AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mom laughs, the sound strained because I know she’s fighting back tears. My own eyes water, but I force them back.
“I remember you saying that. Ryder had colic and had been keeping you and Hunter up at night.”
“Yeah. It was mainly Hunter. Anytime Ryder would cry, it was Hunter who heard him first and was adamant he attend to him.”
Her arm comes around my waist and she squeezes me. “I’m not sure if there were ever any children who had the most loving and caring parents as you and Hunter were.”
My eyelids flutter, blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay. I still wasn’t strong enough to protect them, no matter how loving and caring we were.
We spend a few minutes in silence as we take in the photos hanging on the wall, both of us left to our own thoughts.
“I wanted to talk to you about something,” Mom says, taking a seat on the couch, and I sit beside her. “Your dad and I were thinking of traveling to Max and Emily’s for Christmas this year, but I don’t want to leave you and Hunter alone. Ginger and her crew are already on board to go as well. How do you and Hunter feel about joining us?”
I look at Hunter and he shrugs. “Up to you, baby.”
“What about Slate?”
“Silas and Katie’s families are here, so they always stay in the area. We’re closed on Christmas Eve and Day, so they won’t be put out.”
I look back at Mom. “Alright. Count us in.”
Mom smiles brightly, “Excellent! It’ll be nice to have a white Christmas for once. Tennessee is so unpredictable, so you never know if there will be snow or not.”
I laugh at her excitement. “It’s settled then. Does Max know?”
“I spoke with him about it yesterday. It works out perfectly, because he just finished the guest house a few weeks ago. Ginger, Mason, and the boys will take the guest house, and we’ll have the two guest rooms in the main house.”
I nod my agreement.
“We also wanted to let you know that we’ve dropped the yacht idea.”
“Really?” I lift a brow. “Why the change of heart?”
“Because,” she takes my hand, her eyes shifting to Dad’s for a moment before coming back to me, “I don’t like the idea of being so far away from all of my kids.”
“Mom,” I try to protest, but her tight grip on my hand halts my words.
“No. Your dad and I spoke about this. While we still love the idea of living on a boat, we’ll settle for taking a vacation for a week or two on one and having a captain on board. Dad wasn’t too keen on learning to navigate a boat anyway.”
“Are you sure? Ginger and I would be fine without you guys here. I hate for you to give up on something you want to do because you’re worried about us.”
“Nope. We’ve already made our decision. While it may have been a sudden spur of the moment dream, I just cannot imagine, and I don’t want to, being away from my girls. I already hate Max being so far away.”
I dip my chin down. “Okay.”
Mom and Dad only stay for a few more minutes since one of Dad’s old friends is in town and they’re meeting him and his wife for lunch. There is no mention of Scarlett, Athena, or Presley, which I’m grateful for. Talking about Eliana and Ryder is already difficult, but I refuse to keep them hidden. It’s still hard for me to believe I’m not losing my mind when I think about my other personalities. They’re a sensitive subject, and I’m not sure I’m ready to discuss them with anyone other than Hunter.
When my parents leave, I leave Hunter in the living room and go upstairs to grab a pair of socks. I’ve always had a problem having cold feet, something I hate.
Instead of grabbing a pair of my socks, I root through Hunter’s sock drawer in the closet. He always has the warmest and softest thick socks. He picks on me because I steal them all the time.
After rummaging through his neatly folded sock drawer, I find my favorite pair. As I turn to leave the closet, I’m stopped by something on the top shelf. My stomach plummets and my heart squeezes tight in my chest. As if having a mind of their own, my feet take me further inside the closet, and I reach up, my fingers grazing the dark wood of the box on the shelf.
I should leave it alone. I’m not sure I’m ready to look at the contents. Yet something inside me urges me to pull the box down.
So, that’s what I do.
Raising to my tiptoes, I tug the box to the edge of the shelf and into my hands. Looking at the beautifully carved initials on the top, my eyes sting.
