Rose Garden [book two]

Chapter Twelve

Niall's POV:

"Where are Rosemarie and Rosaline?" I'm questioned when I walk through the door holding Sophia's hand.

"Where else would they be?" I retaliate harshly. This is no way to treat Liam whom I haven't seen in many days, but I don't apologize.

"Yikes... Attitude."

I had just gotten Sophia from Barren's house as she had pleaded to come with me because she missed her sister and her niece. While I was over there, I asked Barren if he would considered getting tested for Rosemarie's match and without hesitation he said no.

"No?" I had responded to him, not sure of I'd heard him right. Had he actually rejected the idea of helping his granddaughter live?

"No, Niall. I can do many things for you and for Rose, but this is not one of them..."

I didn't know if I was supposed to have some sort of a grudge against him, but it was his body and I had no right. All I could do is express my anger by being hostile towards everyone. I wouldn't tear Rosaline's relationship with her father, so I planned on pretending I had never even asked him.

Because he wouldn't simply get tested to save his daughter's child's life, I wouldn't dare ask him for anything else in my life. Not even for Rosaline's hand in marriage.

"To be honest, I think you all should go," I said. Only Liam was around, but I was hoping he would tell the rest. All of them needed to disappear as our family got through these challenging times considering Liam, Louis, Harry, and Addison were not our family. I wanted them to leave and go about their lives.

I left Sophia to venture off while I had gathered some clothes and showered. After a while, we ended up next door at my mom's house, where I searched for my brother.

I bumped into Greg's wife, Denise, in the kitchen, "Where's Greg?"

She swiveled around at the sink, startled. "Oh my... Niall."

"Sorry," I mumbled. I didn't want to be hostile towards her, who was an overly sensitive person, so I bit my tongue. The slightest utter of offense or intimidation and she would be teary eyed.

I remember when Rose had gone through a similar sensitivity phase, but as for Greg's wife, it was apart of her character. Kind of permanent.

"Niall... You look like you haven't slept in forever!" And in opposition, she appeared to be well rested without a damn worry. It must have been nice.

"I don't get tired," I smiled politely. Even after two years of knowing her, I still felt that she was too preppy, still in the fazes of warming up to the family and trying to impress us. You would think that after getting married and having a baby by one of us, she would feel at ease and feel apart of the family, but the opposite was revealed. I could see right past her façade.

"Well the least you can do is shave since you're up a lot. You look like a cave man," she was tense as though the wrong word would set me over the edge.

"My girl likes the stubble," I playfully say, rubbing my face where the facial hair had grown in over the last few weeks. Rose hasn't said it, but for some reason, she likes touching my rough face as though the prickled hairs were soothing beneath the pads of her fingers and palm.