Chapter 6
Chapter Six
“I’m heading out, Ian. Everything is done.”
He smiled at Alex, the cleaner JP had hired and nodded. “You rock. The house looks amazing.”
The door opened and Alison waved from the porch next door. “Hey, you! I was missing your face.”
“Thanks. I miss you. I’ve been crazy busy.”
“I bet. Looking after your ex? That’s definitely crazy.”
“I feel so bad for him, but he’s starting to come out in the backyard, in the living room.” And JP was…gorgeous.
“Are you going to introduce me sometime?”
“Of course. Do you want to meet him now? The kids are having a tea party with him.”
“Oh, that has to be adorable. Even if we hate him.” She gave him a wink and crossed the lawn to come to him.
“Yeah. I just—I don’t know. Come on, I’ll introduce you.”
He opened the door and called out. “Kiddos, Aunt Ally is here to see you.”
They came running, Tori flinging herself at Allison, trusting Ally would catch her. Peter was more cautious, walking to her and raising his arms to be lifted.
“Hey, babies. I’ve missed you. Have you been having fun?”
“We’ve been watching movies with Dad.” Tori said. “And playing in the mud!”
“Playing in the mud? How fun! I love making mud pies.”
“Shut up,” he muttered.
She gave him an unrepentant grin. “How about you, Peter, have you had fun?”
Petey nodded but didn’t give any specifics.
“Are you playing with Dad?” Ian asked him.
Peter nodded again. “Tea party.”
“And are you watching movies?” he prompted again.
“Dad doesn’t know them,” Peter told Ally with wide eyes.
“He doesn’t? You mean he hasn’t seen “Coco” a thousand times?” Her eyes went wide.
Peter shook his head. “Nones of them.”
“We’s showing him,” Tori told her. “He learns.”
“I’m going to make sure he’s decent.” Ian headed into the dining room. “Hey, there. Alison is here and would like to meet you.”
“Your chef neighbor who taught you to cook?” Which proved that JP had been listening. He pulled the blankets up to his waist, covering his bad leg.
“My chef neighbor who taught me how to cook, yes. She’s a good friend.”
“Okay.” JP ran his fingers through his hair a few times.
He reached out, straightening the wild curls. JP looked up at him, and their eyes locked.
“I…” God, JP was so beautiful. Just stunning. And he could get lost in those bright blue eyes.
“You…” JP licked his own lips, tip of his tongue dark pink, sexy.
“Uh-huh…” His teeth sank into his bottom lip.
JP reached out and gently tugged at his lip with his fingers, pulling it out from between his teeth and lightning shot through him.
“Oh…” It had been so long since anyone had touched him.
“Chou.” JP’s pet name for him hung in the air between them.
“Dad! Are you going to meet Aunt Ally?”
He whimpered softly.
JP groaned and his hand dropped, he blinked and sat back, giving Ian a rueful look.
He cleared his throat. “Sure, Tori. Have her come to say hi.”
“Okay, Dad! Aunt Ally! Come meet my Dad!”
Tori had Allison’s hand and dragged her along. She was still carrying Peter.
“Hey, there. I’m pleased to meet you.” Alison held one hand out to him. “I’m sorry about your injury.”
“Thanks, me too.” JP shook Allison’s hand. “Good to meet you.”
“I’m sorry I haven’t been over before now. I work weird hours and my sous chef was out with covid.”
“You work so hard, honey.”
“I know, but I love it.”
“I understand I have you to thank for not getting poisoned every time I eat.” JP gave him a wink.
“Listen to you!” He poked JP.
“He just needed a little bit of direction. He is a fast learner.”
“Well, he learned well. We’ve been eating good, haven’t we?”
“Daddy cooks all the good food!” Tori cheered. “All of it.”
“I try, don’t I?”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” Ally told him, bumping her hip against his. “You do better than try, and we both know it.”
“He made spaghetti last night. It was amazing.”
“S’gettis…” Peter licked his lips.
JP chuckled. “That was almost as messy as the mud.”
“Nummy, Dad. S’gettis are my favorite.” Peter beamed at them all.
“I liked the lemon pepper chicken best so far.” It had been the first meal JP had finished and eaten enthusiastically, his pain relieved enough he could eat.
“Oh, that one was a meal Ian came up with, huh?”
“It was not the kids’ choice, no. They ate it, though. They actually do pretty good, I’d say.” He grinned. “I made rice and brussels sprouts.”
“Good deal. I will bring over some bangers and mash tomorrow, if you guys like that.”
He rolled his eyes. “I love your bangers and mash, you know I do.”
“Bangers and mash? That’s actually a thing outside of England?” JP asked.
“If you want, you can call it mashed potatoes and sausages…” she teased.
“I don’t really care what it’s called as long as it’s good,” JP admitted. The man could eat; Ian could vouch for that.
“He’ll love it. I know him.” Sort of biblically, if he was honest.
“Do you do sweets?” JP asked Ally, a hopeful look on his face.
“No. I leave those to my pastry chef, although Ian subbed in once in an emergency.”
His cheeks went hot. “I just made simple stuff…”
“You’ve been holding out on me, Chou?”
“No. No, I made you chocolate pudding.”
Tori’s eyes lit up. “Puddings?”
“Oh yeah. But that was just one evening.” JP pouted, the asshole.
“Daddy. Pudding.”
“All right. Later. I’ll make pudding for supper tomorrow, all right?”
“Pudding for supper!” The kids chanted and cheered together, JP grinning like the Cheshire Cat.
“You are a bad man.” He winked at JP, then shook his head. “Tonight he’s buying me p-i-z-z-a.”
“I am. And maybe tomorrow I’ll buy you t-a-i.”
“Ooh. Two nights in a row?” He was spoiled.
Also, JP couldn’t spell his way out of a paper bag.
“How many nights in a row have you fed me?” JP asked.
“Huh.” Allison grinned. “I didn’t expect to like him, but I kind of do.”
“Yeah, me too.” He didn’t want to, and he wasn’t sure what he was going to do when JP left him again, but he did like him.
“That’s because I’m loveable.” Butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth.
“Oh, man. I hear that. Well, I’ll bring bangers and mash for supper tomorrow night. You can warm it up for the next day.”
He hugged her. “Thanks, girlfriend.”
“It was nice to meet you,” JP said.
Ian could tell he was beginning to flag.
“Same. I’ll let you rest. Are you guys all going to the park? I can come too,” Allison offered.
Two sets of bright blue eyes stared up at him, begging.
“Sounds like a plan.” Dammit. “Let me get him settled, and we can go.”
“He can settle himself,” groused JP.
“Okay.” He’d wanted another second alone, maybe a kiss, but JP could just settle himself. “I’ll be home in an hour or so. I’ll have my phone.”
“‘K, Chou.” JP’s eyes were already drifting shut.
“He calls you Chou?” Allison asked as they went out.
“Yeah, he always has.” He wasn’t going to put too much on it.
She didn’t say anything, just looked at him, like she was waiting for more information.
“Kids, go get your shoes on.” They ran off, and he shook his head. “We are married.”
“Then where’s he been the last three years?”
“With the thing he loves best of all.”
She sighed and gave him a hug. “You need to look after you, honey.”
“I will. I am. It’s his house, right?” He just needed to remember that just because he was lonely, it didn’t mean anything.
“His house.” She rolled her eyes at him. “It’s yours and those kids’ home.”
“Yeah, but he—” He sighed softly. “Can we talk about something else, please?”
She linked their arms together. “If that’s what you want. We’ll talk about who got eliminated on Top Chef and watch the kids play in the park.”
“Perfect. They need some exercise and fresh air.”
“Like you don’t have a perfectly good back yard.” She never let him get away with anything.
“They play there, too, you meanie.” He poked her and made her giggle.
“God, you make me laugh, Ian.”
“I hope so; we’re best friends.” He grinned at her and rolled his eyes. “I know it’s complicated, but…this is wild. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do.”
“What do you want to do?” she asked as they followed the kids down the street.
“I want him to be in love with me and help me raise my kids and have a lot of…snuggles.” Duh.
“Well, then what you need to do is go after your man.” She said it like the word ‘duh’ was totally included at the end of her sentence too.
“Yeah. Maybe.” He wasn’t that brave. In fact, he was a bit of a coward like Petey. “We’ll see.”
She snorted. “Honey, you’ve got a captive audience!”
“Ha. I don’t even know if he…” Cheated. “Had someone on the side.”
“Then ask.” Like it was just that simple, that easy.
“What if he says yes?”
They made it to the park, and they sat while the kids ran to play.
“If he says yes, then you know and you can decide if it matters or not in the end.”
It would matter. He didn’t want it to matter, but it would. “It would break my heart, Ally. I want him to…”
Love him.
She leaned in and gave him a hug. “I wish I had all your answers for you.”
“You and me, both.” But he hadn’t had answers in years, so why start now?
“I still think you should just talk to him, but what do I know?” She bumped shoulders with him. “He seemed to be happy he was in your home.”
“He’s very frustrated. He wants to start walking around and getting exercise.”
She nodded. “I bet. People who do a lot of physical things don’t like it when they can’t.”
“Yeah. And his whole world is hockey.” He sighed softly. “Everything.”
“Yeah, that was clear when he left for Florida without you.”
“To be fair, he didn’t choose to go – he got traded.”
“Don’t ask me to be on his side, honey. I’m team Ian, all the way.”
He nodded and leaned over, sniffling a little bit. “Thanks. You know, I’m so glad I met you.”
He’d been a teacher when they’d decided to have a baby.
A baby.
Not two babies.
Then he’d had to leave his job to care for the little ones.
Then JP had been traded to fucking Florida of all places, and he’d expected Ian to just pack up everything along with the babies and follow him there.
He’d lost both grandparents the year before, he loved his house, and he had his brother here — how could he go?
They’d fought and yelled and said things they shouldn’t have and, somehow, at some point, they stopped speaking. Until JP got hurt.
They hadn’t gotten divorced but hadn’t really been married anymore. They’d been living totally separate lives — but he’d been living on JP’s dime.
It was a mess. He supposed they’d eventually have to talk about it.
He had no idea what he was going to do if JP asked him to leave. Or if he’d had to get a job and find daycare for the kids…
“Don’t look so glum. Tell me how I can help.”
“Tell me about the restaurant. Tell me what you’re doing and cookie.”
“And cookie? Are you hungry, honey?” She giggled and bumped their shoulders again. “I know you meant cooking, but it was a great Freudian slip. I’ve put a scallops tartar on the menu. And it rocks.”
“Really? How cool is that?” His cheeks were burning. “And you know what? I sort of am hungry. You want to go get some fries or something in a bit? The kids would like that.”
“Ooo, there’s that McDonald’s on the way home.”
He snorted. That McDonald’s would more than double the time it took to get home, but fries sounded amazing. Hot, salty goodness. “Sounds perfect. Maybe we can share a chocolate shake too.”
And he wouldn’t even bring JP anything.
He was fine by himself.