Oak laughed, and his blush got darker. “It’s almost done. I promise.”
I did reach out then, to comfort, gripping his elbow. “I’m teasing. There’s no rush. Really.”
It wasn’t my imagination that he leaned closer. Or that I did the same. I wanted to be in his space, to breathe the same air as he did. Our gazes locked. When his lips parted, I couldn’t help but notice how wet and full they were. I slid my hand up his arm, and had nearly made it to his neck when—
“Dad! Look!”
We jumped apart, and Oak wobbled on his skates. I barely spared him a glance, just to make sure he didn’t fall, before giving all my attention to Marlie. She was skating, still shaky, but only holding one of Teague’s hands.
“Good job, baby girl!” I called and she beamed, so proud of herself.
When I looked back to Oak, he was gone. I found him over by Tristan, trying to show my son how to skate on one foot. I smiled, making a mental note to give all the kids some children’s ibuprofen before I sent them to bed. They were definitely going to be sore.
It was good that moment had been broken. A reminder of exactly why I couldn’t have Oak.
Tristan and Harper were chatty when I picked them up from school, regaling me with tales from the day, taking turns and speaking over one another. Marlie was suspiciously silent and because of the snow that had fallen during the day, I couldn’t give her as much attention as I wanted to. I needed to pay attention to the road.
As soon as I pulled into a parking spot at the Black Dog Inn, Harper and Tristan jumped out of the SUV, beelining straight for the lobby doors. I knew they’d only give Charlie a brief greeting before running into the dining room. Dana was spoiling my children with after school snacks.
Marlie was quick to follow her siblings, so I did my best to catch up. I made it to the dining room just as the kids were dropping backpacks and coats off at “their” table. It was near the kitchen door and they’d claimed it as theirs. Between Charlie in the office and Dana cooking in the kitchen, they were taken care of while I continued to work.
Harper and Tris were already pushing through the swinging door, calling out a greeting and asking what was for snack. I caught Marlie’s arm before she could join them.
“You okay?” I asked, keeping my voice low. She shrugged which was enough of an answer. She was not okay. I pulled a chair out and guided her to it, then sat next to her. “What’s going on?”
It took her a minute, but then her little chin trembled. “Brynly says only Uncle Charlie is real.”
Whoever this Brynly was, I’d heard a lot about her over the past two weeks, and to be honest, I didn’t like much of it. She sounded like an entitled brat, but I’d tried to keep my opinion to myself. Marlie’s class was particularly small. Even Tristan’s class had twice as many students. Marlie wasn’t finding it easy to make friends and I didn’t want to make it harder. So I took a breath and offered her a smile.
“What does that mean?”
She shrugged again. I leaned forward, bracing my elbows on my knees and looked straight in her eye. A few seconds later, she let out a tiny sigh.
“She said only Uncle Charlie is really my uncle. And that Uncle Teague isn’t. And that Aunt Regan and Aunt Nic aren’t.” Shesucked in a wet sounding breath. “And that Grams and Gramps aren’t really my grandparents and that I can’t call them that and that I’m stupid if I think so.”
I had to breathe, just breathe, to keep the words that wanted to escape in.What a fucking brat. How dare she speak to my child that way? It was just downright rude. More than that, it was wrong. And I could say all those things to Marlie, and I would have to figure out a way to have a conversation with her about it, but at the moment, it was more important to get her calmed down and to let her know she was far from stupid.
“Brynly is…misinformed.” I had to take another breath and when I looked, Marlie was staring at me with hope in her eyes. “It’s not Brynlyn’s fault. Her parents aren’t teaching her that every family looks different.”
Marlie nodded. “Her mom stays home and Brylyn said that’s what real moms do.”
Jesus fucking Christ, I wanted to throttle that girl and her parents as well. But I needed to focus on the present. “Some moms do stay home. Some dads do it instead. In some families, both parents work. And some families just have one parent. Or a parent and a grandparent. And some families are like ours, where there’s lots of people who love each other and work together to make a safe and happy place.”
“I know, Dad.” Her voice was soft, but it sounded like she meant it.
“Look, aunt and uncle and grams and gramps…they’re just titles, right? Traditionally, they mean someone who is related to you by blood. Like Charlie is my brother so he’s your uncle, right?” I waited for her to nod. “But you can also give those titles to other people who fill the same role, to show them that you honor and love them. Aunt Nic acts like your aunt—she does all the things aunts do—so you give her the title so that she knows how much you love her.”
Marlie nodded again, her face clearing from some of the upset. I slid my chair a little closer so I could wrap my arm around her. She let out a little sigh as she leaned into me. I debated about what to say next, how to say it, but I prided myself on always being honest with my kids.
“My mom is your grandma, right? But she’s not very nice, and she doesn’t treat us well. So we don’t call her Grandma anymore. Instead, we have Grams, who loves us and takes care of us and treats us well. So we callherGrams.”
Marlie was quiet for a few seconds before she said, “I love Grams.”
“I do, too.” I kissed the top of her head. “Brynly can think whatever she wants, but you know the truth. You, and Harper and Tris, have a whole bunch of aunts and uncles, and Grams and Gramps, who love you and want you to be happy.”
“Family is made up of the people who love and support you, not just the people you’re related to.”
Marlie and I both jerked our gaze to Oak, who had come upon us without either of us knowing. Oak’s eyes went wide, and he clapped a hand over his mouth as he turned beet red. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to butt in—”
