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“Shouldn’t you at least ask them first?”
“I did last night. Pop loves the idea of Colleen moving in, which by the way, that shit’s gotta stop. And Trev wanted to go get you and your stuff last night, but I told him we’d wait till today. They want you there, Riss. We want you there.”
She was speechless, and then an hour later her clothes were hanging in his closet and neatly put away in her drawers. She had moved the paperwork and documents from her car to the nightstand drawer Cade had cleared out for her.
She noticed an eight-by-eleven frame sitting on the dresser without a picture. She picked it up and flipped it over. It had been used, but whatever picture was there had been taken out. She was placing it back on the dresser when Cade walked in and looked up from his phone. He stopped when he glanced down at the frame.
He straightened his back and shifted his jaw. He seemed uneasy. Had he changed his mind about her moving in?
“Yeah, um Pop put that there for ya.” He motioned to the frame. “Didn’t know if ya had one for Carly’s picture.”
Her bottom lip fell open, and she stared back down at the empty frame. It was for her? Her eyes burned, and she tried to fight back her tears. She hadn’t even heard him move, but Caden’s arms were wrapped around her, pulling her back into his chest. His lips came to her ear.
“He meant well.”
She shook her head. “I know. It’s just so sweet, but I…”
Caden held her closer, and she immediately grasped his forearms. “When you’re ready, ya know it’s there, okay?” He kissed her head and whispered, “When you’re ready.”
She nodded her head and accepted what he was giving to her.
Time.
****
Caden glanced down at his phone. It was past seven. Shit! He was hoping to spend the day in the office and close to home, but they had a driver call out again, and he was the only one available to make deliveries. He gave Marissa the heads up he’d be late. She insisted on making dinner for everyone. He pulled in the driveway past Trev’s truck and saw the lights illuminating the house.
He parked in the back and strolled through the lot, walking up the back steps. He could smell whatever she was cooking from outside, and his stomach growled. Before Marissa, he couldn’t remember the last time someone cooked for them. He and Trev shared dinner duty since he was old enough to cook. It started out basic, a lot of mac and cheese dinners early on, but as he got older, Trevor got more creative. It was good for him, good for both of them, but he wasn’t gonna lie to himself. It was nice having someone taking care of them.
He opened the door and smiled at the laughter roaring through the kitchen. He slowed at the doorway and took in the scene. Trevor was setting the table, and Marissa was stirring something on the stove. She was shaking her head with a grin.
“No, seriously, I’m probably gonna have to ban all the guys from hanging out here from now on. None of their moms look like you.”
Caden smirked.
“Dad will probably get pissy seeing a bunch of horny guys staring at ya anyway. That’s it, the fuckers are banned.”
Caden opened his mouth, but Marissa spun around and squinted her eyes. He imagined she was going for a threatening, stern glare, but it came out too damn cute, and Caden bit back a laugh.
“Language,” she said, pointing her dripping spoon at him.
Trevor chuckled and held up his hands. “Sorry, sorry.” He walked over to the counter near the stove and hopped up. “Forgive me?”
“I’ll think about it.” She winked and swatted his leg. “It seems I might be cramping your style here. Maybe I should move back to the apartment.” She was teasing him, but Trevor lost his smile.
“No, Riss, I want you here. I like having you here with Dad and me.”
“It’s only day one. What if I start to annoy you?”
“You won’t.”
“How do ya know?”
He shrugged. “I don’t, but even if ya do, I’d still want ya to stay. My friends warned me about how aggravating moms can be, said they nag, wanna know where you are, what you’re doing, who you’re with.” He looked down at his lap. “Doesn’t sound so bad. I mean Dad does that sh-” He caught himself and cleared his throat before smiling. “Just sayin’, you wanna nag and stuff, you can, ya know, do the mom thing.”
There was a little piece of his heart breaking for his son. He tried his best with Trevor, but no matter how much he loved him or parented him, it wouldn’t change the fact Trevor never had a mom. He stepped forward but stopped when Marissa reached out, grabbing his hand.
“I feel bad for your mom.”
