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“You want a hug from me?” Fallon lights up.
I’m constantly amazed by how quickly we’re reduced to gooey, shiny puddles of love whenever we’re around these little girls. They are the spitting image of their mother—colorful, funny, and energetic, just like her—innocent souls who deserve safety and nurturing and all the care in the world. I am compelled to keep them happy and well for the rest of their lives, no matter what happens between Avery and us going forward. My honor won’t allow for less.
“The girls are particularly fond of you guys today because they heard we’re organizing a weekend trip to the Winter Wonderland Fair up in Hershey,” Helen laughs. “I just told them, and they insisted to come down here and thank you.”
“Tank you, Kel-lan!” Annie says.
“You’re most welcome, honey,” Kellan laughs, melting over her.
“And thank you, Fallon, thank you, Luke,” Miley says, moving away from Fallon to come over and give me a hug as well.
I let her wrap her tender arms around my neck, careful to set my coffee mug on the side table next to my chair first. “It’s my pleasure, Miley. We’re gonna have a lot of fun, I’m sure of it.”
“Yeah, but Momma said we can’t eat too much candy,” Miley pouts.
“Too much doesn’t mean none at all,” I reply. “We’ll get some to bring home, too. Keep the good stuff in storage.”
Miley leans in, as if to conspire against her mother. “Just don’t tell her.”
I play along and lean in as well. “It’ll be our secret. Where’s Momma now?”
She looks sad for a moment. “Tired. She sleeps a lot.”
“Girls why don’t you finish getting your snowsuits and boots on then wait for me by the door?” Helen says. Miley gives me one more squeeze before taking her little sister’s hand and leaving the study.
“You three should try to get her out of the house soon,” Helen states after the girls are gone. “While I’m glad Avery agreed to let them go to school while they stay here, I do worry it’ll leave her even less grounded.”
I give her a curious look. “You saw her earlier, right?”
“Yes.”
“How did she seem?” I ask.
“Exhausted. Brooding. On edge. Whenever the phone rings, she’s easily startled. I don’t think she’s been sleeping well, and she has barely touched any food over the past couple of days. I don’t want the girls to worry about her, but it appears they already are,” Helen replies.
Kellan, Fallon and I exchange knowing glances. We know we’re definitely catching feelings, and we absolutely have to have the talk with Avery. She needs us, now more than ever, and we’ve been walking on eggshells around her in order not to scare her off. It’s time for us to give her an introduction to who we really are.
I’m not sure how she will react, but I do know I can’t get enough of her. I need more. So much more, and soon.
12
Avery
I’m not proud of how I’ve been behaving over the past couple of days but given everything that I’ve had to shoulder for so long, I’m trying to cut myself some slack for not being able to deal with this whole Luke, Fallon, and Kellan situation. The truth is, I want all three in equal measure, but I know it’s not possible. While I’m not shocked that the Cassidy twins are fine with sharing a woman, I can’t see them cutting Luke into the combination.
Perhaps I would’ve been better off if I’d just stuck to my lane, remodeling and looking after my girls, rebuilding my life, and expressing my gratitude to the men who rescued us from the side of a snowy road. But it’s too late for that. I’m in deep already, and I need to make amends. I’m not sure how, but the guys won’t tolerate me avoiding them for much longer. I am still living in their home after all. I will have to own up to what I’ve done. And if they decide they need me to move out, I’ll use the Freemans’ payments to get myself a studio apartment here in North Platte until I can afford something better.
In the meantime, I’ll keep my focus on work. The Freemans’ townhouse is coming along and then some. The living room and two of the three bedrooms are done, leaving one bedroom along with the hallways left to paint. I’m hoping to finish tonight so I can spend some time with my girls and go to bed early. I’m exhausted on so many levels.
I check my phone then set it down before I get started on a second coat of paint. There haven’t been any other strange calls in the past few days, but I am still on edge. It’ll probably be a while before I will be able to really get myself out of this anxious state. The music is blaring in my headphones, and for the better part of a minute, I’m completely disconnected from the world.
But my phone rings, and I’m brought back to reality yet again.
“Dammit,” I curse under my breath. I need to stop doing this. I check the screen and breathe a sigh of relief when I see Kellan’s name, but then I remember I’ve been actively avoiding him and his brother. “Hey, Kellan, what’s up?”
“Avery, I know you’re busy, but we were all hoping we could have dinner tonight,” he says.
His voice sounds calm, yet there is an underlying tension I can’t ignore.
