Chapter 291 - Keeley, Do You Like Me?
Aaron turned his head to look at his wife, who was now resting her head against his shoulder as she held their son. She had been turning to him for comfort progressively more over time but he wasn't sure what that meant.
Was she simply playing her role as his wife or did she actually like him, even a little bit? She had just complimented him in a roundabout way. She wanted one of their kids to look like him.
He hoped they looked like her because he loved her…so what was her logic? Just because she found him attractive? She wasn't that shallow.
The curiosity had been eating him alive for a while, especially since she seemed more and more dependent on him as she got further along in the pregnancy. Did she like him or not? Aaron wanted to ask but was afraid to hear her answer.
It was entirely possible she was only depending on him because of all the stress she was experiencing and he happened to be the one who was there for her. She may have felt like she had no one else to rely on.
Hadn't that been how they came to a weird sort of mutual understanding during Cameron's wedding in the first place? She thought that they had to look out for each other because they were the only ones who understood each other's situation.
Aaron had accepted that she wouldn't love him back a long time ago. He just wanted her to stay with him. But what if it was possible that she changed her mind at some point?
He didn't want to get his hopes up but she had been very warm to him lately. She had softened towards him once, was it so impossible that she would do it again?
"Keeley, do you like me?" he blurted.
She yawned and snuggled closer as best she could while still holding Kaleb. "What kind of question is that? I wouldn't have married you if I didn't like you, babies or no babies."
So she misunderstood what he was asking. He didn't mean as a person. Oh, this was so juvenile but if he didn't make it more clear she wouldn't get it.
"I mean like-like me," Aaron said lamely. It sounded even stupider than it had inside his head.
Keeley stiffened. "Is that really necessary? I thought we had a good thing going on here."
"We do, I'm just curious. Because sometimes it kind of seems that way."
She went silent for over a minute. That wasn't a good sign. She was definitely going to tell him off for even asking.
"I like spending time with you and I think you're a good husband but aside from that…I honestly don't know," she said eventually. "I think too much has happened for me to even be sure of my feelings anymore."
Her answer was so unexpected that he unconsciously began holding his breath. Once he could breathe again, Aaron realized that it sounded like she might be wavering. Maybe she really did like him deep down.
"That's okay," he found himself saying.
They had time. Endless amounts of time stretched out before them. If she was feeling like this now after less than a year of marriage she would fall in love with him again eventually, right?
Her confusion gave him more hope than he had a right to have. He didn't deserve to be this happy. He finally had a family; a real one filled with warmth and laughter. It was too good to be true.
Sometimes he wondered when the other shoe was going to drop. Things had been going too well for him lately. Aaron had never exactly been the luckiest person around.
He tried very hard not to think that way but it was difficult after everything that had happened. Keeley wasn't the only one who had been scarred by their first life. Now that he had her back, he was terrified of losing her again.
Though he kept reassuring her he could keep her safe, he really didn't know what to do about Lacy Knighton. Staying at home with the babies when they were too little to be going outside wouldn't be too difficult but what about once they were older?
She was stalking them; she would figure it out eventually. Especially once he told his father the truth and took a hold of the 10% of the promised shares and kicked him out. News would spread like wildfire that Aaron Hale was married with children.
He was still wondering when the best time to do that would be. The next board meeting was in three weeks and that could work but what if it was too soon?
Ideally, he would have the Lacy problem figured out before he revealed the truth. It would be the best way to keep his family safe. Conferring with his dummy shareholders about when the best time to do this might help.
"Is it really okay?" Keeley asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. "All this time it hasn't seemed fair to you. Sometimes I feel pretty guilty about that."
She had absolutely nothing to feel guilty about. Her feelings were conflicted because he had been an idiot in the past. That was on him, not her.
"It isn't a matter of being fair. You have nothing to feel guilty about," Aaron said honestly. "I'm just glad you're here."
She would never be able to comprehend how much he had missed her, both when she was dead and when she was afraid of him later on. Having his ray of sunshine back was more than he could have asked for.
"That almost makes me feel worse," she sighed.
Aaron wasn't sure what to tell her at that point. Why would that make her feel worse? She had to know how much he loved her by this point. He told her all the time.
"How many times have I told you that there's nothing to feel bad about? I know what I did. I'm dealing with the consequences of my own dumb decisions. That isn't your problem," he said firmly.
"I don't deserve your devotion."
He leaned his head down to rest on top of hers. "Yes you do. You should have had it all along. Please don't feel bad about this, sweetheart."
She mumbled that she would try before going silent. After a while Aaron realized that she had fallen asleep, her arms still holding up the baby. He kissed her hair.
Someday he would convince her that she didn't need to feel guilty about anything. But in the meantime it seemed like they both still had some healing to do. At least they would be able to focus on doing that together.