“I’m sorry, honey, but your uncle Nico would be sad if I didn’t have a sleepover with him,” I tell her. Leaning forward, I can’t help but kiss her head. “I promise you we will have a pajama party soon though. We can watch movies, paint our nails, and do all kinds of fun things.”
“Mommy! I get to have a sleepober wif Aunt Sophie!” May yells, jumping down off my lap, and then all the kids run into the dining room and swarm me, asking if they can have a sleepover too.
“Yes, you can all come and have a sleepover.” I laugh as they all run off to their parents, yelling about a sleepover at ‘Uncle Nico and Aunt Sophie’s house.’
“When you have this sleepover, I’m gonna make sure I gotta work,” Nico says, making me narrow my eyes.
“No, I figure this will be good practice for you, Mr. I-wanna-get-you-knocked-up.”
“Touché.” He smiles, kissing my nose. He wraps his arms around my waist, and I lean into him. “You ready to go home?”
“Yeah, if you are,” I tell him before getting up on my tiptoes to kiss him. Today has been awesome. I now know that I have nothing to worry about. His family is sweet. I’m happy to know them and glad Nico has them at his back, and I can’t wait to spend time with them again soon. “I love your family,” I tell him as I kiss the underside of his jaw.
“They love you too baby.”
“I love you,” I tell him with a smile.
He leans forward and kisses my forehead before leaning back his eyes meeting mine. “Love you too, sweet Sophie.” I smile and shake my head. “All right. Let’s get out of here. I need to be inside you,” Nico says, making me tingle.
I nod and make quick work of saying goodbye to everyone, including all the kids, who make me promise again that we will have a sleepover soon.
“What do you mean Jax and Ashlyn are missing?” I ask, watching as Nico pulls on a pair of jeans and boots, and I immediately hop out of bed and start to get dressed.
Not long after I met everyone, Lilly was arrested, and Nico worked hard to get her released. This morning, he found evidence proving that Lilly had been wrongfully accused. I hate that they are being forced to deal with more drama, and I feel nauseated just thinking about something happening to the kids.
“Cash couldn’t say much, just that he and Lilly had been home with her parents and the kids. Lilly noticed that the kids were quiet and went out to check on them. He said they’ve searched everywhere and still came up with nothing.”
“Okay, so we can help them look,” I tell him, pulling on a hoodie along with my Chucks.
“Sorry, baby. No way.”
“No way, what?” My eyebrows draw together.
“You’re not going with. I won’t be able to focus if you’re there.”
“I wanna help,” I tell him firmly. There is no way I’m going to be sitting here worried out of my mind while he is searching for the kids.
“No. No way.” He shakes his head.
“I wasn’t asking you for permission.” My hands go to my hips.
“I don’t have time to argue with you, Sophie,” he growls, pulling a shirt on.
“Then don’t argue.” I leave the room and head to the kitchen to grab my bag.
“You’re not fucking coming!” he yells behind me. Once he comes into the kitchen, he grabs his keys and heads for the front door. I quietly follow behind him, thinking maybe he won’t even notice I’m there. “Baby, serious as fuck, I don’t have time for this shit right now. Please put my mind at ease. Stay here and wait for me,” he says, turning around, his hands going to my face. I can see in his eyes that he is stressed, and I don’t want to add to it. As much as I want to go with him to help look for the kids, I know I can’t add to his worry.
“Okay,” I agree reluctantly.
“That’s my girl.” His mouth drops to mine, and before I can kiss him back, he’s opening the door.
“Call me the minute you find them!” I yell as he’s getting in his car. He gives me a chin lift, so I figure that’s basically an affirmative.
I don’t know how long I pace back and forth between the living room and the kitchen, but it must be a couple of hours. I give in and call Lilly, who’s a wreck and can’t even get a word out without breaking down into tears. I can’t imagine what she’s going through, but I tell her that, if she needs anything at all, I’m here.
After I get off the phone with her and another hour passes, the phone rings and I jump to answer it, thinking it’s Nico with good news. I’m disappointed when it’s November and Liz calling to see if I’ve heard anything. They both know as much as I do, which is nothing at all. Halfway into our conversation, November gets a call from Susan, who says they found Jax and are on their way to get Ashlyn. She doesn’t have a lot of information, but I feel better knowing that they are on the right track. I want to help, and I hate that I’m stuck at home and can’t do anything. By the time Nico calls to tell me they have Ashlyn and that Cash is heading to the hospital with both of the kids in an ambulance, I’m a mess.