A week after we got back from Paris, Jacob and I invited Troye and his kids over to dinner so that I could show Troye some more of the photos from the trip that I'd since edited to be absolutely stunning. I'd also noticed that he was a little more down than normal and I wanted to talk to him and find out what was going on in his head.
"Con?" Jacob nudged me with his elbow where he stood beside me, drying dishes while I washed them. "What're you thinking about?"
"Nothin'." It was Thursday night; the night before Troye came over. We were just having a quiet night as a family to relax before the crazy weekend ahead.
"You looked awfully serious to be thinking about nothing." He teased. I flicked some bubbles at him.
"Funny." Passing him the last plate, I emptied the sink and turned to lean back against the counter. "I think something's up with Troye."
"Again?"
"Mm. I don't know. Maybe there's some sort of anniversary coming up or something. He's just really down."
"Have you talked to him about it?"
"I didn't want to at work in case it was something he wasn't comfortable talking about around others." I sighed, looking over at him.
"Probably for the best." He put down the dish-towel and moved in front of me, his arms snaking around my waist. "You're so sweet to everyone. One of the reasons I love you"
"One of the reasons?" I asked, looking up at him with a smirk.
"Mm-hm. Right up there with the fact that you're the hottest guy I've ever met." He grinned and kissed me. I slipped my hands into the back pockets of his jeans as he lifted me onto the edge of the counter.
"Oh! The counter's wet," I laughed after a moment through the kiss. "You did that on purpose."
"Maybe. Maybe it was a way to encourage you to take your pants off..." I gasped in pretend shock and pulled back to look at him.
"Mr Bixenman, that is no way to address a gentleman!" I scolded. He just laughed and kissed me again.
"A gentleman? I don't know about that," He joked, bumping our noses together gently and I giggled. "You're anything but a gentleman."
"Hey!" I stuck my bottom lip out in a pout but he only smiled, tightening his arms around me.
"Love you."
"Love you too." I rested my chin on top of his head and hugged him, loving the quiet moment with him.
"Daddy! Papa!" We both looked up when Penny called out from her room, sounds like she was crying. Jacob immediately let go of me and took off towards her room a second before I did as I still had to jump down from the counter. He beat me to the door and slowly opened it to find Penny sat up in her bed, tears streaming down her face.
"What's wrong, sweetheart?" He asked, going over to sit by her. She sniffled and crawled onto his lap as I sat beside Jacob and held her hands.
"I h-had a bad dr-dream, daddy." She whimpered, causing Jacob to hug her tightly while I leaned over to kiss the top of her head.
"It's okay, sweetie. Daddy and I are here now." I whispered to her. "Nothing's going to hurt you."
"O-okay." She sniffled again and buried her face in Jacob's chest. I looked up at him with concerned eyes and he simply nodded, knowing what I was trying to tell him without words.
"Penny, papa and I will always be here for you."
"We promise to protect you from anything. Even scary monsters in your dreams." I added.
"Thank-you, papa." Her voice was so quiet I barely heard it but I could tell that she was feeling better now. Jacob carefully pried her arms from around him and laid her back on her bed so I could pull the covers up again. We both leaned over to kiss her forehead as her eyes fluttered closed again and sleep overtook her.
Outside her room, Jacob and I shared a look and I allowed him to pull me close. He knew I hated how much we had to deal with Penny's nightmares. She'd been having them since she was about two and we didn't know what to do to help.
"Maybe we should see a doctor." He suggested, leading me towards the living room. It was actually something I'd thought about doing before and I nodded silently.
"Probably. I just wish there was a way we could help her. I don't like the fact that our little girl is terrified and there's nothing we can do."
"I know, baby. We'll get her the help she needs." He promised, pulling me to lay my legs over his lap and curling an arm around my shoulders. He was silent for a moment, pulling at a loose thread on my shirt. "I want to run something by you."
"Mm...?" I mumbled, my head leaning against his shoulder.
"You know how we went to Paris?"
"How could I forget?"
"Right, well, my boss wants me to go over again in a couple months to help out with starting up a new branch of the fashion section over there."
"I don't know that we can afford another trip."
"It'd just be me this time. And besides, the magazine is going to pay for the whole thing since it'll officially be a business trip."
"Oh."
"But I'll only go if you're okay with it."
"How long?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe two weeks, maybe more. We'll know more as the time comes closer."
"You think I'll be okay here with Penny by myself?" I asked him sceptically.
"You'll be fine. You already pick her up from school every day and drop her off most days too. And I'm sure our parents can help out."
"You've put some thought into this already."
"A little. I wanted to know what I was getting into before I even considered it and brought it up to you." He started tracing random patterns on my arm with his thumb. "Besides, you're a wonderful dad to Penny. If either of us could look after her alone for a couple weeks, it's you."
"But she loves you. She'll be so upset that her daddy is going away for a while."
"Don't project your feelings onto her," He laughed. "I know you'll miss me. I'll miss you too. But this is such a great opportunity for the magazine and I don't want just anyone going over there to start it up. It has to be someone with the right knowledge and experience."
"I know. I won't stop you from going if you want to. But I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you too, baby."
A/N: Sorry it's been so long...there's a reason they call it 'hell week' at work. So much to do and by the time I get home, I have no energy to write. But here's the next chapter for you guys. I'm hoping to get at least one more up before Christmas. Fingers crossed...
