Folding Hearts (Mitchell Family #2)(9)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“Don’t do that.” She said grabbing the bottle away from me.

“Hey, give it back.” I tried to grab the bottle but somehow got my arm caught up around her waist. When our faces almost touched, we froze.

She was so close. I could still smell her sweet perfume. Her eyes were a mess and all of the makeup had run down her cheeks. “I should probably call it a night,” She said as she handed me back the bottle and walked out of the kitchen.

I had no idea why she wouldn’t tell me what was so funny. I wanted to know. Without thinking, I followed behind her, hoping she would explain. She must not have heard me coming, because she was already starting to pull off her tank top when I walked into her room. When the door creaked she spun around and I just stood there.

Her hands naturally covered up the lace of her bra. “Ty? Get out of here? What the Hell?”

I turned around as quickly as possible. “Sorry, I came up to talk to you. I don’t see what the big deal is. I have seen my share of br**sts.” None of them looked at good as that though.

“You can turn around now pervert.”

I spun around to see she had changed into a long t-shirt. I sighed in relief. “I wasn’t being a pervert. I was trying to be a friend.”

“You really should just go into your own room now Ty. Right now I hate every man on the planet. I wouldn’t be good company.” She confessed.

“Miranda I don’t think you understand my intentions. I was there for Izzy’s birth.”

“Bella.” She interrupted.

“Izzy is my name for her. Just let me finish.” I smiled at her disappointment. “I watched her being born. Something that day made me fall in love with that little girl. I can’t explain it, but I feel like I always want to keep her safe. If Tucker did something to her mother, then I want to know about it. I know you think you need him in your life, but that bastard doesn’t deserve either of you.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my ass**le cousin?” She joked.

Sometimes I hated that she thought of me as her family. This day had been one of those times. “Stop making fun of me. Can’t I be nice? I was never mean to Van. Even she will tell you that.”

“Sorry. It is keeping me from losin’ it again. He said he never wanted her and that I should have got an abortion.”

Before she could say anymore I lost it. “HE SAID WHAT?” I yelled. “Tell me where I can find his little ass. I will f**king kill him.”

“Ty, please just leave it alone. I told him to stay away from us.”

I ran my hands through my hair. “If I see him, I will hurt him.”

“I don’t want the family to know Ty. Please keep this between us. They can’t know.”

“Are you afraid of him?”

She shrugged. “I am not afraid of him right now, but if you or my brother go after him, there is no tellin’ what he will do. I can’t worry about that. I need to keep my focus on Bella. Please promise me.”

I shook my head. “Fine. If I hear about him hurting you, it’s on.”

“Thank you for carin’. Sometimes I feel like I can’t talk to anyone about him. I know you hate him too, but at least you made me feel better. Safe even.”

I walked out of her room and gave her a high wave as I walked away. One day I would find that f**ker and kick the shit out of him. It would be on my bucket list.

Chapter 7

Miranda

Even after I told Ty I was fine, I still cried myself to sleep. I kept replaying the night in my head. I saw Tucker’s lips and tongue kissing that girl over and over. I wanted to throw up. He told me he loved me. He said we would be a family. How could he take it all back? How could he not love Bella?

That was the part that upset me the most. She was the most perfect little baby. How could someone not love her? For goodness sakes, Ty was infatuated with her. He video chatted with a baby because he was so crazy about her. Sometimes he would tell me to put the computer next to the crib while I got a shower or had to get changed. They would play peek-a-boo. He would keep her occupied through the screen of a laptop and her own father wanted nothing to do with her. When Tucker was with her, he would play on his phone while she cried or crawled at his feet.

I should have known he was no good, but I wanted to believe he would change. I had been so stupid, so infatuated with the idea of us being a family.

The next morning I woke to sounds coming from Bella’s bedroom. After the shocking revelations the night before and the lack of sleep, it didn’t register that it could be Ty. I entered the doorway and froze as I saw him bent over the changing table, singing to Bella, while changing her diaper.

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine…you make me happy, when skies are gray…..

I folded my arms across my chest and smiled from cheek to cheek. It was the cutest thing I had ever seen.“Again, I have to ask…who are you and what have you done with my cousin?”

He picked up Bella and turned to face me. His grin was huge. Bella grabbed a chunk of his shabby hair and got his attention. “Ouch, gentle Iz!”

I couldn’t help but giggle at the two of them. I was so thankful that she was too young to see what I was going through and Ty being here was a godsend. Had I come home last night and been alone, it would have been horrible.

“I like your hair in the morning. The eighties look really appeals to you.” Ty joked.

“Give me my child smart ass,” I said while reaching out for her. I hadn’t even considered that I looked terrible.

I have no idea why she did it, but instead of reaching out for me like she always did, she put her head down on his chest. “Ah, you see. She wants to be with her uncle Ty.”

I looked at Ty shocked. “There is no way she wants you over me. You haven’t even seen her that much.”

He rocked her around in his close grip. “I was the second person she ever laid eyes on. She won’t forget me. She loves me.”

I groaned and rolled my eyes. “I can’t believe you changed her diaper.”

“She was wet. I didn’t want her to get a rash on her little hiney,” He said in a baby voice.

Feeling defeated, I told Ty I would meet him downstairs after I got changed. When I made it into my room and caught a glance of myself in the mirror, I wanted to scream. I had black mascara smudges in lines down my face. My hair was a giant matted mess and my eyes were blood shot from crying.

I grabbed some clothes and ran into the bathroom to grab a quick shower. It amazed me that I could shower and get ready in seven minutes flat, since having a child. When the beads of water started trickling down my body it felt so refreshing. I leaned back against the shower and tried not to think about anything going on in my life.