The One and Only: A Single Mom Second Chance Romance (Heart of Hope) Ajme Williams (books for new readers TXT) 📖

ahead. Otherwise, she’d call Dad, and he would call me, demanding that Mom handle everything, and how dare I upset her. The last thing I wanted was a fight with my father.

“Excellent. You’ll appreciate me being around to lend a hand, Cade,” Mom said.

I doubted that, but this was the best I was going to get. “Thank you.”

I hung up and rolled my eyes once more. I would still have to put up with my mother on occasion, but I was willing to do that if it meant getting to spend time with Laura. It wasn’t going to be the same as having her, but hopefully, maybe, it would be enough.

4

Laura

My struggle with getting the grocery bags to the house was as close a metaphor of my life as there could be. I had managed to get most of them in one trip from the car.

I unlocked the front door and staggered inside. “Drew!” I called out.

Living in Detroit had one huge benefit—housing prices were still insanely low because of the high unemployment rates and collapse of the automobile industry. That was how I could afford a one-bedroom, one-bathroom house. Drew had the bedroom and I slept on a pull-out couch in the living area. Sure, I’d have loved my own bedroom and bathroom, but we both made it work. Plus, Drew was really young, and I didn’t have to worry about privacy for another five years at least. That is, until he became a teenager.

Drew poked his head out of his room as I placed all the groceries on the table. He had hair that was redder than mine, the color of vibrant carrots, with twice as many freckles as I did. His eyes were a warm green color—just like his father’s eyes.

I smiled at him. The circumstances of his birth had been unexpected and not at all ideal. I’d been raised by a single parent and so I knew how hard it could be—financially and emotionally. But I’d been determined to make it work. My heart had been so thoroughly broken by Cade, I’d feared that I would never fall in love again.

I know some would call me stupid, but I’d wanted to keep a part of Cade with me even after he’d left me. His son. Maybe that was why Cade had come into my life—not to be my husband, as I had once hoped, but to give me this beautiful child.

Every moment I spent with Drew assured me that I had made the right decision to keep him. He lit up my life with his presence. If, one day, I did find someone, they would have to accept Drew and become his parent. That was non-negotiable. But I didn’t have high hopes for that happening any time soon, or at all.

“Go grab the rest of the bags from the car, okay?”

“Sure thing, Mama.” Drew scampered out while I began to put away the groceries.

He returned with the remaining bags and placed them on the counter, opening them up so that he could start to put things away. He was always so eager to help me. He was so young, but such a sweetheart. I think he knew how hard I worked, in some childish way, though he couldn’t quite grasp the particulars of how my business worked.

Since he’d been born, we had been very close—almost joined at the hip. He was all I had in the world, and I was all he had. I wanted him to have a better childhood than what I had had. My mother had been… neglectful, to say the least, because she never really provided me any parental love or guidance. I wanted to make sure that I did better for my son and not repeat the mistakes my mother had made.

I’d read a ton of parenting books and taken classes, but honestly, I couldn’t have done it alone. I was lucky to have Caitlyn, my best friend, helping me out. Speaking of her.…

“Hey, sweetheart, where’s Caitlyn?”

She was a freelance photographer, so her schedule was flexible. And that was why I could start my business while juggling the task of being a single parent—Caitlyn would watch Drew for me while I handled clients and events. Both of us were the same age, but hadn’t known each other until I’d needed a babysitter to watch Drew as I finished my degree at the community college. She answered my ad and we hit it off right away. Caitlyn had needed somewhere to rest, somewhere safe because she’d been in any abusive relationship.

She rarely ever spoke about it. All I knew what that she’d sworn off men forever and refused to talk about dating or even flirting. In the years I’d known her, I’d never seen her show interest in anyone. Which was a pity because Caitlyn was beautiful, with honey blonde hair and hazel eyes, and a confidence personality that drew people to her. She could make anyone happy, but she deserved someone who would make her happy. Anyway, it wasn’t really my place to judge because she claimed that she was fine and would stick to her promise to herself. I understood because even I hadn’t been interested in anyone since Cade.

“She’s taking pictures of the tree in the backyard,” Drew replied.

I laughed. “Well, when the artistic mood strikes….”

“It struck me too! I built a whole city with Legos, Mama!”

“Oh? That’s amazing, darling. Did you do your homework first?”

Drew nodded solemnly, his green eyes wide with happiness.

“All right then, bring me your homework and we’ll look over it. Then you can show me your city.”

Drew ran to his room, returning shortly with his homework. After I finished putting the groceries away, I sat down at the table with him and looked over his work. He was so smart that my heart ached to see how much he had already accomplished. I wanted him to have every opportunity that I didn’t have as a kid. I’d fought hard and worked my ass