“Good morning, you two.”
I wrapped my arms around Aria and extended my hand to Dimitros and squeezed it, before letting go and pressing my cheek against Aria’s hair. She reminded me so much of my sister that it hurt sometimes. But it was a good kind of ache—the healing kind—if that made any sense at all.
“Did you sleep okay?”
Aria nodded against me. “There are tears in your eyes.”
I froze for half a second, then let out a breath. “There are?”
“Mm-hmm,” Dimitros said, peeking up at me.
“They must be happy tears,” I said, waving them off.
“What do you mean?” Aria demanded. “Why would you have happy tears?”
“I guess today feels like a special day,” I said, brushing her hair back gently. “A new beginning. And with you guys around, I feel like I have a part of my sister with me again.”
“Why?” Aria asked.
I hesitated, my free hand reaching for my necklace and twisting the pendant.
“Because you remind me of her,” I said finally, kissing her forehead. “And I have you two and your papa in my life.”
She didn’t need more than that; children rarely needed more detailed explanations. Still, it made me wonder how I would eventually share with Aria that I was her biological mother, and more importantly, how she would accept that news.
We stayed like that for a while—just tangled together under the blankets, sometimes silent and sometimes whispering. It was so ordinary and perfect.
Then Dimitros’s stomach grumbled and we all laughed.
“I think he’s trying to tell us we need to get our butts moving,” I teased, jumping out of bed. “Okay, kids. Breakfast time.”
The scent of eggs and bacon was thick thanks to Dimitros’s excellent cooking skills. I managed to burn the first batch, but then he took over and tasked me with cutting fruit.
We ended up seated at the round table in the kitchen and stuffing ourselves with the best food I’d ever tasted. Aria agreed, although she didn’t seem quite as surprised as I was with her brother’s cooking skills.
The sound of the front door opening had us on alert and it wasn’t long before a familiar, steady presence filled the doorway.
My heart leaped with excitement at seeing Lykos, and my cheeks flushed remembering how we parted.
“Good morning, children,” he greeted warmly, stepping into the kitchen and then pecking Aria’s forehead before turning to Dimitros to pat him on the back.
“I thought you wouldn’t be home until later in the evening,” I sputtered, caught off guard to see him so soon.
“The business wrapped up quickly and I couldn’t wait to see you all.” His gaze found mine and his expression softened, making my heart tremble. “Morning, golden one,” he murmured, lowering his head and kissing the corner of my mouth.
Then we remembered the audience. We hadn’t talked to the kids about us, and honestly, it was too soon, so I pulled away and replied with a sheepish smile, “Morning.”
“Whoa… why are you kissing Violet?” Aria questioned, eyes widening while her head bounced between us. Dimitros folded his arms in front of him, keeping his expression guarded, and I feared we might have rushed into this one.
“Your father was just…” I searched for the right word and failed to find it. Damn it, I was a therapist. I should have all the words. “After the fire and what had happened,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose, “we just got a bit closer, you know. It’s something that brings people together.”
Aria’s brows furrowed and an awkward silence followed.
Lykos took a step toward the children and pulled them into a hug. “I think we need to talk.”
“Okaaay.” Aria’s tone was uncertain, her gaze flickering to her brother before returning to her father.
“We’ve been through a lot lately,” he started slowly. “I’ve made some mistakes and put you in harm’s way with Amara.”
