Chapter 102

Liam’s POV

The only way I could be happier today was if Aria agreed to be my wife again. As it was, I was still just about as thrilled as I could be. Aria, William, and Joe were all living under my roof like a near-perfect family. It was the kind of thing I’d always dreamed about, especially after I lost Aria and realigned my life priorities.

For years, I’d blamed Aria for splitting us up and abandoning me. But then, with some reflection, I had come to realize that I was more to blame. When she reminded me what I had said about not wanting to have children… and all the time, she had been pregnant.

God, no wonder she left me.

But I wouldn’t let that happen again. No matter what, this would not be a repeat of the past. I’d be the father for my kids that they deserve. And Aria? For her, I’d be the husband I should have been six years before.

No, I’d be better.

Aria and I carried some boxes into the house. The kids might have seemed eager to help at first, but after that first trip, they became entirely distracted, bouncing from room to room, William eagerly showing Joe around.

Aria and I shared a mirthful glance as we walked around them, heading to one of the spare bedrooms that was to be Aria’s room.

I’d offered to give her the master bedroom, but she’d shied away from that. “I’m not ready to be back in that room,” she’d told me. “Too many memories.”

I understood. I’d lived with those memories every night since Aria left me.

Her bed and other furniture hadn’t been delivered yet, so we lowered the boxes to the floor, pushing them up into a corner so they’d be out of the way of the movers. The furniture was set to be moved that afternoon, so she wouldn’t have to camp out here for long before it could become her home.

“You know,” I said, half to make conversation, half because I’d been dying to ask her this since we’d reconciled. “I can get you your old job back with the team.”

I knew she hated to be idle. Even when we’d been living together, and I made enough money as a driver to support her a million times over, she still insisted on keeping her job. She liked her work, and liked to feel useful. I didn’t want her to feel like I expected her to sit around while I supported her, just because she moved back in.

She hesitated in replying, which spoke to how tempted she must have felt. Yet, in the end, she shook her head. “People would ask too many questions. Not to mention, having a relationship with the boss would make things more difficult…”

Hearing her acknowledge our relationship, even like this, gave me no end of pleasure. Our relationship was complicated. It didn’t really have a title. She wasn’t ready to be my wife again, but she was more than my girlfriend.

It was very confusing, but I still loved it and wouldn’t trade it for anything in the whole world.

Even if I didn’t agree it should hold her back, I did understand Aria’s reasoning. In a normal scenario, Aria and I would have to report our relationship to HR, and they would take steps to ensure that favoritism did not occur. Since Aria wanted to keep everything a secret, that made things more complicated.

I decided not to press the issue for now, not wanting her to feel pressured or overwhelmed. After all, it’d been a hell of a few days. She deserved some time off to catch her breath.

However, the team needed a trainer. Aria was the best there was, and the team already loved her. But if she didn’t want to come back, then I had to replace her, sooner rather than later.

In the future, when she had a few days to think about things, I would ask her again. For now, I’d let it go.

After unloading the car, Aria and I headed into the kitchen to start getting lunch ready for us and the kids. I’d already bought some lunchmeat and some rolls, so it didn’t take long to set up a delicious-looking spread. I called the kids down, we all made sandwiches, and then sat out on one of the outside tables, overlooking the pool.

Joe kept looking at the water excitedly. “I can’t believe you have your own pool.”

“We have our own pool,” I corrected lightly. “You live her now too, Joe.”

“Oh, yeah,” Joe said, grinning.

William gave him a confused look. “Doesn’t everyone have a pool?” The kid had always grown up with one, so he had no frame of reference.

“No,” Joe said. “We didn’t at the other house. Aunt Isabella doesn’t have one either.”

“Most people don’t,” Aria explained. “So we are very fortunate to have one here.”

William nodded critically. Whether he actually understood or not, I wasn’t sure, but I was still proud of him for trying.

We all ate quietly for a moment, before William spoke up again.

Looking at me, he said, “Dad, can I go see Mom?”

Sophia, presently, was in jail, and likely would be for a long time after what she’d done. That wasn’t the kind of place I wanted to take William. But, Sophia was his mother, so it wouldn’t be right to deny him.

Setting my sandwich down, I lifted my phone instead. “Let’s see when the visiting hours are.”

“Okay,” William said. Under the table, he excitedly kicked his feet.

I hummed as I read through the hours, displeased.

“What’s the matter?” Aria asked me, picking up on my mood faster than the kids.

“Most of the visiting hours are in the middle of the workday.”

I had no idea how I could swing this, unless I took a day off to take William. That might work once, but I couldn’t take off regularly like that. Maybe if I wasn’t in charge, but there were many work operations that couldn’t proceed unless I was there to sign off.

“I can take him,” Aria said.

My gaze snapped to Aria’s. “Are you sure?” I asked her. I didn’t want to badmouth Sophia in front of William, but she had nearly killed Aria. For Aria to go there now seemed like a really, really bad idea.

“I’m sure,” she said. “William deserves to see his mother.”

“Please!” William said, still kicking his feet. “I miss her…”

“I will take you and we will go see her tomorrow when you get home from school,” Aria said. She glanced at me again. “Does that work?”

I looked at the hours. “It does,” I said, “But are you sure you are sure?”

Sophia hated Aria with a passion. Aria would be walking straight into hell with the devil waiting.

“I want to support William however I can,” she said.

As William’s legal guardian and father-at-heart, I could appreciate that. But as much as I wanted to support William too, I also wanted them both to be safe. If Aria were to walk into that jail…

“There will be guards,” Aria said. “She can’t do anything but talk to us.”

Sophia’s harsh words were sometimes her most brutal weapon, but I couldn’t deny Aria who seemed determined, or William, who looked at me with wide, pleading eyes.

“Just… be careful,” I told them both.

“I won’t let anything happen to William,” Aria said.

She didn’t seem to understand that it wasn’t just William I was worried about.