My Girls| a.i.

ten

                  

After a morning full of sticky cheeks and lots of smiles, Ashton drops me back home, leaving me with a small kiss on the cheek and a warm hug that I never want to pull away from.

"Can I call you later?" He asks softly before he starts back to his car, the eagerness in his face making me nod quickly. "I'll be looking forward to it," I reply, earning a wide grin and butterflies in response.

"Goodbye, Elsie," He murmurs, leaning down to place another small kiss to my nose before returning to his car and his daughter, Maisie's hand waving at me as he pulls out of the parking lot.

The rest of my day is spent in kind of a daze, my mind always drifting back to Ashton no matter how hard I try to focus on cleaning. I end up calling Addy over, desperately wanting to tell someone about the last 24 hours.

"It's so weird, but a good weird," I explain, "I've never felt this comfortable around anyone this quickly in my life," I continue. "He's incredibly sweet, and humble, and funny--and dear Lord Addy, his laugh. I swear I have never heard anything as amazing as his laugh. And Maisie, his daughter, is probably the cutest little toddler I've ever met. You would love her," I tell my best friend, her small laughs making me blush slightly as I finish my rambling.

"He has a kid?" She asks, her tone curious as she waggles her eyebrows at me.

"Yeah, she's two and a half and a little bundle of energy. Her mom left soon after she was born and it had a really big impact on her, which it why it surprised me that Ashton trusts me with her so much already." I reveal, playing with my fingers as I glance up at her to see her reaction.

"He sounds like a good fit for you," She says with a smile, the simple words letting me know that she approves. "But I still wanna meet him," She tells me, a snort falling past my lips as I give her a nod before pulling her into a hug.

"Now, tell me all about that date," She demands, shifting herself till she is sitting crossed legged, facing me on the couch. She props her chin up on her hands, her dark hair spilling over his fingers as she looks up at me expectantly.

"Well, it started out kinda awkward," I begin sheepishly, explaining how the date almost didn't end up happening but how then we spent the night just cuddling and getting to know each. I continue telling her about the night, only pausing when I get to the part about our kiss, my ears ringing from the sound of Addy's loud exclamations of excitement. I finish up by telling how I met Luke and Mara, earning a nudge and a wink because "You already met the best friend!" to which I just roll my eyes in response.

"You really like him, don't you?" Addy asks softly, her lips curved into a gentle smile as I look down at my lap shyly, biting down on my lip as my head dips into a small nod in response. "I've never seen you like this about a guy before, he must be pretty special." She muses, my lips shifting upwards as I think about him.

"Special doesn't even begin to describe him, Ads," I murmur truthfully, the simple word not vast enough to describe how inconceivably amazing Ashton Irwin is.

"Damn," Addy murmurs with a chuckle, my cheeks flushing at the sound. "Does he have any other friends?" She asks teasingly, earning a scoff and a small shove in response. "M'gonna get some food, want anything?" She asks, changing the subject as she stands up from the couch.

"Just bring out the leftover pizza in the fridge and whatever else you want." I request, relaxing into the couch. I pull a blanket around myself and snuggle into it as I turn on a movie for the two of us to watch. I settle on a rom-com and drop the remote onto the coffee table, stretching my legs across the couch.