Four months later, the kids go to daycare, the house is more than halfway done because we have a giant team, and Jace is working every day to find our daughter. We're living with Marcus for the time being.
Jace and I still haven't had sex.
It's five at night when I finally finish decorating the house.
Tomorrow is the reveal for the family.
I head to Marcus'.
Jace whips around right when I walk in the door.
"Hey." I say.
He hugs me.
"Stand right here." He says.
"Okay." I frown.
He disappears into a back bedroom.
I hear him talking, and then he comes back.
"What am I waiting here for?" I ask patiently.
A little girl with red hair and brown eyes steps out from behind him and looks at me.
"Rylee, meet our daughter, Hailey Olive Rivera."
"You found her." I whisper, crossing the room to her. I kneel down in front of her.
"Hi honey." I smile.
"Hi." She whispers.
"Jace," I begin.
"She was adopted for a bit when she was three but they had a kid of her own so they gave her back. She's been in a home ever since. I named her today what she wanted to be named.
"You didn't have a name before?"
"No." she says. "He asked me what I wanted to be named and I told him." she shrugs.
"You know we're your real parents, right? Like...I gave birth to you."
"I know. I can tell."
"How can you tell?" I smile.
"Because I have Daddy's eyes and your hair."
****
I got sent to Canada for four jobs. I miss my family. I talk to all five of the kids every night and Jace, of course.
I'm on the third now and it's November and it's snowing so badly.
It's Thanksgiving, actually.
"How cold is it up there?" Jace asks.
"Like, negative ten or something." I sigh.
I was home for a month to get to know Hailey really well.
"How are things going?" I ask.
JACE'S POV
"Oh, wonderful." I say as Noah grabs a bag of flour, having climbed onto the counter. He crashes down and flower goes everywhere, covering Hailey's wet hair in flour.
"Really?" she asks. "Awesome. That's great. I was a bit worried things would get a bit hectic."
Max comes in with his pull up off, and he's peeing, all over the floor. Kaden comes running after at him.
"Hey honey, I have to go. The turkey's done. Love you."
"Love you too." I hang up.
"I'm doing homework, butt fart! Be quiet!"
Zach is walking now and Rylee cried when she wasn't there for it. He keeps asking for Mama.
All of the kids asking for Rylee.
"Everyone front and center right now!" I shout.
Rylee and I's family is here, my blood relatives included. They're trying to help me, but failing.
"Noah, I've told you not to climb on the counter. Your feet go on the floor! Max, keep your pull up on! Kaden, stop screaming, Hailey, go clean up."
"The floor? I'm not cleaning that up!"
"No, yourself! Go take a shower!"
She groans. "I wish Mom were here!" she disappears upstairs, leaving a cloud of flour in her mist.
Marcus is staying at Anthony's and I've alone at Marcus's with the kids.
Hailey decided it would be hilarious to get the little ones back and she pours food coloring all over them.
And then covers them in flour.
"What the hell is going on here?" I hear a familiar voice gasp.
Everyone stops and looks up. All the adults are running around trying to calm down the kids.
Rylee stands in the opening of the kitchen in jeans and a white long sleeve shirt.
RYLEE'S POV
Everyone stares at me. Hailey holds a bag of flour over the boys heads, and they're covered in food coloring. She has flour in her hair. Flour is all over the floor, and pee. The turkey isn't even in the oven yet
Everyone is frozen in place, staring at me.
Jace is up to his arms in flour, trying to get the bag out of Hailey's hands.
"I so knew you were lying." I sigh.
Nobody says a word.
"Hailey, go take a shower. Your grounded until school lets out for Christmas.
"But-" she starts.
"Now." I say.
"But Mom," she begins.
"Hailey, you have three seconds to be in the shower before I make it next Christmas.
Her shoulders slump and she walks past me.
"Max peed all over, Kaden won't stop screaming, and Noah poured the flour all over the first time, which pissed off Hailey because she got covered in it with her wet hair."
I sigh.
JACE'S POV
"Kaden, go bathe and then do your homework. Noah, Max, you two are taking a bath, having dinner, and going right to bed. No dessert." Both boys start to cry, but she picks up Max and takes Noah's hand.
She disappears with Noah and Max.
When she comes back, the boys are clean. She sits them at the table.
"Don't move." She says. Kaden is already out of the bath.
She grabs the mop and cleans up the mess in five minutes.
She takes the turkey I didn't cook and puts it in the freezer. She grabs a bag by the front door and produces an entire thanksgiving dinner.
"Are you home for good?" I ask.
"Uh...yes."
I sigh, relieved.
"I'm gonna shower really fast."
RYLEE'S POV
All the kids are in pajama's. I set the table for dinner. Jace comes downstairs.
Everyone takes their seat at the table.
We all talk and laugh and eat.
"Mom, I'll do anything to not be grounded." Hailey says.
"If you can intent time travel and go back and make you not get payback, that would be great."
She sighs slowly.
"Please?" she asks.
"No."
"Dad?" she bats her eyelashes at Jace.
"No." he says.
She gives up.
Once the kids are done eating, I send all four to bed, but let Zach stay.
We wait a bit and then have dessert. Everyone leaves, we put Zach to bed, and then Jace sits down next to me. I lean in and kiss him slowly.
"I've missed you." I whisper.
"I've missed you too." He whispers.
"So you finished work?"
"I finished work." I nod.
"Awesome!" he kisses me.
"Tomorrow I'm going to go finish our house. Finish painting and such, you know?"
"I know." He whispers.
I kiss him for a second, and then he kisses me.
"Mom." Hailey comes downstairs. She pauses. "Please tell me I'm not interrupting something disgusting."
"You aren't." I say. "You're supposed to be in bed."
"I was." She says. "I need you to come here."
"Why?"
"Because I do."
I sigh and stand up. I follow Hailey upstairs. She goes into the bathroom and pulls her pants down.
"Look." She whispers.
I look down.
Blood.
"Am I dying?" she asks.
"Sit down on the toilet." I say. I shut the door.
She does.
I give her the talk about period and boys and sex and tampons, the one every parent dreads.
"Wait." She says. "It goes in?"
"Yes." I laugh.
"Does it hurt?"
"Only the first time." I say.
"So I'm not dying?"
"No, you aren't dying. Shove some toilet paper in your underwear. We have to go shopping."
She nods and just wears pajamas. I go downstairs and put my shoes on.
"What happened?" Jace demands.
"Your daughter is officially a women." I say.
"No she isn't. She's ten." He says.
"Yes she is, Jace."
"Ry, she's ten."
"Jace, she got her period."
"What?" he demands. "No she didn't!"
I smile. "I'll deal with you later."
He stands there, grumbling. I take Hailey to the store and help her get tampons and pads.
I get her some new panties and spoil her and get her some clothes.
I get her some Midol, and then we leave.
"So am I ungrounded?" she asks.
"No." I say. "Has Daddy shown you the new house yet?" I ask.
"No." she says.
"Well it'll be done within the next week." I say.
"So we'll have room to breathe?" she asks.
I laugh. "Yeah."
She nods.
I drive back home and go upstairs with her. I show her how to use a tampon and how to use a pad.
She starts with tampons, but pulls it right back out because it hurts.
"I know it hurts. It takes a bit to get used to. Just wear one once a day."
She puts a pad on, stands up, and then wrinkles her nose.
"That feels weird."
"I know. You get used to it."
She goes to bed, and I go back downstairs.
Jace is staring at his hands.
I sit down next to him and rub his back.
He sighs, clasping his hands together.
"What are you thinking baby?" I whisper.
"We've missed so much. Her first walking, her talking, crawling..." he sighs. "She's our only little girl and she's already got her period." He runs his hands across his face. "Dammit, if I hadn't driven drunk that night! If I had told you the day we met again." He shakes his head angrily. "This is my fault!" He stands up. "I just don't get it, Rylee!" he says loudly. I stand up. "I've given you nothing but hell! I basically took our daughter away from us! I hurt you so much, but you still care, and you shouldn't! Rylee, you shouldn't be with me. I, I did something horrible while you were pregnant with Max." He whispers.
"Jace, whatever it is-"
"I cheated on you!" he shouts. "I fucked up, Rylee, I really, really messed up."
He stands there, vulnerable.
"I, I'm sorry. I'm leaving."
He opens the door, but I shoot forward and shut it.
"You can't keep running, Jace." I lock it and stand in front of the door.
He won't touch me.
"Rylee." He whispers. "Just let me leave."
"No." I say. "We weren't even together. I left you. That's a completely different story! I don't care if you were with someone else! I need you, Jace."
"But I'm impossible! I've tested your trust millions of times! I've screwed you over, I destroyed your life! I accused you of horrible things, but still, you still love me! I don't see the future I saw with you a while ago! I'm not right for you."
He reaches for the doorknob but I slam the door again.
"Who are you to say what is and isn't good for me? How do you know if you're not right for me? That's for me to decide! So what if you've messed up! We all have! If I'm happy, why the hell does it matter if you think you're not good enough? You are good enough, you're perfect for me. If you walk out that door, I'll sink back into that depression I was in before you found your way back to me. The only way I want us to end is if you aren't happy. Are you happy, Jace?"
He studies my eyes for a long time. "Yes." He whispers.
"Then what are you doing?" I whisper. "Don't leave Jace. You wouldn't be helping anything."
He shuts his eyes.
"Your right. I'm sorry. I just...got a bit insecure."
The pic on the side is of Hailey.