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“We could always spend a day with Emma at a theme park where she could play. We could watch her be happy. If she asks who you are, we can say that you and I are her family.”
“How do we know what she’ll ask when we go back into the house?” Grace asked.
“We don’t,” he said, running over the possibilities, all the while distracted by the way Grace’s body fitted along his, the scent of her hair, the warmth of her skin. “Maybe we should go in now and tell her who you are. Why you’re here.”
“And what if she is so upset she can’t be soothed? What if she can’t accept me as part of her life, not to mention the idea that I would be her mother? Maybe we should wait for a little while until she’s more settled?”
Aidan met Grace’s anxious gaze and knew only one thing. He and Grace would once again be in the same bed tonight. Whatever needed to happen, whatever explanations were necessary, he would not live without her for another night. “I’m going to talk to Emma about this. I’m going to explain who you are, how important you are to me, how much I love you. And then I have to have faith that our daughter will be okay with it.”
Grace felt a shiver of anxiety. What if what Aidan wanted to do turned out to be a catastrophe, with Emma inconsolable and calling for her mother? “There has to be a better way. I mean we need to find a way to convince Emma that I’m not taking her mommy’s place and that she can feel safe.” Worried, she snuggled against Aidan, eliciting a sigh of pleasure from him.
“Wish you and I could stay like this, have nothing to think about or worry over for at least a few days.” He leaned closer, kissing her lips, awakening her need for him, for all they had missed while living separately.
“Wish we could, too…” She turned to Aidan, catching the look in his eyes, a look of devotion that swept through her heart. She sat up straight, suddenly alive with an idea. “What if we took Emma to Disney World for a vacation, even just a couple days? We could do it right after Lisa leaves so that Emma has something fun to do. It might make losing Lisa a little easier for her. That way she wouldn’t feel she was losing you when we talk casually about me coming home, and she sees how much fun the three of us can have as a family. If we do this right she will not feel left out or threatened by me being around.”
Every ounce of Aidan’s attention was focused on Grace, making her feel cherished and cared for. “You are a genius,” he said enthusiastically. “That would work out perfectly. I’ll book us into the Disney resort in Florida. We will have so much fun, the three of us.” He grabbed her, pulled her to her feet and walked with his arm around her shoulders as they approached the patio doors. “Holding you, having you here with me feels so good,” he murmured into her hair as he opened the door into the house.
Their entrance into the family room was met with a squeal of delight from Emma. “Daddy! Lisa and I need to show you something.” She took his hand, pulling him into the living room. “See!”
“See what?” he asked, searching the lawn.
“Right there.” Emma pointed toward the hibiscus bush near the corner of the flower bed in front of the window. The rabbit, his nose wiggling, was peering out from under the shrub. “I love him. Can he be my rabbit?” she asked, her face turned up to her father.
Love overflowed his heart. “Yes, he can be your rabbit.”
“I’ve already named him. His name is Sam,” she said, a look of mischief in her wide blue eyes.
“Sam. Sounds good to me. What do you think, Grace?” he asked as she came up behind them.
Grace was struck by the thought that at any other time in her marriage she would have reached out, put her arm around his waist and hugged him. But with Emma watching and her uncertainty about their relationship despite Aidan’s profession of love, she hung back.
