CHAPTER FORTY
Angela reclines on the deck chair and bottle feeds Paris. She's taken to the bottle and doesn't mind the mixture of formula and breast milk, which is making life easier. Everyone can feed her, and my boobs get a break.
Whoever said it takes a village to raise a child is completely right. I couldn't do this without my family and friends, especially our mothers.
Blake puts a tray of meat on the table and plonks into the chair next to me. He passes me the tongs and a plate and I dive into the food.
"There's burger patties, sausages and satay chicken kebabs."
"Everything smells delicious." I smile.
I make a burger stuffed with salad and chomp into it. Blake squeezes my knee and I lean against his arm. He makes a hot dog with lots of onion and mustard, which is gross. He takes a bite and moans. I tug on a smile and bump into his side affectionately.
The back door opens and Tori wanders outside with her assumably, new boyfriend. London leaps onto the deck and dives into Tori's arm.
"Hey baby, how are you?" Tori kisses Lo's cheek.
"I'm good." She grins.
Blake jumps up and shuffles around the table.
"Hi Eric, it's nice to meet you." Blake offers his hand, and Eric tightly shakes it.
"Thank you for inviting us into your home."
"No worries! There's beer in the fridge and food on the table, please make yourself at home."
"Cheers." He smiles.
London leans across and pokes Eric in the arm. He jumps, but tugs on a smile.
"Eric, can we play in the sandpit? I want to build a castle for my unicorns."
"Oh okay, sure."
Tori sets London down and she bounds across the squeaky deck. Eric awkwardly follows along with Tori. Blake goes to follow, but I catch his hand and tug him back to the table.
London sits in the shell and hands a bucket to Eric. He grabs a spade and fills the bucket with wet sand. She says something and he laughs. Tori's brown eyes light up and she laughs with them.
"You can't scare him away," I murmur.
"What if he needs to be scared away?" He raises an eyebrow.
"Let's see how it pans out. If you need to step in, by all means, I'll be by your side."
Blake takes a seat and stares them down. I poke his side and shake my head.
"Give the man a chance to do something wrong before you blaze in there with your hostile gaze."
"London and Tori don't need anymore hurt in their lives."
"I agree, but you can't chase the good away."
Paris winges, so I shove the remainder of my burger in my mouth and collect her from Angela. She places the empty bottle on the table and sighs.
"I think she's still hungry. Would you like me to make another bottle?"
"It's okay, thanks though! You should eat something before the food goes cold."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes." I smile.
I rest her on my shoulder and pat her back. She belches and settles down.
Angela grabs a plate and dishes up her own food and moves away from the table. I settle Paris on my chest and stroke her brown hair. Blake collects the dishes from the table and carries them inside.
Eric wanders onto the deck and grabs a plate. He fills it with meat and takes a seat beside me.
"She's adorable, and so small."
"Paris is growing so quick! And she's so cute when she's asleep, makes up for all the screaming and puking, I think."
"Sounds wonderful." He nervously laughs.
"It is." I smile. "Sometimes I miss having her so close to me."
"Your whole family is so close, and there's so much love for everyone."
"You're right." I nod.
"It's nice and a little different to see. I come from a broken home, and it's just." He shakes his head. "I love what you've all managed to do here."
"It's not always been easy, but life is never like that."
"You're right about that." He sighs.
"You're welcome to join our motley crew if you're prepared to be there through all passing motions of life."
"Thank you."
"If you've not got their best interest in mind, there's twice the amount of family who will set you straight. Tori deserves someone who's going to love and care for her. She's already been hurt enough, and I can't stand to see her suffer anymore."
Plus Logan would want me to help her find happiness.
"I promise I'm in for the long run."
"I hope you packed your running shoes then."
"I can buy some." He laugh.
"Do it soon because you don't want to mess with this Mumma bear, because I'll kick your ass."
"Thank you for the warning."
"You're welcome."
"You're tougher than her father."
"Don't tell him that." I laugh.
Eric returns to the girls with the food. Tori laughs at something he's said, then she smiles at me. My cheers burn as I hurry into the house.
I place Paris in her cot and gently pat her back to sleep. Once she's zonked out, I grab the baby monitor and creep out of the room.
Tori wanders around the corner with a smile.
"I heard you gave Eric a talking to," she whispers.
"I did."
"What do you think about him?"
"We'll see once London has a tantrum." I chuckle.
"You make a good point." She nods.
"I'll see you outside." I smile.
We shuffle past each other, and I walk outside. I take a seat beside Blake and grab his hand.
"Paris is sound asleep."
"Thank goodness." He sighs.
"I spoke to Eric, told him I'd kick his behind if he hurts Tori."
"So you get to say something and I don't." He gasps.
"Logan would have wanted me to look after her."
"You're right about that." He nods.
"We should do something before Paris wakes up."
"What were you thinking?"
"Going for a swim." I smile.
"Good answer! I've been eying the pool off this morning." He laughs.
Blake dashes over to London and tosses her over his shoulder and races to the pool. She squeals as the two land in the water. Tori emerges from the house with a smile.
"What's he doing?"
"Spending some quality time with London." I grin.
"I was wondering if Eric and I could take Lo for the weekend. We were going to go to the beach, see my parents, that kind of thing."
"How about another weekend? We need some more family time together. We haven't had enough of that since Paris was born."
"Oh." She frowns. "That's okay, we can do it another weekend."
"Thank you for your understanding."
I charge down the deck and over to the pool. I leap into the warm water and paddle over to Blake and London. She jumps into my arms and I squeeze her.
"What game are we playing?"
"Unicorns mermaids!" She grins.
"Yay." Blake fake smiles. "I bags being the sexy mermaid."
"You're the strong merman who takes care of everyone."
Eric strips out of his clothes and joins us along with Tori.
"Who's Eric going to be?" I ask.
"He's a unicorn that has to do what Daddy says." She laughs.
"I've changed my mind, I think I love this game." Blake smirks.
This is another perfect way to decide if Eric has what it takes to join our crew. I hope he's the real deal for Tori's sake, and for the fact that I don't know how to kick someone's ass.
Last chapter next week! Nooo, I haven't planned for another book *yet*