Page 78 of Lucky In Love
“It’s a fact, not drama,” Doc said. “We checked out her story.”
“What’s wrong with her?” Quinn asked. For the first time, she looked like she cared.
“A triple A; aortic abdominal aneurism,” Doc answered. “And a big one. If it ruptures, she’ll bleed to death in a matter of minutes.”
Quinn gasped, the sound filling the room. “Can’t they operate?”
“Yes, but Maeve didn’t want to schedule the surgery until you were found. Just in case,” Jackson said.
“She’s an idiot. She knows how serious it is. It’s what killed our father.”
“And Ciara?” Doc asked.
Quinn shook her head. “Look, this is my life.” She waved her hands, motioning to the room. “The owner’s my boyfriend. I have maybe five years left before I’ll be considered too old, and I’ve taken steps to be on the management side of things when that happens. But until then I’m making bank and stashing it away. My lifestyle isn’t conducive to having a kid around. We all make our choices, right?”
Doc nodded. “So, you don’t foresee any point that you could or would again take custody of Ciara?”
“No. Even if Maeve died, I can’t raise her and, quite honestly, she’d be better off in anyone else’s custody than mine.”
“Would you be willing to let Maeve permanently adopt Ciara?” Jackson asked.
“Yes,” Quinn said without any thought needed. “But why is that necessary?”
“Who is Ciara’s father?” Jackson asked. “Maeve thinks it’s Blain Sullivan.”
“It could be. I counted back and was with him when I would have gotten pregnant.”
“Did you sleep with anyone else around that time?” Jackson pressed.
Quinn shrugged. “Probably. I mean, I usually did, but we wouldn’t have been sleeping,” she said before she laughed.
“Would you have any names for us?” Jackson asked.
“No, don’t have a clue,” she answered.
“Blain Sullivan was Maeve’s boyfriend,” Doc said.
“Don’t judge. It takes two to do the dirty, so he wasn’t an innocent bystander in it.”
“Even if you don’t plan to be there to support her, you need to call your sister,” Jackson said. “Would it be such a bad thing to be in contact with her?”
Quinn sighed loudly. “I suppose not. Just as long as she doesn’t try to guilt me into anything. I have my life. She has hers.”
Doc just shook his head. Her sister’s life was raising her daughter. And if Maeve didn’t survive the surgery, most likely he and his wife, Elizabeth, would be helping Jackson and Angel raise Ciara.
“Can you change your plans to at least be around when she has the surgery?” Doc asked. “Ciara can stay at my house while she’s in the hospital and recovers, but it would be nice for Maeve to have family there for her.”
“Fuck, I knew it. You’re a perv,” Quinn said. “Like ‘em young, huh?”
“My wife will take care of Ciara. We have a two-and-a-half-year-old and my wife babysits several other little ones,” Doc said gruffly.
Quinn rolled her eyes.
“Do you need Maeve’s phone number? It’s still the same since the last time you talked to her,” Jackson asked. It was time to wrap this up before Doc let Quinn have it.
“Yeah, give it to me. I have a different phone now and couldn’t transfer any numbers over.”
Jackson gave her Maeve’s phone number. Then he texted Maeve to tell her they’d just spoken with Quinn and shared her phone number. He told her he’d call her in a moment. “Okay. I’m going to call Maeve when we leave. Give me five minutes on the phone with her before you call. But call her. Within the hour.”