Grace (BWWM)

Chapter Forty

"Alright, gather around everyone." It's the late afternoon and we've all been up and awake for a few hours now. Grace and I had woken up about an hour after falling asleep to the sound of the kids bustling around in the kitchen. We didn't get much rest, but I didn't mind all that much as I was eager to talk to both of them. 

After getting dressed, Grace and I headed out to the kitchen to find the two just beginning to cook something up. Nova had been the first one to see me, shouting before running and basically tackling me with a hug, causing Grace to gently chide her. I had chuckled, having missed Nova's quirkiness. Ty, with his usual chill demeanor, had given me a hug that didn't require any tackling. I gave them both a bear hug in return, glad to see them again. 

After our reunion, I caught up with the two and they updated me on school and life in general. I had glanced at Grace at one point as Nova went on a mini rant about Ashton, noting things he had said and done much like she's been doing for the past few years. I don't think she notices how often she talks about him, but I noticed that Ty does. He had this knowing look as he watched his sister go on and on. 

"Or should we wait until we've eaten, my dear?" Grace asks, coming up behind me and placing her hands on my back. 

"Dinner might take a while though, so maybe we should talk about it now." I say, craning my neck back to look at her. She nods and I reach out a hand, bringing her to my side. She looks up at me and I steal a quick kiss. I'm pleasantly surprised to see her not pull away even as the kids make their way over, their eyes on us. In fact, Grace smiles, kissing me back but she keeps it short. I just stare at her for a while, a silly grin on my face. 

"A week and a half changed a lot." Ty says and I look at the two to find them smirking. 

"You can say that again." Nova says and Grace rolls her eyes with a smile.

"Alright." She says, stepping away to head to the living room and I just watch her go. She's just always growing. 

"Was there a meeting?" I blink at Nova's question before recalling what I was going to say.

"Right, yes-so gather around everybody." 

"You said that already, dear." Grace points out, smirking.

"I can say it multiple times." I respond and she laughs. "Alright, alright, let's head to the living room. I brought an idea up to your mother and I wanted to discuss it as a family." We take a seat and I continue, bringing up my idea of a road trip.

"Yes! Yes yes, a thousand times, yes!" Nova says, as happy as I thought she'd be about the idea. We're both the outdoorsy ones here. "And then we can walk around and go to trails too."

"See, I had that idea too, but we both know that your mom and brother are more of the stay at home type."

"Ehn?" Grace pipes up from beside me.

"Ehn?" I repeat and her eyes dance as she fights a smile. "Are you going to tell me that you're not a homebody, love?"

"I like the outdoors as well. I just like the outdoors remaining outdoors while I am indoors." I blink slowly.

"Grace."

"Joe."

"Love."

"Dear." She says and I bite back a smile. 

"That defeats the point."

"We can look at the outdoors from inside." 

"As much as I would love to do that, I'll pass."

"When is the trip happening?" Ty asks.

"I was thinking of winter break, but if we're going to go to trails then summer would be a better idea." I respond.