He looked irate. “How could Fred have not told me he walked out on you? I would’ve come home right away.”
“He said he was going to call you.”
“Well, he sure as fuck didn’t.” Channing rushed away.
I began to follow him. “Where are you going?”
“I’m calling Fred to rip him a new asshole.” He looked back at me. “Just go stay with my mother, please? Make sure she doesn’t come in while I’m talking to him.”
“Sure.”
Ten minutes later, he returned to the kitchen. His ears were still red, and he did not look happy.
“What did he say?” I asked.
“Apparently, he sent me this long, rambling email that never got to me because he misspelled my fucking email address. He just forwarded it to me. I don’t even care what he has to say. The end result is the same.”
Channing walked over to Christine and pulled her into a hug, which warmed my heart and made me incredibly sad at the same time.
“Are you okay, Mom? I’m sorry I didn’t ask that first.”
“Not really. But I’m better now that I’m here.”
He looked her up and down. “You look like you could use a bath.”
“I could.” She laughed.
“Let me go draw you one.”
Channing got Christine set up in the bathroom. I gave him one of my Lush bath bombs for her. Once she was soaking in the tub with a magazine, he came back out to the living room.
Running his hand through his hair, he looked at me and said, “This is bad, Amber. This is really bad.”
“You didn’t see this coming so soon? Him leaving her?”
“I saw it coming. I was just hopeful that he’d stick around a little longer. And my aunt isn’t going to be able to stay there beyond tomorrow. I just got off the phone with her. She just told me she has to have surgery in two days. She lives two hours away. I have to figure something out.”
“Can she stay alone during the day?”
“She has been. Fred worked, so yeah. But he was always home by four, and sometimes he worked from home. The neighbor would look in on her from time to time, too.” He grabbed my hand and our fingers intertwined. His voice was shaky. “I really don’t want to leave, but I’m afraid I’m gonna have to.”
Panic set in. I wasn’t ready for him to go. And in my mind, there really wasn’t a reason that he had to. The wheels in my head were turning.
I didn’t even have to think twice when I asked, “Why can’t she stay here with us? Your contract isn’t for much longer.”
“I can’t burden you like that, Amber.”
“The only burden would be on you. She’d get your bedroom. There would be no burden on me.”
He shook his head. “It would be too much.”
“On whom? Not on me.” I squeezed his hand. “Besides, I really don’t want you to leave.”
His voice was hoarse. “I don’t want to leave, either.”
“It’s settled, then. Stay. I get home early enough to keep an eye on her in the later afternoon. I can change my hours with Milo to have them start later for a while. Then, there’ll be no gap between the time each of us gets home.”
Hope filled his eyes. “Are you sure about this?”
“It’s just a matter of weeks. Of course, I am.”
Channing pulled me into the hardest kiss. It felt like my lips were going to fall off.
“You’re amazing. I can’t thank you enough for this.”
“It will be okay. You’ll figure out a situation that works long term, too. Somehow, it will all work out.”
We sat quietly for a bit as I lay my head on his chest, feeling like I’d averted one small battle only to have to face another when his contract inevitably ended. This was definitely bittersweet.
He gently caressed my hair. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.”
He looked hesitant to ask, “Are you still concerned about…you know…”
The past few hours were actually the first time I hadn’t dwelled on my pregnancy fears.
“I’m trying not to think about it until I can take the test.”
“Good thinking. I’m so sorry that happened.”
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault. It will be fine. I know it.”
“Yeah.” He smiled, although he looked nervous.
Christine emerged from the bathroom dressed in my robe. It was the first time I realized she didn’t have a bag with her. She hadn’t brought any clothing.
“Mom, what do you think about staying here a few weeks until my contract is up? I really can’t leave my job yet. I’d like to stay and finish up my responsibilities. You can stay in my room.”
“Where will you sleep?”
“The couch. It’s fine.”
She turned to me. “Are you sure, Amber?”
“I would love to have you. Honestly, I get lonely without people around.”
“Me, too. It’s why I had to come here,” she said.