Chapter 41
The Quiet After
Andi
Mrs. Murphy's apartment smelled like chocolate chip cookies and vanilla extract, warm and comforting in a way that reminded me of my grandmother's kitchen. She opened the door before Gavin could knock; her weathered face breaking into a knowing smile.
"Well?" she asked, eyes moving between us. "Am I making more cookies or breaking out the whiskey?"
"Cookies," Gavin said, and I watched the tension finally drain from his shoulders. "Definitely cookies."
"Daddy!" Charisse came running from the kitchen, flour dusting her shirt and a streak of chocolate on her cheek.
She launched herself at Gavin, and he caught her easily, swinging her up despite the fact that she was getting too big for it.
"Did you win? What happened? Did everything go okay? Can I stay at home?"
My heart clenched at the hope in her voice. I hung back by the door, letting them have this moment while Mrs. Murphy stood beside me, watching with the satisfied expression of someone who'd seen this family through harder times than I could probably imagine.
Gavin set Charisse down and bent so they were at eye level. "Yeah, kiddo. You're staying with me."
Charisse's shoulders dropped with relief, but her fingers twisted together in front of her as her smile faded. "What about Mom?"
I saw Gavin's jaw tighten for just a second before he answered.
"You'll still see Mom. But it's going to be a little different for a while.
" His voice was steady and measured. "The judge said Mom needs to work on some things, so when you visit with her, there will be another grown-up there too.
Someone whose job is to make sure everyone's having a good time and being safe. "
Charisse's face scrunched up. "Like a babysitter?"
"Kind of. More like someone to help you both if either of you need it. They will be there to make sure everything goes smoothly."
"Oh." Charisse processed this with that too-old seriousness I'd noticed before. "Even when I stay over? Where will they sleep? There's only one room. That's kind of weird, Dad."
I held my breath, waiting to see how Gavin fielded this one. I watched him settle down on the floor in front of his daughter, guiding her to sit beside him.
"That's going to be a little different too, honey.
For a while, you'll stay with me instead of doing overnights with your mom.
You know how you see your mom overnight every other weekend right now?
" At her nod, Gavin pushed forward. "Well, instead of overnight weekends, you'll see her during the day every other Saturday.
It will be time for you guys to just hang out and spend time together.
You'll still see each other; it'll just be a little different. "
I watched Charisse work through the math, saw the moment she realized what that meant. "Oh. That doesn't feel like a lot."
"I know, sweetheart." Gavin's honesty was gentle but clear. "But the judge thought it was the best thing for right now. And Mom can work toward having more time if she does what the judge asked her to do."
"Is Mom sad?"
The empathy in that question made my throat tight. This kid was worried about her mother even after everything.
"Probably. Change is hard, even when it's necessary."
"Am I going to see her this weekend?"
"No. The judge just made the decision today, so we need a little time to set everything up. Probably in a couple of weeks."
Charisse nodded slowly, then her gaze shifted past Gavin to where I stood by the door. "Are you still going to be around?"
My heart stuttered. This was it. The moment where Charisse could decide she blamed me for all of this, that I was the reason her mom wasn't around as much anymore. I knelt in front of her, making sure we were eye to eye.
"If that's okay with you," I said softly. "I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to."
"It's okay." She reached forward and hugged me, catching me completely off guard. Pulling away, she turned toward her dad. "Can we go home now? Mrs. Murphy said we could watch a movie if you got back in time."
Mrs. Murphy pressed a container of still-warm cookies into Gavin's free hand. "Take these. And Gavin?" She squeezed his shoulder, her eyes a little misty. "I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that your mother would be proud of you."
The drive home was quiet but comfortable. Charisse chattered about the cookies she'd made with Mrs. Murphy — "we put extra chocolate chips in, way more than the recipe said" — while I sat in the passenger seat, Charisse's small hand still holding mine from the backseat.
Gavin caught my eye at a red light, and the gratitude in his expression made my chest warm. We were doing this. Together.
At Gavin's place, Charisse immediately kicked off her shoes and headed for the living room. "Can we watch Encanto? And can we order pizza? Please?"
"Pizza's a great idea," Gavin said. "And yeah, we can watch Encanto. Again."
"You love it, Dad. Admit it."
"I tolerate it," he replied, but he was smiling. "For you."
While Gavin called in the pizza order, I helped Charisse set up the movie. She was humming "We Don't Talk About Bruno" under her breath, sorting through the throw pillows on the couch to build what she called her "perfect movie nest."
"Andi?" Her voice was quieter now, more serious.
"Yeah, sweetie?"
"Is it my fault? That Mom can only see me twice a month?"
My heart broke a little. I sat down on the couch and pulled her close. "What?! No. Absolutely not. None of this is your fault. Your mom made some choices that weren't good, and the judge had to make rules to keep everyone safe and happy. But you didn't do anything wrong."
"Promise?"
"Promise." I squeezed her gently. "Your dad loves you more than anything in the world.
And your mom loves you too. You know, even us adults make mistakes.
None of us is perfect, but we can all fix our mistakes.
We have to do that for ourselves, though.
You're not responsible for fixing the things we do, okay? "
Charisse nodded against my shoulder, then pulled back. "Okay. Can we start the movie now?"
"Let me grab the remote."
Three hours later, the pizza was gone except for one slice Gavin had claimed for tomorrow's breakfast, and Charisse was finally showing signs of fading. She'd been fighting sleep for the last twenty minutes, insisting she wasn't tired even as her eyes drooped.
"Alright, bug," Gavin said, scooping her up from where she'd been curled against my side. "Time for bed."
"But I'm not—" A yawn cut off her protest.
"Yeah, I can tell." He kissed her forehead. "Say goodnight to Andi."
"'Night, Andi," Charisse mumbled, already half-asleep against his shoulder.
"Goodnight, sweetheart."
I cleaned up the pizza boxes and straightened the living room while Gavin got Charisse ready for bed.
I could hear the murmur of their voices down the hall — his low and soothing, her sleepy questions.
The rightness of it hit me suddenly. This could be my life.
This warmth, this family, these quiet evening rituals.
When Gavin finally emerged from Charisse's room twenty minutes later, he looked exhausted but lighter than he had in months.
"She okay?" I asked from the couch.
"Out cold." He collapsed beside me, pulling me close. "She asked me three times if she had done something wrong. I told her no every time, but I think she's still processing."
"She will be for a while." I laced my fingers through his. "But she'll be okay. You're giving her stability. That's what matters."
"It's true." He kissed my temple. "But you know I couldn't have done this without you, right?"
"Yes, you could have. But I'm glad you didn't have to."
We sat in comfortable silence for a long moment. I could feel the tension slowly draining from his body as the reality sank in. It was really over. No more court dates. No more holding their breath, waiting for the next crisis. Just forward.
"I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop," he said quietly. "Like Rebecca's going to call and find some new way to make everything complicated."
"She can't. Not anymore. The judge made sure of that."
"I know." His fingers traced absent patterns on my arm. "It just feels too good to be true."
"It's not too good. It's just... good." I shifted to look at him. "Gavin, you won. Not just the custody case. You won the right to build the life you want. With Charisse."
"And with you." His voice was certain. "If you want that."
"I do." I rested my head on his shoulder. "I really do."
"Good." He pulled me closer. "Because I'm not letting you go anywhere."
We stayed like that for a while, wrapped up in each other, letting the weight of the day finally settle. Just the two of us, choosing each other in the quiet aftermath of the storm.
Eventually, my phone buzzed. Mom checking in, wanting to know if we were okay. Then Bridget, Danny, Tommy, and down the line. My whole family rallied around us, even from a distance.
"Your family loves you," Gavin observed, watching me type responses.
"They love you too now. You're stuck with them."
"Good. I always wanted a big family." He smiled. "Growing up, it was just me and my mom. Your Sunday dinners are loud and chaotic and perfect."
"They are pretty great." I set my phone aside. "Speaking of which, we're expected tomorrow. Fair warning — my mother's probably already planning some kind of victory feast."
"My stomach can handle your mother."
"Can it, though?"
"No," he admitted. "But I'll smile and eat whatever she puts in front of me and pretend I'm still hungry when she starts yelling at me in Italian to eat more."
I laughed, the sound feeling easier than it had in months. "That's all anyone can do."
It was nearly midnight when I finally stood to leave. Gavin walked me to the door, his hand lingering on my waist.
"You could stay," he offered. "It's late."
"I could." I kissed him softly. "But I think the morning should be for just you and Charisse. She needs time to process everything without worrying about anyone other than you and her. Plus, I'm on open tomorrow."
"Okay." He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "Text me when you get home?"
"Always."
I drove back to my apartment, the city quiet and starting to settle. Inside, my space felt smaller than usual. Emptier. I got ready for bed mechanically, my mind still at Gavin's place — with him and Charisse and the family we were becoming.
I shot off a text to Gavin letting him know I'd gotten home and quickly heard my phone buzz.
Gavin: Good. I'm glad you're home. Thank you for today. For everything. I love you.
Andi: Love you too. Sleep well.
I set my phone on the nightstand and stared at the ceiling. Today had been monumental. Life-changing. And yet somehow, it also felt like the beginning of something even bigger.
Something that was already rooting deeply in my heart, making my apartment feel less like home and more like somewhere to just sleep.
But that was a thought for another day.
Tonight, I let myself just be grateful. For Gavin. For Charisse. For the judge who'd seen through Rebecca's lies. For the changes that were unfolding, one day at a time.
The next year would come with new challenges. A new normal to navigate. Today, we'd won, and we'd made it safe for Charisse. For myself. And it was no small victory.