Broken Vows (Domestic Discipline Romance) by Mariella Starr Page B

me," Jenny said holding up a finger dripping blood. "Emmie, honey, did you get Mommy a band-aid?"
    Emmie nodded pointing to the box on the floor, but Josh was already dragging Jenny over to the sink. He turned on the water and pushed her hand under the faucet.
    "Emmie, don't get down. There is glass everywhere," Josh ordered.
    Jenny yanked her hand out from under the water. In one movement, she unhooked the tray to Adam's high-chair, scooped him out of the chair, and handed him to Josh. "Glass could be in their food and clothing. Take him and Emmie, and strip them. They may also have been hit with glass shards. Put them in the playpen, Emmie too, she can keep Adam occupied until we clean up this mess."
    The next few minutes were hectic as Josh wrapped Jenny's finger temporarily and traded jobs with her. She inspected their children while he went into the kitchen and swept, vacuumed, and wiped down every single surface several times for fragments of glass.
    Jenny came back into the kitchen, snagged a box of crackers, took it to the kids, and returned. "I cannot believe she did that! Of all the stupid, irresponsible things, I cannot believe she endangered Emmie and Adam!"
    "I think I got it all," Josh said looking around. "Did anything hit the kids?"
    "Emmy has a tiny prick on her arm. My God, she could have blinded them!"
    Josh closed his eyes and put his arms around his wife. "She is not welcome in our home again. She has gone too far this time!"
    He turned his attention to Jenny, pulling her over to the sink to unwrap her finger. "This could probably use a stitch or two. It looks deep. Don't look," he scolded. "I don't need you passing out on me."
    Jenny let out a half laugh, half sob. "You arrived at an inopportune moment."
    "I don't know," said Josh cleaning the cut, which started bleeding heavily again. He applied pressure to it. "I think Denise finally showed her true colors. Throwing a glass bowl with the children here and saying what she did… it is unforgivable. Otherwise, what I heard was pretty darn good. I heard my wife defending me and declaring she loves her kids and me. It can't get much better."
    "Welcome home." Jenny went to lay her cheek against his chest but drew back immediately. "Ouch! And yuck! You need to change your shirt."
    Josh chuckled and kissed her. "Honey, I'm home!"
    He asked their next door neighbor if she would watch the children while he took Jenny to the Quick Care Emergency Center a few miles away. Emmie was okay with staying at Mrs. Blumb's, without a fight or screaming. Emmie had known the elderly woman since she was a baby and his daughter loved Mrs. Blumb's little dog.
    Josh did change his shirt before taking Jenny to the Quick Care facility. A shot of Lidocaine, two stitches, and a bandaged finger interrupted any further discussions until they were back in the car.
    "She screamed 'Daddy' this time," Josh said with a pleased smile as they were discussing their children. "Have you had much trouble with Denise since I've been gone?"
    "Nothing more than what I told you on the phone. Today was the worse," Jenny admitted. "She has been driving me crazy. She has been always calling or coming over to entice me away from packing. It was her typical shenanigans. She wanted to go to the mall, or the day spa, or out to lunch. She offered to pay of course, but I have learned my lesson. I refused. I told her I did not have any cash and we had canceled our charge cards. She is so tedious."
    "Has she ever said such things about my family before? Has she ever been as disgustingly bigoted as she was today?"
    Jenny turned her head and looked out the window. "Yes, and I apologize for her. I am ashamed of what she said today."
    "You didn't say it, so you cannot apologize for her. In fact, an apology from her would not be enough to dismiss such racist hatred. I am white and my adopted family is black. I thank God for them every day of my life." He choked up and could not continue for a moment. "I won't have