I still remember the complete hopelessness when they placed Dahlia in my arms for the first time, and she looked at me with her beautiful eyes. I could not believe something so pure and precious could come from someone like me.
She owned my heart right away, just like her mother.
She leans back. “We’re going tonight to visit Uncle Rush and Aunt Aileen on their island, right?”
“That’s correct. We are celebrating your cousin’s birthday.”
Their daughter, Grace, is the same age as Dahlia and Rafael’s twins. So there are a lot of kids on the island ready to play together.
Our parents often say they would be trouble in the future, and I couldn’t be prouder. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be ours, and my daughter had better cause all the mayhem she wants.
We have a family reputation to uphold.
“Will Uncle Wyatt be there? If yes, I’ll bring my chessboard.”
To our utter surprise, among all the uncles at her disposal, my daughter picked Wyatt as her favorite, and as a result, he buys her the most strange gifts and teaches her all kinds of sports.
He’s also her godfather, a title he wears proudly, and he has already promised her an additional trust fund.
Not going to happen.
I will provide for my kid, and that’s that.
So they constantly participate in various activities together, from snowboarding and skiing to now chess. Which is hilarious since my father, Aileen, and I play way better than he ever could.
Wyatt still jokes that my kid is his spitting image, and for that, he regularly gets punched in the stomach, because fuck that.
My kid is mine, and nobody is going to claim ownership over my family, my best friend included.
“He’ll be there,princessa.”
“And Aunt Aurelia?”
“I doubt it.”
In fact, I’m surprised Lavender, Aileen, and Emmaline continue to try to make this whole friendship with her a thing. She made it very clear she wanted nothing to do with any of us when she moved to Houston.
Dahlia is her only exception since she’s her godmother. I still question my wife’s decision on that one, but despite making my kid happy, she never shows up for the family functions we host.
None of us could blame her after what Wyatt did. He truly outdid himself that day.
I thought Uncle Zachary took the word “hate” to another level. It turns out Wyatt gave it a whole new meaning.
“Is it because she’s a super-famous chef with her own show? She’s busy now.”
She started posting cooking content back in college, and it blew up so much that she ended up with brand deals and TV shows while still finishing her biology degree.
All in all, she’s had an amazing career, and to this day, it surprises me that Wyatt allowed her to thrive in all her successes. Which makes me think she isn’t that much attached to it in the first place, or he’d find a way to ruin it.
Ian forming his own underground brotherhood and showing up once a year to meet his entire family only adds fuel to Wyatt’s rage. Not to mention Daisy got herself involved somehow into the whole Ian, Wyatt, and Aurelia mess as well by becoming Aurelia's best friend.
Truth be told, I’m not sure what the outcome of this all will be.
“Yes. We’re going to Houston next month, so you’ll see her there.” She beams at me, then wiggles her legs, so I put her back on the ground, and that’s when my phone rings.
Dahlia crouches down to fix her ballet slippers as I take it out from my back pocket and see Wyatt’s name flashing on the screen. “What?”
He clicks his tongue, his amused tone making me roll my eyes as I watch Dahlia struggle with the ribbons. “Is this how you greet your best friend?”
