Jaylin's World by Brenda Hampton

I was feeling much better since Jay Baby was here. I wasn’t sure how long he would stay, but it was already Tuesday and he hadn’t gone anywhere. Mackenzie was coming home today, but the hospital didn’t want to release Bruce until Friday. I had not a clue where this thing between Jaylin and me was headed, but I didn’t have the guts to tell him about Bruce Jr. being his son. He was so into making sure that Mackenzie was well, and so was I. I hadn’t even gone back to the hotel to be with him, and for the past two nights, I stayed at the hospital. I didn’t want Jaylin to think all I wanted from him was sex, because that was simply not the case. I truly loved him with everything I had, and I wanted nothing more than for my kids and me to be a part of his life. I didn’t even know if that was possible, but I was sure Jaylin would someway or somehow work all of this out.
    Mackenzie had left the hospital with Jaylin and me. We went back to my house, and even though I dreaded going home, I knew Bruce wouldn’t be there. As a matter of fact, he’d already packed up his belongings and left. He hadn’t called to check on the kids or me. At the end of the day, Mackenzie was still his daughter. What a deadbeat sperm donor he was, and for him not to even care about her well-being showed me what kind of man he really was.
    Jaylin carried Mackenzie to her bedroom, and he spent at least an hour talking and playing around with her. I returned the numerous phone calls I’d gotten, most of them from the stylists at Jay’s, trying to find out how everything was going. My sister, Leslie, called to check on us too, and I returned her call, just to let her know we were doing okay. The nurse who was hired to assist Mackenzie had beeped in to say she was on her way. I was so glad about that. I wanted to get back to the hospital to check on Bruce Jr., so I went upstairs to Mackenzie’s room to see what she and Jaylin were up to. He was sitting on Mackenzie’s bed, listening to her read a book to him. I stood in the doorway, so happy to see them together again.
    â€œThe nurse is on her way to see about Mackenzie,” I said. “When she gets here, I’m going back to the hospital to see about my son. Will you be here when I get back?”
    Jaylin stood up and stretched. He walked toward the door, and then stepped out in the hallway to talk to me. He stroked his goatee, so I knew his response was going to be slightly disappointing.
    â€œI’m leaving tonight. I’ll be back, though, and I already told Mackenzie that she and I will be spending more time together.”
    I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I don’t know how that’s possible. Please don’t hurt us again, okay? We just can’t handle—”
    He put his finger on my lips to shush me. “I’m going to work this out. Just give me a minute, okay?”
    I nodded, and trusting every word that he said, I reached out to embrace him, and we kissed. After the nurse got there, I said good-bye to Jaylin and told Mackenzie I would see her later. I wasn’t sure how soon it would be before I saw him again, but my gut assured me that it would be soon, just like he’d said.

JAYLIN
    The nurse was there to see about Mackenzie. I could already tell she was in good hands, but no hands were better than my own. Not even Scorpio’s hands, and what I was feeling inside was in no way personal. Nokea had to deal with it, and so did Scorpio. As soon as Mackenzie got well, she was coming to live with me. No ifs, ands or buts about it. I would talk Scorpio into taking some time for herself and letting Mackenzie stay with me. As for Nokea, I intended to tell her the truth about Mackenzie’s accident, and let Nokea know that I wasn’t willing to walk away from Mackenzie again. More than anything, I wanted all of my children together, and having them grow up together would make me the happiest