I pull away and grab her chin, look deep in her eyes and say, “I love you, sunshine.”
“Why do you call me that?” she asks in a whisper.
“The first day I met you, it was like the first time I had ever felt sunshine on my face. You brought color and clarity back into my life. It’s no surprise your favorite color is yellow, it suits you perfectly.” I wrap her in my arms and tuck her into my side. With a contented sigh, she falls asleep.
Sunday morning the girls come barging in our room with a small box. Quinn follows shortly behind them.
“Sorry, I made them promise to not come in here until after seven,” she says smiling.
“Here, we’ve been working on this for days. Hurry up and open it. Do you think we can use it today?” Sky asks excitedly, bouncing on the bed.
“Girls, we need to establish some boundaries here,” I warn.
“It’s alright, Jax. Really,” Ava says, taking the box.
“Boundaries, girls,” I warn again.
“Oh, girls it’s just beautiful. You two did this all by yourself?” Ava asks.
“Aunty Quinn helped us, do you like it?” Sky asks.
“I love it,” Ava returns.
“Can we all bake cookies today for dessert to have after family dinner tonight?” Hope asks.
“We sure can,” Ava replies.
“We’ll see how Ava feels this afternoon. If she’s up for it, we’ll all bake cookies. If not she can sit at the counter and watch,” I tell the girls.
Sky and Hope start giggling, I didn’t think what I said was funny. I turn around and look at Ava and she’s mouthing to the girls that yes, she will for sure bake cookies today.
“What? You’re so bossy,” she says, and shrugs.
The girls and Quinn go downstairs; I turn to Ava and hover over her face.
“You don’t have to do this you know, if you’re not feeling up to it. The girls will understand.”
“Jax, I feel fine. I’ll take it easy, I promise. Did you see their cute little excited faces? I’d have to be sliced from hip to hip to not bake cookies with those girls today.”
“Woman, that is not funny! Get your ass dressed and downstairs for breakfast before I bend you over my knee and tan your ass,” I warn.
“What if I want you to bend me over your knee?” she teases.
“I’ll remember you said that. Come on, dressed and downstairs, I’ll make breakfast.”
“See, bossy,” Ava smiles.
I help Ava get dressed; it’s still a little hard for her to lift her hands over her head to put her shirt on. Downstairs she goes straight to her expensive, crazy, over-the-top espresso machine and makes us coffee, while I get out ingredients to make buttermilk pancakes and bacon. The girls are sitting at the counter; Hope is coloring, while Sky plays a game on Ava’s cell phone. Ava hands Quinn a cup of coffee, then she takes a seat between Sky and Hope. Quinn sits down next to Hope, picks up a crayon and starts coloring on her paper. I stop dead in my tracks with a frying pan in my hand.
I have it all, right here in my kitchen. This right here is the definition of family. There are no words for it. It’s a feeling in your gut, in your heart, and in your soul. There are no words to define that feeling. Family is a feeling, not a definition.
My four girls: my two sweet princesses, my wonderful sister, and the woman who brought the sunshine back into my heart... The woman who proved it was possible to find love again all lined up at the bar waiting for pancakes and bacon. My world is complete.
“Earth to Jax,” Ava calls.
I smile, then put my frying pan on the stove to make the bacon. Everyone, except Sky, gets a rhubarb compote spooned over the top of their pancakes with a dollop of vanilla crème. Sky gets plain pancakes with a few chocolate chips sprinkled on top. Sky’s bottom lip comes out, and it’s too bad. She gets what she gets. I turn around to put the pan in the sink. When I turn back around, I see Ava standing on the rung of her stool bending over the counter with her hand in the chocolate chip bag. She winks at me, then removes her hand and put’s a handful of chocolate chips on Sky’s pancakes. Sky smiles big, then digs in her breakfast.
I smile at Ava, there’s nothing wrong with a little bonding between my girls. After breakfast is all cleaned up, it’s all hands on deck for operation ‘clean the house’. Most of her brothers and sisters have been over, but this will be her mother’s first time.
By early afternoon, the house is spotless and we’re ready to bake cookies. I can see how tired Ava is, but if I know Ava, she’ll do anything to not let the girls down.
Chapter 14
Ava
Nothing can keep me away from baking cookies with my man and these girls. Just like the last time, the girls start getting out the ingredients while Jax gets out baking sheets and spoons. Sky opens the cupboard for their aprons, and the first thing I see is my yellow apron in front. When did they put it in the cupboard? Sky hands me mine, then hands them out to everyone else. Jax takes his and turns around, Sky stands behind him, and Hope behind her. They put their aprons over their heads and I feel the room close in, it’s dumb, this is their tradition. They should have it. Stop feeling so jealous. I should just be happy with the fact that they made me an apron.
Sky turns around looking for me. “Come on, Ava, come stand behind daddy. I get to tie your apron from now on,” Sky says.
My heart soars. I’m a part of something so big that I can’t wrap my mind around it. There’s nothing swirling around, nothing tossing questions or doubts. Just love, pure love.
With tears streaming down my face, I stand in front of Sky and put the apron over my head. I take the two ends of Jax’s apron and start tying them. I feel Sky taking mine and she ties them. Jax turns around and looks into my eyes, he sees my tears and immediately gets the wrong impression. He’s always the over protector. I shake my head and smile. These are happy tears. Instead of Sky turning around and tying her sisters, Jax forms a circle and ties his youngest daughter’s apron. The smile on Hope’s face is priceless. That’s what we are, a family circle. We’re a family that ties unbreakable bonds in the form of apron strings. We’re a family that bakes together.
I wipe my tears away, as the girls grab ingredient containers and wait for their dad’s instructions.
Today we baked peanut butter cookies; you know the one’s where you put fork indents on the top. It was so much fun; I’ve never enjoyed baking more.
After the last cookie sheet is put into the oven, Jax clears his throat and says, “I’ll finish these off, girls. I’d like you to go play in the backyard while Ava takes a nap before the family comes over.”
“You’re so bossy,” I say.
But the pillow is calling my name.
“You two, out,” Jax says, pointing toward the back door. “You, upstairs,” he continues, pointing to me, then the stairs.
“You’re so bossy,” we all say in unison.
The girls gladly go outside and I, too, gladly go upstairs for a nap. Laying my head on Jax’s pillow, his scent carries my mind away. I think about just how fast my life has changed in such a short time. Jax walks into the bedroom and puts his warm hand in mine. My thoughts scatter and I fall asleep.
I wake to the sounds of familiar voices downstairs. I look at the clock and it’s after five. I freshen up in the bathroom, then head downstairs. I stand on the last step and listen to my family in the kitchen, just out of sight. They’re all talking about my wedding. At least the women are talking about my wedding.
“What do you think she’ll do? I bet she’ll have it outdoors somewhere. Maybe here at the house,” Shay says.
Shay’s wedding was in a horse stable, and it was beautiful, of course, she thinks that.
“No, she’s not an outdoors kind of gal. I bet it’ll be on a yacht or something,” Willow says.
Of course, Willow would think that.
“She doesn’t like boats, it’ll be in a hotel or something like my wedding,” Amelia says.
Amelia’s wedding was indeed beautiful at the Fairmont Hotel.
I turn the corner and walk into the kitchen where they’re all gathered around the island eating chips and hummus. Something else Jax has me liking. I don’t know what it is about hummus, but it’s made out of chickpeas, and I can’t stand chickpeas. If they’re in a salad I’ll pick them out. They’re disgusting. But in hummus, they’re delicious.
“Actually, you’re all wrong. Jax and I are getting married at the courthouse.” I say, grabbing a chip digging into the hummus.
“What?” my mother asks.
“Jax and I have everything already arranged. The wedding is in three weeks in the Honorable Judge Leslie Gerard’s courtroom,” I reply.
Judge Gerard was the presiding judge over the murder case. She was shot in the arm. She had emergency surgery to repair major damage to her right arm. She’s scheduled to have some reconstructive surgery a week before the wedding, but has assured us that she will be just fine by the wedding. I find it sort of coming full circle to get married in her courtroom.
“Amelia, will you be my matron of honor?” I ask, looking at her.
Her hand stops mid-air with a chip. She puts it back in the dip and rushes over to hug me, and I sob with excitement.
“Oh, my God, I didn’t hurt you, did I,” she says, pulling away.
“No, squish me hard, and you didn’t double dip did you?” I reply, and pull her back in.
When Amelia is done squishing, or when I’m done squishing Amelia, I turn to the rest of the girls and ask Willow, Shay, Chloe, and Quinn to all be bridesmaids. The only person not here to ask is Savvy. Jax is outside at the grill asking Asher, Adrian, Max, and Kyle to be groomsman. Later today I’m going to ask Aiden, since he’s the oldest, if he’ll do me the honor of walking me down the aisle. Every time I think about just why he needs to walk me down the aisle, my heart drops to my feet. This will be the first wedding without my dad. There are only two girls in my family, and my dad already walked Amelia down the aisle. Somehow, even though I know it’s wrong, I feel cheated.
We’ll pair up all the couples to walk down together. Willow will be with Asher. Adrian will be with Shay. Chloe will be with Max. Amelia will be with Kyle. And Savvy and Quinn will walk down together. Sky and Hope came up with their own part in the wedding. They want to walk behind my train and each hold a corner, which brings me to the fact that I still have to find a dress, and it has to have a train. All of the nieces and nephews will also have a part in some way or another in the wedding ceremony.
Jax walks in the kitchen from the backyard carrying a huge tray of ribs, followed by my brothers, each carrying a side dish. The table is set and everyone takes seats. I sit in a random chair, then Jax sits next to me. He doesn’t sit at the head of the table. I look at him with tears threatening to spill down my cheeks. He takes my hand and smiles. Jax is such a good man.
Our dining table isn’t as large as my mothers, and it’s even more crowded, again not one person minds. Everyone is laughing and sharing stories. Sky and Hope played with my nieces and nephews, and it’s as if they’ve been doing it since day one. Family is family, no matter where they come from. No matter when they enter your life, family is family.
Monday morning at nine sharp I go to my office. Jax wanted to come with me, but I insisted he go to the restaurant. I’m a big girl and this is something I have to do on my own. On the way up, I ask Gus to grab me some cardboard boxes. I walk straight to Mr. Foleys office and take a seat.
“Ava, it’s good to see you. I’m so glad you’ve decided to accept your new position at the firm,” he says standing, then extends his hand for me to shake.
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking these past few weeks. And I gladly accept the position. It’s been a long time goal to become the youngest partner in the firm. I have to say it feels really nice,” I say and stand. Instead of putting my hand in his to shake, I put an envelope in it instead. “My resignation, effective immediately, well, it’s mine and Reagans, I should say. She’ll be coming with me to work at Wellington Corp. Have a nice day,” I continue to say.
I hold my head high and walk to my office. Gus has already delivered several boxes. Reagan already has a few boxes and she’s packing her desk. I smile at her on my way into my office. Even as short-lived as the accomplishment was, it still felt good. I needed to have it. I think I would have accepted the position and stayed, had any of the partners indicated that they actually gave a damn about me. I think now I hold the record of youngest partner and the fastest to accept and resign it, too. Asher reoffered me the position in his company while I was still in the hospital, and I gladly accepted it.
Jax’s yellow orchid keeps me company as I pack. Under my desk, I come across the bag with the three blue wine glasses, the decanter and a bottle of wine, and I smile. Oh man, what a day that was.
I finish packing my things and Gus takes them down to my car for me. The second I get in my house, mine, Jax’s and the girls house that is, I take out the three wine glasses and I proudly display them in the liquor cabinet. I realize there are only three and that it’s an odd number, and I don’t care one damn bit. It doesn’t matter to me anymore that there is an odd number. To me, they represent Jax and the girls.
Jax
Saturday is Hope’s birthday party. All week Ava ran around looking for as much princess paraphernalia as she could find. Our house is exploding with tutu’s and pastel colors, and a life-size princess piñata. It looks like a princess vomited her sparkles and happiness all over. There are squealing little girls running amuck in every room in the house. It’s hard to believe my little girl is five already. Scarlett would be so proud of the beautiful little girl she’s become. I know Scarlett is proud.
When it comes time for all the kids to do the piñata, we all gather outside in the backyard and I hand Hope a baseball bat, then she starts to cry. She doesn’t want to whack the princess. The piñata was her idea in the first place, isn’t the whole fun of it taking the baseball bat and beating it as hard as you can for your reward? Suddenly, I have ten little girls all crying about hurting a piñata princess. Ava comes to the rescue. She takes the piñata down from the tree, cuts a small slit in the bottom to let all the candy fall out, and then hands the princess to a smiling Hope.
The rest of the day went off without any more little girl drama. Thank God, Ava is here. I baked Hope a three-tiered princess cake. Complete with fondant princesses standing on the different tiers. If I don’t ever see fondant again for the rest of my life, I’ll be happy. To top off the pastel cake, there’s a sparkly princess crown on the top layer for Hope to wear later.
After our friends and family leave, I look around at the streamers, glitter, and chips that litter every surface of the house, and I smile. I carry my sleeping princess to bed. Sky was so exhausted she put herself to bed about thirty minutes ago. I come back downstairs and find Ava sweeping the kitchen floor. I take the broom out of her hands and back her up against the cupboards. She wraps her arms around my waist, then places them under my shirt. Two more weeks can’t come fast enough. I can’t wait to make Ava my wife.
Sunday, Quinn, the girls, Ava, and I, all go to Ava’s moms for dinner.
Just as everyone sits down at the table, Adrian stands and shouts, “What!”
Shay grabs his arm and pulls him back into his chair.
“Seems that my water just broke,” she says calmly.
Everyone stands and chaos erupts. Kyle and Chloe immediately go to Shay and assess the situation. Adrian, Kyle, Chloe, and Shay all go to the hospital. Everyone else just looks at one another unsure of what to do.
Quinn stands and shouts, “Go, go, go you all go, I’ll stay back with all the kids. Someone call me as soon as that baby comes out, though.” There’s a mad rush out the front door and a long procession of cars all the way to the hospital.
After eight hours of labor, Adrian and Shay welcome their son, Samuel Drew Wellington. Ava told me all about th
e struggles Adrian and Shay have had. Theirs is truly a love story of all time. Adrian and Shay were high school sweethearts torn apart by secrets and misunderstandings, only to be reunited again seventeen years later. After a long time of trying and failing to conceive a child, they decided to adopt and welcomed Micah and Makayla into the family. Happy with their new family, a miracle they never thought would ever happen happened. Shay became pregnant and at Samuel’s grave, both Adrian and Shay promised that if it was a boy, they’d name him after Adrian’s dad. His middle name comes from Shay’s brother Drew. They’ve decided to nickname him Sammy, and I think looking at his chubby little cheeks, it fits him perfectly.
Ava, a little tired from all the excitement, sits in a chair. I place little Sammy in her arms and a tear quickly rolls down her cheek. I was wondering if she’d be alright with all of this. She hasn’t told her family yet that she is unable to have children. I take a step toward her and her eyes look up into mine. They’re not filled with jealousy or pain. She has a huge smile on her face. She’s happy for Adrian and Shay. Not only is her sunshine golden, but so is her heart.
Wedding planning is well under way; all the girls have everything worked out. It will be a very small wedding and I’m completely happy with it. More importantly, I know Ava is, too. We’re having the rehearsal dinner at the restaurant next Friday.
Against Asher’s wishes, and mine Ava starts work Monday at Wellington Corp. Ava insists she’s just fine and promises to take it easy. I’m a little worried that she’ll miss the inside of a courtroom being a corporate lawyer, where her days will be filled with contracts and negotiations, tax law, financial reporting, and human resources issues, among other duties to be shared with Aiden. She’s going from working from sun up until sun down, to nine to five, but she says it’s what she wants.
Chapter 15
Ava
Running Into Love - The Complete Box Set Page 85