Ruin The Wedding (The Murphy Brothers #1)

𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫

When Charlie woke up later, it took her a few seconds to realize that it wasn't seven in the morning and that she wasn't in a hurry to the daycare and work. Instead, it was six in the evening which meant that her nap had lasted over two hours.

Realizing that, a bang of guilt hit her for leaving Fabian alone for so long, cooking in her apartment while she was sleeping.

Then an another thought crossed her mind and she immediately stood up and started to run out of the room. She was worried about her daughter because she wasn't sure if Fabian was still there. Surely he would have woken her up if he had to leave, right?

Still, there was doubt in her mind which she hated because it wasn't that she didn't trust that man - she wouldn't have gone to sleep with Aurora in the next room if she didn't - but as a mother, she could never be too careful when it came to the safety of her children.

It only took her a few seconds to go to Aurora's bedroom which was right next to hers but it now those seconds felt like hours. When Charlie saw that the door was open and that there was no one in the bed, her heart stopped, and she shouted her daughter's name, running to the living room.

Before she got in there, she had already shouted for Aurora's name three times before she froze from shock. That was because she wasn't expecting the sight that greeted her in the kitchen.

She could only watch wide-eyed as Fabian, that serious, quiet man who looked like he hated almost everyone and everything, especially children, was holding her babygirl in his lap while feeding her spaghetti bolognese with a spoon.

Unlike with her, Aurora didn't seem to fight much if at all. Instead, she kept looking up at the strange man with wide eyes, giggling as if she was having the time of her life eating.

And if that wasn't surprising enough, Fabian wasn't glaring at her or commanding her to eat. Instead, he just smiled! It wasn't a wide smile but a small one that she almost missed. Luckily, she still saw it and would probably never forget it.

What she also paid attention to was how soft his eyes were that he almost looked happy, being there and feeding Aurora when he could be anywhere in the world. For a second, she was sure that she was still either sleeping or that this was his good twin brother.

Not that Fabian was evil or even a bad human being but he wasn't... this. But maybe she had judged him too quickly but for her defense, he hadn't really given her any reason to think that there was this side in him too that was kind and patient with children.

"Stop screaming and get some food," was all that Fabian said, not even looking at her because his whole attention was on Aurora. If she didn't know better, she would almost say that he was worried about her eating as if Aurora was going to choke easily.

His concern touched something in her because this was her daughter and Fabian seemed to think in the same way as she did: you could never be too careful when it came to her.

Or maybe he just genuinely didn't know how well almost two years olds could eat already. Either way, she appreciated everything he had done and made sure that Aurora was taken care of while she slept which made her feel like the worst mother in the world.

I should have been here feeding her! She's my child, my responsibility. The next time I wouldn't spend my free time sleeping.

Biting her lips, she looked away, unable to find any other way to thank him than to say the words that didn't feel enough. The feeling didn't go away when she went to get some food for herself too and sat next to them.

When she should have started eating, Charlie could only look at the two of them, how natural Fabian looked with Aurora, and how much she seemed to trust and like the man. It all felt almost too much for her and she hadn't even realized that she started to cry before Fabian mentioned it.