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I wake to my alarm blaring. With a sigh, I turn it off, and roll over to greet Aiden. To my surprise, he’s already awake and sitting up in bed.
“Morning, beautiful.” He leans down to kiss me, running his fingers through my hair.
“How long have you been awake?” I ask, rubbing my eyes.
“A while,” he confirms, stretching.
I’m a little concerned—he’s never up before the alarm. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m fine… just worried.”
I sigh, sitting up. “I know. But your mom will be fine, and we’ll be here if she needs us.”
“No. I’m more concerned about my father. I know Mom will be fine.”
“What are you worried about?”
“Father has had Mom there looking after him, and before that, his mom. I don’t know how he’ll cope without her taking care of him. I mean, look at the state he was in yesterday.”
I can’t help but feel sorry for Niall. He was pretty messed up. “You can talk to him today and see how he’s coping.”
“Yeah. Might have to do that.” He kisses me on my forehead, then slides out of bed to prepare for our workday.
After we arrive at work, we notice Brielle’s already at her desk. She stands when she sees us.
I walk over to her briskly. “How are you, Bree?” I ask, concerned.
“Fine. Only seven stitches.” She shows me the bruised wound on her forehead.
A low gravelly grunt erupts from Aiden’s chest. “Is the asshole here yet?”
“Not yet,” Brielle replies. Her voice is not her usual chirpy self, and I understand why.
Aiden frowns, then storms off toward his office. I’m worried about him. Seeing the damage his father has done not only to his mother but also to his sister, as well as all the crap Niall throws at me, well, I don’t know if their relationship can be saved. But I do know one thing for sure, even though I dislike Niall, I still want him to have a relationship with Aiden. He is his father, so I’ll try to keep their relationship together. I don’t know how, but I’m going to continue to make an effort even if it kills me.
“Are you really okay?” I ask Bree now that her protective older brother is out of the room.
“Sure. A bit rattled, that’s all. Father’s never done anything like that before. I know he didn’t mean to hurt me, but he didn’t even apologize for it. He’s getting worse and worse, and I’m worried he’s going to fall apart without Mom there to guide him.”
“Yeah. Your brother said the same thing to me this morning.”
“I want to go back home, but if I do, I know I’ll be the one who has to take care of him, and it should be the other way around. I’m his child. He should take care of me, you know?”
Wrapping my arm around her, I pull her to me for comfort. “I completely understand. Maybe you can go back home in time, but for now, you should stay with Killian. We went to your family home last night to get some things for your mom, and Niall wasn’t coping at all. If you go home, he might take it out on you.”
She nods, then winces, bringing her hand up to her head. “Yes. You’re right. How’s Aiden? He seems a little… agitated.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Yeah, he’s worried about your father.”
“At least Mom’s set up now. It was lucky Aiden had a spare apartment, and you were both able to set her up in it so quickly.”
“Aiden wouldn’t let her stay anywhere else.”
The elevator chimes. Brielle quickly sits at her desk as I walk back to mine, both of us thinking it’ll be Niall. As I get to my desk, the doors open, and a delivery driver comes in with a bunch of flowers.
Brielle laughs. “Phew,” she jokes, wiping her hand across her forehead.
“I have a delivery for Miss—”
