"What time did Molly say that she was going to come over?"
Erin looked up at him from over the top of her book and gave him a small look of desperation. "She was supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago. The fact that she's late shouldn't worry me, since she was never the best at time management, but since we're telling her about Georgia today, I guess that I'm just a little on edge?"
Aaron nodded as he got to his feet. "I'll go check outside for her car and then bring you back a fresh glass of water. Would you like anything else?"
"This is going to sound so silly, but would you please bring me the stuffed cat that Penelope insisted on buying for me on our outing? I just want something soft to cuddle before dealing with my youngest daughter."
He gave her a small smile and nod before leaving the room. Aaron decided that he would stop first in their bedroom to grab what Erin wanted, since her comfort was most important to him, above anything else. Once the floppy plush cat was in his hands, he went back down to the kitchen and dumped some ice in a glass before filling it with water. He had just turned the tap off when he happened to glance outside, seeing that Molly was just pulling into the drive. Fighting the urge to roll his eyes, he brought his wife the water and toy before going to the front door and opening it, waiting for Molly to join him.
"Hello, Aaron," she said stiffly, though he supposed that was better than the anger that normally filled her voice whenever they got together. He wished that they could reach an impasse, but had the distinct feeling that today's news would drive an even larger wedge between them. "Why did Mom insist on this meeting?"
"You'll see in a few minutes, Molly. Would you like me to get you anything before we join her in the living room? I could get you water or soda?"
"I think that I'll be fine, thank you." Aaron nodded before gesturing towards the living room. Molly gave him a tight nod as she rolled her eyes and stalked past him. There was something crackling in the air that he wanted to help avoid, but he knew that he had to let everything play out, since they needed to have everything out in the open, rather than hide it until the last moment.
He gave Erin an encouraging smile before taking a seat next to her. It didn't surprise him to see that she had clutched the stuffed cat to her chest as she warily watched Molly take a seat in the rocking chair across from the sofa. "So, your new husband wouldn't spill any details of why you invited me over here today, and I can tell by the way you're clutching that stupid cat that I'm not going to like whatever it is that you have to say. Is it about the baby?"
The vitriol in her voice took Aaron aback, since he had hoped that she was thawing a little bit in regards to the baby and their marriage. Reaching out, he slipped his hand into the crook of Erin's elbow and waited for her to take the lead, knowing that she knew her daughter best. "In a way, yes. As I've written on our weekly family emails, this pregnancy has moved from the normal range of high risk to something where I have to be very careful about what I do. Currently, I'm on limited bedrest, in that I can make short outings…."
"Yeah, yeah, you wrote all about that last week. And maybe you'll have to be on real bedrest and not go anywhere. That's old news. What's the new news?"
Erin took a deep breath as she pressed the stuffed cat tight to her chest, and Aaron wished that there was a proper way to let her know that he was there to support her fully. But the look on Molly's face told him that any interruption from him would not be taken well. "I don't want to impose quite so much on Jessica, since she has her own life, despite what she says about it being no issue that she works from home and takes care of me when I'm having a particularly rough day. So, we've come up with a solution that will help us out, and allow me to grow a little closer to my eldest child."
"What?" It was eerie how much Molly sounded like her mother in that one word, and he narrowed his eyes at the young woman a little as she went to open her mouth to speak once more. "Georgia's going to help take care of you?"
"That's what we thought best. She's graduated from her Master's program, and doesn't have any job prospects, so while I finish out this pregnancy, hopefully to term, she's going to move in and look after me, especially when I'm not doing the best."
Molly frowned deeply before turning her face to focus on Aaron. "And I suppose that this was your idea, Aaron?"
"Yes," he stated simply, giving her as placid a look as he could in return. "I felt like it truly was the best way to make certain your mother was well taken care of when I'm away at work, or heading out into the field when the team needs me to travel with them."
"That's such bullshit! Why would you ask someone who doesn't even know Mom to look after her at a time like this? Especially when I'm still here, in this city, and could do the same damn thing!" She whipped her head around to glare at Erin once more, and he flinched a little at the venom in that gaze. "Mom! Why would you fucking do this to me? I would have been a great caretaker!"
Erin sucked in a low breath as she scooted closer to Aaron, and he slipped his arm around her shoulders to make her a little more comfortable as she cleared her throat. "I know that you think you would have been great taking care of me, darling, but I know that you have your own life, that you're still taking classes, and have a job that you're juggling as well." Molly went to protest when Erin held up her hand. "Before you say anything more, please know that I want you here, too, but you've never chosen to just show up at our door and visit me, us. I always have to call and arrange a time because your schedule is so busy. And I'm glad for that, in a way, because that means I've done my job well and you're growing so independent. You're becoming the adult that I've always known you could be. But Georgia, she's going to need time finding a career in her chosen field, or writing the next great American novel. And we can provide that for her. Just think, you can get to know your older sister better, too."
"I don't want to know her! She's ruined everything, just like he has! We were fine as a family before he fucked everything up and brought Georgia into our lives. I can tolerate Jack, I'll tolerate this baby, but there is no way that I'll allow this to stand!"
"Molly," he said, drawing her focus once more, and this time he did not back down from her glare, instead giving her a stern look in return as he took a deep breath. "You're upsetting your mother, you've made her cry. The decision has been made and Georgia will be moving in here next week. I would say that you need to get used to the idea, but I don't think that that will ever truly happen. Just know that we will never turn you away from our home, and that you're welcome here, so long as you do not upset your mother. We need to get as close to forty weeks in this pregnancy as we can, since every week before that is a greater risk of the baby dying."
Molly's face lost a little color at that, and he knew that his words had managed to break through the angry front that she was presenting. "Molls, please. I want you to be part of this pregnancy, but I don't want to burden you when you're just finding your wings to fly in this world. I know that this has upset you…"
"That's the understatement of the century, Mom. I'm going to leave before I upset you more. Maybe I'll be back soon, when it's just the two of us, and we can talk without outside influencers trying to steer the conversation in the way that he wants it to go."
Molly rose to her feet and strode from the room, throwing another glare his way before leaving, and then she was gone from the room. A few seconds later, they listened to the door slam with enough force to rattle the pictures on the living room wall, and as soon as that happened, Erin burst into sobs, clutching the cat even tighter as she turned into Aaron. He instinctively wrapped her into a protective embrace as he stroked her hair, soothing her as much as he possibly could. He allowed her to cry for five minutes before gently pushing her away from his chest and reaching up to brush away the tears that were still streaming down her cheeks.
"What? Why are you pushing me away?"
"Because I wanted to look into your beautiful eyes, Erin. And I need you to listen to me now. I know that Molly hurt you, she upset me as well, but you can't let her get beneath your skin like this. It's not good for your blood pressure, which is not good for the baby. It's my job to take care of you, and make certain that you're going to be all right, and I don't think that you are right now. I can call Jessica and have her bring Jack home early?"
"I don't want him to see me like this, because it upsets him, and I want him to have a happy weekend. If she was free, I'd ask you to bring Alex over, since she's also good at calming my heart. But she's out on a case, and that means that Penelope's tied up as well, and so I have you. My love. I don't want to make it sound as if I don't like the fact that I have to rely just on you, because that is the farthest thing from the truth, I just want to surround myself with the people I love most."
"I understand, darling. I wish that I could do more to make you feel better. But I will call Penelope and have her contact Alex, and when they're back from the case, they'll stop by here and have supper with you. It will be an evening just for the four of you, Jessica included, and Jack and I will head out to let you have that time to bond."
"Oh, Aaron, I love you so much." She leaned in and kissed him soundly before pulling away to smile at him through her tears. "I want to head outside for a little while. Please?" He nodded as he helped her to her feet, knowing that while things had not ended in the way that she'd wanted them, at least they were still in it together.