Thinking that Ashton had left to handle the issue with Nicolas, I headed downstairs to make a phone call.
It was only when I arrived at the living room that I saw him and the kids all sitting on a sofa, each one of them as quiet as a mouse.
My husband was holding a tablet, probably working. Gregory was having online classes with earphones plugged in, while Summer was reading a thick book. Even Audrey was keeping herself entertained by sitting down at a table and practicing her handwriting.
There was something amiss about the entire scene.
Ashton was the first one to notice my presence, putting his tablet down and walking over to place a kiss on my forehead. “You’re awake.”
“Mhm,” I nodded. “You guys…?”
Audrey immediately jumped up at the sound of my voice, loudly announcing, “Mommy! Daddy was being mean and didn’t let me talk!”
Summer quickly reached over to tickle her little sister in an attempt to get her to shut up. “That’s because you were being too noisy and woke Daddy up! It would be bad if you woke Mommy up too, you tiny monkey.”
“No, I didn’t!” Audrey argued through a fit of giggles, scrambling away from Summer’s hands. “Uncle John said—”
Realizing that she was about to expose her uncle, she instantly stopped herself short and pursed her lips together.
Of course, I wasn’t that easily fooled by a kid who wore her heart on her sleeve.
“How long did you sleep for?” I asked Ashton.
“Daddy woke up early in the morning and helped Audrey wash up,” Summer interrupted before he could say anything.
Doesn’t that mean that he’d taken John’s place and only slept for three hours?
That realization tugged at my heartstrings a little. Just then, John walked in from outside, meeting my knowing gaze and then taking a look at Audrey.
He awkwardly shuffled towards the other side of the living room, mumbling in a small voice, “Don’t blame me. Audrey’s your biological child, so she ran to find you guys as soon as she woke up. I couldn’t have stopped her even if I tried.”
I hid a laugh behind my hand. “So you went back to sleep and left Ashton to take care of the kids alone?”
“She’s your daughter,” he shrugged. I couldn’t argue with him on that, and it seemed like he was going to stubbornly defend himself to the very end.
I had no choice but to try and make Ashton go upstairs to rest for a while longer. “Go take a nap or something. You haven’t slept well these past few days.”
Even though the day before had been because of…
I didn’t let myself finish that thought. Regardless, we were no longer in our young adult life; we’d grown old and needed sufficient sleep.
“I’m used to it,” Ashton laughed. “I’ve been surviving on three or four hours of sleep for the past few years. Don’t worry about me.”
My expression soured. He must have had a rough time while being the Hall family’s cash cow for so long.
Noticing that I was upset, he reached up and gently massaged my stiff shoulders. “I’ll have plenty of chances to rest in the future,” he reassured. “But I want to handle all our current problems before anything else. Next time, you’ll be free to determine when I sleep and how much I sleep.”
“You swear on your life?” I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.
“Of course! I would never dare to lie to my precious wife in front of her brother and our kids.”
“Bleurgh. I can’t watch this anymore,” John shivered exaggeratedly, causing the kids to sneak glances at us and giggle.
I let out a hopeless sigh at the kids’ amused expressions. What kind of little monsters were they going to grow up into with such a drama queen for an uncle?
“That’s it,” John clapped to gain the children’s attention. “A whole morning of being under your fascist dad’s strict rules is more than enough. Put down your homework and go out to the garden to play.”
“Yeah! Uncle John is the best!”
Audrey instantly jumped to her feet, dragging Gregory along to the side door that led to the garden. Laughing excitedly, Summer followed closely behind them.
A six or seven-year-old child was usually at the peak of their mischievousness, but thankfully, we had Summer to help decrease some of the worries we had about the two younger kids.
As soon as they were out the door, John’s face turned solemn. “Nicolas and his wife are being held in a basement. What are we going to do with the remaining Hall family?”
