Time Will Tell

“She’s been dying to see you, Teag,” Noah says as he pulls me through the door of his apartment. “She’s really missed you.”

I nod at him, looking around. He has a dark brown couch pushed up against the far wall, a reclining chair cattycorner to it, a flat screen TV in one corner and bare walls except for one large frame with a number of pictures in it, all of whom I am guessing are Grace.

“Does it feel familiar at all?” Noah asks me, sounding hopeful. “You spend a lot of time here.”

I frown and shake my head.

He frowns too, and lets go of my hand. “I’ll go get Grace. You can sit down, find something on TV.”

He walks down the hall then and disappears around the corner. I wander over to the couch and sit down. I look around again. I feel like this place should be familiar but it just isn’t.

Noah enters the room again, a wiggling baby in his arms.

“Momma,” she says, aggravated as she reaches her hand impatiently out to me.

I smile. “She’s cute.”

“Thanks,” he grins. “I think so too.”

He holds her out to me and I hesitantly take her in my arms. She struggles against me until I turn her around to face me and then she smiles.

“Momma,” she says again happily, patting my face with her little hand.

I just smile, not quite understanding the way I feel when she calls me that. She laughs and snuggles into me, burying her face in my shoulder. I just hold her close to me, pulling my fingers through her short dark brown hair.

“Do you remember her?” he asks me.

I shake my head softly. “I don’t know. There are certain ways that I feel around you and her, but I don’t exactly remember either of you.”

He nods and runs a hand through his hair. He looks nervous.

“What’s wrong?” I ask him.

He smiles and sits down next to me, kissing my forehead. “Nothing is wrong exactly… but Celeste is coming by. She says she wants to apologize and talk about her trying to get custody of Grace.”

“Oh,” I say, surprised. That’s not what I was expecting him to say.

“Am I supposed to leave?” I ask, not sure if this is something I’m supposed to stick around for.

He grins at me. “You’re supposed to stay. You’re who she’s apologizing to.”

“Oh… okay? Does she know that I don’t know who she is?” I ask.

He nods. “She wants to apologize for being a bitch and slamming your head into a door and causing you to lose your memory but I’d be willing to bet she’s not sorry at all.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything,” he answers simply.

“If she’s so awful why did you go out with her in the first place?”

He watches me closely while he answers. “She was cute and flirty and normal up until about two months into the relationship and then I realized how awful she could be but I looked past it because I was young and every other part of me thought she was amazing. Basically I just fooled myself into thinking she could be ‘the one’ but I was way off.”

“I’ll say,” I scoff.

He laughs and kisses me. “As it turns out I’m more into brunette’s anyway.”

I shake my head at him and look down at Grace, who is dozing off.

There’s a knock on the door and Noah sighs, pushing himself up to go answer the door. I lean back in anticipation.

When Noah returns a little blonde girl is behind him. I can’t help the stab of jealousy I feel. She’s really pretty. No wonder Noah liked her despite her bitchiness.

Her lips curve up a little in the corners in what I can only assume is supposed to be a smile. She looks sick.

“I just want to say that I’m so sorry about what happened,” she says, not sounding sorry at all. “I should have never shown up at your house like that trying to tell you to leave Grace alone. I don’t usually fight but when people push me first I push right back.”

I tilt my head. She’s lying. I don’t know how I know, but oh, honey, I know. “I don’t believe I made the first move,” I say. “But thanks for attempting to apologize anyway.”

Wow, I don’t like this girl. I don’t know what made me say that because I’m not usually confrontational, but here I am, smarting off at a girl who was trying to apologize.

She purses her lips at me. “Alright, so I pushed you first, same difference. Anyway I was just trying to say that I never meant for you to get so hurt.” She raises her eyebrows at me, as if daring me to object.

I just narrow my eyes at her in response. “Thanks.”

Noah walks towards me now, sitting back down on the couch, taking my hand in his. “Now, you wanted to talk about custody. So talk.”

She stands there awkwardly, crossing her arms over her chest. “I think I was being unreasonable. I think we can work things out.”

“You mean you think we can work out custody?”

“I think we can work things out,” she says, gesturing between the two of them and then glancing rudely at me. “But I’ve already tried that and you won’t listen.”

“I don’t think we can work anything out. I was worried about you getting custody of her but I honestly don’t trust you with her and no judge in his right mind would give you custody of Grace – not after what you did to Teagan. It’s on file, you know. I don’t understand why the hell you would do that, knowing that it would ruin everything. Starting fights with my girlfriend just because she has what you never wanted in the first place. That’s fucked up, too, Celeste. You all of a sudden care about me and Grace because some other girl shows interest? You’re like one of the worst mothers in the world.”

It’s harsh but I can’t help but agree. What kind of mother does the things she’s done to her child and then expect to be let back into her life no questions asked?

“Fine,” she huffs. “Then I guess we will take this to court. You can’t keep me away from my baby, Noah Roberts. I will do whatever I have to,” she warns, her voice low and chilling. With that, she turns and leaves, slamming the door behind her.