. Her back is another issue. She’s not really sleepin’ either. Though, I remember her bein’ in a car accident with her mother and havin’ to have back surgery. I didn’t even ask about that bein’ an issue because of everythin’ else Sheridan was tellin’ the doctor. She’s havin’ a hard time with this pregnancy from what I’m seein’,” I inform them as we start to pile food on our plates and Kaden starts to fall asleep on his mom’s lap.
“Why the hell wouldn’t you go to the hospital with her? I’m sure she could have used you by her side as she laid in bed for hours while she got fluids and whatever else they did for her there. Especially without knowing if her dad stayed with her.What the hell is going on with you, Tease? This doesn’t seem like you at all,” Janessa says, anger filling her voice as she looks at me. I have no doubt she’s remembering how things were between my cousin and her when he found out she was pregnant with his baby.
“She didn’t ask me to go with her,” I say simply as Knuckles starts laughing. “And my parents don’t know yet. I have to figure out how to tell them everythin’.”
“Aunt Jolene is gonna beat your ass if you keep this from her much longer. You know that as well as I do. I don’t give a fuck if she asked you or not, Axel. If she went to the hospital because of the pregnancy, you fuckin’ go with her. Don’t you remember all the shit I put Janessa through? You were pissed at me and gave me shit every fuckin’ day. Now, you’re doin’ the same damn thing with Sheridan. You need to have a damn conversation with her and work this shit out,” Knuckles says, grabbing Janessa’s hand and holding it as he brings up memories of their past and all the pain they both felt during that time.
“I know I gotta tell them. Maybe I will tonight after I leave here.”
The three of us dig into our meals and I change the conversation to anything other than the situation with Sheridan. Janessa keeps us entertained with stories about the boys and all the chaos they’ve been creating the last few days. No, I haven’t been here like normal because I’ve been so lost in my head about this shit. Matty is already crawling around and trying to follow his big brother around. The two of them are into everything they can reach and the babysitter is exhausted each day Janessa or Knuckles walk back in the house so she can leave.
“Help me in the kitchen,” Knuckles orders when we’re finally done eating. “What are you gonna do with Sheridan movin’ forward?”
Janessa has moved to the couch where she lays Kaden down and covers him with a blanket before settling in next to him. She looks at the baby monitor to check on Matty as she grabs the remote for the TV.
“I’m not gonna do anythin’ with her. We’ll co-parent our son and that’s the extent of the relationship we’ll have. Not gonna be with someone who lies to me, Knuckles,” I tell him, my voice hard so he knows this isn’t something I want to talk about.
“Axel, from what I can remember about this girl, you’ve always been into her. From the day you first saw her, you wanted to make her yours and never did. Now, you’re tied together forever and you refuse to take a chance and be with her because you believe she lied to you when she more than likely didn’t? Not many people think about the fact that other medicines can fuck with birth control until somethin’ like this happens. I don’t think she lied to you at all. And I know what an ass you could be so I don’t blame her for thinkin’ she’d be a single mom either,” he says, making me angry because I don’t want to talk about this shit.
“I’m outta here,” I state before turning and leaving my cousin in the kitchen alone.
I walk behind the couch and pull the blanket up on Kaden since he moved and it lowered on his body. After telling Janessa bye, I slide my boots on and grab my hoodie before walking out the door. This situation with Sheridan is different from what my cousin went through. Sheridan and I have a past and we simply grew apart over the years. After graduation, I threw myself into the club even more and she went to college. We’re different people now and I don’t know what it’s gonna take for me to getpast everything. No, there won’t be anything between Sheridan and me other than when we have to talk about the baby.
With my hoodie on, I head for the garage and get on my bike. Instead of leaving the compound or heading to the clubhouse to get drunk, I make my way to my parents’ house. I might as well tell them they’re gonna have a grandson now instead of continuing to put it off. Today is fucking hell and it’s only going to get worse once I have this conversation with my parents. They’ve met Sheridan and love her.
