Huge thanks to everyone who took time to review the last chapter or send me a PM, I really appreciate all your kind words. Best Wishes Mx

'Are you hungry?' I ask Hannah as we descend the stairs.

'No I'm ok thanks.' Hannah replies.

'I think we'll check out the kitchen first anyway and see what's in the fridge.' I say and kiss her cheek.

'Will you kiss me properly, on the lips?' Hannah asks.

'No. We've taken too many risks already.' I say.

'Risks in what?' Mia asks as she follows behind us on the stairs.

'None of your business Mia.' I mutter sullenly.

'Matt!' Hannah exclaims 'Don't be rude.'

'Sorry.' I say.

'Don't worry but it's not like you to take risks in anything.' Mia says.

'I know.' I say and look at Hannah before whispering in her ear 'That's your fault.' Hannah blushes.

'Oooh private moment.' Mia says and I just stare at her.

'No Mia. Ok so we've kissed a few times and we shouldn't have done in case Hannah gets glandular fever.' I say. 'Don't tell mom.'

'What will you pay me to keep quiet?' Mia asks. I freeze. 'Matt, jokes. How many times have I said that to you over the years when I didn't know you had money? Just cos you have some now doesn't change how I'm going to be with you. I'm still going to speak to you and joke with you how I've always done so don't take it literally. When you were younger and you wanted something keeping quiet you used to do my math homework for me as payment or you let me paint your nails.'

'You can do my toes tomorrow.' I say and grin at her.

'I'll hold you to that, right lets go to the kitchen. I'm ready for dessert now.' Mia says with a smile.

'Race you.' I say and letting go of Hannah's hand I set off towards the kitchen. I can hear both girls giggling behind me as they follow. I've already got the fridge door open as they enter the kitchen.

'Wow Matt, this is an impressive kitchen. It's huge.' Hannah says. I shrug at her, I hadn't really thought about the size when I was in here earlier. Mia comes over to the fridge to look inside with me.

'Dessert.' Mia says as she takes out an apple pie. 'Do you both want some?'

'No thanks.' Hannah says. I nod and open the freezer.

'Ice cream?' I ask Mia and she nods back at me. 'Oh they have Molly's here as well.' I say as I see the cartons lined up on the shelves.

'Matt, we brought that with us. Christian bought that for you because he was worried you wouldn't eat.' Mia says.

'But there's ten cartons.' I say.

'One for each day.' Mia states.

'Well we might as well have the first one now.' I say.

'Will you really eat a full carton?' Hannah asks.

'No, Mia will have a scoop and you can have some if you want and I'll finish the rest.' I say as I take one carton out and then go to find the bowls.

'OK, I'll have a scoop and a small piece of pie.' Hannah says.

'Do you want wine or beer?' I ask as I take a bottle of beer from the fridge for myself.

'Wine.' Hannah and Mia say together and start giggling again. I roll my eyes at them and Mia hits my arm playfully.

'Good job Christians not here, he hates it when you roll your eyes at him.' Mia says.

'I know, that's why I do it.' I mutter and she grins at me. 'I suppose I'd better call him soon.'

'You don't have to. You can remain in the happy bubble here and not know what's going on in the outside world.' Mia says and hugs me.

'That's a good idea but he'll worry.' I say.

'He'll be fine.' Mia says.

'Christian is never fine, he'll be stressing out.' I say and Mia cuts up the pie and I scoop the ice cream. Taking the bowls, wine and beer we head back out onto the terrace. 'Shall we head to the loungers?'

'Yes.' Mia says and Hannah follows us.

'Come and sit with me on this double one Hannah, Mia can have the other one.' I say. 'You're quiet baby, are you OK?'

'Yes I'm fine, just a bit overwhelmed by everything.' Hannah says quietly.

'Please don't be. I just want you to be comfortable and happy.' I say as I pull her close and kiss her cheek. 'I can't wait to go to bed with you.' I whisper in her ear and she smiles shyly whilst blushing.

'Dessert.' Mia says interrupting us as she hands us our bowls.

'Thanks Mia.' I say and start to eat. 'I've got a hospital appointment tomorrow morning to get my stitches out so I don't know if you two want to do something together.'

'Do you want me to come with you?' Hannah asks.

'No, I'll be fine. I'm not sure how long it will take as Dr Richards is doing some tests as well. I'll get Sawyer to take me but the other security could take you to the mall if you want to go.' I say.

'I don't mind.' Hannah says.

'Let's check out the stores then.' Mia says. 'Matt hates shopping so it's the perfect opportunity to go whilst he's busy. Do you guys have any other plans for the week?' Mia asks.

'Surfing from Friday for me but I'd quite like to go to the zoo.' I say and this time Mia rolls her eyes. I smile at her. 'I'd also like to walk to the top of Diamond Head but it will probably be best to wait till autumn break with Elliot and Christian.'

'I'd like to come to the zoo as well.' Hannah says. 'What about you Mia?'

'I don't mind but I don't want to be in the way.' Mia says.

'Mia you won't be, you're very welcome to come.' Hannah says generously. Mia smiles and looks at me.

'Honestly Mia we don't mind, you can come with us.' I say as I finish my dessert and start drinking my beer straight from the bottle.

'Thanks I might. I haven't done anything like going to the zoo for years. It might be fun.' Mia says.

'You might enjoy it.' I say as I stand and collect the bowls. 'Would either of you like anything else, I'm going to get another beer.'

'I'm fine thanks.' Mia says and raises her eyebrows questionably.

'I'm allowed a couple.' I say and look at Hannah.

'I'm OK as well Matt thanks.' Hannah says so I head off to the kitchen alone. My phone vibrates and I take a look. It's Christian, as I expected it would be.

'Hope you've spent the rest of the evening 'feeling good'. Mom is home now if you need to call her.'

I help myself to another beer from the fridge and sit on a bar stool at the kitchen counter. I hit speed dial on the phone and Christian answers straight away like I knew he would.

'Hi little bro.' Christian says.

'Hi.' I say almost shyly. 'Has Mia been telling you everything?'

'Feeling good.' He says.

'Yes.' I say quietly.

'I had called her to talk to her and heard you playing and singing in the background. You sounded good.' Christian says.

'Thanks.' I say.

'Have you explored the house yet?' Christian asks.

'No, we've only got as far as jumping in the pool and sitting on the terrace. I'm in the kitchen now.' I say as I swig my beer.

'Did Hannah join in at the pool?' he asks.

'Yes but I didn't realise she couldn't swim very well. I'm going to teach her this week.' I say.

'I told her to tell you but she knew it was a big part of your life and didn't want you to think any less of her.' He says.

'You knew, why didn't she tell me? What else hasn't she told me?' I ask.

'Probably nothing. Stop getting worked up. Do you want to know about the press release?' he asks.

'I'm not sure. Mia said not to phone but just remain in my happy bubble but I know people have been texting both girls.' I say.

'I'll email you a copy but you didn't even make the front page. Mom took that away from you with the emergency at the hospital. I think they'll probably only be interest amongst your school friends and Mia's friends.' He says.

'They're not my friends, I don't have many.' I mutter.

'You're worse than me.' He says and I can tell he's smiling.

'I'm going to call Jonty later but I don't think I need to speak to anyone else from school.' I say.

'Well he's used to having money but not as much as you'll have. Did you know that the house his parents own in Hawaii is about a five minute drive from yours?' he asks.

'No, I didn't have a clue about anything Christian. You know I'm in my own world most of the time and don't take notice.' I say.

'I know.' He says and then asks 'Is Hannah OK?'

'Overwhelmed.' I mutter.

'That's not too bad then.' He says.

'I'm taking her to the zoo.' I say and he bursts out laughing. 'What's so funny?'

'You are Matt. We're having this conversation about Hannah and then you chip in that you're taking her to the zoo as if she's an animal and you're going to leave her there.' He says and even I start laughing.

'I didn't mean it like that, even Mia said she might come with us and she hasn't done anything like that for years.' I say.

'Make sure you take them to see the gorillas.' He says teasingly.

'No.' I say with a shudder. 'That's the only thing we won't see, if they want to I'll make an excuse that I have to go to the bathroom whilst they go.'

'I can't believe you're still scared of them.' He says.

'It's the way they look at you.' I mutter and he laughs again.

'I'm glad you're happy and laughing. Ana has had a positive effect on you.' I say.

'Hmmm, she's driving me insane though at the moment with security.' He mutters.

'You just have to learn control.' I say and once again he is laughing loudly.

'What do you know about control little bro?' he asks whilst he's still laughing.

'Well I know that Hannah does what I tell her so I must have some control over her.' I say.

'That's because she's overwhelmed at the moment, wait a few weeks and when you're back at school and she's with all her friends we'll see how much control you have.' He says.

'Do you think we'll have problems?' I say worriedly. 'Shit Christian I hadn't really thought about that, I'm usually on my own at school but she has a big group of friends, I don't want to stop her seeing them but I don't want to hang out with them. I think I'll keep my distance at school.' I go to the fridge and get out another beer.

'Matt, calm down and stop worrying about things that haven't happened yet.' He says gently. 'Why don't you call mom before it gets too late?'

'Maybe. I might call her tomorrow.' I say and gulp.

'Matt. Call her. The sooner you do it the easier it will be. You're both missing each other.' He says with compassion.

'I feel OK at the moment but as soon as I hear her voice I know I'll crumble and want to be at home with her.' I say.

'You might surprise yourself. Call her and then go and find the girls. You'll be happy again then. Before I go how many beers have you had?' he asks. How does he have this habit of making me feel guilty even from so far away.

'I've just opened my third.' I mutter cautiously.

'Be sensible. I'm not going to lecture you because you're in your own house but remember when you're out in public…' Christian starts.

'I know, don't worry, this will be my last tonight and I won't drink in public. I will be careful Christian, I'm terrified of making a mistake and it being in the papers for everyone to see. If a journalist turned up here tomorrow I wouldn't be drinking at all, I just feel relaxed at the moment though.' I say.

'Good, let's hope you stay relaxed. I want you to be happy.' He says.

'I am happy. While you're in a good mood please can I have Ana's mobile number and email address?' I ask.

'Why?' He asks cautiously.

'Because I want to talk to her about wedding music. It doesn't matter if you'd rather I didn't.' I say. 'I don't want to make you jealous that's why I asked you rather than just getting the number from Mia or Hannah.'

'Thanks little bro, I really appreciate that. I'll text them to you and I'll probably speak to you tomorrow.' He says and clicks off so I'm left staring at the phone. He never gives anyone chance to say goodbye. I climb down from the stool and walking past the terrace see that Mia and Hannah are chatting and giggling away so I leave them to it and collapse on the sofa in the living room before calling mom.

'Darling boy, are you OK?' mom asks straight away on answering.

'I'm good mom.' I say but breathe deeply on hearing her voice. I gulp and then say. 'I was good mom but then I heard your voice and I want to be at home.'

'Darling, don't get upset. I'm finding it difficult as well but it will get easier as the week goes on and you'll be too busy. I've just spoken to Mia and she said you're going to the zoo and surfing.'

'Yes we are. Mom did you know that Mrs Richards was friends with daddy? They went to school together.' I say.

'Yes darling.' Mom says.

'And did you know they dated each other, what happened to make them split up?' I ask.

'I knew they dated but I don't know why they split up. I only met your daddy when he started going out with your mommy, I didn't ask him about his previous girlfriends.' Mom says. 'Why are you so interested?'

'Mom, they were at school together for fourteen years and they dated. It's like me and Hannah but they split up.' I say quietly.

'And you're worrying history is going to repeat itself.' Mom says.

'Yes.' I whisper.

'Oh Matt darling, don't worry. You're both so much in love with each other.' Mom says.

'I know mom but what if they were.' I say. 'I'm going to speak with Mrs Richards tomorrow, perhaps she'll tell me more.'

'In the meantime, don't worry. Are you going to the hospital tomorrow?' mom asks.

'Yes mom, mid-morning. The girls are going shopping whilst I'm there because they know I'm not keen on it.' I say.

'I'll phone you in the afternoon then to find out how you are. I've got a shift at the hospital in the morning and later in the evening we're going to dinner with Christian and Ana.' Mom says.

'Oh, he didn't say. I've just spoken to him.' I say.

'Did he tell you about the press release?' she asks.

'Only that I didn't make the front page because of your hospital emergency. I said I didn't want to know the details because I'm in a happy bubble at the moment, Mia thinks I should stay in it for a few days and not think about the outside world.' I tell her.

'That's a good idea. Get yourself settled there and when you're ready switch on the computer and read the news in your own time. Have you explored the house yet?' she asks.

'No mom, Christian asked that as well. Is it important?' I ask.

'No, do that when you're ready as well. I think you'll be surprised by what's there.' She says.

'Tell me.' I say with a smile 'Please mom, I love you.'

'Go and look round I'm not going to tell you.' She says.

'Mom' I plead.

'No.' she says.

'OK, I'm getting up off the sofa and starting to look around.' I say as I walk into the hallway and open a door. That must have been daddy's study, next is a library with a pool table. 'Mom, I have my own balls room like Christian's. ' I say with surprise.

'I know, do you like it?' she asks.

'Yes. I can't wait to get Christian, Elliot and dad here.' I say as I continue walking. 'Wow there's a family room with a huge tv.'

''Yes, all the board games are in the cupboard at the side of the room.' She says.

'Thanks mom, I knew there would be some.' I say as I walk into the next room. 'Did mommy have an office here as well?'

'Yes, I think there should be photo albums and early videos of you there if you feel up to looking.' Mom says gently. I gulp.

'Maybe soon.' I say. I'm now passing through a dining room and another family room with a conservatory attached. 'OK mom, I've done all of the downstairs and there's only bedrooms upstairs.'

'Where are you standing now?' she asks.

'In the conservatory.' I say.

'OK, walk out of the door and down the path from there. Go through the arch of flowers.' She says.

'Mom, it's beautiful. The garden looks lovely.' I say totally stunned at how beautiful the garden looks.

'Oh I forgot how good it was but that wasn't what I wanted you to see. There's a summer house on your left walk past it and then carry on down the path.' She says and I'm curious as to where she's leading me.

'Mom, I'm at the door of a building and I need a code to get in.' I say, totally puzzled by this brick building.

'Your date of birth.' Is all mom says. I key it in and then open the door and enter. 'Are you in yet? Mom asks. I nod. 'Matt, talk to me.'

'Mom, I'm shocked. I have my own recording studio here.' I say.

'Well you have one in Seattle and London as well. I think they're more up to date. Matt, your daddy was a very good songwriter, people would pay an awful lot of money for one of his songs but he only ever wrote them in Hawaii. There's probably a few albums worth of songs either in that studio or in his study there. No-one knows about that studio but people know that there were songs somewhere but couldn't find them at the offices here in Seattle or in London. If you find them put them somewhere safe darling until you decide whether you want to do something with them.' Mom says and I'm nearly in tears.

'Ok mom.' I say. I make my way out of the studio and double check that the door has shut properly behind me. 'I need a hug mom.'

'Go and find the girls.' She says gently.

'I can't mom, they'll know I've been crying.' I say.

'It won't matter, they'll give you the hug that you need.' Mom says. 'Please darling, I'll feel better once I know you'll find them.'

'OK, I'll go and find them. I'll speak to you tomorrow. I love you mom.' I say.

'I love you too darling boy.' She says and hangs up. I make my way back through the garden and then the house. Hannah and Mia are still on the loungers on the terrace. Mia looks at her phone and immediately looks up to see me. She stands and envelopes me in a hug. I hug her back.

'Did mom just text you?' I ask.

'Yes, she said you needed a hug.' Mia says as she hugs me again. 'OK, little bro.'

'I'll be fine thanks Mia.' I say. I make my way to the other lounger and sitting down pull Hannah into a hug.

'Do you want another beer?' Mia asks before she sits down.

'No, I've already had three. I promised Christian I wouldn't have any more.' I say.

'Like you always do as he says.' Mia says.

'I do now Mia.' I say. 'I know where the board games are.' I add to change the subject. I shift and move Hannah between my legs so her back is on my chest. I wrap my hands round her middle and kiss the back of her head. 'I love you baby.' I whisper . I can tell she's smiling as she strokes my knee with her right hand. She turns her head slightly and I kiss her cheek this time.

'Do you want to play something?' Hannah asks.

'With you yes' I whisper into her ear. She blushes. 'Monopoly.' I announce. Mia groans and Hannah smiles.

'Matt, if we play will you promise not to tip the board up if you're losing?' Mia says.

'I never do that.' I mutter.

'Oh you do, I can think of at least once per holiday when you've got into a strop and accidently on purpose flipped the board over and stormed out because you don't like losing.' Mia states.

'Maybe we'll play scrabble then.' I say .' Come on, I'll show you the tv room where the games are, we can play on the coffee table in there.' I stand and take Hannah's hand and Mia follows us.

'I can't believe you would strop and tip the board game up.' Hannah says smirking at me.

'They never let me win.' I say. 'I was so much younger than them and they still wouldn't let me win.'

'Poor baby bro.' Mia says. 'You'll probably get your own back on us now and win everything.'

'Definitely.' I say grinning at her. 'Including pool, I even have my own balls room so we can play this week.'

'Really.' Hannah says surprised.

'Yes, I didn't know it was here.' I say.

'I think your daddy and dad played it but they didn't take you in there. I think they wanted some peace and quiet after spending all day watching you throwing yourself in the pool all day.' Mia says.

'I sound like a nightmare.' I mutter.

'You were just into everything but you were very amusing and kept everyone entertained.' Mia says generously as we enter the TV room.

'Another cool room.' Hannah says. I go to the cupboard for the scrabble set as Mia and Hannah make themselves comfy on the sofa.

'I'll sit on the floor then shall I?' I say but I'm smiling.

'There's no need, either pull that chair round or what about that bean bag.' Mia says as I look across the room. 'I think you used to lie on that watching tv but it's a huge one.'

'Beanbag it is then.' I say with a smirk. 'Shall I score?' I ask as I take out the pencil and paper.

'Yes.' Both girls say together and burst into a fit of giggles again. I roll my eyes but am pleased that they're both smiling.

'Before we start did you call your mom Hannah?' I ask.

'Yes, I did it when Mia spoke to your mom. She's good and is looking forward to us going for dinner when we return.' Hannah says.

'That's good. OK, let's pick our letters and let the battle commence.' I say and they both giggle again.