“Good,” Dylan says to him, and when I turn back around, I see Maddox staring at me. His eyes are like hawks as he takes me in.
“Are you ready?” I ask him.
“Why are you crying?” he asks me, and I am so mad at myself.
“I’m just happy Dylan is home,” I reply, smiling up at Dylan as he wraps his arm around my neck and kisses the side of my face.
“Now are you ready to go and see some animals?” I ask him, walking to him and running my hands through his hair. He smiles up at me and nods his head. “Good, and tomorrow we have family lunch.”
Grabbing my purse before we leave, I look over at Dylan, who is talking to Maddox. My stomach is burning with nerves. I don’t even pay attention to whatever they are talking about. Instead, I look out the window and replay Julia’s conversation with me two weeks ago.
“We found her,” Julia said as soon as I picked up the phone. I stopped stirring the pasta and looked over to see Maddox sitting at the counter doing his homework.
“What do you mean you found her?” I whispered into the phone, looking over my shoulder, hoping he wasn’t paying attention to me.
“Maddox’s mother,” she said, and everything in me turned cold.
“Hey.” I smiled at Maddox, ignoring the way my heart was beating. “You can go have iPad time for a bit.”
He didn’t even question it, just pushed away from the table and went into the living room. My eyes stayed on him the whole time. “What happened?” I asked as quietly as I could, the burning coming to my eyes. “Is she okay?”
“Oh, she’s fine,” Julia said, and I could tell from her tone that she was pissed. “She was in a homeless shelter in Mississippi. Had the attitude of a...” She stopped herself before she said something she shouldn’t. “Bottom line, she doesn’t want him. Wants to take herself off his birth certificate, so he doesn’t come looking for her money,” she hissed out. “Her money while she is in a homeless shelter.”
“Oh my God,” I said, looking over at Maddox.
“With that said, we have a court date for you to officially adopt him,” she explained.
It’s why the past two weeks have been a whirlwind. We had people coming into the house to do inspections, and a couple of therapists and social workers came in and spoke with Maddox. My nerves were a mess, and it just made it even worse when he became quiet.
“We’re here,” Dylan says as he pulls up to the aquarium, and I look over at Maddox, who avoids making eye contact with me.
When we walk in, a guide is there waiting to take us around. Dylan was able to get us in privately after they closed. Ever since he skated on the ice, he’s become their city hotshot. Going out with him is almost unbearable, but the team is doing better than they ever have, and I couldn’t be happier for him.
We walk with Maddox in the middle of us, looking up at the sharks that are swimming overhead. “So, Maddox.” Dylan starts to talk, and I can see that he’s nervous now. “We have to talk to you about something.”
“I know,” Maddox says. His voice goes low as he stands there looking at us. “I kind of figured it out.” Dylan and I just look at each other. “I’m going to go live at another house, aren’t I?”
“What?” Dylan says, and all I can do is shake my head side to side, the big tears forming in my eyes, not making it easy to see him.
“No!” I shout. “Of course not. Why would you think that?”
He shrugs and wipes away a tear with the back of his hand as he tries to be strong in front of us. “They came to talk to me the other day when I was at school,” he says. “Wanted to know if I was happy.”
“Well, the reason they did that,” Dylan explains now. “Was because they wanted to know if you wanted to stay with us.” He just looks at Dylan confused. “Like forever.”
“So I wouldn’t have to leave?” he asks both of us. “And I can stay with you guys?”
“Yes,” I confirm. “But only if that is what you want,” I say, not even bothering to wipe away my tears. “We want to keep you forever. We want to adopt you.” I stop talking because the lump in my throat is a boulder, and I can’t get another word out.
“We want to make you ours forever so no one can take you away from us,” Dylan says, his hand sliding into mine. “The three of us will be a family.”
“If I say yes,” he says, “does that mean she can’t come back for me?”