Chapter 27
Says It All
~~Aria~~
Have I lost my fucking mind?
Drakos’s surprising proposal does have merit once I got over the initial shock. Yet I can’t believe I’m actually considering moving in with him. Seems like less than a month ago we were mortal enemies.
We haven’t told Noah yet that Drakos is his father. We have to cross that bridge first.
Drakos did a home paternity test, and we should have the results any day, but he insists there won’t be any surprises. I have to agree. Noah is his son. It’d be hard to imagine that he isn’t.
The Icehawks lost one home game to Dallas and won the other, tying the series at two each in the best of seven.
They’re currently in the air flying back to Dallas for game five.
Over the past several days, Noah and I have spent the majority of our time with Drakos.
My nephew is becoming more and more attached.
I’m wary that he might get his heart broken, but I’m probably being a little overprotective.
My phone rings and caller ID shows a Vegas area code. I answer on the second ring.
“Aria?”
“Yes, this is she.” There’s a pounding in my ears that almost drowns out her words.
“This is Sarah from the Clark County Clerk’s records office.”
“Oh, good, I’ve been waiting for your call.” That’s an understatement. I’ve been dreading it because either way it won’t be good news. Either my sister lied about Drakos or he lied. Neither option is going to be good news.
“I’ve scoured every possible database and paper document I can locate. I can’t find any records to indicate your nephew’s father relinquished his parental rights.”
I’m sick to my stomach, yet I’m relieved. I hate my sister’s fabrications, but she’s no longer here. Drakos is. So far, he’s been honest with me. I haven’t caught him in a lie, which is heartening to know.
Now to get definitive results from the paternity test. I don’t have to wait long. They’re in the mailbox. I rip open the envelope and find the answer I already knew to be true. Drakos is Noah’s father.
I text Drakos to give him the good news. He’ll get the info when the plane lands or sooner if he’s logged in. He usually sleeps on the plane or plays poker and may not be on his phone.
I sit down and stare at the wall. I’m mentally drained by everything that’s gone on in the past few weeks.
Finding out that your perfect, beloved sister wasn’t so perfect after all is traumatic to say the least. It’s difficult for me to reconcile the fabrications and lies she spun once she graduated from high school.
It’s as if her entire adult life was one huge lie after another.
I don’t understand why she insisted Drakos didn’t want to be a father, then goaded me into attacking him.
Was it just another lie in a string of lies that serve whatever purpose she had at the time?
Anna set me up and used me as a pawn to go after him, but it’s pointless to be mad at a person who’s no longer present to explain themselves.
Knowing that she was raising a child and had a drinking problem, I fear Noah may have seen things a child should never see.
I haven’t found a way to approach Anna’s vices, nor do I know if I should.
There’s another letter in the mail that catches my attention. I open it and read the short, terse paragraph with a growing dread. My landlord is doubling my rent as of next month. I can barely make this month’s rent. The world is conspiring to force me to move in with Drakos. Would it be so bad?
Regardless of all the upheaval in my life, I put everything aside and work on my investigations for Gone Missing, which is the only income I currently have.
I’m thoroughly immersed in internet searches when the phone rings early afternoon. It’s Drakos. I answer a little too breathlessly. This guy makes my heart race and my stomach do somersaults. I won’t mention what he does to my other lady parts.
“I’m a daddy!” he shouts. The pure joy in his voice calms my apprehension. Times like this give me hope for a future.
“You are.” I laugh because his childlike enthusiasm at “officially” being a parent makes my insides all mushy with something almost like—
I stop.
No, not that.
Mostly I’m happy for Noah. He’ll have a daddy, and I have come to know Drakos well enough to conclude he’ll be a committed, loving father.
And me, what becomes of Drakos and me? I don’t know.
I’m taking everything one day at a time.
We’ve spent the majority of our acquaintance attacking each other.
Our friends with benefits era is new and unexplored.
I guess we’ll be exploring it. My mother would tell me that my predilection for leaping before I look will be my downfall.
My dad would grunt and not say a damn thing.
My departed sister’s imaginary opinion no longer matters.
Whether she might accuse me of betraying her or not doesn’t register any longer. She doesn’t get a vote.
“Let’s get this show on the road. My realtor’s found a place for us. You can view it this afternoon. I’ll message you her number.” When Drakos sets his mind to something, he’s like a steamroller without brakes.
“Are we being rash?”
“Who gives a fuck?” His laughter alleviates some of my anxiety. Drakos is an even-tempered, easygoing guy for the most part. I think he could be fun. “Will you call her?”
“I will. As soon as we end this call.”
“When should we tell Noah?”
“As soon as you get home?”
“Works for me. Hey, I hate to go so soon, but we have a team meeting in ten.”
“Okay. Good luck tomorrow night.”
“I’ll talk to you before then. Bye.”
“Bye.”
Drakos ends the call, and I feel bereft. I’m getting too attached to him too quickly. It’s foolhardy to fall for a guy I really don’t know that well.
I call the realtor, and thirty minutes later, I’m in a house that overlooks the Columbia River with an expansive backyard ringed by ancient cedars and firs.
Noah will love this place. As an added bonus, he won’t need to change schools, and it’s not far from the practice facility where both Noah and Drakos skate.
Gardenia, Jakob, and the boys live about ten minutes away. Another bonus.
The house is large with an open-concept plan, huge windows, an expansive patio, and four large bedrooms, each with their own en-suite bathroom.
There’s a room over the three-car garage that could be an entertainment paradise.
The huge room has a built-in bar and large sliding glass doors out to a decent-sized deck.
I fall in love with the stone fireplace on one wall of the living room and imagine cuddling with Noah and Drakos in front of a roaring fire.
I’m getting ahead of myself. Drakos and I are doing this for Noah, not because we’re crazy in love with each other.
He’d once said he thought he was falling for me. Does he still feel that way?
I’m a jumbled spiderweb of emotions. My first reaction is to protect my heart at all costs, but a little voice whispers in my ear to give us a chance. I don’t know if I can open myself up and be vulnerable enough to take that risk. Can Drakos?
“Well, what do you think?” asks the realtor.
I’m standing in the living room looking out the windows at a tugboat pulling a barge on the Columbia.
The scene relieves some of my anxiety. It’s calming and a reminder of how beautiful this world can be if a person just lets the beauty shine in their lives.
“I love it.”
The realtor beams with satisfaction. “Then you’ll take it?”
“Uh, I’ll have to speak to Drakos first.”
“He told me if you like it, he will.”
“Then I guess we’ll make an offer.”
I call Drakos, and we work on an offer over the phone. He signs the paperwork remotely, and we’re one step closer to being homeowners. Since we’re offering full price, the realtor doesn’t foresee any issues.
I’m late to Noah’s practice and rush into the arena about forty-five minutes later. Gardenia waves me over to where she’s sitting. I join her, unable to contain my excitement.
“You’re positively buzzing with happiness. What’s up?”
I quickly fill her in on everything that’s happened, from my sister’s deceptions to the paternity test to moving into a new house with Drakos.
“Am I crazy to move in with him when we despised each other a short time ago?”
“Does it feel right?” She cocks her head and studies me intently.
I consider her question, but not for long. I know the answer. “Yes, yes, it does. Plus, it’s the best thing for Noah.”
“But is it the best thing for you?”
“I don’t know, but I have to try.”
“Then you have your answer.”
She gives me a quick hug followed by a radiant smile. “I’m happy for you, Aria. I think you’re making the right decision.”
“That means more to me than you can imagine.” She’s my only friend in this town, and her opinion is gold. I’m feeling better, but first the Icehawks have to get through these next two away games, and we need to tell Noah the truth about his father.
I’m nervous as hell about all of those, but I’m also delighted, and I guess that says it all.