Novels by Michelle Cheney

BROOKS It's been 4 months since Marvin entered this world and things are going more smoothly for Crystal and I, than when we first brought him home. He is such a good baby and barely cries now. He loves going to visit with both sets of grandparents and he absolutely loves his uncle Jonah. Jonah is a great uncle. He tries to kick me and Crystal out of the house every Friday so he can babysit. Mine and Jonah's relationship has gotten so much better over the past couple of months and he has been busting his butt at the shop. I started paying him for his hard work even though he refused to let me pay him in the beginning. I've been talking to Crystal about possibly making his assistant manager even though he is only 15. I know he is mature and will take his job seriously. Crystal thinks it may be a little too much on him though with school, being a teenager, and wanting to spend what little free time he has with Marvin. I planned on talking to my mom and Ray about it later on when I

Crystal Our first night home with Marvin has been an experience for sure. He has barely slept and so have we. Brooks has been amazing with getting up and helping me with him. He had me pump so I could get sleep in between Marvin waking up. Marvin finally went to sleep around 5 A.M and Brooks crawled into the bed. He kissed me and laid his head on the pillow. It wasn't long before he was out like a light. I wanted Brooks to get some sleep so I gently slid out of the bed and went into the living room with the baby monitor. I crawled up on the couch and pulled the blanket we keep on the back of the couch over me and turned the TV on. I flipped through the channels but couldn't find anything to watch. I decided to just binge-watch Teen Wolf. I lay there with the baby monitor by my head and eventually dozed off. I woke up to Marvin fussing and I got up to check on him. He needed to be fed and I changed his diaper. I sat in the rocker and rocked him back to sleep. After he was out like a

BROOKS As I lay back on the pull-out couch in the hospital room, I looked around at my world. I have the love of my life and wife. I have a son. I have my family and now Crystal's. I have my store which is still doing good. I have the house. I have everything I truly wanted in life. I am complete. No more missing pieces. Marvin began to cry. I got up and picked him up out of his bassinet. I walked around the room with him and calmed him down. Today is the day we get to take Marvin home and start our journey as parents without having people in and out of the room to help us. I am scared sh*tless but excited at the same time. I know Crystal and I can do this ourselves. My mom offered to come stay a few nights until we get settled but I don't think we are going to need her to. The nurse came in to check on Crystal and to let her know she will have to use the bathroom before they will discharge her. The nurse gave her something to help her go, and then she checked on Marvin. Once the nu

CRYSTAL After our family left, I was able to get about 2 hours of sleep before the nurse brought Marvin back into the room for a feeding. I slowly sat up and the nurse helped me undo my gown. She placed Marvin on my chest and explained how to get him to latch onto my breast. It took a few times but he got the hang of it and I was able to feed him. Brooks slept through the feeding and the diaper change but woke up a few minutes after the nurse left the room. He sat up and asked if I was ok. I told him I was fine and told him about how Marvin's first feeding went. He said he felt bad for sleeping through it and I told him to hush. Marvin was fast asleep in his little bassinet and Brooks asked if he could lay with me for a little while. I slid over and patted the bed. He crawled up next to me and went to put his arm over my stomach but stopped. I asked why he did that and he said he didn't want to hurt me. I grabbed his arm and placed it over my stomach and told him he wasn't going to

BROOKS The doctor hands me a pair of medical scissors and shows me where to cut. My hands are shaking and I am terrified. I cut the cord and as soon as I did, I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. His cries fill the room mixed with the cries from his mother as he is placed on her chest. My whole world is right before my eyes laying on that hospital bed. A world I didn't think I'd ever have. My wife and my son. As soon as the nurses stepped away from Crystal I walked over to the edge of the bed and leaned down. I told her I was so proud of her and I thanked her for giving me this piece of the puzzle to complete my life. I broke down and cried as I stood there staring down at her with our son in her arms. My phone went off and I checked it to see my mom was texting me to see what was going on. I texted her and told her I would be out in the waiting room soon to update them. I asked Crystal if I could get a picture of her and Marvin to show everyone in the waiting room and sh

CRYSTAL I have been here for an hour now and the nurse who just came in to check me said I was only dilated to 4cm. The doctor asked if I wanted something for the pain but I told her no. I decided after our accident that I didn't want anything for the pain. I barely took my medicine when I had the broken wrist and leg and I managed through the pain then so I didn't feel like I would need it for giving birth. After another hour of laying there, the doctor came in and checked me. She told me that I had dilated to 6cm and things would probably progress pretty quickly now. I pray they do because these contractions hurt like hell! I was able to find a comfortable position to lay in for a while before the pain hit again. I looked up at the clock and saw that I had been here for almost 3 hours and still no baby boy. Another nurse came in and said she was going to check my progression and the look on her face as she took her glove off told me I must not have dilated much. She told us that

BROOKSI got a text from Viola saying crystal was on her way. I knew I had to hurry and finish putting everything up. When I finished hanging everything, I heard her car pull up. I took a few deep breaths and calmed myself. I saw the light in the foyer turn on and I knew I was seconds away from either being the happiest man alive or being turned down. I made sure all the baby pictures were in order and I made sure all of our pictures were in order. Jonah was hiding off to the side of the yard to capture the face Crystal was going to make when she saw all of this. I could hear footsteps so I got down on one knee and had the ring box opened and ready. When the door opened she began to cry. I said, Crystal Lynn Martini, I never thought I would ever find someone that I would fall in love with but there you were. You opened my heart to the idea of loving someone and giving them a piece of me that I had never been willing to give to anyone. You made me want to be a better person and be a be

CRYSTALToday is the day I graduate high school. My adult life begins tomorrow. I have worked my ass off to be here today. I am super excited to walk across that stage when they call my name. I know my mom is up there smiling and is proud of the young woman I have become. I already know my dad is proud of me. He reminds me every chance he gets. Everyone who means something to me will be here. Kinzlee and I are sitting together since our last names are close to each other. She was shocked to see me when they called for graduation rehearsals. I explained how I ended up getting to walk the stage with them and she told me she was proud of me. She asked about Brooks and I and I smiled when I showed her the promise ring he gave me. She said she was happy for me and said she and Brent were talking about moving in together. I told her Brooks wanted me to move in with him. When everyone was seated, They began their speeches and I tried not to laugh at Brooks making faces at me. When My row was

BROOKS 3 months laterIt's been months since I touched a bottle of liquor. I have kept my promise to Crystal and I have talked to her when I get the urge to drink. It definitely helps. Crystal graduates in 2 days. I am so proud of her for all the hard work she did to get here. My mom, Jonah, and Ray were invited to the graduation and she even invited Viola. A month ago, Crystal's dad had me come to the house so he could talk to Crystal. He knew this talk was going to be a big one and knew she would probably take it better if I was there. When he sat her down, He told her he was ready to take the next step with Viola and ask her to marry him. Crystal freaked out at first but after I calmed her down she told her dad it was ok. Since then she has been trying to spend a little more time getting to know her soon-to-be stepmom and I have been able to spend more time with Jonah and even spend time with my mom and Ray. Every time I take my shirt off and see the birthday gifts Crystal had don

CRYSTALAfter I got dressed, Brooks and I headed to Roadhouse for dinner. The whole way to the restaurant, Brooks held my hand. I smiled every time I looked over at him. After we were seated, Brooks asked if I had any more plans that he should know about. I laughed and said maybe. He stared at me and said, "What else do you have planned baby?"I said well, after dinner, we are going to the mall to pick out a shirt and pair of pants to go with the shoes, and then we have one other stop. After that, I am all yours. He asked about this other stop and I said I can't tell you. You will have to wait and see. I hope you like the surprise though. I wasn't sure If it was something I should do but I said screw it, we only live once. He stared at me with a confused expression. After our bread and drinks got to the table, the server asked if we were ready to order. I said let me get the 11 oz Sirloin with sauteed mushrooms, a baked potato, and vegetables. Brooks ordered the 16 oz Sirloin with sa

BROOKSSo far today has been a pretty easy day. It's 4:30 and I know I get to go home and see the most beautiful girl in the world soon. I am thankful her dad doesn't mind her spending my birthday with me. I thought about cooking on the grill tonight but I'm not sure what time Crystal will be getting home so I figured ordering take-out would be better. Jonah called as soon as he got off the bus to tell me Happy Birthday and my mom has been blowing my phone up with baby pictures and memories all day. I love my momma and thank goodness she hasn't shown any to Crystal yet. I was such a cute kid but all my poses are very weird. When I locked up the shop, I headed home to take a shower. I pulled into the driveway and headed inside. When I walked into the house, I saw a gift sitting on the island. I walked up to it and looked around to see if Crystal was hiding in the kitchen. I smiled as I read the tag on it. [HAPPY 22nd BIRTHDAY MY LOVE! I LOVE YOU!]I decided to wait to open it until I

CRYSTALWhen I got home, my dad informed me that Viola was going to be moving in soon. I have a week to try and figure out how I feel about it and here I am still trying to work it out in my head that they are together. It's still hard to think about my dad with anyone other than my mom, but I guess I need to just suck it up and deal with it because Viola will be moving in even if I am not OK with it. Tomorrow is Brooks's birthday and I still haven't figured out what I am going to do for him. I figured I'd call Jonah later and ask him what I should do. I did all my chores and finished my laundry. I went and sat outside on the front porch and began writing in my journal about everything that had been going on. When I finished writing, I realized I had been outside for a while. It was getting late and I went inside to start dinner. My dad came into the kitchen and asked if I wanted any help and I told him I would love for him to help me and that I missed us cooking dinner together. He t