Page 22 of Sinner's Storm
“I will explain everything, but right now, we need to talk about our daughter.”
“No!” I growled, marching over to him. “You don’t get to do that. You don’t get to appear after two and a half years and act like you have a right to anything. Harlow is my daughter. I was the one who went through eighteen hours of labor without you. I was the one who stayed up all night, pacing the floor because she wouldn’t sleep. I was the one who spent hours upon hours in doctor’s offices and emergency rooms worried sick. I’m the one who rocks her to sleep, gives her baths, reads her favorite books. You know nothing about my daughter. Nothing.”
He clenched his jaw.
I knew I had hit below the belt, but I refused to let him walk in here and assume he had any kind of say.
Harlow was my daughter.
Not his.
“I know you are angry. You have every right to be. But let’s get one thing straight, Delany. It takes two to tango, and you were a very willing participant when I was fucking your tight pussy and giving you all those orgasms.”
“I was drunk.”
“So was I.”
“You should have worn a condom.”
“You should have told me you were a virgin.”
“Momma,” Harlow whimpered, right before she started throwing up again. Rushing back over to her, I grabbed the plastic basin, holding it for her as I pushed her hair out of her face.
Looking up, I wasn’t surprised to find Jason gone.
Shaking my head, I tried to soothe Harlow as she retched into the small basin. When I thought she was done, I placed the basin on the small rolling table next to her bed, then reached for the rag I kept close.
Wiping her face, the door slammed open again, as a frantic-looking Jason Calloway stood, panting as he shouted, “Not messing around, Tessa. Fix it!”
Dr. Jackson walked in, shaking her head. “She’s sick, Storm. Kids throw up.”
“Give her something to make it stop.”
“Nothing works. Whatever we give Harlow only makes it worse. The only thing that will help is a bone marrow transplant, and we won’t know if you are a match for another forty-eight hours. Till then, chill out. Just follow Delany’s lead. She knows what’s best for Harlow.”
“Tessa?” my daughter whispered.
“Yes, sweetheart.” Dr. Jackson smiled, walking over.
“I’m hungry.”
“I know, sweetie. Let me go see what I can find. How about some Jell-O?”
“Orange?”
“Sure thing,” Tessa said, turning to Jason. “Listen to Delany and do not upset Harlow or you will have me to deal with too. Got me?”
Jason nodded as Dr. Jackson left, leaving us alone.
After giving Harlow a drink of water, I tucked her back into the bed, making sure she had her teddy with her.
Getting up, I grabbed the basin and the washcloth and walked over to the adjoining bathroom, dumping the contents of the basin into the toilet before flushing. Standing in front of the sink, I rinsed the basin and the washcloth before heading back to Harlow, only to find Jason sitting beside her, his trembling hand hovering over her little head, almost as if he was afraid to touch her.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I shouldn’t have left like I did. Nothing I say will excuse my actions that night. All I can say is that I’m here now and I hope we can find a way to work together and move forward.”
I really didn’t know what to say to that. I believed his words were sincere, but I didn’t know him. All I knew of him was his past actions, and that wasn’t saying much. While I accepted my part in Harlow’s existence, I was trying to give Jason the benefit of the doubt. For the last two and a half years, he’d lived his life thinking everything was as it should be and now, he knew it wasn’t. Had I known he was Robin’s brother, I would have reached out. Hell, I never met Robin’s brother. I wasn’t around growing up like the rest of my friends, and when I did return to the city, everything was different, new.
“She’s so small.”