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I fell back a step and shifted my eyes to the car that I kneas special even before I saw it "You were the guy I bought the Hudson fro?"

"The guy that bought it from the pawnshop had no idea what he had He ran the car into the ground, trashed it like it was any regular ol’ daily driver He refused to sell it back to me, no matter what I offered He clai he was a fat slob with a coet laid He ran into so to sell it His price was outrageous but I bought it anyways Little shit didn’t bother to tellout for so on to it, telling ht I walked onto your lot that first day, saw your Caddy, and knew the car wasn’t rin "Part of the reason I droveyou would recognize it, that there would be soh "It’s actually o" I knew the car ether and the corners of his nant one? My wife nearly lost her randbaby on the way"

"No, irlfriend is" It sounded like a Jerry Springer episode when I had to explain it to someone else

"Oh … well … that is corin that revealed a dimple in his weathered cheek in the exact sairl? My ill be all over great-grandma duty if you wouldn’t mind It would be much appreciated if you let her be a part of your life for whatever time she has left, Hudson"

I placed my hands on my hips and rocked my head from side to side "Don’t know We’ve done several ultrasounds but the baby see us and not much else Kallie, the baby’swith it Poppy, ray, so those are the colors we’re sticking with"

I’d been so happy when she asked if she could tackle the project of turning my spare room into an actual room for the baby She’d been pensive and quiet lately, the events in Texas weighing heavily on hershe rushed to see if it was herfor help and her face fell when it wasn’t

I’d taken her asthat being surrounded by nothing but fa the love of tonderful people would shake her out of it … and it had, slightly She turned her attention away from the woman she couldn’t help and instead focused on the ones she could She was spending roup but now she was going in as a counselor and an advocate as well as a survivor She was serious about helping other women who had been where she was and I was proud of her, but I was also worried that for every one woman she saved there would be another one, like her h on her soul There was a balance there that she was going to have to figure out and I had no proble on to her until she found it

"Yellow and gray it is, then"

He looked at"I’ve been ontime Never had a fairl that promised me hers but that didn’t work out because proirl that wasShe’s more than family to me She’s the first person that has everwith her" I lifted an eyebrow at the older rin "Because I knohat it feels like to be alone and unwanted, I would never want that for my kid I want my baby to be loved by asto have fah choice I don’t see why you and your wife can’t be both"

He exhaled a long, relieved sigh and briefly closed his eyes "Youto, kid"

"Mom made shit hard for both of us I’le and sacrifice already I choose to believe you when you say you tried to help her and I choose to believe that if you had known about me you would have done your best to help me as well"

He swore under his breath and nodded "Kills iven you a home I could have been the one to teach you about cars, not soht in the center of my chest"

"Can’t focus on as, only on what is" I reached out a hand and clapped hi motherfucker when I was an old man "I’ood years and she isn’t gone yet She took care ofdown Now it’sand take care of her"

"That’s what love should look like" I was certain of it

"That is what love looks like, kid You want to pop the hood on this beauty and shohat you’ve done so far? Everything looks original I’m impressed"

I couldn’t help but feel proud I’d never had anyone to tell me what I did was impressive before, at least never anyone whose approval uy that could find anything" My phone started to go off in ht away, so I held up a finger "Give irl doesn’t usually call when she knows I’et out any kind of greeting, all I heard was a blood-curdling screa his little puppy mind "Poppy?" I couldn’t keep the panic out of my voice as I immediately turned away from the man anted to be e