Page 178 of Seasons of Love
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MILO
“Oh my god.” Gloria’s hand goes to her mouth, and I can almost feel the shock, the disbelief, the full range of emotions. I’m feeling them too. “How is it possible?”
“Sienna found out she was pregnant shortly after they came here. Sara was born the night my brother died. When we got the news, Sienna was in shock. She…she made me sign the birth certificate to say I’m Sara’s father. I’m sorry. I didn’t know about you. She always said she had no family.”
Gloria’s eyes are on Sara. “Can I hold her?”
“Of course.”
My heart will be in my hands every moment from now until she utters the words I need her to say.
“She’s so beautiful. She has Sienna’s eyes, but I can see so much of Mikey too.” She straightens Sara’s dress in that way grandmothers do. I’ve seen Florrie do the same thing so many times. “You’ve been looking after her all this time on your own?”
“She’s my daughter. Maybe not biologically, but I held Sienna’s hand as she pushed. I heard Sara’s first cry. This girl has been my world since the day she was born.”
I’m the one crying now, but I don’t care. I need Gloria to know I haven’t just been looking after Sara. She’s my only family.
“We don’t have much, but Sara has her own nursery. She has her favorite toys, and I’ve spent so many nights watching her sleep and wondering how it’s possible for someone to sleep with her hands tucked under her chest and her butt sticking up.”
Gloria looks at me and smiles. “Sienna used to sleep like that. My late husband wouldn’t come to bed until she moved to a better position on her own. I think in her first year, he slept less than I did.”
She places a kiss on Sara’s head and gives her back to me.
“She’s really the most precious thing,” she says.
I sit at the table with Sara on my lap. “Will you tell us more about Sienna?”
“I’ll make some coffee,” Ellis says and starts looking around my cabinets.
Gloria spends the next two hours talking about Sienna. From when she was a little girl to a rebellious teenager. I tell her what I learned about her when she came here with my brother.
By the end of the afternoon, I feel lighter because this meeting with Gloria has been unexpectedly enlightening, but I’m still on edge.
Neither of us has mentioned what happens to Sara now that she has another living relative, and I’m too scared to bring it up.
“Thank you so much for today. I think I need to go back to my hotel, cry some more, and make a few phone calls,” Gloria says. “Could I visit with Sara again tomorrow?”
“Um…it’s not…I’m working.”
“That’s okay. I understand. When will you be free?”
“Wednesday?”
She nods. “I guess that gives me a couple of days to get some shopping done. I have a new granddaughter to spoil.”
“Would you like me to take you back to your hotel?” Ellis asks.
“Thank you. That would be really nice of you.”
Ellis gives me a kiss on the lips and leaves, promising to come back straight after.
As soon as they leave, Florrie comes over.
“I’ve been worried sick since you told me that the woman is Sara’s grandmother. What happened? She’s not threatening to take her away, is she?”
I sigh. “Not yet. I don’t know if she will. I don’t know what rights I have. I don’t know anything.”
