Forever Yours by Candy Caine

all.”
    The phone call blew all the cobwebs of sleep away. Jade had to go to the hospital to see her father and had no one to watch Preston. Well, whether or not she wanted to break the news about her child, she had no choice now.
    Jade made coffee, showered and dressed all before Preston got up. After she changed and fed him, she packed an overnight bag for them both—in case she had to stay in New Jersey. Wanting to be free to go as she pleased and not have to depend on public transportation, Jade rented a car and then left a message on Charles’s phone.
* * *
    At the hospital, Jade found parking in the visitors’ lot and put Preston into his stroller. She hadn’t been here in years, not since her sister’s miscarriage, and yet the hospital looked the same with its portico out front and busy lobby. She walked inside and went over to the information desk. Her father was on the fourth floor. She took the elevator up.
    Jade had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, and the drab, olive-green walls surrounding her did nothing to soothe it. The unique hospital smell of disinfectant and sickness assaulted her nasal passages and she nearly gagged. How she hated hospitals!
    The door to the room was open. She took a deep breath and pushed the stroller inside.

Chapter 14
    Her father was hooked up to an IV. There was a breathing tube in his nose. His eyes were closed. Jade noticed his hair was totally white now, making him appear older than his years.
    Suddenly her mother came between Jade and her father, blocking her approach. Her mother nodded toward the door. They went back out into the hall.
    She looked at Preston long and hard. “How dare you bring that bastard into this room!” she spat.
    “This child is your grandson.”
    “He’s no blood to me. My grandson would have black blood flowing through his veins.”
    “How can you deny your own?” Jade asked.
    Her mother ignored the question. “Is this the child of that white lawyer who paid us a visit?”
    “Yes.”
    “I thought so. He keeping you? I don’t see no ring on your finger.”
    “I love him, Mom.”
    “You’re his whore.”
    Jade shook her head. “It’s complicated.”
    “It always is. They only use us.”
    “Charles isn’t like that,” Jade protested.
    “Then why isn’t your union blessed?”
    “It will be.”
    “When?”
    “After he divorces his wife.”
    “Don’t be a fool, Jade. He’ll never divorce her because he has the best of both worlds. You’re just too stupid too see that.”
    “Charles—”
    Her mother put her hand up to silence her. “Take him and go back to where you came from.”
    “I want to see Dad,” Jade insisted.
    “Do you want to kill him? What do you think will happen when he sees that?” She pointed at Preston.
    Deep inside, Jade knew her mother was telling her like it was. Her father was no different from her mother and in many ways worse. Years of prejudice had molded them into the hateful people they’d become. She turned to leave as the first tear escaped from the corner of her eye.
    “You’re dead to us now, Jade. You hear me? Dead! ”
    “Ma Ma,” Preston said, trying to get her attention.
    Tears streamed down Jade’s face as she patted his head. So be it, Mama. We’ll live without you. To hell with you all.
* * *
    Jade called Charles from the road. “I’m on my way home,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.
    “You sound upset. I take it things didn’t go too well.”
    “You might say that. I’ve been disowned.”
    “Disowned? That’s rather harsh.”
    “Uh-huh—but so damned effective.”
    “I’m sorry, honey. I always thought blood was thicker than water.”
    “You don’t know my parents. And by the looks of things, you never will.”
    “I’ll try to stop by tonight,” he said.
    “You don’t have to. I’m exhausted. I didn’t get much sleep last night and the drive knocked me out.”
    “All right. I’ll bring some take-out tomorrow night. Feel better, darling.