Page 69 of Grumpy

Grumpy did a quick room count and realized what she was saying. “We wouldn’t have room for a nursery.”

Facing Maddie again, Kelly explained, “My house only has two bedrooms, my mom’s and mine. Grumpy’s has three, which would give you a room, but not your own room once the babies are ready to be on their own. But Grumpy’s club has a lot of property. All of the club except Grumpy live there already. The babies would be here in about three months, you said. That’s smack dab in the middle of winter. We wouldn’t be able to build then, but we can make do. Maybe even turn the den downstairs into a nursery or a bedroom. I don’t know how long it takes for a house to get built.”

“Cage can start as soon as the ground thaws. He already ran utilities to the empty plot when he built Starbucks’ house. If we do a modular home instead of building from scratch, it’ll be much quicker.” Glancing up, Grumpy realized that Maddie’s wide eyes were watching the two of them like she was at a tennis match. “There’s a lot I still have to explain about my club. But the short version is there’s a lot of us. We have two main areas where houses are built, the Pentagon and the Square. Each have a communal backyard between the houses. This is in addition to the clubhouse. There’s one unclaimed spot on the Square we can build a house on that would be big enough for Kelly and me, Ruth, you, and the babies to have our own rooms. We’ll be there to help you raise the babies, Mads. And not just us. My club is massive, as I said. You’ve got a lot of aunts and uncles waiting to meet you.”

“And club cousins,” Kelly added. “Grumpy’s brothers breed like there was an apocalypse and they’re repopulating the planet.”

“So what do you think?” Grumpy asked, trying not to sound too eager. If she said no, he would move to Texas. It would be messy and it would be complicated, but he’d do it. He wasn’t leaving Maddie again.

Maddie still looked gobsmacked. “You’re serious?” Her voice was so small, so unsure that it hurt something in Grumpy to hear.

“Of course we are,” Grumpy answered, squeezing Kelly’s hand. It was extremely rare that he would show his emotions like this.

“It’s just… Watching the two of you problem solve like that, it was inspiring. You were like reading each other’s thoughts and bouncing off each other as you came to the same conclusion.” Maddie looked amazed. “But it’s also clear to me that you just thought of this. I don’t want to come barging into your life, Dad.”

Grumpy leaned forward and made sure she was looking at him as he said, “Barge. You’re moving there or I’m moving here, Mads. The choice is yours.”

She bit her lip, looking uncertain. “You can’t put that pressure on me, Dad. You’re asking me to uproot my life, to move across the country! I have…” Her voice trailed off. “Well, I have school. I suppose not much else.” She let out a humorless laugh. “How pathetic is that?” she asked, rhetorically. She waved her hand to the window. “Apparently my life can be condensed down to fit into the back of a car. I have friends, but no one I’ll miss so much they’re worth staying here for. And after today, Colton will make sure everyone knows there’s a question that the babies aren’t his.” She sniffled, wiping at her eyes. “How did I let my life become this? So lonely and pitiful.”

“Don’t you say that,” Grumpy growled. “Your life is your own. You make or break it, no one else. And for that matter, I never want to hear you slut shame yourself in a roundabout way. Don’t think I didn’t catch that, little miss.”

Maddie’s cheeks flamed. “I won’t, I promise. But, I mean, this is permanent, right? You aren’t just saying to come for a bit? Or decide to kick me out when the babies get to be too much?”

Grumpy’s face and voice darkened at the question. “Never. You’re welcome to stay until you decide otherwise. Be that a few months or until I die, and then the house is yours anyway.”

“I just…” She dropped her head down, cradling her face between her hands with her elbows on the table. Her hair fell forward like a black river. “I feel like this is a dream. A really, really vivid pregnancy dream and any second you’re going to disappear and I’m going to wake up.”

“You don’t need to decide today,” Grumpy also said, not wanting to pressure her. “But there’s no way in fuck I am dropping you back off at that house. I don’t care if that asshat does have a point-four percent chance of being the babies’ father.”

“That’s not how—” But Maddie shook her head, not finishing that thought. “I mean, I wasn’t going to go back there, anyway. Honestly, getting out of Texas really does sound amazing. Other than school. I don’t want to drop out when I’m so close to my degree.”

“I’m sure we can figure something out,” Kelly said, excitement in her voice. “Transfer you to a PA school, or maybe you can do online courses? I don’t know how that works, but we can ask Keys.”

“That’s the tech guy, right? The one who did all that stuff to Colton’s phone before?”

Grumpy bobbed his head back and forth. “That’s probably the most simplistic answer as to who and what Keys is. But he’s one of your club uncles, even though he’s only three or four years older than you.”

Maddie blinked. “Yeah, I’m not calling someone who’s my age ‘uncle’.”

Kelly laughed. “Just wait until you learn about Calliope and Dosia’s relationship. Don’t worry, by the time we meander our way into Mount Grove, I’ll have you up to date on every single one of your new aunts, uncles, and club cousins.”

Grumpy, though, squeezed Kelly’s hand, silently urging caution. “She hasn’t agreed to come yet.”

Maddie truly looked torn. “I just don’t know. I want to. Please don’t think I don’t. It’s just so fast! And I just can’t wrap my head around being so spontaneous.”

Disappointment gripped Grumpy, but he also reminded himself that she hadn’t said ‘no’. She just hadn’t said ‘yes’ either.

“Would you really move to Texas?” Maddie asked, looking at Grumpy.

He nodded without hesitation. “If that’s what it takes to be there for you, yes.”

“And what about you?” She looked at Kelly. “Would you move here, too?”

“It would be challenging. While Grumpy has the club, he doesn’t have any immediate family in the Mount Grove area. I do. My bubbe is in a nursing home and as I said, my mom lives with me. She’s got medical needs that I would have to consider.” Kelly turned to look at Grumpy. “But where he goes, I go. So in short, yes, I would move to Texas if that’s where we’re needed.”

Maddie looked between them and then down at the table again. “I don’t want to raise these babies on my own. I can’t—the second they’re born, I’m automatically outnumbered. I know I’ll need help and support. And honestly, I’m not going to get that here. Asking you to move here is far too selfish when I have nothing but school holding me here. What you described up in Mount Grove, the family, the house… That’s what I want. I can figure out school later. I might lose my scholarship, but there’s different student loans and things that I can do.” Sitting up, Maddie squared her shoulders. “Let’s do it. Let’s move me and these bladder-pressing bundles of joy to Mount Grove.”

Grumpy stared at her, needing confirmation that he’d heard her correctly. “Really? You’re sure? You don’t want to sleep on it, make the decision tomorrow?”