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“Just the diner, they have things he likes, and he eats like a horse after this. I also get a discount,” my gaze darted in embarrassment. “Sounds like you take good care of him,” Aldric countered. “He’s my whole world and will always be the most important, even with you now in it. I think it’s a mom thing,” I murmured, and he nodded firmly.
“I get it,” Aldric responded sweetly. “How about I take you guys out somewhere special? Does he like anything specific?” “Surprisingly, he isn’t that picky. But he loves fruit and seafood,” I said. Aldric laughed, “Sounds like he takes after me.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” I laughed.
Having two Aldric Hailes in my life would be just my luck. I smiled as I watched Ciro dig a hole deeper in the sandbox. I couldn’t quite hear what he was chattering to his friend about, but I imagined he was digging into the other side of the world in his little mind.
I wondered if he would want to become a paleontologist, go into science like his parents, or would he follow the creative side I’d seen coming out lately.
There was so much to come in our future, and we would no longer be alone. ?
Chapter 23
Aldric
WithRoselineandCiro,I learned that love was burning passion and unconditional.
I had my first child and finally got to meet him. Not only that, but I also got to be a steady father figure in his life. Over the next two years, I held his hand and heard him call me Daddy for the first time. It was easy to never want to let them go after hearing that.
Roseline and I became closer and closer. It wasn’t long before we moved in together. We were able to start a research team for cancer much sooner than expected. We moved into a house with a large backyard as I bought a property on the city’s edge and began planning to build a much larger home for us.
I wanted to see Roseline with a shiny ring that said she was mine until death do us part. I was certain she would say yes, yet I still was a bundle of nerves because if one thing was certain about her, she was the queen of surprising me.
That’s why I consulted with my most trusted ally, Ciro. I needed him to help me ask and pick out the right ring. I had never felt so certain in my entire life.
While Roseline was at the lab, I took Ciro ring shopping with me. At the mall, his head whipped around excitedly. He knew this wasn’t a usual shopping trip since we didn’t usually go to the mall without his mom. I wasn’t exactly a shopper, after all.
Our excursions together often involved walking or teaching him how to fish now that I had gotten into the sport. Today I veered off with his hand clutched in mine to the one-of-a-kind jewelry store, displaying colored diamonds quite proudly. They were unique and authentic, so their price was enough to make most people’s jaw drop, but since my inheritance, we wanted nothing. I did not think twice because nothing was too good for my family.
Honestly, the three of us could live quite comfortably on either of our incomes alone, though, after Roseline’s and Ciro’s earlier struggles, I wanted to treat them as right as she would let me. I didn’t want them to live comfortably, I wanted them to haveeverything she ever dreamed of,including her career, a private and specialized lab built with ultramodern equipment.
Roseline still taught and researched in our private lab. She was a strong-headed woman and loved her research. I never dreamed of stopping her. Watching her turn into a researcher and teacher brought me immense satisfaction.
I had transformed from mentor to partner, lover, confidant, father to our son, and hopefully soon, her husband. She was everything I ever dreamed of in a woman—an equal in spirit, grit, passion, and intelligence.
“Here?” Ciro pointed to a shop whose window practically sparkled with gems and metal. “Yeah, this is the place,” I said with a confident nod. “Why are we here?” Ciro questioned. Even though I had explained it to him, the concept of marriage was probably a bit strange to him, considering his mother had never been married in his lifetime.
“Have you heard of getting married?” I asked.
He nodded slowly, “Yeah….” “Well, it’s a big thing between adults. When you love someone, and it only seems to be growing, eventually you want to spend the rest of your life with them, and getting married is the official part of it,” I explained as Ciro looked up at me, absorbing all my words with wide eyes.
“The first step is buying a ring. You wear them on this finger, meaning you will stay together forever. And it tells other people I am married.” I pointed at my left ring finger. I tried to make the concept as understandable as possible for him while also making it seem important.
This was something he might need to know himself one day. Not that a six-year-old would need it anytime soon, but one day when he was old enough. He screwed up his eyes at where I showed and nodded uncertainly. “Ok,” he said with a shrug of his thin shoulders.
“Well, as long as you understand that I want to be with your mother, and that means you too for the rest of our lives,” I said. “Do you think that’s a good idea?” I looked down at him, suddenly realizing I had never asked him how he felt. He shrugged as if the question was no big deal.
“Yep,” he looked up at me shyly. It made me smile, feeling a wonderful sense of joy that Ciro had already wanted me in his life. I hoped his mom did too. Roseline seemed like she did; she hadn’t been pushing me away. In fact, she’d been opening up more and more to me, trusting me with things she would never have before, especially since we moved in together.
“So, which one do you think mommy would like?” I asked Ciro, getting myself back on track. “I was thinking the pink colored stone, and either this or this one.” I pointed at a white gold setting and a twenty-four-karat gold setting. Both had clusters of diamonds surrounding the main stone, but the cut was different, and there was more design on the white gold.
“Mommy likes plants,” Ciro said, pointing at the white gold setting with vine-like designs between the offset diamonds. “She does, doesn’t she,” I said, smiling. “I’m always surprised she didn’t work with them more after they took over our home.”
Ciro nodded seriously, “I like that.” The confidence in his voice rang true, so I spent an exorbitant amount on the white gold ring. Something I could only view as worth every penny, especially when I imagined her face. The way it would light up, and she’d smile so hard till it turned into laughter. I could see her hugging me after I slipped it on her finger.
“Can I help?” Ciro asked, pointing at the ring. “Remember to get on one knee when you ask. Like on TV!”
I smiled, imagining a possible way to involve Ciro, “I think that’s a great idea.”
