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“One thing at a time,” Noor says. “Slow it down, kiddo, okay? We’re getting pizza after this.”

“We are?” Alastair asks. “Are we included in that?”

“Are they?” Noor asks Zayn.

“I guess they have to eat,” he shrugs.

“We’re done skating today,” I decide. We only had a few minutes left anyway. “Help me clean up?”

Zayn gets off the ground while I help Noor. I find myself holding her for a second longer before I raise my brow.

“Since you’re wearing your skates, would you like to show our son what you can do in them?” I ask.

I only say it loud enough that she can hear, and her lashes graze her cheeks as her eyes close. I hope she enjoyed hearing that as much as I did.

“I want to check your laces if you’re going to because you came out here like a bat out of hell.”

I crouch down to fix them, ignoring her bemused smile.

“Tears are my kryptonite too,” she admits. “He doesn’t often cry, which means I freak out inside when he does.”

“Okay, Superwoman, you’re all set,” I tease her, enjoying her grin as she skates backward. “Zayn, check out your mom!”

She shakes her head as she takes off to skate, while I stand and help clean up. The coach here said he didn’t care if we were here, as long as we were gone by the time his players showed up.

Works for us.

We usually clear out well before that. I grab the bag full of skates once we’re done, while Alastair takes Noor’s bag for her. Zayn watches quietly as we leave the rink, noting how one of us offers her our arm and Alastair pulls her water bottle for her to sip from.

I can almost see the wheels turning in his head as the security guard lets us out, but not a single question is asked. They say still waters run deep, and that reminds me of Zayn. He watches, waits, and then decides on an action.

I wish I was half as smart as him when I was growing up.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-FIVE

ALASTAIR

“Do you wonder if Arran feels left out?” I ask. We spent yesterday hanging out with Zayn and Noor, and caught a movie on the lawn that was being played in the park within walking distance. It was a really great night, and he was in bed at a decent time.

I don’t know why my mind is going in this odd direction, but the last thing I want is to fuck anything up between Noor and Arran. We’ve been taking a lot of her time.

“We should ask,” Draven shrugs. We’re working out in the gym near Noor’s neighborhood that we bought a membership to. They’re discreet, and we finally caved after realizing we couldn’t always use the smaller gyms available in hotels due to how busy they can get.

The reason we’re keeping a low profile is for Noor and our son. It’s rough to live in the public eye, and we don’t want it to affect them for as long as possible. She lives a quiet life, under a new name. We don’t want to rock her boat.

Being a professional athlete comes with crap like paparazzi, news reporters looking for a story, and sometimes, stalkers. We don’t have any that I know of, but I want to keep my family safe. I see them as mine, even as we’re finding our way.

It wouldn’t be difficult for someone to notice we’ve been spending a lot of time in San Diego and wonder why. However, if Noor gave me the opportunity to be open with our relationship and call her ours, I would change my tune. However, her safety is always going to come first.

Until she’s all in and I know that it’s not going to cause negative ripples in her life, I’m going to keep a low profile.

“That’s a little ballsy, don’t you think?” I scoff, continuing my set on the weight machine. My breathing is uneven as I talk, and I can’t continue until I’m done.

We’re nearing the end of our weight training session, and then we’re going for a run. Any day I can run outside is a good day. The weather is really nice here, while Colorado already has snow. I’m beginning to get whiplash as I fly back and forth between the two due to the change in climate.

“Nope. It’s called being an adult,” Ciaran laughs. “Come on. If he thinks we’re overstepping, he can always punch us.”