AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I reached over and held his hand. “You can have ice cream. You can have whatever you want, Forrest. I love you.”
“I love you, too, Mommy. What if I want a dinosaur?”
“I hope you decide you want it to be small and plastic. I’m not sure I’m ready to run from a real dinosaur.” I parked by the garage way too soon and looked over at Forrest. “You know I love you no matter what, right?”
He nodded and pushed the door open. “Come on, Mommy. I want to see the guys!”
They were waiting for us on the front porch. They didn’t appear to have the same nerves I did. They seemed cooler and calmer than ever. They greeted Forrest with big hugs and shot me appreciative glances. It was Mason who spoke up first. “I can’t not say something. You look stunning, Vi.”
I curtsied and then rolled my eyes at myself. I was nervous and it was making me weird. “Should we go in for dinner?”
Justin nodded and held his hand out for Forrest’s. “We have a surprise for you.”
Forrest cheered and jumped up and down. “I love surprises!”
Ben caught my hand and held me back on the porch with him. After Forrest was inside, he pulled me closer and smiled down at me. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, Vi. You also look sick with nerves.”
I leaned into his chest and let him hold me. “I’m scared. I keep trying to think of the perfect time to tell him, but there is no perfect time. Besides now. The sooner, the better. He needs to know.”
“Thank you for giving us this, Vi. It means everything to us. It makes us that much more real. After this, maybe you’ll officially move in and we can fuck you to sleep every night.”
I tried to fight the smile stretching my lips but it was useless. “So romantic.”
Forrest’s voice called me from inside. “Mom! Come, look!”
I narrowed my eyes at Ben. “What did you do?”
He grinned. “It’s a big occasion. It deserved a big to-do.”
I hurried into the house and saw there were balloons everywhere. There were also toys everywhere. Forrest was on the floor, in the middle of a stack of blocks. His smile when he looked up at me was huge. I went to my knees next to him and ruffled his hair. “Wow! Look at this stuff! Someone must really love you.”
“We have pizza, cake, and ice cream, too!” Mason’s voice was shaky and I realized we were all in uncharted territory. It felt like a band-aid situation. We just had to rip it off.
Forrest pumped his fist in the air. “Best day ever!”
I swallowed a thick lump of emotion and cupped his small face in my hands. Stroking my thumbs over his cheeks, I smiled a watery smile at him. “Hey, kid. We have something to tell you.”
Justin dropped the bag he was carrying and sank onto the couch behind Forrest. “We’re all pretty excited about it.”
With all three of the guys around us, I took a deep breath and brushed Forrest’s hair out of his face. “I know you’ve wondered why you don’t have a da—”
The alarm sounded again. It pierced through the silence in the house and shattered whatever peace we’d had. The guys scrambled to gather their things but they stopped beside us for long enough to talk that time.
Justin looked angry as he ran his hands through his hair. “I’m so sorry, Vi. Just… Give us a little bit. We’ll be back as soon as we can and we can tell him then.”
Mason nodded. “We’ll hurry back. Don’t eat all the pizza without us.”
I kept my head down, afraid I’d burst into tears if I looked at any of them for too long. I fumbled with a block and had to clear my throat so I could speak clearly. “Sure. Be careful.”
Ben kissed the top of my head the way he seemed to always do when leaving. “Hold down the fort for a bit, Vi. We’ll be right back.”
Forrest happily played with his blocks, unaware of the tension. “Can we play when you get back?”
Justin chuckled. “Of course, buddy. Keep your mom company for us.”
I didn’t look up again until I heard their truck drive away. My feelings were flayed open all around me and it was all I could do to not burst into tears.
“What were you going to tell me, Mommy?”
