He folded his arms and threw himself back in his seat.
“Listen, I need you to listen to me for a bit. Now, I know that you’re a big boy, and I know that you know it’s not right to push the kids that are smaller than you, not your brothers not anyone. Not boys not girls, no one. You know that, right?”
He closed his eyes for a long moment, let out a sigh, and said, “Yes, I know.”
“The school called Mummy and told her that you’ve been mean to some of the other kids and that you’ve been pushing them. Is that true?”
He looked out of the window and shrugged.
“You don’t know if you’ve been pushing some kids?”
“Maybe.”
“Well, that makes Mummy really sad—like really, really sad, and I think we need to go and buy her some flowers to make her happy. What d’ya reckon?”
He stretched up in his seat and looked out the windscreen.
“Can I get out?”
“Yeah you can get out, and we’re gonna go buy Mummy some flowers and when we get home, you’re gonna tell Mummy that you’re sorry and then you’re gonna promise to play nice with the other kids from now on.”
I swore the kid actually chewed on his lip and thought about his answer for a second or two. Then, he nodded and gave me a sheepish smile. He knew what he was doing wasn’t right, and I knew he was a good kid at heart.
We bought Sarah a huge bunch of flowers, a huge box of chocolates, and a bottle of her favourite wine.
I hadn’t seen her long enough to talk to since her comment about Cassie, so I wasn’t sure what sort of reception I was gonna get once we got home.
We arrived to find Sarah curled up in the corner of the sofa with the twins lying on her chest and Lucas next to her in the crib we keep downstairs.
As excited as Carter was to give Sarah her flowers and her pink princess balloon he insisted she needed, I managed to convince him that we needed to go upstairs and change first. I then convinced him to go to the playroom and watch his shows while I made everyone some dinner.
Lucas stirred, and I rushed to get Carter from the playroom so he would be right there when Sarah opened her eyes.
“Here you go, Mummy, these are for you. I’m sorry the school called you up and it made you sad. I promise I’ll play nice with the other kids now.”
I lifted Archie and Flynn from her chest and laid them at the opposite end of the sofa, allowing her to sit up. She smiled and opened her arms to Carter.
“They’re for me? Oh my goodness, Carter, they’re beautiful. Thank you so much.”
He gave Sarah a kiss and a cuddle and then shot off back to the playroom to watch more of his shows.
I lifted her up and sat her in my lap, breathing in the scent of her skin, her hair, just her.
“How’d it go?”
“Yeah, he’s pretty much doing at school what he’s been doing here and picking on some littler kids.”
She leaned away from me so she could better look me in the face.
“Really? I wonder why. He’s always been such a friendly kid.”
“Yeah, Luke reckons he’s just had his nose put out a bit and is finding his feet. I guilt tripped him big time in the car, hence the flowers.”
“Let’s hope it works. What smells good, did you bring food in?”
“No. While you were sleeping, I cooked the chops that were in the fridge along with some green beans and mash.
“Shit, I must’ve been out cold.”
“You were.” I let out a long breath and made sure she was looking at me when I continued. “You do know that there’s absolutely nothing, and I do mean nothing, going on with me and Cassie, don’t you?”
She let out an equally long breath.
“No. I don’t know, Liam. You spend more time with the people you work with than you do with us. How could I know for sure that nothing is going on?”
“Because I’m fucking telling you, that’s how. I’m pissed off that you would even think that of me.”
“How would you have felt if the tables were turned?”
“What?”
“If you’d turned up to my place of work, and I walked out of an office with one of my colleague’s arms draped over my shoulder like that, how would it have made you feel?”
Fuck
I let out another long breath and shook my head.
“I never thought of it like that. I’m sorry, but I swear to you that I would never.”
“It hurt.”
Fuck, I felt like a dick.
“I’m so fucking sorry. Luke told me what Mel said. I just added to your shitty day didn’t I?”
“Well, you didn’t make it any better.”
I kissed the side of her head.
“I love only you. I see only you. I want only you. There is only you.”
She didn’t respond.
“Please never forget that.”
She nodded, but I wasn’t entirely sure that I convinced her.
2014