Riley Julia hands both Josh and me some beers before saying goodnight to us and heading for the bedroom but there are two problems with that one, I didn't get a kiss goodnight and that's not how our relationship is going to go. There will be a kiss shared last thing at night and first thing in the morning at the very least. The second problem is that she's heading towards Nina's room. She had better just be checking on her before she goes to our room, even though I only left Nina's room around 30 minutes ago so I can't imagine she checking on her already but she's used to being with her all the time so I could be wrong so decide to check. I creep up behind her and whisper in her ear "And where do you think you're going?" It's really hard not to laugh when she jumps but it's the cutest sight, and then she laughs her beautiful laugh as she turns around to face me. "I'm going to bed. I just said goodnight."She has such an innocent confused look on her face that it's hard not to just sc
Riley "Why don't I haves a Daddy?" I'm sitting at the breakfast bar doing some work on my laptop while Julia takes a bath when Nina walks over to me and asks me that. She's been in the lounge playing with Josh so I don't know where that's come from. I look down at her and see sadness all over her cute little face and it breaks my heart. It's been almost two weeks since we found out that I am her Dad, but we decided to wait until after Christmas and New Year to tell her in case she got upset by the news. Of course, I'm praying that she doesn't but it is a possibility and none of us want to ruin her first Christmas and birthday with a roof over her head. I get off the stool and duck down so that I'm face-to-face with her. "What did you say, sweetheart?" I'm pretty sure that I know what I heard but I want to double-check just in case I'm somehow wrong. "Why don't I haves a Daddy?" Fuck, I was hoping that I was wrong. A million thoughts swarm my head while the words I want to say lay o
Julia"When will Daddy be home from work?" I can't help but smile as my little girl asks me that one simple question. It's only been a day since she 'asked' Riley to be her Dad and yet, I swear that she has said the word 'Dad' a thousand times and I'm not even sure who loves it more... her or Riley.When Riley had the conversation with her I didn't fully understand what he was doing, can't say I fully agreed with him, that was until he told me his reasons and I got it, I did, and I still do, and I think he did the right thing. Of course, being honest is the right thing to do but in this case, a little white lie seems the best way to go. She's never going to remember the conversation but she'll always remember Riley as being her Dad. besides, when we had a chat we agreed that when she is old enough we will tell her the story so it won't always be a secret."He won't be long, baby. How about you make him a picture while you wait with your new colors and coloring book?" She nods excitedl
Julia 5 years later I slowly open my eyes feeling groggy and insanely tired, inwardly groaning when I check the alarm clock beside me and realize that it's going to start blaring in exactly four minutes. Fuck my life! I shouldn't complain about getting up, not after I've had a solid 9 hours of sleep but still, between a bed that feels like I'm sleeping on fluffy clouds and an incredibly handsome husband wrapped around me how can I not? But with kids to get ready for the day and a job to get to I dont have much choice! Of course, Riley has always made it clear that I dont have to work and I did try it for a while but the truth is, the moment that I first walked into my office, I knew that it was the right thing for me. Of course, I love my children more than anything in this world but I can't be a stay-at-home mom. I need to be out working, helping to earn money and know that I'm contributing to their financial support. And honestly, being stuck inside the house for too long drives
Julia It's almost fifteen minutes later when we pull into Mandy's driveway and my curiosity is piqued even more when I see Riley's mom, Grandad, Josh and none other than little Miss Nina standing on the front steps. "What's going on?" I'm less worried now and more excited as I see the people that I love on the steps as Jenny steps out from behind them with the twins in her arms right before Josh leans down and takes Jacob from her. I would question the fact that Nina is here even though I know that she left the house for the school bus this morning but it just so happens that Josh was the one to take her for the bus today and then he drove separately from us... It doesn't take a genius to work out what happened there. "Let's go and find out shall we?" He gets out of the car and quickly makes his way around to my side and opens my door before holding out his hand for me to take and we head towards the others as they all continue to look at us with cheesy smiles on their faces. As so
Julia The snow beneath my feet crunches with every step I take, and a cloud of smoke leaves my mouth as I take a breath while the cold night air wraps around me like a blanket, only there's no comfort from it, it only makes my fingers and nose burn even more with how cold they are. I wrap my arms around my body as tightly as I can, but I only have on a tee shirt and hoody, so there's not much hope of me getting warm anytime soon. Any feeling in my fingers and toes stopped ages ago, and I'm pretty sure that if it was possible, my nose would fall off at any second. I swear it feels so numb that you'd think that it was frozen. The holes in my shoes are not helping my situation, and neither is the fact that I'm wearing the thinnest pair of leggings that I have ever owned, but beggars can't be choosers and, unfortunately, for me, begging is part of my life. As I walk across the front of a coffee shop, I stop in my tracks and take a moment to just enjoy the sight that's in front of me.
Riley "Mr Carter, there's a phone call on line one for you." Andrea, my assistant, chimes through the intercom. The woman is in her late 50s, has worked for me for the last four years, has barely taken any days off and, on top of it all, she is always happy, polite and with a smile on her face. "Thanks, Andrea." I turn off the intercom and pick up the call and unfortunately, get stuck in an hour-long conversation with Eric from Eli Electronics. The guy has spent the last three months trying to get me to invest in his business and won't take no for an answer. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for helping out businesses, especially small local ones, but sometimes I just can't do it. Eric is blowing money left, right, and center on personal purchases. Even after he received several loans and investments, he's still a sinking ship, and as I said, I'm all for helping businesses, but I'm not for throwing money at a sinking ship. I wouldn't be where I am today if I did that. The next five hour
Julia "Momma, I'm cold." I wrap the blanket even tighter around Nina, but I can still feel her shivering and it's killing me. The blanket is well-used and not very thick, but I found it in a dumpster last week, and even though it is covered in stains, it's still better than nothing. "I know, baby." I need to find her warmer clothes, but it's hard. I know many places don't throw out clothes anymore, they usually end up in charity shops and I can't even afford that. "Helen, would you mind Nina for a little while? I'm going to go treasure hunting." she gives me her motherly smile as she opens up her arms for Nina to get comfy on her lap. There are a couple of children in our group and, despite the harsh reality of their lives, we try and keep as much as possible away from them, so when one of us is going out to pinch we call it treasure hunting. "I will be as quick as I can. Nina, you make sure you listen to Helen." she gives me a kiss and nods, then turns away from me as Helen starts