"Will ye gang tae the heilands Leezie Lindsay? Will ye gang tae the heilands wi me?" Aaron started to sing, strumming the chords to the song beneath his voice. Erin had sent him the link to this song, saying that she wanted to learn something different, but to his knowing mind, he thought that there might be another meaning to this song than what she was telling him.
"She wants you to ask her to live with you."
He looked up to see Jessica in the doorway, her hips slightly canted as a playful smile darted across her face. "And you would know this how?"
"I have eyes. Which is why I asked Jack to go out and take a walk with her. She needs to get to know him better, too. And you guys need the space to be intimate, since I know that it's a bit awkward to try anything here."
He didn't think it possible, but he felt his cheeks heat up in a deep flush as he continued to try and learn the song before he had to teach it to Erin. "I don't know how Jack would react to that."
"He and Erin get along quite well. They've been interacting a lot after school when you're away on cases. I didn't expect it, since she's been skittish around me, as if she thinks I judge her for falling in love with you. I wish you could tell her that I don't give a flying fuck who she loves. I just want her to have her family back. Dave is the asshole here."
Aaron laughed lowly as he stopped playing, setting the guitar aside and patting the seat next to him. Jessica took a seat and looked at him expectantly. "I agree, but I haven't really broached the subject with him. We're just starting to test the boundaries of our friendship again."
"That's kinda cowardly, Aaron. Aren't you willing to risk losing that friendship so that Erin can see her children?"
He nodded as he looked down at his guitar. "I don't know how to approach him without it causing an issue at work. I want to punch him, to yell at him, to tie him up and allow Erin to break into the house and hug her children tightly. As a lawyer, I know that that's not how it works. I just don't want to jeopardize her future ability to see them."
Jessica tilted her head a little as her brows knit together with concern. "You can't allow this to paralyze you, Aaron. I know that you care deeply for both of them, but you love Erin, beyond measure. Right?"
Aaron sighed. "I do. So, you really think I should ask her to live with me?"
"Yes. And once she's in a stable place at your house, you can begin to fight for custody of Bella and Katrina. And you will have the support of Penelope and me."
"And Alex." Jessica arched an eyebrow. "I encouraged her to reach out to Alex, since she needed more friends to talk to. It's lonely when you only have two or three people you can talk to, besides your adult children."
She nodded sympathetically as the back door slammed open. "Looks like Jack's done playing."
"Erin has to be getting quite the workout," he said lowly as he listened to one set of footfalls pound up the stairs, knowing that Jack was heading to his room here at Jessica's.
"I am." He turned and looked at Erin, taking in the way she was breathing heavily, her face practically glowing with happiness as she came over to them, sitting casually on his lap and looping an arm around his neck. "But, it's keeping me young and in shape."
Aaron turned his face and nuzzled his nose against her cheek before wrapping his free arm around her waist. "But I like the shape you have very much."
"Aaron. We're in front of your sister. Be good." He nodded and rested his head on her arm as they sighed in tandem. "I'm sorry, this is how our lessons usually start out."
"There's nothing to be sorry for, you two are adorable." She smiled at them before getting off the couch and heading out of the living room. "Have a good lesson!"
"I really like Jessica."
"I'm glad. She seems to like having you around, too. But maybe for not much longer."
Erin stiffened in his arms, and Aaron set aside his guitar so that he could hold onto her better. "Are you asking me to leave here?" Her words were low, and full of hurt, and he tugged her closer to him, holding on when she tried to wriggle away.
"I am asking you to consider living with me. Jess and I were talking, and she raised a few very valid points. It's hard to spend time with you when you're here, and I'm at my house with Jack. And I want to spend time with you."
"Oh," she said, turning slightly so that she could look at him. "Do you really want me with you?"
"Yes. You belong by my side, forever."
"But what about Jessica? If I'm with you, then Jack can stay home all the time, and that's not fair to her."
"We'll come up with a solution for that, I promise. But I need you in my life, all the time, and if you have a permanent home, with your lover, you have a better case for getting custody of Katrina and Isabella. And I'll be able to do things like this." He skimmed his hands up beneath her blouse to cup her breasts, letting his thumbs worry the lace of her bra across her nipples in order to stiffen them into tight little peaks. A throaty moan tumbled from her lips, and Aaron captured her lips in a torrid kiss as he pressed her back against the sofa, covering her body with his as he continued the kiss and slipped his hand beneath her bra to touch her soft skin.
"All right, I'll move in with you," she breathlessly said as she gently pushed at his chest. "But we can't finish this here. Jack or Jessica could walk in at any moment."
Aaron nodded as he sat up slowly, pulling her up with him. "I have missed this."
"I have, too, darling." Her eyes darted away at the usage of the endearment, which made him chuckle lowly as he cupped her face with his hands, leaning in to kiss her forehead sweetly. "There is something that I would like to ask you."
"What is it, Erin?"
"When he asks me for a divorce, and a proper amount of time has passed, you might want to ask me something, since that is your upbringing. I don't want that. Will you not marry me?"
She was still looking away from him, as if she was afraid of his reaction, and he let his thumb graze against her cheek until she finally turned her eyes to his. "I will take you however you want, Erin. And if you want to live in sin with me for the rest of your life, I'll take that. If you change your mind and decided that a third time is the charm for you, I'll take that, too. For some reason, you fit into a hole in my life that I didn't know existed until a few months ago."
The first tears began to fill her eyes, and he used his thumbs to brush underneath them gently, wiping the tears away before they could completely fall. "And you brought me a happiness and light that had been missing from my life for months and months. My children brought me a different sort of happiness, yes, but this intimacy, this love, was gone and I didn't think I'd ever get it back."
Aaron nodded and hugged her close, feeling her head come to rest on his chest, right where his heart lay. "This is going to sound completely ridiculous, but rather than finish our lesson, would you like to go out and get food for us, with me? I find myself famished, and I think it was from all the running around we did earlier."
"We could head out for Indian. Jack mentioned that he liked it a few weeks ago, which surprised me, since he hadn't had it before."
She shrugged a little and gave him a guilty smile. "I wanted tandoori chicken, and Jack agreed to try some. I mean, he likes Chinese and Italian cuisine well enough, so it was beyond time to introduce a new flavor profile into his life."
"And now you sound like Penelope," he teased, chucking her chin gently as she laughed. "It suits you." Leaning in, he kissed her gently, knowing that they couldn't afford to let things get out of hand once again that afternoon. "All right, let's head out."
They stood, and Erin plastered herself to his side as they made their way out of the living room and down the hall. "That was a short lesson!" Jessica called out from upstairs.
"Jack ran Erin out of energy. We're going to pick up Indian food, and then come back and eat. When that's finished, we'll play for you two."
"Sounds good!"
He smiled at Erin, and she grinned in return. Aaron knew that their moving in together wouldn't solve all her problems, but he had a good feeling that this would be the start of things finally going right for both of them. And he knew that there would be people to support them on their journey forward together.