AGE THIRTY
Levi follows Astrid upstairs and I shake my head, pretending to focus on the chess game my cousin purposefully lost so he could piss off.
Cole settles opposite me and gives his baby girl the queen piece. She watches it with awe, almost like that first time Jonathan sat me beside him and taught me the art of chess. That’s actually one of the few calm father-son moments I remember with him.
Small hands pull on my trousers and I stare down at my nephew. “Where’s Mummy, Uncle?”
I grab Landon and sit him on my lap. “Making other babies.”
His blue-green eyes double in size. “Other babies?”
“Yeah.” I pat his back. “Hang in there, buddy. It’ll be wild.”
Cole shakes his head at me. “Stop terrorising the boy.”
I flip him off behind Landon’s back. Ava sees me, though, and although I think she doesn’t understand the gesture, she giggles. I wink at her and she laughs more.
Landon points a finger in her direction. “Other babies like her, Uncle?”
“Exactly.”
“I like Ava.” He grins.
“You don’t.” Eli appears by my other side and before I can help him, he climbs up on my other thigh. He’s older than Landon, and bigger, too, so he doesn’t even sit on anyone’s lap anymore. However, he becomes clingy when other children are around. I swear it’s Ronan’s loathsome influence. He’s teaching them all his clingy nature.
“Yes, I do.” Landon pokes a finger at him.
Eli pokes him back. “You do not. You said she was annoying.”
“You did, you liar.”
Eli twists his lips but remains silent, then pulls on my shirt. “Daddy.”
“What?” I lean over so he can whisper.
“Make him go away.”
“Lan?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“I don’t like him here.”
I smile to myself, shaking my head. Eli’s passive-aggressive game is strong, even though he’s little. It might have something to do with the fact that he’s an only child.
He stopped asking for other siblings once I sat him down and told him that his mum can’t get pregnant again due to her heart condition. The doctor said we could try and see how it will go, but I’m completely against that idea.
It was already a miracle that we got Eli, and we’re not going to be greedy about it. Elsa asked me the other day if Eli’s enough for me.
He’s more than enough. He’s the only kid we’ll ever need. Even if he wasn’t enough, I would never risk her life for a non-existent one. Her health comes first and everything else is secondary.
She complains that I’m too strict and overbearing when it comes to her medical appointments and medicine, but that’s because the thought of something happening to her terrifies the fuck out of me.
I’ve had her for twelve years. We’ve been married for eleven, and sometimes, I wake up and think I’m back to the time where I thought I’d lost her in that basement.
Sometimes, I wake up with images of blood marring her chest and hair and her unmoving body in my brain.
That memory will haunt me for life. The fact that I lost her after I escaped that wretched basement still aches more than I like to admit.
So, yes, I guess I have the right to be as overbearing as it can get because her well-being comes before anything else.
Speaking of the beautiful angel, she carries the drinks towards us and places them beside the chessboard. Landon hops down to snatch a cola.
Elsa stands on Eli’s side and strokes his hair back. When she speaks to him, her voice is soft, welcoming, like she’s singing him a lullaby. “What do you want, hon?”
“Nothing.”
“Is it not here? Do you want something else from the kitchen?”
“He can get it himself.” I pull her so she’s by my side, and no, I’m not jealous of my own son. It’s that she’s too doting on him and that will turn him into a mama’s boy like Ronan, and that’s not something I’ll allow. I push him down my leg. “Off you go.”
He glares at Landon one more time before he stalks in Brandon’s direction. “I’ll have juice, Mummy.”
She starts to follow him, but I hold her by the waist, my head touching her dress.
“Aiden…” When she attempts to struggle, it only makes me tighten my hold on her.
“He can take care of himself.” I pause. “Actually, I’m pretty sure Jonathan and Aurora miss him, so he should spend the weekend there.”
“Stop shipping our son off any chance you get.”
I graze my teeth against her side, and even though I’m separated from her skin by cloth, she shudders as I murmur, “No.”
She stares down at me with raw lust that makes my dick rock-fucking-hard. I’ll never get over the way she looks at me, the way her blue eyes brighten and the way she speaks without words, telling me to take her, to own her. To make her all mine.
It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been together. It doesn’t matter that she sleeps in my arms every night and wakes up wrapped all around me.
Even as an old man, I will never get enough of this woman. I will never get enough of the brightness she brings to my life. She’s the calm to my storm. The light to my darkness. And I don’t take any of that for granted. I worship her every day so she knows how fucking grateful I am for finding her again.
For having her.
For breathing her in every night.
For seeing her face every morning.
“The rooms are upstairs.” Cole’s bored voice interrupts our connection.
“And the door is just there.” I point at it with my middle finger.
Elsa blushes before she slips from underneath my touch and picks up Ava, who’s struggling to reach the floor.
“That’s not true!” Ronan pushes Xan away as the two of them, their wives, and Silver join us.
“Now what?” Cole tugs on Silver’s hand so she falls on to his lap. The fucking hypocrite was just pointing out the rooms for me.
“Xan here was saying that he’s Kimmy’s first and last when I actually dated her first.”
“No, you didn’t.” Xander elbows him.
“Mais oui. Remember that date at Mum’s favourite restaurant, Kimmy?”
“Your mum’s favourite restaurant, huh?” Teal crosses her arms, staring her husband down, even though he’s way taller than her.
He quickly backpedals, holding her hands. “You know that’s not what I meant, ma belle. Xan was a dick at the time — more than usual, I mean — and I was only being my usual Prince Charming self. It’s not me, it’s my genes.”
“Shut it, Ron.” Xander elbows him again and gathers Cecily off the floor. She snuggles in his embrace, ignoring everyone else. Xander feels smug whenever we tell him she’s a daddy’s girl.
“Hey, Remi,” Ronan calls out for his son and he comes running, jumping in his father’s arms. “Tell your mummy who loves her most in the world.”
“Daddy and Remi.”
“That’s right.” Ronan fist-bumps with him.
“And Uncle Knox!”
“And your Uncle Knox, when he’s not getting himself in trouble.”
“My brother doesn’t get himself in trouble.” Teal goes straight to the defensive.
“He kind of does,” my wife says. “Though it’s not always his fault.”
“Thank you!” Teal squeezes Elsa’s shoulder.
“You did well and will be rewarded by Lars later.” Ronan puts his son to his feet. “Off you go, my second in command.”
Remi stands upright and makes a salute. “Yes, sir.”
Everyone laughs as he runs at full speed and crashes into Brandon and Eli.
Everyone except me, because I’m contemplating a way to kidnap Elsa out of here and have her all to myself.
After Eli falls asleep.
I pull out my phone and email Jonathan because he dislikes texts. Usually, I would purposely text him, but I need him for grandpa duties this weekend.
It’s been some time since I had Jonathan’s island all for me and my wife.
From: Aiden King
To: Jonathan King
Subject: Don’t You Miss Your Grandkid?
I’ll bring him over this weekend.
From: Jonathan King
To: Aiden King
Subject: Don’t You Miss Your Grandkid?
No.
He’s probably planning to go to the island with my stepmum himself, and he can get stiff as fuck when it comes to her time. I smirk as I type.
From: Aiden King
To: Jonathan King
Subject: Don’t You Miss Your Grandkid?
You had your chance. I’m calling Aurora.
From: Jonathan King
To: Aiden King
Subject: Don’t You Miss Your Grandkid?
Don’t.
I pull Aurora’s number and text her.
Aiden: Elsa needs time to decompress. Can you have Eli this weekend?
Her reply is immediate.
Aurora: Absolutely! I miss his face.
My smirk widens as I pull back the exchange with my father.
From: Aiden King
To: Jonathan King
Subject: Don’t You Miss Your Grandkid?
Already done.
“What are you plotting?” a soft voice whispers from my right as I tuck the phone in my pocket.
Elsa stares at me with slightly narrowed eyes, as if she knows exactly what I’ve done.
“Just some negotiations with Jonathan.”
She raises a brow. “Just Jonathan?”
“I might have deferred to Aurora.”
“Aiden!” She clutches me by the shoulder. “Stop using her against your father.”
“I’m not using her. It’s mutually beneficial. It’s not my problem that Jonathan doesn’t see it that way.”
She chuckles under her breath. “You’re awful.”
“But you still love me?”
Her lips brush against my cheek as she whispers, “When did I ever stop?”
“I never stopped loving you since that day I first saw you when we were just kids, sweetheart.”
