Diana's POV

I look in his eyes with utter surprise, still processing the words that escaped his lips. How could he?

"What are you talking about?" I sit up straight, watching him intently as surprise masks over his features.

From where I can see this situation, he didn't expect himself to spill out that confession. He wasn't ready yet, hell, he wasn't even sure if he meant it or not. He just tossed around those words without realising the depth of it, to console me in the moment because I told him the pathetic story of my life.

He sits up straight, mirroring my actions. His hands move to cups my cheeks and his blue orbs pours down into my eyes, begging me to not jump to conclusions just yet.

"I'm falling in love with you, Diana. However pathetic that sounds right now, I don't care. You are supposed to tell such things under perfect circumstances but let's face it, you and I, we're not perfect. We're far from it, but whoever we are, I love being that with you." He whispers, wiping away whatever remains of tears from under my eyes with his thumb.

His words process in my thought as I look at him. "How could you?" I ask, my voice hoarse.

"What are you talking about?" He scowls, leaning in even closer than before and resting his head again mine, our noses brushing together.

"I just told you what a horrible person I am, all the awful things that my past holds, how could you possibly fall in love with someone who herself isn't capable of such emotion?" I look into his eyes and he gives out a sad smile.

"That's what makes you, you! You aren't that nerd who falls for boys the minute they show their charms and that's okay by me, because even the thought of being with you, while you have tad bit feelings for me is enough for me to hold onto whatever future we might have together." He caresses my cheeks with his thumb and I shake my head.

"You aren't even sure of what you feel, Aaron. I saw it in your eyes, you were afraid of the words that left your mouth."

He sighs, "I was scared of your reaction, not what I said."

A minute of silence falls over us as his breath fans over my face, making me want to lean in an inch closer and close any distance between us, but I resist myself as I study his face. I can't tell if he's telling the truth or not, and even if I can, I don't know whether to believe what I see. I fell for it before with a guy who ended up raping me, I don't know who to trust anymore.

"Shh, calm your thoughts." He whispers.

"Are they loud enough for you to listen?" I joke and his lips curve into a small smile.

"Enough to leave you expressionless." He says, his thumb tracing my lower lip.

I suck in a breath at his action and he meets my eyes again, "Just promise me not to mention it again unless you're sure of it, with no doubts clouding your mind." I say and he nods.

"I promise you."

He doesn't blinks for a second before his lips curve mine beneath them, moulding them together into a perfect kiss, making me sigh underneath his touch. My fingers lace through his hair as he pulls me into his lap and keeps his arms around me securely.

We part and I look into his ocean deep eyes, "I love blue your eyes are."

"And I love how your grey ones have a hint of green into them." He gives out a cheeky smile.

It's easy with him, to fall back into smiles and let the past remain where it belongs, in the past. When I told him every detail of my horrible life, even for a second I didn't see judgement or pity in his eyes, which is why I continued telling him everything.

He pulls us back towards the headboard, with me still practically strangling his lap as he keeps drawing the circles on my back. I sigh as I snuggle my nose in the crook of his neck and he lightly kisses my head, his touch bringing comfort to me as I doze off in his arms.

..

A light giggle makes me stir in my sleep and I wince as I have to painfully open my eyes. The room is dark but I can still hear the sound of Emily's familiar laughter. Ella must be here. I asked her to take care of Em while I talked to Aaron.

I frown as I look at the empty space on the bed beside me. Where did he go? I sigh as I get up from the bed and make my way to Emily's room through the attached bathroom. Both the doors are ajar, hence the disturbance to my sleep. When I enter her room, I freeze in my tracks.

She's laughing so loudly that the whole room is erupting with her giggles while she claps her hands. It's the most beautiful sight as my gaze falls over to Aaron who has moustache sketched on his face with purple pen. When he realises my presence in the room, his eyes flicker to me and he groans, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

"Go back to sleep." He says as he playfully slams his head against the carpeted floor, trying to hide his face and Emily sitting just few steps away from him.

"Momma! Aaron has mushtwasch!" Emily giggles and I smile at her.

"What did she say?" Aaron looks at me.

She's still learning how to say big words, and I understand that Aaron out of all people must have hard time understanding what she says sometimes.

"Nothing, just filling me up with your extra curricular activities." I laugh as I take a seat with them on the floor.

"Your daughter's as bossy as you." He whispers to me and I laugh.

"You look adorable in purple beard." I pinch his cheeks and he swats my hands away.

"Funny." He rolls his eyes, making me laugh even more.

"Come, let's clean you up." I say and then look at Emily's hands filled with purple ink, "Both of you."

"Okay mom." Emily grins.

"Okay mom." Aaron mimics and I laugh as I pick up Emily in my arms.

I clean her up while Aaron stands by the door frame. When I dry her hands, I whisper to her, "Be a good girl and go play with your teddy. Mom will see you in two minutes, okay?" I say and she nods as I let her down on the floor.

When she rushes out of the bathroom, I don't close the door but take Aaron's hand, making him stand near the opposite door, away from my daughter's prying eyes.

"Hi." I say and he gives out a cheeky smile.

"Hey." He breaths.

I stand on my toes as I cup his left cheek and kiss him, taking him by surprise but he immediately recovers as he kisses me back, his arms encircling my waist and pulling me closer to him. Within seconds our tongues meet, and I suck in a breath as he pulls my bottom lip in between his teeth.

He parts away just an inch and looks into my eyes, his thumb brushing away the strands of my hair. I have no idea what took over me, but just the sight of my daughter laughing because of him, it just melted my heart, making me want to be as close to him as possible.

"What was that about?" He asks, still studying my face with a small smile on his face. His purple beard shining under the bathroom light.

"Nothing, just happy." I shrug before stepping away and mentioning to his reflection in mirror.

He lightly groans as he notices the ink of his face and spends minutes rubbing it off his skin with face wash.

"I've never sacrificed my masculinity twice in a day." He complains when I hand him over a towel.

"What?" I give him an amused look.

"First I let your daughter draw beard on my face with purple pen and then I used your strawberry face wash to rub it off my face." He says and I roll my eyes.

"Idiot." I mumble with an amused smile as I start walking over to Emily's room.

He catches me off guard when he circles my waist and pulls me towards him, "We're okay, right?" He asks, his eyes desperate for an answer.

I don't answer but place another peck on his lips and smile before letting go of his grip and going to Emily. When I enter her room, she's trying to dress her doll.

"Is that a yes?" He calls behind me and I laugh.

"What do you think?" I arch an eyebrow.

"All the strings attached." He whispers when he comes to stand beside me and I nod with a small smile on my face.

"Momma, park!" Emily says in her high pitched voice and I roll my eyes.

"Tomorrow." I promise her.

"Why not today?" Aaron asks and I sigh.

"Because I'm tired."

He arches an eyebrow, "From what, sleeping?"

"Naah, I'm pretty sure it was all the weeping." I shoot back a smirk and his face falls.

"She wants to go." Aaron nudges my sides as I start tidying up Emily's room a little.

"Being a mother, I hardly ever get to be selfish with her. And to be honest, I'm not being selfish right now. She has to go to bed in an hour anyway." I explain to him and he stares at me for a second and nods.

"I should get going then." Aaron starts, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly as he steals glances between Emily and I.

"Good luck with that." I roll my eyes and he frowns.

"Huh?"

"If you want to leave, I'll distract her. If she catches you going, she'll start bawling her eyes out." I tell him and a smile takes over his features.

He's forming a bond with Emily that makes butterflies erupt through my stomach when I see them playing together. But on the other hand, it leaves me nauseous with the threat of possible hurt in future. All this time, I told Aaron that I was protecting my daughter by hiding her as a secret, but a part of that was a lie. I know the moment Aaron becomes someone Emily can look upto, both of our worlds' would be open to him at an extreme level. And that puts not only her feelings at a threat, but mine too.

"She loves me that much already?" Aaron gives out a cheeky smile, distracting me from my thoughts.

"Don't feel special. She's like that with everyone. I think when someone's leaving this apartment, she thinks they're leaving permanently and may never come back. That thought can scare anyone, and she's just a child." I shrug and he stares at me.

"Are we still talking about her?" He asks, his voice almost a whisper.

My eyes shoot up to meet his immediately at his response and I look away when I notice the intensity behind his gaze. I clear my throat, hoping to get rid of the heated environment in the room. Eventually, he retracts his eyes from me and looks at Emily. Her doll is dressed and sitting by her side as she has found something else to occupy her little mind. She's trying to put together a puzzle with her brows furrowed together - a sign that she's concentrating hard.

"Now would be a good time to leave." I whisper to Aaron and he nods.

He looks at me, and I know he doesn't want to leave without kissing me or giving me a hug. So, I silently follow him through the bathroom to my room. He reaches for my hand as he stands by my bedroom door and looks at me.

"Are you okay?" He asks, his thumb caressing over my knuckles.

"Yeah. Thank you for spending time with her when I was sleeping." I tell him, meaning it and he gives me a small smile. Ella must have left when she was assured that Aaron was there to look after Emily.

"Your daughter is a beautiful kid. You might as well give me the job of a baby sitter." He says, and for a second I think he's kidding but then I look into his eyes and immediately know that he wouldn't might spending time with her any time I would ask him to.

"I'm going to hold onto that." I say before standing on my toes and pressing a kiss against his lips.

He kisses me again just when I'm about to part and presses his lips against mine for a few seconds longer than usual. "See you tomorrow." He whispers and I nod.

Just as he turns the doorknob and opens the door, Emily comes running into the room. She looks between the two of us and the ajar door and frowns.

"Is Aaron leaving?" She asks, sticking her bottom lip out.

"Uh, yeah-"

Before he can complete his sentence, I elbow him in the stomach, making him wince as I clear my throat. "No baby, he's just going to help me in the kitchen." I say and she straightens her expression a little.

"I help in the kitchen too." She lets out a shriek before running towards the ajar door, pushing it further and going down the hallway to kitchen.

A sigh escapes my lips and I glare at him, "Seriously.. 'Uhh..yeah?'."

"I was taught not to lie to the kids." He glares back and I give him a mischievous smile.

"Who said anything about lying? Let's go make dinner." I tell him with a grin before continuing, "By the way, that means I'll be sprawled on the couch and you'll do the cooking."

He groans dramatically and I make him follow me into the kitchen. Just as we step into the living room, he pinches my ass and I gasp, a very loud audible gasp. He chuckles at my reaction before winking at me.

"Did you just-?" I gape at him.

Emily comes to stand between us as she studies our expressions and I have to shut my jaw.

"Did I just what?" Aaron challenges me, looking between my daughter and I. He knows I wouldn't say a word in front of her.

The thing is, I don't expect such teasing actions from Aaron. He can make goosebumps rise on my skin under his touch but I never thought about or witnessed this playful side of his before. It looks good on him, his young features reflecting as his lips form into a huge grin.

"You're a bad guy, Aaron McCall." I say, a smile forming on my lips and he chuckles again.

"What did he do mommy?" Em looks at me and I shake my head.

"Nothing sweetie, let's make dinner."

Emily forgets about our encounter as she runs back into the kitchen and pulls open drawers and cupboards. I sigh before I realise that my phone is not with me.

"Hey, have you seen my phone?" I ask Aaron who shakes his head.

"It must be in the bedroom. Go see, I'll look that she doesn't hurt herself." He says and I give him a thankful smile.

Don't get me wrong, I'm usually not panicked about gadgets this much. I can go without glancing at my phone whole day as long as Emily is by my side. It's just that I'm expecting a call and it has me anxious just at the thought of it.

When I enter the bedroom, I notice that it's lying on the bed stand. As soon as I grab it, I check if I have any messages or missed a call. There's none.

I keep the phone in my hand as I leave the room. Just as I'm about to enter the living room and make my appearance known to the company in the kitchen, I halt when I overhear a conversation.

"Will you ever lie to me?" My daughter asks Aaron and I frown at her question.

He, however, stays calm as he responds, "Nope, never."

"If I ask you something, will you give me correct answer? I pwamise to give you a star like my teacher does when I do." I hear her say.

"Yes, I promise."

"Pinky promise?"

I don't have to look to know that she must be holding her pinky finger in front of her, waiting for Aaron to seal the deal.

"Pinky promise." He says and I smile to myself.

He's such a dork. But he's my dork. The thought of having someone like Aaron falling in love with me sends me off to feel emotions that I can't decipher myself yet. My heart warms when I realise that even after everything, he chose to stay. The feeling spreads through my chest as I replay the sight of him and Emily laughing.

However, my thoughts and breath are cut short in my throat when I hear what Emily has to ask Aaron.

"Are you my daddy, A?"

...

Sorry for the late update. I was having a hard time completing this chapter after 1500 words. But I made it through somehow.

Thanks for sticking by.

Have a nice day. x.