Chapter 43
Holt
“Happy Birthday to you…” we sing as Dad places a chocolate cake down on the table. The candle flame lights up Lauren’s blue eyes as she grins at us. When we finish our song, Lauren closes her eyes to make a wish before she leans forward to blow out the sparkly pink number eight candle.
“She looks way too grown-up,” Gia whispers.
I sniff, swiping under my eye to clear my blurry vision. “Fuck. I swore I wouldn’t cry this year.”
“Aw.” Gia wraps her arms around my waist while I watch my little girl laugh with her sister. Gia’s right. She looks so much older, even with her mouth covered in chocolate icing.
She calls us over. “Daddy, G, come have some cake!”
We follow her request, sitting next to Lauren and Leah while Dad passes out squares of cake to our family. Next weekend is her party with her friends—she wanted only her family here on her actual birthday.
With summer in full swing, we’ve been busier than ever.
Gia helped advertise for the town’s Independence Day extravaganza, and it turned into this massive block party that we’re all still trying to recover from.
Gia was so stressed out that she gave herself a summer cold and is only now starting to feel better.
We’re planning a trip to North Carolina to see Gia’s family before the girls start school in the fall. Ginny’s tour begins in September, so we thought we’d spend a few weeks with them before things get crazy for everyone.
Ginny, Carson, and all their friends came out to stay on the farm for a week in June.
The girls and I had an absolute blast showing them around.
Despite growing up in a small town, only a couple of Gia’s friends were familiar with horses.
They finally got to hike up to the falls, and I managed to convince Gia to go swimming with me.
I had to bribe her with a hot bath and a few orgasms to get her into the water, but she did it.
Once we’ve finished our cake and Lauren has opened her stack of presents—including a few from Gia’s family—we go out to the backyard for our annual bonfire, where we roast hot dogs and cook s’mores over the open flame.
I have no idea why we started doing this, but it’s become a tradition for Lauren’s birthday.
I’m helping her hold her hot dog over the flames to keep it from burning when she surprises me. “I kind of miss Gramma and Grandpa.”
Kathy and Leonard’s absence in our lives has been more noticeable than I expected it to be.
After talking with the prosecutor, we decided to make a deal for mandated therapy instead of jail time.
She has to wear an ankle monitor for the next three months and go to grief therapy twice a week.
They moved back to Denver right after we reached the agreement, which has eased some of my worries about her retaliating.
Leonard has talked with the girls a few times, but only because they asked to speak to him first. He hasn’t pushed it, nor has he let Kathy have any interactions with them since the incident.
He says the therapy has been helping them both, and he hopes one day they can repair the damage they’ve caused.
I figure by then, the girls will be old enough to decide for themselves if they want a relationship with their grandparents.
Gina was also offered a plea deal. She received community service instead of jail time, and they barred her from working with children in any capacity ever again.
She ended up moving out of Pine Creek Falls after the town snubbed their noses at her.
I should have felt bad for her, but she got everything she deserved.
“I miss them too, monkey. Would you want to talk with Grandpa today?” He sent me a text saying happy birthday to her, and he also mailed her a present.
“Yeah, I would.” She’s quiet for a moment. “What Gramma did was really bad, huh?”
I exhale, not surprised she’s finally asking. We haven’t exactly kept it a secret from them, but we haven’t shared all the details either. I’ve been trying to figure out how to explain it without scaring the shit out of them through my own fears.
“Yeah, honey. Your grandmother has been struggling with how much she misses Mommy, and she made some bad choices. We have to give her time to get better before we can talk to her again, okay?”
“What if she doesn’t get better, Daddy? What if she tries to take us again?”
I pull the roasting stick out of the fire and set it aside, wanting my full attention on my daughter.
“If she doesn’t get better, sweetheart, then there’s not much we can do about that.
I wish I could snap my fingers and make everything right again, but that’s not how people work.
As for her taking you again, I’m not worried she’ll do that, but if something were to happen, you already know that the watch Gia and I got you will tell us exactly where you are anytime we need to find you. ”
“And I can press this button”—she points at the watch—“if there’s an emergency.”
“That’s right, baby. Daddy will always be there when you need me, okay?”
She wraps her arms around my neck, squeezing me hard enough to choke me, but I don’t make her loosen her hold. Soon she’ll think I’m too embarrassing and won’t want anything to do with my hugs. Until then, I’m going to soak in the affection.
“Love you, Daddy.”
“I love you too, monkey.”
She loosens her grip and giggles. “Let’s go help Lee Lee and G. I think they’re about to set their hot dog on fire.”
I turn just in time to see Gia’s eyes widen as Leah starts cackling.