Page 64 of My Addiction
“Thank you for taking care of him last night and this morning,” Colton tells Mom.
“It’s no problem at all. I enjoy my time with him.”
Colton’s response is cut short by a growl coming from Ollie. It’s surprisingly deep for such a little guy. I follow his line of sight and see Liam coming back in.
“Look, kid, I can’t change my face even for you. So you are just going to have to get over it. No more throwing shit at me.” Liam grabs a mug of coffee and sits as far away from the glaring baby as possible.
“What did I tell you about language in front of Ollie? It was just a little while ago, so I’m sure you haven’t forgotten already.” Mom gave Liam a pointed look.
“Sorry, Mom.”
“Ack asssss.” Ollie points at Liam and smiles.
“Ollie, that’s not nice.” Colton reprimands as he starts wiping the food from Ollie’s face and hands.
“Ack assss,” Ollie repeats. I try to figure out what Ollie is saying and why Colton didn’t like it.
“That one is not on me. That’s on Dad.” Liam defends.
It hits me then. Dad calls us jackasses when we do something he knows Mom isn’t going to like. I laugh.
“Ollie, no,” Colton says.
Then it happens. Ollie’s bottom lip pokes out and trembles. Tears shine in the corner of his eyes. He looks from Colton to me and then to Dad.
“Ki-Ki!” He screams and holds his arms out to my father, who has a smirk on his face. “Ki-Ki,” Ollie yells again. Dad stands from his seat and holds out his hands for Ollie, who is more than willing to go to him. Once he is seated on Dad’s hip, his pouting bottom lip is replaced with what I would only describe as a sinister grin. He points at Liam, “Ack ass.” He looks backat my dad as if waiting for his agreement. There is a slight but noticeable nod from Dad.
“Kieran, do not teach him that.” Mom says, “Colton, I’m so sorry. I swear, I do not know what has gotten into these guys. They’re supposed to set an example.”
There is a dreamy smile on Colton’s face, and he is looking at Dad. Fuck me. “Colton, why are you looking at Dad like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like you do when he says shi… stuff in Irish.” I catch myself before I can get into trouble.
“I’m not looking at him any kind of way.” Colton wraps his arms around my waist. “Your dad is one of the most intimidating people I have ever met. My baby brother just called him Ki-Ki.” Colton tries and fails to muffle a giggle against my chest.
“He’s too young to say, Kieran. And Daideo, it comes out as Da. Since that’s what he calls you, we thought it would be best to go with something different. He’ll learn Irish, so Daideo will come.” Dad explains.
“Da,” Ollie points at Colton, “Ki-Ki, Mo, ack ass,” Ollie’s little finger points at me last. “Pa.”
Pa? Where did that come from? Last night, he was calling me Ro or Ro-Ro. I gesture to my chest. “Ronan,” I say slowly. Ollie shakes his head. “Pa.”
I start to correct him again, but I hear sniffing to my left. Mom is wiping her eyes with a napkin. Colton squeezes me tighter. “Ronan, he’s calling you papa. I tried to teach him to call me that so Father wouldn’t get upset, but he would not budge from Da.”
Ollie’s face is studying mine. “I’m papa?” I ask him. He understands because when I ask the question, he nods, then reaches for me. As I pull him into my arms and his arms goesaround my neck, something in my chest constricts and then releases. This is my family now. No one on this earth or beyond will ever take them from me. I will destroy anyone who tries.
Chapter 35
Colton
I’ve laughed more this morning than I have in… well, ever. The fact that my baby brother is locked in psychological warfare with Liam is hilarious. But when Ollie calls Ronan, Pa, I can’t help the tears that sting my eyes. He says he loves me, and that means the world to me. There is something more, though, with his easy acceptance of Ollie. I glance around the room. This is what family is supposed to feel like. It’s not just Ronan’s acceptance but everyone else’s as well. Kieran is a scary man, large and imposing. He’s the kind of man that if you saw him walking toward you, getting out of his way would be your only option. Yet he lets himself be called Ki-Ki. Kieran also said that Ollie will learn Irish. It’s just a given that we will be here, part of this family. I’m so happy that a tear rolls down my cheek.
“Why are you crying, a stór?” Ronan’s arms tighten around me.
“Ad?” Ollie presses his finger to one of my tears.
“No, baby, I’m not sad. These are happy tears.” I smile at him. “Happy tears.”
