Almost Had Me (Passion Book 2)

Chapter Fourteen

I walked slightly behind Eddie and Christopher as we made our way to his mother's backyard.

I fought the desire to hold Eddie's hand. I didn't want to make Christopher uncomfortable; he was already hesitant at letting me into his life.

After all, I'd been the one to rip his parents apart.

Living with Eddie and Chris would certainly be a challenge, but I hoped that over time, we could be friends. I didn't want to replace Shannon for Chris.

I knew I would never be "dad" to him, but hopefully we could be friendly.

Eddie stopped walking, allowing his son to go ahead. He stood a short distance away, holding out his hand. I gladly took it, reveling in how utterly right it felt to hold his hand.

"You ready?" he asked.

I nodded. I wasn't ready, but I would have to be. I knew that this wouldn't go over as poorly as it did with my own mother. I had Eddie to support me, and vice versa. We were a team. We could get through this.

We stepped around the house, and the backyard. At the center, was a picnic table full of food. Another table sat adjacent to it - up against the fence that perimeter the yard - stacked with gifts. String lights were strung up in the branches of the trees overhead, and music was playing softly, filling the yard, from a Bluetooth speaker. There were a fair amount of people here, all talking with drinks in their hands or paper plates of food. A sandy haired woman came rushing towards us, Christopher tucked under her arm. 

"Eddie!" she gushed, kissing his cheek. "It's so good to see you." 

"You too, Mom." He bent down to hug her. 

She suddenly turned to me, her eyes scanning me up and down, apparently finding me to be acceptable, because she smiled up at me. 

"And you must be Evan." 

"I nodded. It's good to meet you, Ms. Frisk." 

"Please. Call me Helen." She grinned. "Edmundo." She said, turning to her son. "You didn't tell me that he was so cute." 

My cheeks felt hot. 

Eddie shrugged, unsure of how to answer. Christopher made a gagging noise. 

"How should I have told you? 'Mom. I've met the cutest guy. And somehow, he likes me too'?"

She swatted at his arm. "Don't be like that. Of course, he likes you. You're a catch." 

Now it was Eddie's turn to blush. "Mom..." he hissed. 

She just chuckled. "Well, help yourself to the food. There's lots. And there's lots to drink." 

We nodded, and  watched as Eddie moved to set the gift he'd brought on the designated table. I was aware that I was watching the way he moved. The way his muscles pulled and twisted beneath his clothing. 

Every day I fell more and more in love with this man, and I became aware of new things about him. Like the way his nose sometimes twitched when he was fighting a smile. Or how he would rub the back of his neck when embarrassed.

He turned, and catching sight of me watching him, he smiled. It was beautiful smile that never failed to melt my heart. How had I gotten so lucky? 

He walked back towards me, and I couldn't look away from him. I was locked in his sights, and I forgot where we were, that it wasn't just the two of us. In those few seconds, the look in his eyes made me feel as though we were in our own little bubble. 

"I'm so happy you said yes," he murmured, wrapping an arm around my waist. I did likewise, pulling him tight against my side. 

"To moving in with you?" 

He nodded. "It was the first thing I thought of when Shannon told me that she'd found a place." 

"I still think it was very kind of you to move you stuff and give her the house while she made up her mind."

"What could I do? She had nowhere to go. I did." 

"But still. She made you move all of your stuff." 

He shrugged. "She wasn't in a good head space. I understand. I want her to be happy." 

I rolled my eyes, keeping my opinion to myself. I didn't know Shannon at all, but it seemed crazy to me that she'd made him move all his stuff out of his house, and then was telling him that he could move it all back. It didn't make sense to me. And, it was almost too kind of him to give her his house for the last little while. 

Our house, I reminded myself. It would be our house before long.

We mingled about the party -- Eddie introduced me to the few people he did know, and then his mother introduced us to the rest. Everyone was very accepting of us, even the little old ladies from her church. 

I never knew Eddie to be religious -- he never mentioned if he was. It would have to be something I asked him about. 

An hour later, I found myself sitting on a bench -- a plastic cup of lemonade in my hand -- next to Christopher. He didn't acknowledge me; I sighed, taking a sip. 

I knew exactly who I was in the eyes of this kid, and I almost hated myself. 

I'd disrupted his family life -- his life with his dad, and then later their life as a family.

But I would never apologize for loving Eddie. That was the one thing we did right as humans -- we loved. And I loved Eddie more than I'd ever loved anyone before. 

I could admit it to myself now: He was my soulmate. 

I caught sight of Eddie, talking with his mom. He was so tall compared to her, and where she was fair and beautiful, he was dark and handsome. I could see her in him -- in the way he ran his hand through his hair, or the way his lips twitched when he was fighting a smile. 

"If you love him so much, why don't you marry him?" Christopher asked me, bitterly. 

I was taken aback by the distain in his voice. 

"I don't know if I'll every get married," I told him, lifting my glass to my lips. 

"Then why be with him? Everything was perfect before you showed up. My mom and dad were getting back together." He turned on me, his eyes filled with hate. 

"I'm sorry," I said, hoping that he heard the honesty in my voice. "But, I won't apologize for loving your dad. Not to you, not to your mom. Not to anyone. I love him, and he loves me. And I want you and I to get along if we can. Not right away, but at some point down the road." 

He stood quickly. "I'll never want to be your friend." And then he walked away. 

Sighing, I finished off my drink. That went as well as I'd expected. 

Eddie took his son's seat. "Don't worry," he said, "he'll get over it." 

"But he's right." I whispered. "I'm a homewrecker." 

He took my hands in his. His were a little bigger than mine. I could feel the callouses; they were rough like my hands. 

"You did nothing of the sort. I wrecked my own relationship with Shannon. And I blamed everyone but myself. Your only crime is falling in love, and that's no crime at all. We belong together, Evan. The stars aligned and gave me you. The universe blessed me with your love and devotion." 

I kissed him, needing to. I needed to be close to him, to touch him in an intimate way. 

He kissed me back. It was a short kiss, but a kiss nonetheless. 

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out, and my heart stopped beating. 

Maddie: Doug's found me, and he's going to kill me.