Loving Him (Ashton Irwin a.u.)

Chapter 19

"Pleeeaaase?" I asked for the nth time as I tugged on the cuff of my boyfriend's sleeve. "It's not just me and some guys I don't know. All the girls are gonna be there and they all have boyfriends!"

"Are the guys gonna be there too?" he asked, showing no emotion as he tried not to cave into my request to go clubbing with the girls and Peter & Co. He wasn't looking at me, rather lazily changing channels. His feet were propped up on the coffee table in front of us in a wide stance, toes pointing outwards, with baby Aiden taking a nap on his chest. Ashton loved cuddling with his nephew like this, because it was cosy and he felt closer to him.

"I... I don't think so. Think of it as a well-in-advance hen night for Lexi. Just us girls."

"Just you girls," he huffed, "plus a collection of strange men that clearly have an interest in getting in your pants."

I sighed. I didn't think I was going to win this argument by means of verbal persuasion. I needed to do something physical to get my boyfriend on my side. I ghosted my hand over his thigh, watching his face for a reaction, before placing it down and rubbing slowly.

"Maisie, a baby is asleep on my chest and you're trying to give me a boner," he stated with an unamused expression. "Nice try, but that's disgusting."

"You're disgusting," I retorted childishly, crossing my arms over my chest. "Come on, don't you trust me?"

"I trust you with my life," he said assertively as he locked his eyes with mine. "I don't, however, trust the gang of strangers you gave your number to."

"You sound like my dad," I scoffed, and his face dropped sadly, only a little, as he thought of the absence of his own father. "I'm sorry, I didn't...I wasn't thinking."

He shook his head and smiled softly at me. "No, that's alright. Don't apologise."

I pecked his cheek softly before looking down at Aiden who was sleepily silently with his thumb between his pouted lips. I ran a hand over his hairy head, noticing how much he had grown since I first met him. It was crazy how quickly babies grew in their first year or two of existence.

"When's he supposed to start forming sentences?" I asked as I absentmindedly but gently fiddled with his hair and babygro.

After a moment of thought, Ashton replied, "Two years-ish."

"And how old is he now?"

"Seventeen months."

"So he had his birthday around the time we met?" I asked in awe as I looked between the two.

Ashton nodded with a faint smile. "Two days before."

"How did you celebrate?"

"I took him to get his first Mr Whippy and then to Toys R Us and we had a shopping spree," Ashton told me as his grin grew. "He couldn't handle how big the store was, he loved it."

I grinned back at him. "I hope I'm here for his second birthday."

"Me too," Ashton replied in a tone that seemed unfitting to the situation. It sounded somewhat solemn and unsteady. Before I could question his tone Ashton suddenly patted my knee with his large hand. "Ok," he declared. "You can go out with the girls if you want. But please, please be careful. Don't let them buy you drinks and make sure you know where the girls are. You never know what guys like them are gonna do."

I grinned too toothily at him. "Thank you for understanding," I said gratefully before pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Oh, I don't understand," he said. "I just trust you."