Blossom glanced at Brexton before handing her daughter to the woman. They went into the baby’s room first, where Mrs. Connors promptly sat down in the padded rocker and cooed over the child.
“You two go on,” Mrs. Connors said. “The baby and I will be just fine in here.”
“She might wake up hungry,” Blossom said.
Mrs. Connors smiled at her. “Don’t worry dear. When I saw the pictures online, I had organic baby food delivered, along with some things your son might like.”
Blossom blinked a few times, opened and shut her mouth, then walked out. Brexton followed and carried Drew to his new bedroom. Easing the boy down onto the small bed, he removed the kid’s shoes then pulled a blanket over him. Blossom walked over to the toy chest and pulled out a stuffed animal, then tucked the little dog under her son’s arm. She grabbed Brexton’s hand and pulled him out into the hall, then looked around but didn’t seem to know where to go.
He took her to the end of the hall and into his room, thinking she wanted privacy to fuss at him about something. He left the door open so she wouldn’t feel threatened or uncomfortable. It was something he’d picked up about human females, or at least the ones he’d interacted with so far. They seemed to associate bedrooms with sex, and while the thought of getting to know Blossom intimately was an intriguing one, he didn’t want to scare her either.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“There are pictures of my children online? What if… what if Mike sees them and knows where to find us?”
He pulled her closer and when she gripped his shirt and pressed her head against his chest, he wrapped his arms around her.
“Do you think I’m going to let anyone hurt you?” he asked. “Or those children?”
“You can’t be with us all the time, Brexton. And I know that all of this is just temporary. I stopped believing in fairytales a long time ago, and men like you don’t end up with women like me. You might have told those women I was your girlfriend, but you’d never have picked me.”
His hold on her tightened. “Women like you?”
“I’m trash, Brexton. I have kids from two different daddies, and neither of their fathers is the man I’m trying to get away from. Since Drew’s dad split, I’ve let one man after another into my life, hoping to survive the world I was born into, but all I ever end up with is more trouble.”
“That doesn’t make you trash, Blossom.”
“Maybe not, but I’ve lived in that neighborhood my entire life. That’s what makes me trash. I have no way of escaping that hell. No one will hire a high school dropout for more than a minimum wage job.”
He leaned back a little and tipped her chin up so she had to look at him.
“Blossom, you’ve done what you felt was necessary for you and your children. I’m not going to hold that against you. If you’d been given the opportunity, would you have left that life long ago? Would you have dated those men if you’d had any other choice?” he asked.
“I’d have left if I’d had a way to do it, and no, I never would have dated them if I’d had other options. They weren’t good men, but I was desperate.” She worried at her lower lip. “Brexton, if they’re splashing pictures of me and the kids all over the place, it’s only a matter of time before someone figures out who I am and where I come from. They aren’t going to be kind to you if they think you’re dating someone…”
“If you say someone like you, I’m going to put you over my knee and spank you,” he said.
Her cheeks warmed, but there was a flash of awareness in her eyes. Interesting.
“I’ll call my manager and have her come here. We can sit down and discuss the situation while the kids are asleep,” he said.
“All right. We should probably get her here quickly though. My kids won’t sleep for more than an hour since they fell asleep in the car. I think they’ve napped more today than ever before.”
“Let’s go downstairs and I’ll make the call. I have a feeling Mrs. Connors won’t be releasing your daughter anytime soon, but I promise both children will be safe with her.”
Brexton didn’t know what Stella would have to say about the situation they were in, but hopefully she had a solution that wouldn’t upset Blossom, or confuse the kids. He really did want to help them, whatever it took. At the very least, he hoped they would stay through Christmas. If they hadn’t even had a tree, then it was doubtful they’d had gifts. Had they ever received a Christmas present? Did this Santa person only visit those who were wealthy? Maybe he should have paid more attention when his manager was explaining how this Christmas thing worked.
Human culture sometimes gave him a headache.
