Trial By Fire - Bouncing Back, Book 1

Forty

It took another three months before Kennedy was finally able to leave the hospital. In the meantime, Memphis and his father had gotten used to the baby's schedule. Both worked around it, taking turns feeding, changing, bathing, and putting the little boy to sleep. Thomas had more experience than Memphis, but it was still hilarious when his grandson peed on him between diaper changes one day.

Memphis laughed, taunting his father relentlessly right up until it happened to him. After that, they agreed never to speak of the incidents again.

She nearly shed tears when she got home and saw everything they had done in her absence. "Guys..."

"Don't, Kennedy," Thomas snapped. He pulled her close, trying not to get too emotional. True to his word, she was a fighter.

Throwing her arms around him, she whispered her thanks before taking her son into her arms. "Hey, baby. God, you're a handsome little devil, aren't you?"

She looked over to where Memphis was standing. His eyes were dancing with delight as he leaned against the doorframe, taking in the sight of his family getting along.

"I was thinking that we could go for a family dinner somewhere now that you're out. We've been waiting for a reason to celebrate," he said. Striding over to her, he whispered in her ear. A blush crept across her face as she coquettishly looked at him from beneath her golden-red lashes.

“Not for another month, mister,” she muttered. “Doctor Yaziel’s orders.”

Thomas burst into a fit of laughter when he caught on to what was going on. He grinned, winking at the pair, "Why don't you tell your wife what you did while she was away?"

Her smile fell, her eyes narrowing into a death glare. Memphis laughed, "Remember when we ordered a new wiring kit for the Vette? Well, Dad, Mark, Nix, and I put it all together and got her running."

Memphis pridefully preened around the hall as he waited for his family to get ready. “What are you in the mood to eat, Kenni?"

"Cheeseburger and fries," she answered automatically. The men blinked, staring at her in worry. She rolled her eyes at them, "Do you know how utterly disgusting hospital food is when you're on a post-partum diet? It's like eating water-logged cardboard."

Memphis grinned, "Wendy's?"

"Sounds good to me," Kennedy answered.

Shrugging, the older man sighed, "Try to stay out of trouble, Kenni.”

Kennedy laughed, “I’ll stay out of trouble when people stop pissing me off.”

“Call me when that happens. I want to get it on video,” Thomas muttered as he locked the house down.

Smiling, she swiped the keys from Memphis’s pocket and put them in Thomas’s hand. "Here, you drive her. I know that you're giving us the car, but she was yours first."

"You sure?"

"Dad, please," she scowled. "Another thing, why haven't you said anything about me calling you dad?"

He shrugged. "I know that if you're calling me that, then you're more comfortable around me than you let on."

"You also gave me a reason not to disappoint you, too,” she whispered. "Ever since I moved in, you’ve treated me the way a father should. My father would have done the same for Memphis."

He blinked as he opened the car door. Realization hit him hard. Kennedy hadn't been afraid of him, as he first assumed. She'd been afraid of disappointing him.

Shaking his head, he started the car, listening to the purr of the engine. He ran his hand across the newly-polished dash. Taking in every detail of his son’s handiwork, he smirked. "You did a good job, Memphis. Betty's running better than when I first bought her."

Once they were all settled, he drove them to the nearest Wendy's. Parking the car, he could hear the lively chatter of the other patrons all around him. Helping Kennedy out of the car, Memphis frowned, "Please let this go smoothly."

"With our luck, I'd say that's not even a possibility at the moment, Mem," Kennedy commented as they made their way inside. Once inside, Thomas found the first available table to sit down. "Memphis?"

Shaking with laughter, Kennedy got to her feet. "I know what he usually gets, just like he knows all my secrets. I'm paying, too. You guys worked hard taking care of Francis and working while I was down, so it's only fair."

Throwing up his hands, Thomas nodded. He didn’t like it, but she was right. They worked hard to keep the newborn safe while his mother rested.

Still holding her infant, Kennedy made her way over to the counter. Stepping up when it was her turn to order, she watched as the look on the girl's face went from bored to excited. "Oh, your baby is adorable!”

"Thanks, he’s just a few months old," Kennedy replied before relaying the orders. From behind, she could hear someone snickering. Turning her head, she spotted a group of girls sitting in the corner – none of whom were making any kind of effort to hide what they were doing. They were staring at her, jeering at the tiny baby in her grasp while they giggled.

Tightening her hold gently, she sneered right back at them, "I'm sorry, but do you snot-nosed bitches have a problem?"

The apparent ring-leader of the group rose to her feet, "Look, honey, we all need work. I get it, but couldn’t you find some nice white family that needed a sitter?"

Bristling, Kennedy said, "Excuse me? I'm his mother, and if you've got an issue with it, you can grab the broomstick you rode in on and fly out of my hair. I just got out of the hospital, and don't have the patience or the time to deal with your idiocy at the moment."

Her face red with anger, the young woman moved toward Kennedy. "How can you possibly be related to that baby? He's black and you’re obviously white. It doesn’t take a genius to know the difference."

"It's called genetics, you overindulged bovine. My son looks like his father, who happens to be African-Canadian. Apparently, you have the mental capacity of a rock and never paid attention in school. Why don’t you take your head out of your self-righteous ass and step off my business," Kenni snapped.

"What the hell did you call me?"

Smirking, Kennedy noticed as more people turned to see what was going on. Knowing that Memphis was also watching, she used ASL to call him over. Getting up from the table, he walked over to her.

As he got to her side, he opted for a calmer approach. "Oh, mon ange. I can't take you anywhere, can I?"

Her gaze dropping to the golden band on Memphis’s hand, the woman rolled her eyes smugly, "Does your wife know you're stepping out on her? You could at least cheat with your own race."

Putting an arm around her waist, he held Kennedy close, "This is my wife, and I’m pretty sure half the building heard her say I was a black man. Have you ordered, baby? I’ll carry the food back to the table.”

Nodding tightly, Kennedy turned back to the counter. She smiled at the girl, "Sorry about that. I'm paying with a card."

"Sure, and don't worry about it. They started on me earlier because I’m Filipino, but my boss threatened to kick them out. If you want, I can get my manager for you."

Memphis shook his head as he took the tray from the teen stacking the food. "No, it's okay. We ought to be used to this by now."

"Use to it?" Kennedy echoed; her anger scratching demandingly at the surface of her calm. "Memphis, no one should be used to being alienated from the rest of society because they're different."

The sound of loud, slow clapping filled the air, and several people stood up. More looked at the other woman, disgust rooted deep in their eyes. Without another word, the unnamed woman sat back down. The sudden attention and agreement from the other patrons shocked Kennedy as she followed Memphis back to their table. As they passed an older couple, the man reached out to touch Memphis’s arm.

"Long time, no see," he casually said.

"I'd say," the young man returned as he recognized the man. "How are you?"

"Good," the man said. "I see you ended up taking a chance on that girl you kept visiting. Got a good thing going now, don’t ya? What with that cute little youngling and all."

"Harold, who is he?" The woman opposite the old man glanced between them.

"Remember when I told you about a teen boy that skipped school to visit his friend in the hospital? This is him. I never thought I'd see him again after the day that nurse treated him poorly, but the Universe works in mysterious ways." The man told the woman. "This gorgeous lady here is my wife, Gloria."

“Oh, stop it,” Gloria gasped quietly, her face reddening slightly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Memphis," the young man stated. He turned, setting the tray on the table before sitting down beside Kennedy. Grinning in Harold’s direction, he said, "I told you she was short-fused."

Shaking her head, Gloria frowned, "Your wife has a point. Its high time people realized we are all one race. We just come in a rainbow of colours. I'm ashamed to admit that group over there is my granddaughter and her friends. She forgets that she's got a great-great-great-grandmother who was from the Ojibwa tribe and tries to act like she's pure-blood European descendant.”

Memphis snickered. Not because of the explanation, but because now he knew there were more than a few people who believed in not being complete assholes.