“It’s not a reflection of you, Aria. It doesn’t mean you’re unlovable. It doesn’t mean you weren’t wanted. I wanted you, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“But Ashleigh-Lynn said real families only have a mommy and daddy,” she whispered. I frowned. Ashleigh-Lynn was a girl from Aria’s private school. They’d been in the same class since they were three, and suddenly the timeline for these occasional questions made sense. “And that because I only have you, we’re not a real family, and that you don’t count, and then she laughed at me because my mommy didn’t want me.”
I drew in a deep breath to steady the rise of anger. I hated kids sometimes. For the most part, she didn’t deal with how mean kids were, but that still didn’t stop some of them. Some kids learned how to be bullies from their parents.
“Well, Ashleigh-Lynn can go fuck herself,” I muttered, the words slipping out before I could stop myself. A little giggle bubbled out of her as I scrambled to recover. “That was not appropriate. I’m sorry. It’s not her fault for thinking like that. It’s what her parents taught her. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“It’s still funny,” Aria said.
“Look,” I began with a sigh. “Families aren’t about image. They’re about love. They come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and orientations. You, me, and Holly are a family. And I like to think we’re a happy family.”
“We are.”
“Maverick wouldn’t change that,” I assured her. “Our family would just get bigger because he wouldn’t just become a part of our family. We’d also become a part of his. That’s a lot more people to love you if you let them.”
“And you?”
“And me.”Maybe.If Millie ever stopped hating me. “Those are people who choose you. People whowantyou in their lives.”
“Promise?” She rested her chin on her forearms, staring at me. I brushed the curls away from her face and tucked them behind her ear. “Like,reallypromise?”
“I promise,” I said. “This is a good thing, I promise.”
A tiny nudge of anxiety flared up as I worried about what would happen if I couldn’t keep that promise. What if this didn’t work with Maverick? It hadn’t in the past. As much as I wanted to say it would now, what if it didn’t?
“This will be a good thing,” I repeated, my voice barely audible. Aria smiled at me, trusting the words coming out of my mouth, and that had to be enough.
CHAPTER 100
maverick
The Knights of Chaos were… intimidating… in a way that only a set of creepy stuffed animals could be. A dead patchwork bunny, a sparkly Cthulhu, a bloody vampire kitty, and an eyeless Mothman all stared at me alongside the zombie bear. Excuse me— Sir Bites-a-lot, Sir Stitchkins, Lady Hissington, Lord Chewy, and Clyde. I hadsomany questions about Clyde. I also wanted to know where the hell Harley was finding these stuffed animals.
And why? Whatever the reason, it certainly helped her live up to the spooky queen title.
I sat on the floor in Aria’s room as I waited for her to say something. After her conversation with Harley about us dating, her only request was to talk to me. Alone. With the Knights of Chaos.
It sounded cute until I found myself staring down a group of creepy stuffed animals.
As for Aria, she sat behind the line of stuffed animals like they were a shield. Maybe they were. What did I know? Carson had never been a stuffed animal kid, so it was a new territory. I just knew she was struggling a little bit with the whole concept. Harley was stressed about it—which I could understand. Admittedly, it had worried me too. There wasn’t a Harley and me if Aria wasn’t on board with it.
And so, I sat there with an army of the undead stuffies staring at me because I loved that man more than anything. How long we sat there was beyond me, but I wasn’t about to move until I got the all-clear from a six-year-old. It helped that Harley was sitting just outside her door, close by and out of sight, just in case I got in over my head.
“He’s my favorite daddy,” Aria whispered. The serious expression on her face didn’t budge.
“He’s my favorite person, too,” I said.
“I don’t want a new daddy.”
“That’s okay,” I told her. “I don’t want to replace him.”
“Are you going to take my daddy from me?” she asked. She scrutinized me as if trying to see between my words and figure out if I was being honest with her.
“Not in the slightest,” I promised. “Your daddy made it real clear that you’re number one, and that makes me number two.”
“Are you mad?”
“No, spooky queen, not at all.” Chancing the wrath of her creepy council, I scooted closer. “Do you want to know what that makes you?”
