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SIXTEEN
Arlo
Five Years Later…
“Officer Miles called me today,”Iris tells me as we pick up our daughter, Marley’s, bedroom a bit.
Our daughter is a real whirlwind. She’s the joy of my life, the greatest gift that I could ever be given. She’s also terrible at picking up after herself.
“Oh yeah?” I ask as I help my wife pick up all of the Barbie clothes and shoes.
“He said that your brother is up for early parole because of good behavior,” she tells me and I glance up at her, trying to gauge how she’s feeling about that.
I haven’t talked to Abel much since he was arrested and went to prison. I tried a few times in the beginning but he didn’t want to see me. I think that he was embarrassed. That or he didn’t want to hear me yell at him.
We talked about what he did the first time that I visited him and I had snapped at him about how he robbed the woman of my dreams. He hadn’t seemed remorseful at all and to be honest, that didn’t change any of the other times that I went to visit him.
It was hard but it became obvious that I couldn’t have him in my life. Not if I wanted a future with Iris. She would get tense whenever I mentioned his name and I know that she was still hurt by what he did and the fact that she may have never seen her grandma’s antiques again.
“I hadn’t heard that,” I tell her and she nods.
“Do you think that he’ll come back to town?” She asks as she tries to make the bed. There are about twenty different stuffed animals on the thing so it can be a little hard to maneuver all of them around.
“Maybe. He doesn’t have any other family so chances are he might reach out to me,” I admit. “He knows that I have money and could help him out.”
“Do you want him in your life?” She asks a little hesitantly and I shake my head.
“No,” I admit honestly. “If things had been different, if he had apologized or regretted it, then maybe I would, but he didn’t. Besides, I know that you don’t want him around and I’m going to choose you and our kids over him every time,” I assure her.
“I don’t want to stop you from having a relationship with him. He is your family after all.”
“I know, but I truly don’t want him in my life. He would just be using me for money and a place to live and I don’t think that that’s the right example for Marley or this little one,” I say, rubbing her very pregnant stomach.
Iris is pregnant with our second child, a boy this time. She’s about seven months pregnant and we’ve been busy getting everything ready for our newest bundle of joy.
This time around Sutton, Lyla, and Madelyn are all pregnant with us. I know that having close due dates has only brought the girls closer together. They all get to support and experience this time together and I know that that means a lot to my Iris.
Luckily for us, this pregnancy has been a lot easier on Iris too. She isn’t as nauseous or tired. The morning sickness was so bad when she was pregnant with Marley and it lasted for all three trimesters. Iris ended up being put on bed rest for the last three weeks because she had started to lose weight since she couldn’t keep anything down.
I had moved in with Iris by then so I was able to help out more around the house and be there in case she needed anything. We had talked about moving to my place above the Laundry Mat or even buying a new place together. I could afford any place that she wanted easily, but this cabin means too much to her.
She wasn’t ready to leave but once we got pregnant with our baby boy, she knew that it was time to find a bigger place. We’re half moved into the new place but Iris has been taking her time. I know that it’s hard for her to move on from her grandparents’ place, but she’s managing alright and I’m okay with going at her pace. We’re still keeping her cabin so she knows that she can come back whenever she wants.
Our new house is right on the water and only a few doors down from Lyla and Hudson. Iris had offered to move to Lilac Harbor so that I could be closer to Yates, but I know that she loves Destiny Falls. Marley loves the water so she’s thrilled about the new house and I know that Iris loves being closer to her friends and Blast From The Past.
Yates moved to Lilac Harbor a few years ago and it’s been great reconnecting with him. He got married a few years ago and is expecting his first kid too with his wife, Arlowe. I was best man at his wedding and I’ve never seen him look happier.
“You can change your mind later,” she tells me and I smile.
“I know. I know that you’re not keeping me from him. This isn’t your fault. He did this and if he’s not sorry, if he can’t even apologize to me and my wife, then that’s on him. I don’t want him around when he’s just going to try to use me and my money or when he could hurt you or our family.”
She nods and I drop a kiss on her lips before I head over to the laundry basket in the corner of the room.
“Maybe we should be thanking him,” she says and I glance up at her sharply.
“For what?” I ask.
“We might not have gotten together if he hadn’t broken in and if you hadn’t come around to help me clean up the shop,” she points out.
