Never Giving Up (Never #3)(65)

“Well, Mother, this is a decision for Porter and I to make together. Thank you for your unwavering confidence though.” I felt the tears welling in my eyes and I knew I didn’t want to cry in front of her, didn’t want her to see that her blatant lack of belief in my capabilities as a mother. I turned away and quickly wiped a tear from my eye, hoping that neither her nor Megan noticed. A long and uncomfortable silence filled the room, stifling and filled with tension, broken finally by my mother’s voice.

“I think I’m going to go to the cafeteria and grab a cup of coffee. Can I bring you anything, Ella?” Her voice was softer now and I thought I heard a small sliver of remorse in it, but I just shook my head, refusing to face her. “Megan?”

“I’m good, Mom.”

I heard the door open and then close again, my breath rushing out of me as I let out a sigh filled with tension.

“She’s only worried about Mattie,” Megan said softly, obviously trying to smooth over the rift that was just put between my mother and me. I didn’t want to say anything. I didn’t trust myself not to break into tears if I opened my mouth to speak. I felt like I was being held together by one single thread and at that moment the thread was being pulled in two different directions, promising to snap at any moment.

“So,” she said loudly, trying to change the subject. “Something really strange happened at Poppy yesterday.”

My head snapped around to look at her. I welcomed the distraction of discussing work. “Like what?”

“A man came in and said he was a private investigator, hired by Porter to look into the embezzlement.”

“Oh.” I knew Porter had mentioned hiring a P.I., but I hadn’t really given it much thought. Life had gotten in the way of everything else. “What happened?”

“Well, since no one had told me about a private investigator, I called Porter just to confirm that the strange man was legit, but once he got the all-clear, he was really only interested in talking with the girls. I think he looked through some of the files on the computer, but I just kind of let him do his thing.”

“He didn’t ask you any questions?”

“Not really. He told me that Porter had told him I wasn’t involved in any way and that unless I was helping him with information he needed, I wasn’t to be bothered.”

Of course Porter would protect my sister. “What did he ask the girls?”

“Only Brittany was there, Sarah had the day off, but she didn’t have much to say about it.” Megan shrugged her shoulders and gave me a helpless look.

I let out another sigh, trying not to let the stress of the situation rile me back up.

“I’m sorry if it was inconvenient for him to be there. We had talked about hiring someone, but with Mattie . . . we should have warned you.”

“Oh please, don’t worry about me. I want to know how He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named managed to take so much money from you too.”

I gave her a smile, finding her snarky humor brought up my spirits when I needed it most. And then, as if the universe knew how much cheering up I really needed, the door opened and Porter stalked in. My face lit up at the sight of him, wanting him to wrap his arms around Mattie and me, taking away all the stress of the last hour.

“Hey, Babe,” he said in greeting, but his voice sounded strained and worried. No, no, no. We didn’t need any more bad news and I had a feeling that was exactly what he was bringing me. “Hey, Megan,” he said, giving her a small and unconvincing smile.

“Hello, Porter. I met your friend the P.I. yesterday.”

“Oh yeah? Did he come by Poppy?”

“Yup. Had a look around the office and chatted with Brittany for a few minutes.”

“He didn’t bother you, did he?”

She smiled at him, almost laughing. “No, I just showed him where the computer was.”

“Good.” He said with a nod, then turned back to me. “How are my two favorite ladies?” He walked towards us and pressed a kiss against my forehead and then leaned down doing the same to Mattie, effectively melting my heart. When would watching my husband interact with our baby cease to be a huge turn on?

“Well, we were doing really well until my mom got here and ruined everything.” Porter’s head turned as he looked back and forth between Megan and me.

“Don’t look at me!” Megan said, holding her hands up in surrender. “I’m the only one here who isn’t a parent so I refuse to have an opinion.”

“What’s going on?” Porter said, his face softer and concerned.

I took a deep breath and then launched into all the details that Dr. Edwards had given me and also my mother’s less than positive response. I tried to keep to the facts and not let my emotions run away with me again, but I felt my face heating up and my eyes start to sting with tears again when I thought about how inadequate my mother had made me feel. I tried to wrap the story up quickly though, because I knew she would be coming back soon. Porter listened and watched me, taking Mattie from me halfway through, cradling her in the nook of his elbow.

When I had finished explaining the situation, Porter said nothing but reached into his back pocket pulling out his wallet. He held his hand out to Megan, urging her to take his wallet.

“Can you go get me something to drink from the cafeteria?” He asked her without taking his eyes off mine.