"I know you're not happy with my decision" Caitlin's shoulders slumped down as a deep sigh escaped her throat while her sister's gaze bore into her soul after the redhead told Erin about giving Jax a chance. She had also told her about the whole kidnapping thing.

Erin felt sorry for Jax, after all, she wasn't an ice-cold person who had no compassion for her fellow human beings, but you could still tell that the older Peters sister wasn't happy about Jax getting to know her nephew.

"No, not exactly" the brunette said explicitly, sinking back into the couch, sighing in defeat. "I understand why you want to give him this opportunity, I really do. But have you ever thought what happens after?"

She looked at her sister with furrowed brows. "What do you think is going to happen next, Erin? He will spend a few days with Abel, get to know him a little and get to see how his life here is like. And then he'll probably fly back home anyway."

"And what if not?" Erin asked. "What if he finds so much joy in spending time with his son that he doesn't leave again?"

"He can't just stay here, he probably has a job too", Caitlin muttered. She had actually been sure of her decision, but now some uncertainty crept in. "And even if he did, he promised that I had nothing to fear, that he wouldn't try to take Abel away from me."

Erin let out another sigh and ran her splayed fingers through her dark, wavy hair. "That's what he's saying now, Caitlin. Do you really think a father whose child has been kidnapped can just leave after he finally has the chance to take his child home? What would you do if it would be the other way around? I sure know you wouldn't leave without your kid."

The brunette paused, chewing on her bottom lip before placing a hand on Caitlin's leg. "I don't want to say he's lying, because I can't know that. And hey, I'm sure he really doesn't mean any harm, that he doesn't want to take Abel away from you. But he hasn't spent any time with him yet. I'm just afraid that he'll immediately feel this bond with Abel again and then won't be able to leave him behind. Then what, sweetie?"

"Thenᅳ" Caitlin sighed as she realized she couldn't find a proper answer to the question. "Then we have to find a solution for that too."

"I really hope this all works out the way you want it to." Erin patted Caitlin's leg supportively. "But I have your back no matter what decisions you make."

"Thanks Erin, I appreciate it", she said sincerely, giving her sister, who was probably just as nervous as she was, a small, insecure smile.

ᚔ

With Abel's hand in hers, she stopped just in front of the park where she had arranged to meet Jax. It was Abel's favorite park here in Belfast simply because it had the biggest playground and today they were even lucky with the usually moody weather.

The sun was shining, it was pleasantly warm and the perfect day for the playground, at least Abel was in familiar surroundings while meeting his father. Out of excitement and nervousness, she almost squeezed Abel's hand a little too hard, who just returned the pressure of her hand and looked up at her.

"Are you scared, mommy?" he asked curiously, but Caitlin swore she heard some worry in his voice and she immediately loosened her grip.

God, she was so lost in thought that she didn't even notice. Apologetically, she looked at her son and shook her head. "No buddy, I'm just a little nervous. I'm sorry if I hurt you."

"You didn't, don't worry, mommy", he assured her, sounding understanding. That's exactly what she loved about Abel, how attentive he was. But it had always been that way. "Is it because of your old friend we're meeting?"

Even when he was just over six months old, Abel always noticed immediately whether someone was restless or calm and this also influenced his mood. For his age, he had a good sense of other people's feelings and was quite empathetic.

"Yes, I just haven't seen him for a long time, you know?", she told the boy, who now smiled and squeezed her hand again.

"You don't have to be nervous, mommy. I'm sure he'll be happy to see you." He tugged on her hand, an encouraging glint in his eyes. "Come on, let's go together."

"Do you know what a great kid you are?" The fact that she was proud of him was almost an understatement. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to be able to call such an amazing child hers. And so as not to keep him waiting any longer, she finally took him to the park and straight to the playground.

The ginger haired woman immediately spotted Jax sitting on a bench a few meters away from all the typical playground moms. She could tell by the way his leg was shaking up and down that he was probably just as nervous as she was.

"Is that him?" Abel pointed at Jax, who turned around when he heard Abel's voice and for a moment he was paralyzed, unable to move or stand up. Hell, he couldn't even take a breath.

His son looked exactly as he had imagined. He still had his blonde hair, which almost shone in the sun, as did his blue eyes. Even some of his facial features were the same as they had been the last time he had seen him. Only now his son was bigger, much bigger.

"Yes, that is him. Come on, let's say hello", she said gently after realizing that Jax wasn't really able to do anything, which was understandable.

Maybe Erin had been right and in a few days Jax wouldn't be able to leave his son behind. She sighed internally, the fear that this could come true increasing. And at the same time she found it incredibly beautiful and emotional to see all the emotions pass by in Jax's eyes.

"Hey!" She tried as best as she could to appear less nervous and put on her best smile. "Abel, this is Jaxᅳ Jax, this is Abel."

"Hi!" Abel beamed at the stranger, unlike usual he wasn't shy when he met new people. He felt like he knew Jax, he just didn't remember where from, but he felt a certain trust and security that he usually only felt with Caitlin, Erin and his grandpa.

And Jax also immediately felt the bond he had with Abel back then after he crouched down to be at eye level with the boy. Even though he hadn't seen him in three years, Abel didn't seem as strange as he expected. Instead, the first encounter with the three and a half year old felt immediately familiar.

"Hey buddy, nice to meet you." Now the blonde had finally found his voice again, which was clearly wavering. Like Caitlin, he couldn't hide his nervousness. To distract some of his nervousness, he reached for the small green gift bag next to him and handed it to Abel. "I brought you a little present, I hope your mom doesn't have a problem with that."

He looked up at the redhead, who just shook her head with a smile. "No of course not. I'm sure he'll like it", she gently pinched Abel's arm. "Don't forget to say thank you, buddy."

Abel giggled as he ran in place, his little feet stomping. It was always a blast for Caitlin to see how excited Abel got when someone gave him a present. Never before had she seen a small kid getting so excited about gifts.

Jax also let out a small laugh, loving to see his son getting all excited. Man, he was already one proud dad and the thought of going back to California without him was unbearable.

"Thank you! Can I open it?", the little boy looked up at his mom before looking back at Jax who was back already on his feet.

"Yeah, sure", Jax assured him, smiling. He would have liked to run a hand over his head or hug his son, but of course he didn't.

"Sit down, buddy." Caitlin gently shoved Abel towards the bench and put her bag down, so did Abel with his gift bag. A gasp slipping past his lips as he soon held a red tractor in his hands.

"Look Mommy, that's so cool!" Excited, he stretched out his arm to hold the tractor out to Caitlin, who could clearly see the excitement in Abel's eyes. "I always wanted a red one!"

"Wow, that tractor really does look cool", the redhead agreed enthusiastically and ruffled Abel's short hair. "You can add it to your collection later."

"You collect tractors?" Jax asked interestedly as he sat down next to Abel, who was now sitting between the two and nodded eagerly.

"And cars and motorcycles! But I like tractors the most. Mommy and auntie Erin took me to a farm once and there were lots of tractors! And there were also animals. Cows, sheep, dogs, chickens and a cat. The farmers even let me help them andᅳ", Abel rattled on, going into excessive detail, his voice dripping with pure excitement as he spoke about the day at the farm, making the adults chuckle.

Jax also noticed that his son didn't have a strong Irish accent like most people here. Caitlin's accent wasn't strong either. You could tell that they both lived in Ireland, and that Caitlin probably even came from here, but the accent wasn't as strong as he had expected.

"He loves farms, he can talk about them for hours," Caitlin explained after Abel finished his little story, shaking her head in amusement after the boy just ran off to play with his new tractor. "Thanks for the present, but you didn't have to buy anything."

"Yeah, I noticed that," Jax said, flashing her a grin. "And I wanted to get him something, I just wasn't sure what he liked. When I saw this I thought it looked cool."

"Nah, you definitely picked the right thing. He'd probably love to have his own real tractor," she chuckled, then she bit the inside of her cheek at the grin he was flashing at her. She couldn't deny that he was a good looking man, definitely her type, too.

"Well, maybe he'll have one day," the blonde smirked, his gaze landing on his son, who played in the sandbox, being surprisingly careful with his new toy. "He's so big. The last time I saw him he was still so..little. And he's so politeᅳ you did a great job raising him."

Her eyes sparkled and her cheeks turned slightly red. The Peters sisters weren't used to getting compliments, they had always been on their own. So, hearing that she did a great job raising her baby was the best compliment he could've given her.

"I'm trying my best. I don't want him to end up being a total prick when he gets older. He's a sweet boy, definitely an empath. I couldn't be prouder." There was so much sincerity in her tone that Jax could tell from that alone what a great role model she must be for Abel.

She radiated calm and warmth, and above all, she seemed to be a positive person, someone who always believed in the good in people and did her best when it came to her child. Basically, Jax really couldn't have asked for a better family for his sonᅳ and it didn't matter that Caitlin was now a single parent. Jax could tell just by his son's demeanor that he had everything he needed, as balanced and happy as he seemed.

Did he really want to ruin this and bring the boy into a world that could destroy all of this? That could traumatize him?

"I can imagine, I'd be proud too", Jax nodded, his eyebrows furrowed as he looked at Abel who was still playing happily. It was a longing look, obvious that he was missing his son.

"Go to him, after all we're here so you can get to know him", Caitlin suggested, who didn't miss Jax's longing look. "I'll stay here, this way you can have some time alone with him."

"Thank you, I appreciate that." He looked gratefully at the redhead, who leaned back and crossed one leg over the other as he stood up. His gaze lingered on her for a moment, once again noticing how pretty she was even though she looked so natural and was hardly wearing any make-up.

He wouldn't mind having her in Charming with Abel and seeing her more oftenᅳ but that was probably wishful thinking. Yet this way both of them could have Abel in their lives.

ᚔ

For the last two hours she hadn't taken her eyes off Abel and Jax once. Not because she thought Jax could run off with her son at any time, but because she wasn't able to look away. Seeing how well the two of them got along, how open Abel was towards Jax and how he wasn't shy in the least, told her that there was definitely still a connection between father and son.

And even though she would never give up Abel, her heart was breaking for Jax, who would have to fly back home without Abel. It had to be an absolutely terrible feeling and if her whole life wasn't here in Ireland and if she would be a little more spontaneous, she'd maybe even consider moving closer to Jax so he could still stay in contact with his son.

She swallowed hard as Abel wrapped his small arms around Jax' neck as he picked him up to place him on top of the jungle gym. What if Abel would get too attached in the little time he had with Jax? Would it hurt him if Jax had to leave? The sight made her realize how much she had always wanted this for her child. A father.

Caitlin could never wait until Abel was old enough to experience little adventures like that with Jim. But that probably wasn't meant to be. Instead, she was now alone with Abel, who was certainly missing a father in his life. Even though she tried everything to fill that void, it wasn't the same.

And as familiar as Jax was with Abel, Abel and Jim never seemed to have that connection. That's why the sight was even more beautiful.

Without paying attention to the time, she sighed and lowered her gaze to look at the delicate gold watch on her wrist and her eyes widened quickly. "Oh shit!"

"Abel, we have to go, I have to go to work!" Since today was Friday, she didn't have to work in the morning but in the afternoon and she was sure that Erin was already anxiously waiting for the two of them at her apartment, where they were supposed to meet half an hour ago already. Checking her phone, she cussed under her breath as she saw the three missed calls from Erin.

As she slung her bag over her shoulders and picked up Abel's gift bag, Jax came towards her with a pouting Abel in his arms, his eyes not brimming with enthusiasm himself. However, he also understood that Caitlin had to leave for work.

"Do we have to go already, mommy?" Abel gave her his best puppy eyes, which Caitlin had already hardened against and only smirked at her son.

"Yeah buddy, we have to go. The puppy eyes don't help either", she let him know and placed a kiss on his forehead after Jax passed him over to her, who had now sunk his hands deep into his pockets.

"Don't give your mom a hard time, buddy. Maybe we can meet here again tomorrow", he suggested, his gaze wandering to the redhead. "Would that be ok for you?"

She had no problem with it, after all, she had agreed to him getting to know Abel. So she nodded. "Yeah, we can do that. I have tomorrow and Sunday off, so we have plenty of time. But he wanted to spend the night at my sister's tomorrow, so maybe we should meet in the morning."

"That's okay with me", Jax said immediately, who had nothing to do here anyway and was ready at any time. "Same time and here again?"

Despite the fact that she was in a hurry, she memorized Jax's facial features and then lifted a corner of her mouth. "That sounds good. See you in the morning then."

"Yay! Playground again!" Abel clapped his hands. "Bye Jax!"

"Bye buddy, I'm looking forward to tomorrow", he called after them, while Caitlin almost stormed out of the park so that she could get to work on time.

ᚔ

authors note; I really enjoy writing this story!! Just wanted to let you guys know that this isn't gonna be a slow burn couple story [I'm not good at that anyway, lol]. They won't become a couple right away, it'll definitely take a while thoughᅳ but they'll get closer pretty soon. Please feel free to leave your thoughts, feedback is always motivating! 🖤🍂