Until Then (Cornerstone Book 2) (35 page)

Michelle and Sean disappeared into the guest room to discuss the sleeping arrangements.

“If Ashley doesn’t mind, she and I can sleep in the bed,” Michelle suggested as she walked into the room.

Sean clicked the door closed behind them.

She raised an eyebrow at him as he approached. “Or maybe you’d rather I take the couch.”

He shook his head and slid his arms around her waist, his hands flat against her back, pulling her closer.

“You and Aaron could take the bed, and Ashley could sleep on the air mattress.” She gave a little chuckle at that.

“Oh, she’d love that.” He was cute when he was sarcastic.

She moved her hands over his shoulders, up the back of his neck, and lost her fingers in his dark, wavy hair.

“Or we could just kick the kids out of the room altogether,” he teased.

She felt the full meaning of his words.
Oh boy, he was going to be difficult to resist.

He slid his hands up her back, burying them in her hair, as his lips met hers.

When he kissed her like this, she knew without a doubt that he was the only man she wanted to kiss for the rest of her life.

His hands slid down her back again and gripped the back of her shirt as he kissed her deeply.

She returned the kiss with just as much passion, until her phone suddenly rang.

Sean groaned against her mouth.

She placed a finger against his lips. “Hold that thought,” she breathed.

He kissed her finger.

She retrieved her phone from her purse, but didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?”

A small, soft voice spoke on the other end of the line. “Is this Michelle?”

“It is.”

There was no response.

“May I ask who’s calling?”

The girl cleared her throat. “This is Ava.”

Ava? My sister, Ava?

“Ava? Is everything OK?”

Once again, silence.

“Hello? Can you hear me? Did the call get dropped?”

“I can hear you,” Ava replied.

“Are you all right?”

“Can I come to Michigan to see you?”

“Ava, I’m not in Michigan right now. I’m visiting my mom in the city.”

“That’s perfect!” The level of Ava’s voice raised. “I’ll be in the city tomorrow. Can I meet you somewhere?”

“You’re coming to the city? With Dad?” Michelle did not want to see him.

“No. With my mom.”

Michelle had never met Ava’s mom, Betsy. She wasn’t sure she wanted to meet her now. Sean came up behind her just then and rested his hands on her waist, and it gave her strength. “All right. We’re going to the aquarium in the morning. Could you meet at Millennium Park after lunch? Say two o’clock?”

“Yeah. I’ll be there.”

Something in her sister’s voice sounded shaky and uncertain. “Are you sure you’re OK, Ava?”

“I will be when I see you.”

When they hung up, she turned to Sean with a look of confusion on her face.

“What was that all about?” he asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. “I guess I’m gonna see my little sister tomorrow for the second time ever.”

“How old is she now?”

Michelle thought about it for a minute. “I think she’s twelve.” She was shaking a little.

“Hey,” Sean took her in his arms. “Are you OK?”

Michelle moved to sit on the bed. “You know, I was always so mad at my dad for getting a new family and for never letting me be part of Ava’s life, but I never made an effort to know her. I didn’t even try. And I never really stopped to think about how that must have made her feel. I just couldn’t bring myself to reach out to her. It never occurred to me that one day she might want to reach out to me.”

Sean sat close to her and wrapped his arm around behind her, resting his hand on her waist.

She leaned into his side.

“Your sister’s growing up, and she’s starting to make decisions about her own life now. If she wants you to be a part of it, then that’s a huge blessing. For both of you.”

“You’re right.” She turned and took his face in her hands and kissed him softly. “Thank you.”

“
Mmm
. You are more than welcome.”

With sticky humidity, rain, and thunderstorms off and on, it wasn’t the best day to wander about the city. It was, however, the perfect day for a visit to Shedd Aquarium.

“I should’ve invited Ava to come along with us this morning.” Michelle regretted not asking, but everything had happened so quickly that it hadn’t crossed her mind until they hung up.

“Who’s Ava?” Ashley looked at her curiously.

“Oh,” Michelle glanced her way. “Ava’s my little sister.”

“I didn’t know you had a sister.”

“I do. She’s my half sister. And she’s close to your age, actually.”

Ashley perked up a little at this. “Do I get to meet her?”

Michelle nodded. “We’re meeting her after lunch.”

Aaron tugged Ashley’s arm and led her to some brightly colored fish that he was enamored by.

Sean’s fingers threaded through Michelle’s. “I haven’t been here since Ashley was five and Aaron was just a baby.”

“I was probably five the last time I was here. We went with school, I think.” She could barely remember that day.

Michelle watched as Aaron and Ashley caught up with her mom and Marv to see what they were looking at. She was surprised when Mom said they wanted to join them on this outing. She had never done anything like this with her mom — not when she was a child, not when she was a teenager. Louise doted on Aaron and Ashley, as if they were part of the family, and Michelle got a glimpse of how it might be if she ever gave her mother a grandchild.

This thought made her glance over at Sean, who was also watching the kids. He really was a handsome man, and she imagined the adorable brown-haired, blue-eyed babies they would have together. Or maybe they would have brown eyes like her. No doubt they would be tall, maybe basketball players. She smiled to herself. Her thoughts were taking her to places she had never visited before, and she liked it.

She let go of Sean’s hand and wound her arms around his waist, leaning into him as they walked. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple.

“Can we see the dolphins now?” Aaron cried.

Michelle chuckled at his enthusiasm.

“Of course,” Sean replied, and off they went.

On their way out the aquarium doors, Michelle thought she heard someone call her name.

A young girl with the same brown eyes as hers and a thin nose like their dad’s scurried up the steps. Her dark, chestnut hair was dripping wet from the drizzle.

Ava.

“You’re Michelle, right?” She nervously tucked a loose hair behind her ear. In her grip was a damp, folded piece of paper with Michelle’s Facebook profile picture printed on it. It was sad that her own sister had to look her up online to see what she looked like now.

“Hi, Ava.”

Ava sighed with relief and gave her big sister an awkward hug.

Michelle squeezed her extra tight and held on longer than a casual hug would be, but Ava didn’t seem to mind.

Sean held the umbrella over their heads to keep them dry.

When they let go, Michelle glanced at her watch. “We were supposed to meet at Millennium Park. Where’s your mom?”

“She couldn’t come,” Ava answered. “She told me to go ahead on my own.”

“Your mom let you come into the city alone?” Michelle found this a little peculiar. Not that she didn’t wander all over the city when she was Ava’s age, but as far as she knew, Ava had never lived in the city.

“I took the train.”

“You took the train from Naperville? Have you taken the train by yourself before?”

“All the time.”

Michelle didn’t know whether to believe her or not, but she was there. She was safe. How she got there didn’t matter.

“This is my mom, Louise, and her boyfriend, Marv. And this is my boyfriend, Sean, and his kids, Ashley and Aaron.”

Ava looked uncomfortable. “I didn’t know you were here with a bunch of people. I’m sorry to interrupt your trip.”

“It’s all right. I’m happy to see you.”

Ava’s face lit up. “So am I.”

The group traveled by taxi to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. The wind whipped between the buildings causing the vehicle to sway. Rain came down in sheets, and they could barely see out the windows. Lightning flashed immediately followed by a loud clap of thunder, and the younger girls both screamed at the same time.

Everyone got a good laugh at that, and the girls began chattering and instantly bonded as girls their age often do.

The conversation over lunch was light. The adults talked about the weather. What else? Ashley and Ava were fast friends, and they spent lunch showing each other photos, games, and apps on their phones. Aaron couldn’t stop talking about the dolphins and his other favorite, the frogs.

After lunch, they all headed back to the apartment.

The kids settled in the living room with games, television, and their phones.

Michelle stood in the doorway to the kitchen. “Ava, do you have to head home soon? I thought maybe we could talk before we get you to the train.”

Her sister looked over at her. “Oh, I don’t have to be back tonight. Mom said if it was OK with you, I could stay here.”

Michelle glanced over her shoulder at her mother, who had been listening from her seat at the table.

“It’s fine with me,” Louise said.

“OK, that’s fine. Call your mom and let her know we’d like you to spend the day with us tomorrow. We can take you to the train on our way home.”

Ava smiled at her. “OK. Thanks.”

A little past midnight, Michelle heard the apartment phone ringing in the other room, then shuffling of feet from Mom and Marv’s room.

“Hello?” Marv’s voice was groggy from sleep. “Who? Yeah, she’s here.” There was a pause. “What? She did no such thing. Your daughter’s safe in our apartment. You have nothing to worry about.” His voice was louder and more firm.

Michelle climbed from the bed, careful not to wake the girls, and walked into the dark living room. “Marv?” she whispered. “What’s going on?”

“Well, you’re gonna have to take that up with her.” Marv looked grumpy.

Louise joined them and clicked on the table lamp. “Who is it?”

Marv shoved the phone in her direction. “It’s your ex-husband.” He marched back to the bedroom and shut the door.

“What’s going on, Robert?” She looked over at Michelle with concern as she listened. “Ava’s here. She’s sleeping right now, but she’s fine.”

“What’s he saying?” Michelle whispered.

“Michelle did not plan this. It was all Ava’s doing.”

Michelle got a nervous feeling then, and she knew that Ava was there without permission. She had taken the train to Chicago, to her, without anyone knowing.
Oh, Ava.

“No, we are not gonna wake her right now. We will get her home safely tomorrow.”

Michelle could hear her dad yelling on the other end. His go-to reaction to everything.

“That’s completely idiotic. Let her sleep. She’s not going anywhere.” Another long pause while Louise listened to her overreacting ex. “Fine. I’ll tell her.” She pulled the phone away from her ear suddenly.