“If you change—”
“No. No changing minds. We do this or not.”
“Okay, Mistress Yoda,” Vortex teased.
“Will you be able to love her, Vortex? She’s Kyleah’s child, she’ll remind you of Kyleah daily.”
“No. She’s not Kyleah’s, she’s ours.”
“Will we tell her the truth?”
“One day, yes. But for now, she doesn’t need to know. Damnit, what’s her name? We can’t keep calling her she.”
I pulled out a crumpled birth certificate and scanned it. “Well, Kyleah gave her a pretty name. Arabella.” I stared at the certificate. “Your name is Easton Sterling?”
“Mouthful, ain’t it?” Vortex quipped, and I laughed.
“You’re not an Easton, that’s for sure. Nope, sorry, that doesn’t feel right at all. Arabella Sterling, Kyleah, gave her your surname,” I said.
“I wonder if that was because she was hopeful I’d take her back, or because she wanted Arabella to have a security blanket in case something happened. Kyleah must have understood what Marker was and what stealing would bring.”
I nodded, because I couldn’t disagree. I’d not known Kyleah like Vortex had, but he had some idea of her motives.
“It’s mid-afternoon already. The general store will have diapers, cream, wipes, and milk. But she’s got nothing else. We need an emergency run,” I murmured, distracted by prioritising Arabella’s needs.
“Let’s go make a list. The club will help,” Vortex said.
“We can also let them know there’s a new addition,” I added.
I was surprised when we headed back down to find every brother there, apart from Gravey.
“What’s the plan?” Inglorious inquired.
“Meet your new niece. We need baby shit,” Vortex said.
Everyone exchanged glances, but something struck me as odd.
“No bets? You guys bet on everything,” I stated.
“Not on this. We guessed what you’d do,” Inglorious replied.
“Oh, we’re that predictable?” I asked.
“No. You’re good people who’d never leave a kid who needed you. By the way, if you want the kindergarten job, it’s yours,” Inglorious casually threw out.
“Just like that?” I laughed.
“Yeah, we’ll discuss wages later. Nanci’s going to show you a few pictures to get an idea of your taste, and then they’ll hit Rapid City,” Inglorious said and walked over to Vortex. He peered at Arabella and then took her.
“Hey!” Vortex exclaimed.
“Come to Uncle Inglorious, kidda. I’ve got some shit to teach you. But welcome to the family, you’re gonna have a big brother soon, and you’ve got a cousin called Kya. She enjoys looking like a scary clown and frightening your mom. How about you and I discuss all the ways you’re going to be a brat while being my princess?”
To my amusement, the big man walked away with Arabella, cooing and talking to her.
“Come and take a quick peek. If you like them, I know what I’m buying,” Nanci ordered me. Daisy-Duke was already on the laptop and researching bassinets. I joined them and started selecting choices.
Vortex
