“I’d hate to see the truth come out that way,” I said as Hayden frowned.
“I doubt anyone knew about her, even if he did have a family. He signed his rights away. The adoption is final.” The girls went all the way with it, though they kept Vivian’s last name as one of the middle names with their names following that. It was complicated, but they didn’t know what name they’d take in marriage at the time. Anything could be changed down the line, though they’d never take her mother’s name away.
“I just want them never to know about him. Becca hated him, and he pulled too much shit toward the end.” I sighed, considering the possibility. “Everyone hated him.”
“He was an asshole, but his kid is beautiful. She’s so happy.” Hayden smiled. “Not like him at all.”
“She has a loving family,” I said, hugging him to me. “They’ll never know.”
“I learned in an article. What if they ever get curious?” Hayden brought up a new point as ice washed through my veins.
“If they haven’t yet, they won’t. They haven’t even asked about Ryan.” I hoped that I was right.
We snuggled together to sleep, and I smiled as he kissed my hair.
It was announced weeks later that the baby was a boy at Sunday dinner. Amy was beaming while Jackson looked proud. Everyone hugged them and cried again, talking about baby showers and the nursery.
Amy looked good with a small bump that she complained about. She wore loose clothes even though Jackson told her she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. She had a natural girl next door look and never looked bad, but pregnancy did weird things to women. She made a few trips back home with Jackson over the last several weeks, spending time with family and friends.
We talked about doing something before it was too far into Fall. We decided on a coastal trip for a long weekend, for the seven of us. Gram declined since she had plans with a friend. I rented a house with five bedrooms and three bathrooms for us, excited about the large deck that overlooked the beach. With the right weather, we could grill outside and enjoy some sun. I knew the girls hoped for that so Ava could see the ocean, but you could never tell where we lived.
We left Friday in August with the sun in the sky. Since it was a short trip, we just took our cars, and I planned to get the keys before anyone else arrived. We decided on Fort Worden since it was in such a gorgeous area. We could spend time on the beach as well as in Port Townsend.
We got out of our car on the ferry, standing at the railing to look over the water. Our destination could be seen, and I grinned as Hayden leaned against me. He’d never been here before, and I couldn’t wait to show him how beautiful it was. When we pulled off of the boat, I took a turn to the right to get to the office where the keys to the house were. The agent handed them to us with a smile, and I drove quickly to see a two-story house in a soft blue nestled several feet away from the beach,
“This is gorgeous,” he said as we parked in the driveway. We got out with our bags, unlocking the door to set them down just inside of the foyer. We surveyed the spacious, open kitchen and living room. There were two bedrooms downstairs and three upstairs. They were all large and roughly the same size, so we picked one of the upstairs ones and placed our bags inside. The bedroom windows all had views of the ocean, making the house wider than longer.
“I could get used to this,” I said, looking through the glass slider doors at the blue water and long stretch of sand.
“Me, too. Ava is going to lose her shit,” Hayden said, grinning.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Hayden
Everyone else arrived about forty-five minutes after us. We helped them with their bags, smiling as they exclaimed how gorgeous the house was. The girls picked the downstairs bedroom for them and Ava with hopes she shouldn’t run up and down the stairs all day. Jackson and Amy picked one of the upstairs ones, and we all unpacked quickly.
It was still early, so we walked on the beach for a while. Ava screamed as she ran through the water with Becca and Mari on her heels. I let Gray lead me by the hand as I inhaled the ocean air, and watched the waves rolling against the sand. We were here for three nights, and I could see how relaxed everyone already felt.
We left Becca and Mari on the beach with Ava and went to the grocery store with a list. There was a grill on the deck, so we bought supplies for a barbecue. There was also an indoor grill. We also got some snacks and plenty of drinks to stock the fridge with. We figured we’d have one night out to eat, maybe two. It depended on the weather and what we ended up doing.
When we got back, Ava was sleeping in the bedroom. We all unloaded groceries and set up the kitchen with everything that we’d need. Gray told us about the town as we had some coffee and relaxed, piquing our interest.
When Ava woke up, Amy was taking a nap with Jackson. They were cute together, and he was by her side every minute. I knew that Gray was proud of his cousin for being the man that he was with Amy. He’d be a great father.
We decided just to make dinner at the house tonight since it was getting late. The girls took Ava to the beach again as we fired up the grill. We decided on steak and chicken, along with some veggies the girls would roast when they got home.
I watched as Becca leaned over to scoop Ava up, running toward the house. She was happy. I always wanted that for her, and she had everything she wanted right now. Ava laughed as they came back, with Mari taking her to the bedroom to get into some dry clothes while Becca helped with dinner.
Amy woke up as we were finishing, apologizing for sleeping so long. We told her not to worry and got everything plated and set up on the counter buffet style. Everyone plated their food and sat at the large dining room table, laughing as we ate. We watched a movie after dinner on the huge TV, all of us tired from the excitement of the day. When that was over, the girls took a sleeping Ava to the twin bed in the bedroom beside theirs. They went to sleep afterward, and everyone followed suit.
We looked out at the moon shining over the water from our window for a moment. We cracked the window to hear the waves, smiling at the sound. “We need a beach house.”
“I know,” Gray said, kissing the corner of my mouth. “We’ll work on that.”
We made love quietly before falling asleep. Our plans the next day includes walks on the beach, and possibly a trip into town to see some sights. We weren’t locked onto anything specific.
We woke up in the morning to sun shining in the windows. I smelled coffee and heard voices downstairs, stretching to wrap my arm around Gray. “Who is that?”
Gray laughed before kissing me. “We’ll take a trip alone if you want.”
“I love this, to be honest. I just need coffee to feel it.” We held each other for a while before rising to dress and head downstairs. Ava was munching on toast and watching a cartoon while the girls sipped coffee. “Morning.” Mari smiled at us, looking perfect as always. “Sleep well?”
“Nothing is better than the sound of the ocean for sleep,” Gray replied as he poured coffee. “You?”
“It turns out that a lot of beach time wears out little miss,” Becca said with a wink. “She slept hard until eight. It was wonderful.”
“Do you want to be tourists today or stay at the house?” I asked as Ava giggled at something.