James said firmly. The baby is not mine. "Mama, he's eight months old." Evelyn was quiet for a moment. How do you know?
Because I haven't seen this woman in six years. His mother did the math, nodded slowly. "She in trouble?" "She lost her job, lost her apartment, she needed somewhere safe, and she came here. It wasn't an accusation, but it wasn't neutral either.
Of all the places she could have gone, she came here. She said I was the only person she trusted. Evelyn sat with that for a moment. And what do you feel about that? I don't know yet, James.
His mother leaned forward. She had the smallest hands he had ever seen on an adult. And with the careful precision of a woman who was choosing her words the same way. That woman broke something in you. You whole.
Now you built yourself back up in your hole. But I watched you when you were broken. And I am not going to pretend that didn't happen. She looked at him steadily. So I am going to ask you once and I want a real answer, not the answer you give everyone else.
A real one. He waited. Are you letting her stay because it's the right thing to do? She said, "Or because some part of you is hoping this is the second chance. You never stopped wanting."
The living room was quiet. In the kitchen, he could hear Ava eating her snack and talking to herself about something the way she did when she thought no one was listening. He could hear the faint sound of Noah beginning to wake up in the back room. That precry sound, the sound of a baby coming back from sleep and reminding the world of its existence. James looked at his mother.
"Honestly?" He said. "Both." And I know that's a problem. Evelyn looked at him for a long moment.
Then she did something he hadn't expected. She reached over and put one of those small hands on top of his and held it there. "Okay," she said. "Then you keep both eyes open and you take it one day at a time and you call me if you need me." "That's it."
He said, "No speech. You're 41 years old." She said, "If I haven't given you enough foundation to make your own decisions by now, that's my failure, not yours." She patted his hand once and stood up. But if that woman hurts Ava, I will not be responsible for what I do.