Seasons (Ari AU)

~H~ After shot (Part 2)

Ari POV

  My beautiful wife has sat in the passenger seat of my truck, stunned for the last fifty miles, still trying to figure it all out.  I can't help but release a quiet chuckle each time she tries to speak only to end up a jumbled mess and unable to complete a full thought.  

  With my elbow resting against the door, my hand covering my continuous shit eating grin while the other hangs lazily over the steering wheel, I keep casting glances her way. 

  Man, do I love what I see.

  There's no denying to myself or anyone that I was immediately attracted to Holland from that first meeting in the emergency room.  She'd gotten to see me without my shirt, and I spent what felt like a lifetime wishing for the same experience.  I kicked myself in the ass in private multiple times for not making a move before Jeremy, how different life would be for the two of us right in this moment.

  But we wouldn't have Evy.

  Sure, we might have our own child together, half Holland and half me. But I can't imagine a life without the angel that stole my heart from the first moment I found her mother holding the pregnancy test. 

  One of the worst days of her life brought a bit more anguish as she grappled with the realization of becoming a mother.  Enter myself and my sister, willing to make sure she understood that she wasn't alone. 

  That is when our story began evolving.

  Little by little, day by day. More heartbreak and confusion followed before our hearts began to tie themselves to one another.  My future becoming clearer each moment longer I spent with Holland.

  Now I'm not an honorary uncle, but a husband and a father with my name on the birth certificate.

  "How did you come up with this?" My wife asks me, finally discovering a complete sentence.

  With my eyes on the road ahead of us, and a tingle threatening my nose, I answer honestly. "I couldn't leave my new girl."

  "Oh," she says quietly, a grin beginning to build. "So, this is more for your peace of mind than mine?" Her head lolls to the side, a brow quirked in question.

  I rearrange my grip on the wheel, freeing my right hand to rest over Holland's thigh. I pull her towards me a bit but can only get so far due to the seatbelt. "It's as much for you as it is for me. However, I'm not completely unselfish in this decision."  My thumb rubs a little harder over the material of her jeans.  "I know you wouldn't fully be here with me if you were constantly worrying about the baby, Holland."  

  She'd only been cleared two days earlier, but with the baby being the little blocker that she is, kept us from one another. That's right, folks. There has yet to be a consummation of this marriage. And thanks to my dear sister, that's soon changing.

  I hope. 

  I'm crossing all my fingers and lifting silent prayers.

  Hell, I may even throw salt over my left shoulder at dinner.

  It takes us almost five hours to travel the mileage of three hours.  Apparently a six week old doesn't appreciate long car rides yet and not two hours in Evy is already screaming at Shauna wanting out. A stop at a shady rest area gives her an opportunity to eat and we manage another two hours.  But at the second stop, my dear sister is rethinking this little plan of mine, realizing she may not be getting much sleep at night.

  Not my problem.

  At least not this first night.

  And yet I know if Holland woke up and wanted me to go get this little girl, I'd do it in a heartbeat.