different. She was a puppy, and this is a baby, but that’s when I fell the hardest for you. You asked for time off because we wanted her to live, even when she wasn’t going to be ours—”
“We had to make sure she’d survive,” I remind her. “Look at our girl. She’s healthy and the most loving pup in the world. You were afraid to name her.”
“What if we lost her?”
“You can’t stop living just because you know there’s an end. Everything comes to an end, and continues somewhere else,” I say out loud and freeze. “Carter said that to me during his last days.”
“I wish I had met him,” she whispers, caressing the baby’s head.
She’s right, this isn’t Daisy, but the situation is similar. Ever since we met, Leyla and I have been afraid of the future. We haven’t enjoyed our lives because of the fear. That has to end. Carter lived his life up until the last moment. He didn’t let anything, or anyone dictate how he lived. If there’s something he’d want us to remember, it’s how he lived.
“We should name him,” I mutter.
“He’s leaving next week,” she reminds me.
“He’s ours for a few days,” I argue. “There’s an end. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t give him everything he deserves while he’s with us.”
She smiles, kissing my cheek. “I love you, and you are right. What do you think we should name him? Pierce and Griffin are vetoes.”
“Carter,” I whisper.
It’s not hard to fall into the routine of taking care of Carter. My brothers love the name and agree that fits him perfectly. Beacon and Vance help us more with the other kids since every morning we are more exhausted than the previous one, which is wonderful. Neither Leyla nor I complain about it. We’re making the best of the situation. I capture some pictures of Carter with Leyla. She has a few pictures of me with the baby.
Even if short, we want him to be part of our history.
I try so fucking hard not to fall in love with him, but it’s impossible. Monday is going to be a heartbreak for the entire family. Even my brothers have fallen for baby Carter. Blaire and Sophia fight to carry him. Of course, the one who has dibs is Leyla.
On Sunday there’s a snowstorm that closes the roads. We’re stranded. No one can come in or out. We have to reschedule Leyla’s IVF. They don’t have any appointments available for her until mid-January. The doctor explains that she might have to start the protocol again.
“I can’t go through another wave of injections,” Leyla mumbles after she hangs up the phone.
This day is going to be a fucking disaster, I know it. The state will come for the baby soon. If they can even drive up here. But fuck, Leyla is going to realize that we’re back to square one. I wish I could give her some news about my sample. The doctor’s office hasn’t responded to my calls.
It’s around two o’clock in the afternoon when we receive a call from the sheriff. Child Welfare can’t come to pick up the baby for another week. I hang up, saying, “Thank you,” when I really want to say, “Fuck you.”
“Another week?” Leyla asks. She’s in the rocking chair feeding Carter.
“Are you okay with that?” I ask her, but the question is also for me.
I shouldn’t, but I’ve been thinking of ways to make him ours. We could, if the sheriff helps us. It’s a long shot, but the question ‘what if’ echoes in my head over and over again.
She stares at him and tightens her hold. “We can’t keep him?”
The jarring tone in her voice makes me pull out my phone. I call the sheriff again.
“Yes, Mr. Aldridge.” His voice is annoyed as fuck.
“The baby isn’t thirty days old yet,” I inform him. “If we knew who his parents were, and they gave him to us for adoption, we wouldn’t have to send him to another place.”
Leyla smiles, kissing the top of Carter’s head.
“When the baby was dropped off, we promised that it will be confidential,” he states.
“We understand, but you’ll make this baby’s life a lot easier. He might end up jumping from one house to another until he’s eighteen. There’s no guarantee that he’ll find the perfect home,” I inform him. “My wife and I are already in love with him. It’d be an honor if we could raise him as ours. We’ll do our best to ensure