Rescuing Harlow by Aubree Valentine

Chapter 10

Zane wasn’t the least bit surprised when his parents climbed out of the car, but it was Harlow’s mother who exited the backseat that caught him off guard. He quickly jumped up from the rocking chair and rushed down the steps to help them with the arm full of food they brought over.

Harlow had better change quickly because he wasn’t going to hold them off for long and they needed some place to set down everything they brought over.

“Zane, I really am sorry about Finn. He was way out of line and well, your mother and I worked too hard on all this food for it to go to waste. So, here we are,” Mila kissed his cheek as he took two trays from her hands.

“Mrs. Keller, I’ll tell you the same thing I told Harlow, you do not have to apologize for Mr. Keller.”

“Well, nonetheless, I need you both to know that you’re truly loved, and this baby will be too,” her voice grew thick with emotion.

“Momma!” Harlow called out from the porch. “What on earth?”

“We should have known they were not going to let us go hungry,” Zane turned around with his arms full and winked at her.

“Your father can fend for himself as far as I’m concerned,” Mrs. Keller hurried to her daughter and pulled her in for a tight hug. “I don’t want you to waste another minute worrying about what he said, do you understand?”

“Y-y-yes,” Harlow nodded. “I’m sure he’ll come around.”

“He better, or he’ll miss out on one of the greatest blessings in this life,” her mother proclaimed. “Now, I know there isn’t much room inside but let's set all this stuff down and eat.”

“Y’all didn’t eat?” Zane looked back at his parents who were carrying in even more food.

“Nope. Your father took a little walk while Mila and I packed everything up and cleaned up the mess. The minute you both left, we knew we would be coming by to see to it that you were both fed. No questions asked,” his mother replied.

“It’s a damn shame I don’t have a good reason to put that son of a…” Gene began to grumble before Lynn gave him a warning glare.

Zane chuckled and patted his dad on the back. “I appreciate you having my back.”

“I told you, I always will, son. I might not always agree with the shit you get yourself into, but I’ll always have your back, no matter what.”

“I think my days of getting into shit are numbered,” he smirked.

“Those days better be over,” his mother scolded.

“Mostly,” Zane couldn’t help but tease her with a shrug.

Harlow lightly elbowed him and rolled her eyes, “behave.”

“Make me,” he said before sticking out his tongue.

For the first time since all hell had broken loose, she gave him a true smile. “Zane!”

He winked. Mission accomplished.

"Ma, where's Scarlett?" Harlow asked.

"Oh, she said she was going to lay down. Something about having a migraine. I think it's more like she had too much wine and is still hungover from last night. You know how she gets sometimes."

"Yeah. She mentioned she had a rough night," Harlow shook her head.

Zane's mom handed out plates from the cabinet while his dad gathered forks and things for everyone. He watched the two of them as they worked seamlessly together, anticipating each other's needs without saying a word.

That.

That was what he wanted in life.

And he was pretty sure he'd found it in Harlow.

Harlow's stomach growled, catching everyone off guard. Her eyes widened and everyone laughed. "Sorry! I guess I was hungrier than I thought."

"Sounds like our grandbaby wants to be fed," Gene teased.

"Have you had any morning sickness?" Lynn asked.

"Oh, the morning sickness can be the worst some days," Harlow answered. “It’s starting to get a little better.”

“When I was pregnant with you and your sister, I felt like I had morning sickness the whole nine months.”

Harlow froze, “Oh…”

“But every pregnancy is different,” Lynn immediately jumped in. “I didn’t have an ounce of morning sickness with this one here,” she patted Zane’s arm. “Sometimes I even forgot I was pregnant. Until my belly got so big it was hard to ignore.”

“Uhm. Moms. I don’t think that’s helping,” Zane grimaced as he looked at Harlow’s face that was now pale.

“Oh. Honey. Take a deep breath. I’m sure you’ll be fine,” Mila quickly tried to reassure her daughter.

“A little too late now anyway,” Harlow joked and tried to put their comments out of her head as she filled her plate with barbeque and mac and cheese. “Can’t exactly go back in time.”

“This brisket smells amazing,” Zane did his best to redirect the conversation.

Lucky for Harlow, everyone seemed to fall quiet while they ate, for a little while at least. Once everyone’s stomach was full, excited conversation resumed. Zane and his father worked together to clean up after everyone while the women asked Harlow a million questions about her pregnancy and cooed over ultrasound pictures.

“Ladies, I hate to interrupt a good time, but there was something else I wanted to share with all of you,” Zane stood behind Harlow with his hands on her shoulders. “And before you both get too excited, there’s still no wedding ring,” he shot a pointed look at his mother for all the times she hinted that she was just waiting to plan his wedding.

“Well, before you tell us whatever else you’ve both been keeping secret, I do want to make it known that - regardless of what Finn has to say - the two of you do not have to get married because there is a baby on the way. Marriage doesn’t always make a family, love does,” Mila told them both.

Something in the way she spoke said that there was way more to what she was saying. It was almost like she was speaking from experience, or so Zane thought.

“Agreed,” Lynn added. “I know I’ve always joked about waiting for wedding bells, but all that matters is that you’re both happy and your baby is healthy.”

Harlow looked up at him as if to say, ‘see, told you so.’

“One day,” Zane smirked. “But, back to the subject at hand. A few months ago, I applied for a job with the FBI.”

His mother gasped. Mila stayed quiet and waited patiently for him to go on.

“And then called to say that there’s a possibility they might have an opening for me a few months from now.”

Lynn covered her mouth and tried not to cry.

“That’s wonderful, Zane. Congratulations,” Mila said with a grin. “You must be so excited for the new opportunity.”

“I am. Sort of. We’ve talked about it because once I found out about the baby, I wasn’t so sure that I wanted the job anymore. But Harlow - well she insisted that I needed to give it a try and take the opportunity if it’s presented to me.”

“I agree,” Gene added. “I’ve always known you’ve wanted something bigger than policing a small town. This isn’t something I’d walk away from, son.”

“Oh, Zane,” his mom finally whispered. “I had no idea.”

“He did that on purpose,” his dad answered for him. “You know he likes to keep things quiet.”

“You knew?” Lynn looked over at her husband who was leaning against the kitchen counter.

“I knew when they called and asked about his job performance. And before you go getting all huffy on me, woman, it was not my place to tell you. Zane had his reasons and wanted to keep it on the downlow until he knew more and had a chance to talk to Harlow about it.”

“We’ve also been talking about looking for a place together. Don’t get me wrong, we love it here, but I think this place might be a little on the small side for a baby.”

This time it was Mila who looked slightly uncomfortable and put out. “Uhm, I know this is your place and everything, but could I have a minute with Harlow. There’s something I need to talk to her about.”

“Of course,” Lynn replied. “Gene and I will go talk a little after dinner and walk around the property. It’s been a while since we’ve done that anyway.”

“I’ll come with you,” Zane added.

“Wait,” Harlow reached for his arm. “Mom, I’m not sure what it is you want to talk about but, whatever you need to say, I want Zane to stay and hear it too.”

“Babe, it’s fine, you can fill me in later,” Zane tried to assure her.

Mila sighed. “No, it’s okay. She wants you to stay.”

“Zane, just give your father a call and we’ll run Mila back home when she’s ready,” Lynn said as she pulled Gene out the door.

Mila waited until Zane’s parents left then she took a deep breath and looked up at her daughter. “I guess I should just come right out with it,” she gave a nervous chuckle.

“Mom, whatever it is, I’m sure it’s nothing for you to be so worried about. At least I hope not. If it’s about Dad and the vineyard, I’ve already been giving that some thought and assumed I might be out of a job.”

“No, no. It’s not that. Not exactly. It is about your dad but it’s certainly not what you’re thinking.”

“Oh,” confusion etched Harlow's face.

“Let me start from the beginning,” Mila blew out a breath. “Finn isn’t your birth father.”

Harlow gasped, “What?! You have to be kidding!”

“Hear me out. Please. I realize everything about today has been a lot to take in but hear me out.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Harlow questioned.

“We agreed not to. Finn and me. It’s complicated but, after Scarlett was born Finn and I split up. For a while actually. I met someone else. And I’m not going to lie, I fell head over heels in love with him. We got married and then you came along. He was so excited about having a daughter. He already loved Scarlett as his own and he was just over the moon about you.”

Harlow shook her head, trying to comprehend what her mother was saying. “What happened?”

“When you were about a year old, he died. There was an accident at his job, an explosion. Finn and I were still coparenting Scarlett of course and when your birth father died, he just kinda stepped up to the plate. He was constantly helping me out, not just with Scarlett but you, too. One thing led to another, and we decided it would just be easier to get married and be a family. That’s when we decided we wouldn’t mention anything to you about Landry - your bio dad. Until you were an adult. You were so young; you had no idea and we truly thought saying something would only end up hurting you. Finn was there, through everything. He raised you and he’s never considered you anything but his,” Mila defended their actions.

“So, you decided I needed to know this, now. Today of all days. Why?”

“Zane mentioned the two of you looking at places together.”

“Yes. What does that have to do with this?”

Mila toyed nervously with the hem on the bottom of her shirt. “When Landry died, he left everything to you. His house, the life insurance and there was a payout from the accident. It’s all in a trust fund. The house has been rented out for years. Well maintained by a private rental company that Finn and I found. All that income has gone into that trust too. We haven’t touched any of it. It’s all yours. The current tenants are set to move out in three months, and well, Harlow - it’s just long past time that you knew.”

“I can’t believe you’ve both kept this from me, all this time. My whole life. It’s a lie,” Harlow remarked.

Zane held her hand in his and gave it a squeeze. There was nothing he could possibly say to any of what he’d just heard.

“It’s not a lie Harlow. Finn is your father in the sense that he’s loved and provided for you for the last twenty years. Your birth father died. Finn and I ended up together. It’s not like there’s this other guy out there who you’ve missed out on a relationship with or anything like that.”

“Does Scarlett know all this?”

“She was seven. I’m sure she remembers pieces, but we never talked about it, and she never brought it up either.”

“Why don’t I give you two a minute?” Zane offered.

“No. I don’t think that’s necessary. I think it’s time for my mom to go. I’m going to need some time to wrap my head around all of this.”

“Harlow…”

“Mom. I mean it. You’ve just dropped this bomb in my lap, and I have no clue what to think. You need to go. I appreciate you bringing dinner over with Mr. and Mrs. Clark, but you should go now.”

Mila nodded her head and looked at Zane, “No need to call your parents. I can walk the short distance home. But please tell them thank you, for everything.”

“Are you sure? I could run you back over myself,” Zane offered.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. And she needs you right now. Take care of my girl,” she murmured.