CHAPTER SIXTEEN

After a leisurely start to her morning, which included a bath, shaving her legs, and doing a face mask, hunger finally drove Skylar to leave her room and head downstairs. Her ankle was doing better, but Gareth felt she still needed to have it supported. Though she didn’t want to be restrained in using her foot, she knew she needed to err on the side of caution so that she was ready to return to work sooner rather than later.

As she reached the main floor, she heard the rumble of a man’s voice that wasn’t her dad’s coming from the kitchen. Pausing, Skylar listened, convinced that it wasn’t really her brother she was hearing. Why would Cole be in Serenity?

When she walked into the kitchen, she did, in fact, find her brother sitting at the counter talking to her mom and dad. He looked over as she approached and gave her a wide smile as he got to his feet.

“Hey, sis,” he said as he bent down to gather her into a tight hug. “Good to see you.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked as he stepped back from their embrace. “Are you dying?”

He laughed and shook his head. “Funny. Aiden said the same thing when I stopped by to see him last night.”

For a moment, Skylar was reminded of the banter that the three of them had shared back in their teens. “So I guess you’re not?”

He settled back on his stool. “Nope. No death on the horizon for me that I know of.”

“So what brings you to Serenity, then?” she asked as she joined him at the island counter.

“I thought maybe I should come and give my blood to see if it will help my niece.”

“Oh. That’s great.” Skylar hadn’t expected him to show up for that, but she was so grateful that he had.

“Have there been any results yet?” Cole asked as he lifted the mug sitting in front of him.

“Not yet,” her dad said. “But we could hear any day now.”

“So, are they having to wait for treatment until the results are in?”

“No. They want to see the effect of this first round of treatment before deciding if they need to move on to the stem cell transplant,” her mom explained. “We just want everything in place if we get to that point.”

Skylar stared at her brother, taking in the changes she saw in him. Like Aiden, he had filled out over the years. His broad shoulders and muscular build spoke of his athleticism.

She’d watched a lot of his games, but seeing him in person revealed how much he’d changed over the years. His arrival was still a bit of a mystery. Like her, he wasn’t one to come to Serenity without good reason, like a wedding or a holiday. And sometimes, not even then.

“So you saw Aiden?” her mom asked.

“Yep. I went by there after I picked up my rental car yesterday, then we went out for dinner. He offered to let me crash on his couch, and I took him up on his offer since it was late.”

“How is he doing?” Her mom set a mug of coffee down in front of Skylar. “And his mom and Willow?”

“They’re doing great,” he said. “His mom made me a huge breakfast this morning before I left.”

“I hope that we can see them again soon.”

“Aiden said they haven’t had a chance to meet Shiloh yet, but they’re looking forward to being able to do that.”

“I think that will happen soon,” her mom said. “I talked to Charli earlier this morning, and she said that Shiloh is doing better every day. The nausea and other side effects from this initial round of treatment are slowly abating.”

“That’s great to hear,” Cole said. “I hope I can see her. I’ve brought a gift for her.”

“You have?” Skylar asked.

“Yep. It’s not every day I find out my best friend and sister have a daughter.”

Skylar frowned at him. “You can’t think of Shiloh like that.”

“Why not?”

“Because she’s Charli and Blake’s daughter. She’s no different from any of your other nieces or nephews. She’s not more special than any of them, just because Aiden is her birth dad.”

Even as she said the words, Skylar knew that they weren’t true in her heart. Shiloh would always be different from her other nieces and nephews. Definitely more special.

“I beg to disagree,” Cole said. “Even aside from who her parents are, Shiloh is going through a lot right now. She is a very special girl and deserves to be treated as such.”

Skylar felt tears sting her eyes, and she looked down at the mug and wrapped her hands tightly around it. Would Cole have felt that same way back when she’d first found out she was pregnant?

“You’re right, son,” her dad said. “Shiloh is a very special girl. However, Skylar is also right. I know you all haven’t had as much time to adjust to the knowledge of her parentage, but it is best to think of her as Charli and Blake’s daughter, and not Aiden and Skylar’s.”

“How has Shiloh taken the news?” Cole asked.

“That little girl has taken everything in stride,” her mom said with a smile. “She’s known for a while that she was adopted, but only recently found out her birth parents are Aiden and Skylar. I think she was really excited about that because she already knew and liked Skylar.”

“That’s great,” Cole said. “It wouldn’t have been very good if Shiloh hadn’t liked Skylar. Especially since she can be really difficult to like.”

Skylar glared at her brother. “I beg your pardon?”

Cole grinned at her as he sat back on his bar stool, crossing his arms over his chest. “Just kidding. You’re my favorite sister.”

“Well, at the moment, Gareth is my favorite brother, since he’s taking care of my wounded ankle.”

“So what would it take to get back into the top spot?” Cole asked. “A new luxury bag, by any chance?”

Skylar lifted her brows at him. She wasn’t a luxury bag collector, but she would never turn one down. So far, the bags in her small collection had all come from Cole.

Every birthday since he’d started playing professionally, an elegantly wrapped package would end up on her doorstep, and inside would be a lovely luxury purse or small bag. In fact, she had one upstairs that she’d brought with her. And now, it sounded like she was about to gain another one for her collection, for no apparent reason.

Cole pulled his long legs in and got to his feet. He went to the bags sitting beside the entrance to the kitchen and opened one up. After removing several items, he returned to where they sat. “Here you go.”

He handed nearly identical packages to Skylar and her mom, and a smaller cube size one to her dad.

“You didn’t have to bring us anything, son,” her dad said as he took the box. “We’re just so glad to have you here.”

“I know.” Cole gave a shrug. “But I wanted to bring a few things.”

Skylar could only shake her head as she opened her gift to reveal another Hermes bag. It was beautiful, but really unnecessary. None of the bags Cole had bought her had been necessary.

“This is lovely, Cole,” her mom said as she lifted her bag from the box. “It’s so soft.”

While her mom’s was a more basic black, Skylar’s was a deep burgundy.

“Yes, this is beautiful,” Skylar agreed. “Thank you.”

“This is incredible,” her dad said, drawing Skylar’s attention to the watch his box had contained.

“I thought it would be useful,” Cole said, leaning close to his dad to show him all the features of the watch.

Skylar set her bag back in the soft covering it had come in and then into the box. Lifting her mug, she took a sip of the coffee her mom had prepared for her.

She was still trying to figure out Cole’s real reason for showing up. It was possible that he really had come just to give blood for the test. Skylar wasn’t convinced of that, however.

Was he that excited about the fact that Shiloh was her and Aiden’s daughter?

Everyone else had just taken the news in stride, with no one making a big deal about learning who Shiloh’s birth parents were. The only difference between Cole and the rest of her siblings was that Cole was super close to Aiden. So maybe it was possible.

“How long are you here for?” Skylar asked.

“Not sure. Probably through to the weekend.”

“Really? Wow.”

“We need to have a family dinner while you’re here.”

“Could we have something on Friday or Saturday and include Aiden and his mom and Willow?”

“Sure, we could do that,” her mom said with a nod. “I’ll see if Charli thinks Shiloh would be up for joining us so that they could meet her.”

Just one big happy family, Skylar mused. The way they had once imagined their future would be.

Sure enough, the plan came together for them all to get together on Friday evening. And from what Cole had said, it sounded like Aiden and his mom and niece were actually going to spend the weekend at their house in Serenity.

“I’m going to talk to Jay and see if he can get the high school gym for a couple hours for us to play some basketball or volleyball.”

It was like Cole was rewinding time to his teen years when he’d gone to the high school gym with Jay whenever he could. He’d put in hours and hours of practice to become the best that he could be. And it had paid off.

“I’d say you could come be a cheerleader for us,” Cole said. “But you went and hurt your ankle. So now you’ll have to cheer from the bleachers.”

“If I decide to go,” Skylar told him.

“You’ll go,” Cole replied with a grin.

“Why would I do that?”

“Because there’s not much else to do in this town on a Friday night.”

He wasn’t wrong about that. There hadn’t been much to do on Friday nights back in the day, especially in the summer, when there hadn’t even been church youth group meetings. She doubted that it had changed much in the past several years.

“I think we’ll just do a barbecue,” her dad said. “That works well when we’re all together.”

“Sounds like a plan,” her mom agreed. “I’ll post it in the group chat and see if we can get this all arranged.”

“And you’ll set up for me to get the blood test?” Cole asked.

“Yep. I’ll give Gareth a call,” her dad said. “He’ll set it up for you.”

Skylar had two days to prepare herself for seeing Aiden and his family again. Not that she thought it would go badly. The opposite, in fact. She knew that Aiden would be fine, and his mom would be sweet and friendly, just like always.

It was almost harder for her when they were nice, since her feelings about Aiden were still so turbulent. However, it was easier for everyone else that they weren’t making things difficult.

When Friday morning rolled around, they were busy preparing for the gathering later that day. Everyone but Zane and Kelsey were able to make it. With Friday being a busy night for Zane’s restaurant, he would be there working. And Kelsey kept her schedule similar to Zane’s, so she would also be at her job at the hospital.

Skylar walked around in the boot that Gareth had given her permission to use. While it was nice to be off the crutches, the boot wasn’t exactly easy to maneuver around in either. Cole had taken to calling her Hop-Along, and she couldn’t grab hold of him to make him stop because she couldn’t catch him with her hop-along…

Still, she managed to help out wherever she could. Over their many years of growing up, her mom had become a pro at assigning tasks, even to the littlest or the wounded of them. So Skylar had been given the task of cutting up lettuce and tomatoes for the hamburgers.

Even Cole was pitching it and helping their dad set things up in the back yard, preparing for the influx of children. Though they’d talked about not having the kids come, in the end, it was decided that it might be best to have other children for Willow to play with if Shiloh got tired. Plus, the cousins had all missed seeing Shiloh, and it would probably do her good to be with them again.

Everyone was contributing something to the meal, so they were mainly responsible for the meat, the buns, and the fixings for the hamburgers. The others were bringing salads, desserts, chips, and drinks.

Around five, Wilder and Lexi showed up, and over the next little while, the rest of the family trickled in. The plan was to eat at six, so as the time neared, Skylar had to keep herself from constantly checking her watch.

She wasn’t surprised that Aiden and his mom had accepted the invitation, and while Skylar was happy that Shiloh would have another grandparent and cousin, she wished they didn’t come part and parcel with Aiden.

Layla and Amelia arrived first, then a few minutes later, Charli and Blake arrived with Shiloh and the boys. Blake had Shiloh in his arms and carried her over to the counter to set her down on the stool next to Skylar.

Skylar was so glad to see Shiloh free of all wires. The little girl looked up at Skylar, a smile growing on her thin face.

“Hi, Auntie Sky.”

“Hi, sweetie.” Skylar slid an arm around her narrow shoulders and gave her a hug, resting her cheek lightly on the hat covering her head. Her hair had begun to fall out, so she kept her head covered now. “How was your day?”

“It was good! Momma made strawberry popsicles for us, and we sat outside on the swing eating them.”

Such a small thing, really, but Skylar could see how much Shiloh had enjoyed it. After being cooped up in the hospital for so long, sitting outside probably was a wonderful thing.

The rest of the family greeted them, then filed out into the backyard, leaving just her parents, Charli, Blake, Shiloh, and Skylar in the house. They’d agreed that it might be easier to introduce Aiden’s mom and niece to Shiloh with fewer people around.

The ringing of the doorbell had them all turning toward the front door, but it was her dad who went to answer it. Skylar slid off the barstool she’d been perched on, wanting to greet Aiden and his family on her feet. She kept her weight on her non-injured ankle as she held onto the counter.

When her dad reappeared, Aiden followed him, carrying his niece and with his mom at his side. The little girl had dark curls and eyes that made her look surprisingly like Shiloh. Her eyes were wide as she took them all in, kind of like how she’d been when Aiden and his mom had come to get tested.

“Hi, Tracy,” her mom said as she approached Aiden’s mom to give her a hug. The two women embraced for a long moment, then separated. “It’s so good to see you again. I’m sorry our contact has dropped off over the years.”

“It happens,” Aiden’s mom said with a gentle smile.

The woman had lost significant weight, which Skylar supposed resulted from losing a husband and daughter in a short amount of time. And having to care for her young granddaughter in the midst of her grief.

Back in the day, Tracy McIntyre had been a full-figured woman with light brown hair that she’d worn long. Smiles and laughter had come easily to her, and Skylar had imagined that she’d make a great mother-in-law.

And while that was probably true, it had turned out that she wasn’t destined to be Skylar’s mother-in-law.

Tracy’s gaze swept the room, and when it landed on Skylar, a smile lifted the corners of her mouth. She made her way over to where Skylar stood.

“Skylar, my dear, it’s so good to see you again.”

Skylar accepted the woman’s hug, a familiar scent greeting her as she did. “It’s good to see you again, too.”

And though she might not have thought that was the truth initially, it turned out that it was. Skylar was glad to see the woman who’d been so good to her when she had been Aiden’s girlfriend.

“Hi, Shiloh,” Aiden said. “This is Willow.”

Skylar and Tracy turned to watch as Shiloh approached Aiden and Willow. Aiden went down on one knee to set Willow down. The two girls stared at each other, then Shiloh said, “Your hair looks like mine.” She lifted a hand to touch the head covering she wore. “Well, when I have hair.”

“You’re pretty,” Willow said with a smile.

A smile bloomed on Shiloh’s face. “So are you!”

Skylar knew that Aiden and his mom had chosen to share with Willow that Shiloh was sick. As the two girls stood next to each other, Skylar could see that even though Shiloh was a bit taller than Willow, they were about the same size. Willow was a slender little girl, looking like she was a bit on the small size for her age. It just reinforced the toll illness had wreaked on Shiloh’s body.

“I brought something for you,” Willow said, then turned to hold out her hand toward Aiden. He gave her a gift bag, which she then held out to Shiloh. “We got you another coloring book. Uncle Aiden said you liked the other one.”

“I did,” Shiloh agreed. “Coloring is one of my favorite things.”

Watching the two little girls bond over their love for coloring let Skylar know that, regardless of the personal cost, seeking Aiden out had been the right thing to do.

“This is my nana,” Willow said, motioning to Tracy. “And she’s your nana, too.”

Tracy stepped closer to the two little girls, a gentle smile on her face. She didn’t attempt to physically interact with Shiloh as she said. “It’s good to meet you, Shiloh.”

Shiloh smiled at her, then glanced at Charli and Blake. The couple stepped over to greet Tracy themselves.

As they chatted, Aiden approached Skylar. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” Skylar said as she sat back on her stool. “You?”

“I’m good.” He put his hands on his hips, and she noticed that he was wearing a pair of black slacks along with a short-sleeved button-up shirt in a shade of blue that made his eyes stand out. “Happy to be here for the weekend.”

“I didn’t realize your mom had kept her house here.”

“Yep. And it’s coming in handy.” He glanced down at her leg, then gestured to the boot. “Is that an upgrade or downgrade?”

“Gareth tells me it’s an upgrade, and I’m inclined to agree, since I don’t have to use the crutches anymore.”

“That’s good. You’ve always hated having to use them.”

“Not sure anyone likes using crutches.”

Aiden grinned. “True.”

How was it that Aiden seemed to be perfectly at ease with her, while she was a mess of nerves and emotions? It was only her experience of putting forth calm when dealing with a difficult passenger that allowed her to keep her feelings under wraps.

It was possible that Aiden was doing the same, but she really doubted it. There was just something in his smiles and laughs that made her feel like they were genuine. Like he truly enjoyed being around her.

Cole came in with their dad and immediately greeted Willow and Tracy, then bumped fists with Aiden.

“Time to eat,” her dad announced. “The burgers and hotdogs are ready to go.”

They made their way outside, then when they were all there, her dad said, “Why don’t we all hold hands as I pray for the meal?”

It wasn’t an unusual request, since they’d always held hands for the prayer before meals. But that day, holding hands meant she was going to have to hold the hand of the man she’d once loved.

It wasn’t the first time recently, since Shiloh had made a similar request when they prayed with her at the hospital. But that didn’t make it any easier.

Looking down, she saw Aiden curl his fingers into a fist, then relax them. He held his open hand toward her, palm up. When she glanced up at him, he lifted his brows, as if daring her to take it.

Well, she wasn’t one to back down from a dare, especially from him, and there was no way she could let him know that inside she was a bit of an emotional mess at the thought of holding his hand once again.

She slipped her hand into his, fighting a swell of emotion when his fingers tightened around hers.

She’d always loved to hold hands with him. In some ways, it was a claiming. He was with her. She was with him. They were together. And her heart had always skipped a beat when he’d hold out his hand to her, waiting with a smile on his face for her to take it.

And every single time, she had.

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