Author Notes: I wanted this chapter to focus on Peter and Mali and their thoughts on the misunderstanding that Emma has about their relationship. As I said in the previous chapter, I consider Peter and Mali to be good people who made a mistake. You can argue that Peter and, to a lesser instant, Mali were both selfish and thoughtless towards Emma because they are both focused on their new marriage rather than helping Emma deal with their new marriage. I wanted to acknowledge that they did cause this problem because the video just swept it under the rug that they caused this misunderstanding with Emma. I thought it was sweet that it was a misunderstanding, and all three of them forgave each other, and they were going to be a real family. But I wanted it to be acknowledged that they made a mistake in my story, but I also wanted to show that they are sympathetic, that they recognize what they did was wrong and want to fix the mistake, and that they do really care about Emma and want to be a family with her. I really hope you like my portrayal of these characters and their likability despite the mistakes they made because they learn from their mistakes and try to fix them.


After a long day, there was nothing quite like getting into bed with a good book. For Peter, today was no different. After putting on a clean pair of pajamas, he climbed into bed and returned to the bookmarked page that he'd reached last time. His short, greying hair was messy and still slightly damp from where he had washed it recently.

Peter could still hear the constant watery gush of the shower as Mali finished up in there, and once the water stopped, he heard the glass door slide open as she stepped out.

When Mali came back into the bedroom, her hair was covered up with a towel, and she was wrapped up warm in a soft bathrobe. She smiled gently at her husband and sat at her dresser, where she carefully unwound the towel from her hair. She threw the wet hair towel onto the radiator and turned on her blow dryer.

Peter continued to read for a while but couldn't help but glance up at Mali. Her long dark hair looked shiny and gorgeous as she shook it around under the hot air stream of the drier. She really was very beautiful to him; her pretty, rosy face was reflected in the dresser mirror. Eyes closed pensively, she was focused on her task. Her walnut-brown skin was flushed slightly pink from the heat of the shower she'd just had. She always looked beautiful no matter what she was doing.

For a moment, Peter contemplated how lucky he was to have such a lovely woman in his life, especially after his first marriage had ended so tragically. Finding love again and seeing her by chance while on vacation was an amazing gift. He finally looked back down to the novel he was reading, returning to the story.

Overhearing the drier turning off, Peter looked back up to see that Mali was shedding her towel robe and hanging it up. She slipped into her nightie, and he smiled at how pretty the pastel-pink garment looked on her. It came about halfway down her thigh; he always thought it made her look like a princess.

Mali turned around and caught him staring at her, cracking a little smile. "Hey, sweetie. I'm coming to bed soon, okay?"

No matter how long they had been together now, Mali still found ways to make his heart jolt with adoration for how amazingly charming and gorgeous she was. Peter smiled right back as she came to lie down next to him, and she gave him a sweet little kiss on the cheek.

"I've been thinking lately, mainly about the issue we had involving Emma." Peter sighed a long breath of regret. "I still can't believe how incredibly out of hand that whole thing got. It turned into something so crazy."

Mali thought about it for a moment. "I'm not actually that surprised. I've been thinking about it a lot, and if I were in her position, I'd probably be driven crazy with confusion, too. I don't blame her for acting a bit drastic; I can't say I wouldn't have done the same."

Mali pulled one of her pillows up against the headboard to support her head as she lay slightly upright, realizing this conversation would require her full attention. It wasn't exactly like she'd fall asleep while talking to her husband, but she wanted to make it clear that she was listening and available. She pulled the comforter over her lap again and folded her hands over the top of it pensively. Underneath the blanket, she wiggled her legs a bit to help warm up.

"I mean, if I had been fooled by miscommunication that my father was being preyed on by some gold-digger, I'd certainly want to protect him as well. Emma can't really help that her way of helping was so misguided since she's only young and had no idea what to do in such a situation other than to freak out. Those things she saw online probably put all kinds of ideas into her head, too."

Peter fiddled with the corner of the book page, debating with himself on whether or not he should keep on reading. This conversation was a bit too serious for him to be able to multitask, though. He was too distracted with his own feelings of regret and guilt that he couldn't feel good about distracting himself with a book.

"It was mostly my fault, I think. I should have been mature about it… This level of poor communication is just plain embarrassing. I need to do better as a father. Normally, I do a lot better. I let myself get swept up in the excitement of getting re-married and being a good husband and forgot to be a good father." Peter admitted sorrowfully.

Of all people, it hurt the most to have behaved in a way that upset his daughter. She was precious to him. The fact that he'd caused her so much strife and anxiety weighed heavy on him. They were extremely close, especially after what had happened to the girl's poor mother. To let her down was one of the most shameful things he felt he could do, especially when it led to her getting so worked up and distressed.

Peter sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between a thumb and forefinger. "Not only did I spring all this on her and bring home a new family member so suddenly, but I didn't pay attention at all to how she was feeling. It's so unlike me to make that kind of mistake."

Mali's hand came to rest on his shoulder, giving it a slight massage with her thumb. Her eyebrows raised a bit at the sight of her husband so upset and ashamed. "Honey, I agree that you should have communicated better; you should have told her we were getting married, told her about our relationship, told her we were decorating… And most of all, you should have listened out for any complaints or issues she might have been having. The thing is, I feel like I'm a bit guilty in this as well."

"Mali, no… It's really not your fault." Peter insisted. He hated to think his mistakes had brought guilt to the woman he loved.

Mali shook her head adamantly. "No, no. There are things I could have done to help. I could have noticed these problems and brought them up with you. I could have talked to Emma about whether or not she wanted to help cook and what she might want for dinner. I could have asked for her opinion about the furniture in the house… Before I came here, she was the 'woman of the house' in some ways. I didn't think at all about how I might be, well, displacing her from that position."

"I never thought of it that way, Mali… But I think I understand what you mean." He nodded slowly. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right. She was the 'woman of the house,' and bringing in somebody new probably felt like she had to compete with you."

"For sure - not only for control over her home but for her own father's attention, in a way," Mali suggested. "Well, I'd certainly feel jealousy in her situation anyway. It's a possibility. Maybe if we'd bonded with each other from the start, somehow it wouldn't have gotten so bad. I was too nervous to try and talk to her, but I shouldn't have been."

Mali's husband cracked a little smile as her hand rubbing circles into his shoulder started to relax him and ease his emotional pain. It was nice having somebody to share his life within this particular way again, not just somebody to be romantic with, but also somebody he could talk to about his more embarrassing feelings. He could speak to Emma about things, sure, but sometimes it was hard to since she was much younger and couldn't always understand. In this case, she was the subject of his feelings too.

"However, you should remember that what's done is done," Mali assured him. "In a way, the outcome isn't that bad - we're kind of lucky."

"You think so? How are we lucky when things got so bad?" Peter asked.

Mali thought for a moment about how she could explain this. English wasn't her first language, so she sometimes needed to hesitate.

"Well, this um… miscommunication has put a 'wall' between Emma and us. It was only for a while, but we were separated from her emotionally. Now that the situation is finally resolved, we finally managed to talk this thing out. It also could have ended much worse - what if she'd gone ahead with her more desperate measures? That would have led to a far more stressful outcome. That 'wall' is gone now. We've finally broken the ice and gotten to understand each other. Sure, it was rough at first, but we made up for it and are fixing it. I think the fact you were able to take responsibility and feel guilt shows that you're a very good father."

Peter felt a lot of warmth in her words. She'd called him a very good father, and as far as he was concerned, that was one of the best compliments a man could receive. "You think so?"

"Of course. You two have been together through thick and thin. Your love is so strong." Mali tousled his hair, earning a little chuckle from him. "We can finally get over this hurdle and start being a functioning family. I'm going to do my best to be as good of a stepmother as you are of a father."

"And you know, I also want to apologize for getting the worst possible idea when I heard about you messaging that guy." Peter coyly mentioned.

"Really, that was a hell of an assumption for me to make," Peter said.

"Don't worry. I was a bit annoyed at first, but I totally understand how bad it looked." Mali tilted her head and leaned in to plant a kiss on his forehead. "I explained to him that it was all a misunderstanding and rescheduled the appointment. It'll be fine."

Mali was right. It would all be fine. Things were looking up for all of them, and chances were it would keep getting better. Peter made a mental note for tomorrow to try and talk to Emma about what changes she'd like to see around here first. It was important to get her input so they wouldn't have a repeat of what happened when Mali redecorated. In fact, he'd be communicating with her a lot more from now on, and Mali would, too. From now on, their major mission was to be the best family they could, always looking out for each other and making decisions together about how things would be done. They both agreed on that easily, and Peter gave Mali a tender kiss before leaning over to turn off his bedside lamp with a soft click. Then, in the safe, quiet darkness of their shared bedroom, the two of them slept peacefully that night, optimistic about the future.


Author Notes: I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I really like that Peter and Mali are a happily married couple, and they acknowledge their mistake. I wanted to show how they realized what they did wrong, but as Mali pointed out, things could have been much worse, and bow that the air had been cleared with Emma, the wall between them is gone, and they could work on fixing their relationship with her. I also wanted to show how Peter loves his wife and daughter, realizes the mistake he made, and fixes it to fix it show that he is a good father despite his mistake. I also want to acknowledge that Mali was just as guilty of this misunderstanding because she could have talked with Emma, but she was too nervous to try and talk to her. But again, Mali maturely admits her mistake and is determined to fix it and make a mother/daughter relationship with Emma.

I really hope you enjoy this chapter.