Coming Home

Chapter 15

“Are you ready to go babies?” I asked, scooping Cain and Asher into my arms.

“Yeah!” Cain yelled, waving his arms in the air.

“Let’s go Mommy!” Asher yelled, mimicking his brother.

I laughed, leaning over to grab the bag with all their stuff with my fingertips. Assuring myself I had a firm grip on it, I walked out the door and down the stairs, hearing the sounds of voices in the kitchen. I walked in that direction; only to see Cayden and Tristan having what looked to be an intense conversation, which abruptly stopped when I walked in the room.

“Sorry. I’ll just go put the boys in the truck,” I said apologetically, backing out of the room.

“Tri-Tri!” the boys exclaimed in unison, reaching for Tristan.

“Don’t be ridiculous Kenzi Bear. We can talk later,” Tristan answered, throwing a meaningful look at his brother, who nodded. He then walked over and ruffled the boys’ hair, making them giggle.

“Come here buddy. Come to Daddy so Mommy can have her arm back,” Cayden said, holding his arms out for Cain, who eagerly jumped into his arms.

“Are you ready or do you want to finish your conversation?” I asked, adjusting Asher in my arms.

“Let’s go,” Cayden answered, scooping up a pile of pillows and blankets that were on the table.

“Have fun,” Tristan said, smiling at me.

I smiled back and reached over to give him a hug. He hugged me back, kissing the top of my head, before ruffling Asher’s hair and kissing his forehead.

“Bye,” Cayden called over his shoulder to his brother.

I gave Tristan one last smile before making my way to Cayden’s truck. Cayden was just shutting the back door after putting Cain in his car seat when I walked to the other side to do the same with Asher. When that was done, I slipped into the passenger seat, glancing over at Cayden. He had gotten back to the house an hour before, after being at the hospital to talk to Daddy. Cayden was being unnaturally quiet, making me extremely curious as to what they had been talking about.

“You okay?” I asked after a few moments of silence, turning in my seat to face Cayden.

“Huh? Oh yeah,” he answered, clearly distracted.

“Don’t lie to me Cay. I’ve known you my entire life, I know when you’re lying,” I responded, raising one eyebrow.

As I watched, Cayden took a deep breath, glancing in his rearview mirror at our sons. He smiled unconsciously as he watched them, making me smile a little too. Then he turned back to me and, if I didn’t know something was wrong before, I knew then. You could see in his eyes he was happy, but there was sadness there, too. Despite everything, I still hated to see him upset.

“Just let it go Kenz. This is supposed to be a fun night out with our sons. Let’s not ruin that, okay?” Cayden asked softly, pleading with his eyes for me to drop the subject.

If I was a vengeful person, that would be a perfect opportunity to get my revenge. I could tell that whatever he was trying to avoid talking about was hurting him, and I knew it would continue to hurt him if I kept talking about it. I wasn’t a vengeful person, though. I hate hurting people, even if they’ve hurt me beyond imagination. I just couldn’t do it.

“Okay,” I answered just as softly, nodding my head slightly.

Cayden shot me a thankful smile before turning his attention back to the road. We were going to Macy’s, the diner in the center of town, for dinner before going to see the movie. Times like these, I was grateful that my sons were well behaved for their age. Cayden parked the truck and we slipped out, each grabbing a twin.