Chapter 13

DELILAH

I get to our room and slam the door, but Derek is right behind me. He catches the door and shuts it gently before I collapse onto the couch, sobbing.

He hurries over and drops to the floor beside the couch. "That was a fucking shit show. Way better than I even imagined with Claudia. It's okay, though."

I know he's trying to make light of the situation, but I'm too worked up to tell him the part he doesn't know yet. The part where I'm carrying my uncle's fucking baby.

"Let's look at the bright side. You got to meet your dad. He doesn't seem to be a total dick. And he was shocked, same as you, so he didn't leave. He didn't know."

"Little late. I'm almost twenty-two. He's missed my whole life. Now he meets me when I'm in a total psychotic rage. I never want to see that bitch again. She's dead to me," I cry.

"Good. You don't deserve her bullshit. We're better off without her," he reassures me.

"Thank you," I whisper.

I have a dad. I mean, I knew I had one, but I actually met him and he seemed to be well put together, besides the fact that he somehow liked Claudia enough to be with her not once, but twice.

Oh shit, I have grandparents. I hope they're nice and not creepy like Drew, who thinks it's acceptable for his daughter who is in her forties to still call him Daddy.

"Is it too soon to tell you that your dad is hot? Like, can he be my daddy?"

"Derek!" I scream. "Too soon. Way too fucking soon."

"Sorry." He laughs.

"It'd make sense with how my life is going right now, though." I wipe my eyes and sit up, bringing my legs up on the couch.

Derek raises a brow. "What are you talking about? Am I missing something?"

"Well, I can tell you what isn't missing… Little Boba's dad."

"You found him? When? Where? Wait! Is he here? Is that why you got sick? You saw him and panicked?"

"He was at dinner." I look over his head at the wall to avoid eye contact.

"I don't understand."

"Wells. You know the man we just met, my uncle?" I run a hand over my mouth and let it fall to the couch.

"No."

"Yeah. Fucked him in the alley behind the bar. That's my baby daddy. I'm carrying my uncle's baby. How fucked up is that? Claudia really did it. Well, I did it. But she caused this!" I shout.

"Holy shit," he murmurs.

"I'm having my uncle's baby. What if Little Boba has issues because of this? Incest is illegal, right? Oh, my God! Can I go to jail if I didn't know? If he didn't know?" My chest tightens and I feel like I'm about to be sick.

The room fills with silence as we both process what has unfolded tonight. I set a hand on my belly and feel Little Boba kick.

Well, I found your daddy. He's also your great-uncle. I knew I'd fuck this parenting thing up.

"I haven't even had the kid yet and I'm already making his or her life hell. Daddy and great-uncle are the same person. We might as well go on Jerry Springer. God rest his soul." I make the sign of the cross.

"Wait! Don't panic or get worked up. Claudia said, step-brother. So you're not blood!" Derek's voice gets louder the more he says.

Shit! She did say that. She said step-mom and step-brother.

I begin to cry again. "That means Little Boba will be okay. There's no DNA between us." I feel slightly better and not as panicked that we're not blood.

"Exactly. You've read plenty of step-brother romances. You just went the step-uncle route." Derek lightly squeezes my thigh.

"I guess. But now I have to tell him he's the great step-uncle to my baby; his baby."

"You don't have to do it right now. We can get his contact info and deal with it later. Head home and forget the weekend until you're ready."

"No." I drop my head against the back of the couch. "He deserves to know he's going to be a dad. And I'd like to know why that fucking asshole never called or texted. Minus needing to tell him we're pregnant, I also thought we connected that night. I told him not to waste my time if he wasn't going to contact me."

"Maybe he got busy with wedding planning or helping his brother brave the tornado—Claudia. Could you even imagine how she was with all the small details about this wedding?"

"I guess, but still it takes like three seconds to send a text saying ‘hey'. It's not that I expected him to halt his day and have a whole conversation with me," I argue.

"True. Are you sure you gave him the right number? Remember that time we met those super hot dudes at Red's and you gave the one guy your number but put the name in as DerekDelilah? Dude was so confused about who he was texting a few days later," he laughs. "Tipsy Delilah is not known for her savvy phone skills."

I laugh along with him. "It's possible, I guess. But I didn't drink that much. I'm positive I gave him the right number. Doesn't matter now, because whether he contacted me or not, we're still left trying to figure out how to tell my dad that I literally just met and my grandparents that I'm pregnant with Wells' baby. This is a mess."

"Do you want me with you when you tell him? The first step is telling Wells and then together you two can plan on how to break it to his parents and brother."

"Can you be here, but, like, not here?" I motion to the living room area where we're sitting. "Like in your room, so if I need you I can holler, but otherwise not here."

He sticks out his bottom lip in a fake pout. "Can I press my ear against the door and eavesdrop the whole time?"

"Yes." I grab a pillow and smack him with it. "Spy away, baby."

"Fine. Once you kiss and make up though, can you ask him if he has any hot friends? I'm ready to end this dry spell that having this baby has dealt me."

"I can't stand you!" I squeal.

"Thank you for cheering me up and making this not as bad as it seems," I say, my voice softening.

Derek's smile widens as he lovingly sweeps a stray strand of hair off my face. "There's nothing you can do about it now. The baby is coming in just a few months. Since you're not related by blood, there are no genetic concerns for you to consider. Everything else will fall into place. And if it doesn't, you still have me. That's all you had when we got here, so you have nothing to lose."

I nod, struggling to stifle a yawn.

Derek chuckles. "We should get to bed. Tomorrow, your new family will likely make an effort to meet you."

I stand up and head toward the bedroom, my body swaying from side to side with each step. Once inside, I quickly shed my boots and clothes, opting for a lightweight pajama set consisting of shorts and a matching tank top. I twist my hair into a messy bun, some strands falling loose around my face, and climb into bed. Nestling into the plush comforter, I relish in the soft feel as the weight of the day slowly fades away.

As Derek flicks off the light switch, he kindly offers, "I'll make sure everything is locked."

"Goodnight," we softly tell each other, the words lingering in the quiet room.

I whisper to Little Boba, "No matter what happens, you will always have me. I'm going to be the best mom I can be, nothing like Claudia. I have the perfect roadmap of what not to do."

With that promise, I drift off, comforted by the thought of a better future for me and my baby.