*this chapter is a flashback leading up to the phone call with her and Aris in order to gain better understanding of her position in their relationship. Enjoy!*

"Cam, close your eyes, okay?" I sighed, attempting to get my son asleep.

Fortunately, I was able to put Rose down fairly quick since she had woken up early, but Cameron on the other hand was up late this morning.

"Momma, I don't want to close my eyes. I have too much energy!" He sighed, squirming uncontrollably under his blanket.

I peered over at his Spiderman clock which read 9:42 p.m. It was beyond his bedtime, and frankly, I was ready for some alone time.

"How about I tell you a story?" I offered with a warm smile.

"Okay," He obliged, "can you put daddy in it? Oh, and Bears!" He exclaimed, pointing towards his beloved stuffed bear.

I laughed, "Sure." I repositioned myself in preparation for the story, "Once upon a time, there was a girl named-"

"Christina!" Cameron interjected.

"Okay, Christina. Daddy was taking a long walk in the mysterious green forest when all of a sudden, he heard a loud noise erupt from the distance. He slowly turned around, eyeing everything that came into sight. His breathing grew heavier as he spun in circles. Suddenly, BOOM, a gigantic fluffy bear appeared right in front of him!"

Cameron laughed uproariously, "Christina was on the bear! Like a horsey."

I kindly accepted his input, "on top of the bear was Christina. She was beautiful and daddy had fallen in love with the mysterious girl instantly. Then, she hopped off of the bear and ran up to daddy and gave him a hug. The end."

"You can't end a story like that!" He critiqued, confusion and disappointment written on his face.

"Well, it's getting kind of late, bud," I muttered.

"If I think of Daddy before I go to sleep, I will be okay," He sighed with a smile.

My heart fluttered when he said that. If only Aris knew how frequently Cameron mentioned him. No matter what he was doing, he made it obligatory to include his dad some way or another. All of his sentences he made in school were based upon their adventures and discoveries; Seeing all of them was bitter sweet.

    "Goodnight, I love you." I whispered, planting a kiss on his forehead.

    "I love you too, Momma," He replied, followed by a yawn.

    I slowly crept away from his bed, hoping to not ruin the tranquil moment.

     Smiling, I closed the door and tip-toed over to Rose's room, which was only a few feet away from Cameron's. I subtly opened the door to see Rose peacefully resting in her crib. She looked serene, which brought a smile to my face.

    Then reality hit me; she was my daughter. Still, it had not occurred to me that I was a mother. Despite the fact that I have been nannying them for a while, I still did not feel that motherly connection that one usually has. Removing my gaze, I strolled out of the room, a peculiar feeling usurping me. Meanwhile, I pulled out my phone from my pocket, several texts and Facebook notifications filled the screen. I exhaled, attempting to release all of the stress I had built up inside of me.

      I grabbed the TV remote and pulled up Netflix. I was eager to finish watching Pretty Little Liars soon, so then my friends and I could finally discuss the show. I yanked a hair tie off my wrist, trying to ignore the prominent red circle that was left behind. I swiftly pulled my hair up into a low messy bun; wisps dangling around my face. As I felt myself slowly gain relaxation, I closed my eyes, listening to the dialogue of the show.

     Suddenly, the door bell rang. I whipped my head towards the clock on the mantle.

    Who would be here at 10:00 at night?

    Reluctantly, I pushed the blanket off of me and paused the show. I could not help but to feel the slightest bit of uncertainty, so I grasped onto my pocket knife, which I always kept on me. After all, it was fairly late at night.

    I unlocked the door and opened it slowly, mentally preparing myself for what could potentially happen. To my surprise, there was no glass breaking or ear-piercing scream; Instead, Kyle Jordan stood nonchalantly in front of the door, a smile reaching his ears. Feeling completely dumbfounded,  I lost grip of my pocket knife which instantly plummeted to the ground.

      The door was fogging up in result of the frigid air, but I was still able to make out Kyle's face. The way his cornflower blue eyes sparkled as he smiled and the tilt of his head were such prevalent features that could be recognized miles away. Then, I was struck by reality once again.

   Kyle found me. He found the house I am in. Oh my God, he does not know about the kids. I hope they don't wake up, oh God...

    I pulled myself from my trance and looked over at Kyle who was shivering because of the cold. He lifted a finger and pointed at the handle. Knowing what he wanted, I hesitantly opened the door, ignoring the gust of cold air that followed.

   "Jesus, I thought you were just going to leave me-"

    "How did you know I live here?" I interjected, folding my arms over my chest.

      I burrowed my brows and looked deep into his gorgeous eyes.

   He laughed uncomfortably, "I never un-added you on Snapchat, so I was able to see your location still."

     "I cannot believe I didn't realize I had my location on," I sighed, rubbing my forehead in circular motions.

     "Well, this is a nice house, damn," He complimented in an attempt to shift the conversation.

     I followed his gaze as he scanned the office space, family room, and the stairs.

     "Quit changing the subject," I demanded, "look, I need you get out of my house now. You know what you did to me and you sure as heck do not belong in here."

     He swallowed, "I know you miss me."

    I was taken aback by what he said, and I could not seem to deny it either. I did miss him, but the things he did to me told me otherwise.

     "You can't be here," I stated, anger surging through my veins.

     "Just let me talk to you for just one minute, just one!" He pleaded, desperation in his eyes.

     "Fine," I obliged.

     I took him to the family room absentmindedly without remembering that Cameron and Rose's toys were scattered among the floor.

     "What's with all the kids toys?"

    "Oh, um, my nieces are spending the night," I blurted.

    Kyle raised an eyebrow, "I thought you were an only child."

    "No, I have an older sister, she is almost twenty seven years old. She is going on a vacation to Mexico with her husband, so I was asked to watch their daughters."

     "Ah, I see," He nodded in understanding.

     "So, um, you can sit here I guess." I offered, pulling out a chair for him, "are you thirsty at all? I have water, soda . . . wine."

     "I'll have some soda, if you don't mind," He answered, running a hand through luscious blonde hair.

     I poured him a cup of soda and handed it to him. Then, I sat down, bracing myself for the conversation.

     "How long has it been since we have seen each other? A year or two?"

    "Kyle, I haven't seen you since our sophomore year of high school."

      "Oh, yes, that's right. It's, um, times been flying."

      "Definitely, especially when you have two of your own, uh,  kids to watch." I could feel my cheeks heating up, "I mean they are not my own, but I think of them as my kids. Got to treat every kid like your own, right?"

     Really great recovery Mikayla, really great.

     Kyle nodded, still seeming unsure about what I had said.

    "Look, I miss you. . ." He started.

     I bit my lower lip, as though I was unsure of what to say. Kyle caught on to the act quickly.

     "Are you taken or something?"

     "No," I retorted, nearly cutting off his sentence.

     Kyle sat back in his chair, clearly he was quite surprised by my reaction.

    "Good, so I was thinking we could mend some old wounds and get it on," He proclaimed, his classic smile completely seducing me.

     "Alright," I nodded, excepting his offer.

   We talked for a good hour. Throughout our deep conversations, I had drank way too much wine and it was nearly 11:30 at night. We were on the couch, watching some sitcom, his arm was wrapped around my body. I had not felt so protected and loved in so long. It was like a drug.

  Without any warning, he leaned in and pecked me directly on the lips.

"Woah, woah, woah. Hold your horses!" I laughed, "What even was that?"

    "Uh, a kiss?" He responded with a hint of laughter.

     "You can do much better than that." I responded, leaning my head against his muscular arm.

    "Hmm," He pondered over my statement, "alright."

     I leaned in and he did too, our lips touching. My adrenaline was flowing throughout my body as he kissed me, my heart nearly reaching my throat. I was filled with an immense amount of joy as we kissed. I pulled my arm out from underneath my back and began to unbutton is shirt. We both were eager, we could feel our emotions vibrating off of each other like a drum. After I finished unbuttoning, he slid off the shirt, revealing his abs. My God, I could write a ten page poem about them. 

    It had only been a few minutes, and I was beginning to feel uncomfortable.

    "Kyle" I said in between kisses, "Kyle."

    "What, babe? Just let me kiss you," He responded, leaning in for another kiss.

     I put a hand against his chest and as firmly as possible I responded, "No."

     Kyle looked more offended than I thought he would be, which made me feel bad for ruining the moment.

     "We were just perfectly fine and now-"

     "Now I want to be done."

  "What-wait, is this because of your ex or something?" Kyle inquired, offering me a mean stare.

    "Look, it's late, I'm tired, and I just can't. I need you to leave." I put in, trying to imply I had completely lost interest.

     "Whatever," He answered, quickly putting his shirt back on.

       I leapt off the couch, hoping to create more tension. I just wanted him to leave. He was too handsome and I could not keep him here; I know that if I did let him stay, things would escalate fast.

    As I turned around, I was able to catch a glimpse of him sliding out the door, slamming it behind him.

  I could not help but to feel a bit of regret, although I was cognizant that I had made the right choice.

    Doing the right thing always seems to be difficult.

~

It had been close to a day since Kyle came over, and thinking about it made me cringe. I could not bring myself to call Aris and admit my mistake, but then again, we really were not even in a serious relationship. Now was the perfect time to call him since Cameron was coloring and Rose was down for her afternoon nap.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed, making my heart leap. I joyfully slipped over to the counter to check who the caller was.

Aris.

I quickly pressed answer, my breathing becoming more rapid.

That is when he revealed to me that he made out with some girl named Reese who goes to the same college as he does. He told me how she informed him of some disappointing information, and she was so sad so he kissed her. He claimed that he felt it was right to tell me since we did have quite a strong relationship. After all, we had kids of our own. Hearing him tell his story, gave me the confidence to tell mine, so I did.

"So, since we are talking about this, there is something I need to tell you too." I mumbled.

     "What would that be?"

      "Remember Kyle Jordan?" I asked, "star hockey player, captain of the soccer team. . ." I attempted to jog his memory.

     "Yeah, I remember who that is."

     I could tell by the tone of his voice that he was not pleased to hear his name.

    "Well, he came over last night and I may have drank way too much wine and then we made out, I let him take it in before continuing, "I was smart enough to put a stop to it before we got to carried away. I was just succumbed by his presence and appearance."

     "Do you like him?" He asked.

     "Honestly, I don't really know." I groaned, " A part of me wants to say I do, but I practically kicked him out of the house last night. Something did not feel right."

     "We both made mistakes, and we both learned from them." Aris concluded, " Just know I'm always here for you and I am counting on you to be there for me too."

     I smiled, but didn't respond.

   "Just remember we have each other before conducting certain actions. Call me when you make up your mind." He stated.

     "I will."

    "Oh, and just so you know, I don't think I will talk with Reese for a while. At least until this is all cleared up."

      "Okay," I answered, feeling a sense of relief, "Bye, Aris."

     "Bye, Mikayla."

~

   AN// Surprised you guys with a new chapter!!!  Thought I would post since after all, I am thankful for all of my readers! THANK YOU SO MUCH for sticking with this book. I cannot believe how far it has gone. I hope to conclude it sometime in 2019, but we will see where Mikayla and Aris lead us.
Let me know what you guys thought of this chapter!

~SDS :)