Chapter 25 #2
“Hey.” He playfully shoved her by the shoulder. “Once upon a time, you acted the same way with him if you recall. You were constantly asking if he was coming over when you were a kid.”
Their mom chuckled. “It’s true. You had your wedding to Aaron all planned by the time you were like five.”
Cheeks flushed, Hannah rolled her eyes. “You two are never going to let that go, are you?”
“Definitely not,” Lars said with a laugh.
She lifted her chin, her stubborn attitude returning. “Whatever.” She shrugged. “It could still happen. You never know. Our age gap won’t seem that big in a few years.”
“The age gap isn’t the issue.” Lars shifted Maddie a little higher on his shoulder. “Sorry to break it to you, but you’re not really his type.” Not true, exactly, but he wasn’t about to admit that even Aaron wasn’t sure about his type at the moment.
He could feel the weight of his mom’s gaze on him again.
“Fine,” Hannah said. “It doesn’t matter anyway. It’s not like I’d want to marry him anymore. I don’t know how anyone could trust him after leaving Charlie like that. It was a shitty—”
“Language,” their mom hissed.
Lars glared at his sister, stepping closer. “You don’t know the whole story, so you don’t get to judge his decisions, Hannah.”
“Whoa,” she said with wide eyes. “Chill. I know he’s your best friend; I’m just saying—”
“And I’m just saying you have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Okay,” his mom said, putting a hand on his chest, making him finally notice how much he’d gotten in his sister’s face. “That’s enough. Hannah, why don’t you go tell the girls it’s time to come inside?”
She huffed out a breath, muttering, “Fine.”
Stepping around him, she went outside. Lars’s jaw was still clenched too tightly, even after she shut the door behind her.
“She didn’t mean anything by that,” his mom said in a softer tone.
After a few seconds, he sighed and said, “I know… I’m just so sick of people talking about my friends like that.
First it was that he’d left for a different woman, then it was that Charlie and Aiden had been having an affair, now there are all sorts of mixed up versions of the story, and none are right. ”
“Oh trust me, I know.”
Lars glanced her way with a questioning look.
She shook her head. “You wouldn’t believe how many of my friends asked me if those stories were true. Some were even convinced that you…”
When she trailed off, he asked, “That I what?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Mom, just tell me.”
A beat passed before she continued. “They were convinced that he’d moved in after the wedding fiasco because he was with you and Mel… together… as a trio or throuple or whatever. Some thought it was just you two having an affair.”
His eyebrows shot up. “They thought we—Aaron and I—were…”
She nodded slowly, and he fought hard to keep calm. “I mean, can you blame them?” she asked. “He’s a very prominent part of your life, and he acts like another father to—”
“It wasn’t like that.”
“I know,” she said in a firm but gentle voice. “And I told them that anytime I heard anything remotely similar.” Her hand squeezed the top of his arm, and he realized he’d looked away. “But I want you to know that even if it were true, I’d still love and support you.”
His chest tightened. Nodding, he wrapped her in one final hug as he whispered, “Thank you.”
“Whenever you’re ready to talk about it, I’m here.”
“We home, Unc Aaron!” Chloe shouted the second they entered the house.
Carrying a groggy Maddie, Lars heard Aaron’s chuckle before he saw him. Chloe, of course, ran straight to where he sat working from the couch. She climbed up on him, nearly kicking his laptop.
Chloe, the only one of his girls who hadn’t napped on the way home, giggled. “Sowwy.”
“It’s okay.” Aaron closed his laptop and set it on the coffee table then hauled her closer. “Did you have fun at Grandma and Grandpa’s?”
“Yeah!” She got to her feet, standing on top of his leg. “We play outside lots and lots.”
Lars lowered Maddie into her Pack ’n Play, letting her wake up at her own pace and wanting to check on Allie. She’d been hard to wake up. He knelt in front of her, helping her take off her jacket and shoes. “You awake there, Munchkin?”
She nodded but was still quiet.
“Do you want to lay down a little longer?” He brushed some hair from her face.
Shaking her head, she finally asked, “Can I watch Frozen?”
He laughed, as did Aaron behind her. “Chloe, do you want to watch it too?”
Chloe made a dramatic sigh noise. “No.”
Allie’s shoulders fell. She sat on the couch with a pout. “But it’s been so many days since we watched it.”
Lars met Aaron’s gaze, which mirrored his own amusement. It had been three days.
“Oh, I forgot…” Aaron stood, lifting Chloe as he went. “Our Halloween costumes came in the mail, Little Monster. Want to try them on instead?”
Chloe eagerly nodded, kicking her feet. Lars took a seat beside Allie as the other two went to the kitchen. Grabbing the remote control, he put an arm around his oldest and searched for her favorite movie.
She looked up at him with a grin when it started. “Thanks, Daddy.”
He leaned over to kiss the top of her head. When he began pushing to his feet, she grabbed his hand.
“Will you watch it with me?”
There were a million things to do, but he found himself nodding and sitting back down.
With Chloe needing constant attention and Maddie needing help with everything, he often worried Allie wasn’t getting enough time with him and Mel.
She was so calm, so well-behaved and smart, that sometimes he forgot she was only six years old.
She was still his little girl, and he knew she wouldn’t want to watch movies with him like this forever.
He thought about how his sister wanted to be with her friends instead of going trick-or-treating with them. It was only a matter of time before Allie started doing things like that too.
A few minutes into the movie, Aaron and Chloe returned to show them their costumes. Chloe giggled the entire way in here, and the second they appeared, he saw why. Aaron was dressed like a pirate, and she was a parrot, sitting on his shoulder. It was adorable.
“Like it?” Aaron asked, spinning in a slow circle.
Lars nodded with a grin. “That’s perfect.”
Not only would it help give Aaron a reason to keep her extra close all night, but it warmed Lars’s heart to see the man so invested in these girls.
As Aaron sat Chloe on the couch to pick up Maddie and join them, Lars couldn’t help but marvel at the difference with him here. Everything was easier, calmer.
And Lars loved knowing Aaron would be here when he got home.
He’d notice that the other day after work. Now, it was more evident than ever. He wanted Aaron here all the time. He didn’t want him leaving once Mel returned.