Chapter Twenty-One: Unwilling Chats

Keith is sitting next to me on my left and Jenna on my right on my bed. I glance around and see Keiran at the foot of my bed, pacing.

"Why does this keep happening? How can I keep her safe if she keeps passing out like this? It is maddening!" Keiran's voice is deadly calm.

Which scares the shit out of me.

"Keiran, what can I say? She has never done this in all the years I have known her. Give her time; she will tell us what is going on when she is good and ready. She always has." Jenna tries to calm Keiran down while running her fingers through my hair.

"Mags is a tough woman. She has a lot going on. Her father was spying on her, just found out a woman that she thought died was actually still alive. Her childhood was hell and still she has been more than graceful through the process of finding out they could have spared her of the abuses that she lived through. Which, from what I gather, was enough that they should have taken her away from her family. But for whatever reason, they kept her within the family. She will be alright. Give her some time. It's not even been a full day since she found out about a ton of life. What it was. What it should have been." Keith was pissed.

"Boys, enough! Hubs, go make some tea. I need to talk to Keiran." Jenna looks at me and smiles. She understands I am awake but wants me to know what's going on. "Keiran, have a seat over there. We need to chat."

I assume Keiran sits down and I make sure my eyes are closed and that I breathe as well as I can.

Keiran takes my hand and gives it a kiss. I try not to move too much and Jenna puts a second blanket on me. Guess I was shivering.

Great, I hope Keiran didn't notice.

"You wanted to talk? What's going on?" Keiran tries to sound positive but fails. He puts the hand not holding mine on my cheek and then my hair.

"Just wanted to make sure you are okay. You have been through a lot lately." Jenna replies with concern.

"I have not really thought about it. I feel Keith is my brother even without the DNA test being done. And now that I have found Magnolia, my life is complete." I can hear the smile in Keiran's voice. "And knowing that you are my sister makes my heart happy. You are a perfect match for Keith. Thank you for making him and Magnolia as happy as they are."

Jenna laughs. "Being married to Keith has been easy. Being Maggie's best friend is a no-brainer. No matter what happens with you and Maggie, knowing that you are likely Keith's brother brings us joy."

It confuses me—hearing that. Jenna has never said anything like that to me.

"I pray she loves me the way that I love her soon. You realize I would marry her now if I could. I am going to need to deal with a few things soon for work. But, I am going to get back here as soon as I can. I hate the idea of being away from her." Keiran kisses my forehead, and I can feel his face next to mine.

I can hear teacups on a tray.

"I got some tea and crumpets, my darling wife." Keith says with an attempt at an English accent—a horrible one at that.

"Don't quit your day job, hun. Thank you. Love you." Jenna kisses Keith.

"Someday this will be Magnolia and me…"

I decided I should probably get up. So, I make my presence known.

I groan, which makes Jenna put her teacup down to help me sit up.

"Welcome back, Mags. How are you feeling? Keith, go grab a water and a Pop-Tart please."

Keith leaves, and when I look at Jenna, I can see the concern in her eyes.

"I don't know what makes me keep doing that. I'm sorry."

Keiran looks at me with a smile and concern. "I hate it when you do that. It scares me so much! Are you okay, my darling?"

Jenna has her hand on my back, which is making me less likely to cringe at the look Keiran is giving me and the words he is saying.

Honestly, I wish he was not around so much. I wish I could tell him to leave.

Maybe that chance is now. I still have packing to do and I don't want to have him hanging around.

"Sorry to have scared you all so much. Being around so many people like this is something I am not used to, and it is getting me down. I love you, Jenna. But I think I need some time to myself. I hope you understand." I peek over at Jenna and I see understanding in her eyes.

"Of course! I will see what is taking that husband of mine so long and we shall be out of your hair!"

I smile at her, and she gets up to check on Keith.

"It would be an honor to stay and keep an eye on you. I think it would be best if you were not by yourself. It shocks me that Jenna agreed so readily to leave you by yourself! I need to rethink my thoughts on her…"

Pure anger and hatred flash into his eyes. He looks crazed.

"Keiran! Please! I just need a little bit of time alone. I need to get an idea of what is going on in my life. The most caring person in my family, who I thought was dead, is living. I had to live through abuse from my biological family that no child should have to go through! I don't know what your childhood was like. But I need a moment to process mine. I hope you understand. Once I've had some time to myself, I am sure I would like to see you again… if you would like." I try to convey that I am not abandoning him.

Something I said made him smile.

"I understand more than you know, Magnolia. My childhood was not very good, but I now realize that it all led me to you. For that, I will forever be thankful. I will leave and give you some time to think. You can call or text when you are ready; I will leave my number." He takes my hands in his and kisses them. "Anytime—day or night—I will be here."

I smile at Keiran. "Thank you for understanding. We will talk soon." I squeeze his hands and go to get out of bed.

"Stay in bed. I will let Keith and Jenna know you are going to bed. Sleep tight."

I smile. "Thank you, you as well."

Keiran goes to get up and walks to the door. Something tells me that tonight won't end well.

"Keiran?" I ask.

He stops and looks over at me with a smile. "Yes, my dear?"

"Get some sleep yourself. I am sure you have a lot to do tomorrow."

He smiles and nods his head. "Yes, Ma'am. Until tomorrow then." And leaves.

And I get the sense that I really don't want to be alone tonight.

I just don't want to be with Keiran.

~VOF~

Hello everyone! I hope that you are having a good week! Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!

How are we feeling? Is there something that is bugging you about this? How we feeling about Keiran?

Jenna is awesome, in my book.

Thanks to the ladies who make this all work. You know who you are by now. LOVE YA!

As always, message me with any comments or questions.

-Brier