The Trouble with Family 4/4

Timothy carried the bags to the dining room table where Mia and Caleb helped him set out food. Mia went into the luxurious kitchen the suite was equipped with and got plates and utensils before going back for glasses. Mia returned to the kitchen a third time to grab a couple bottles of wine, a corkscrew, and a container of juice for the children. Timothy got Ginger seated at the table.

"Sage, dinner time!" Mia called her son.

"I'm not hungry." Sage called back.

"Right now, little man." Mia snapped, brooking no argument. Tim and Caleb looked at each other smirking. Mia raised an unamused eyebrow at them. Sage came huffing into the dining room.

"Drop the attitude, Sage. I am not in the mood." Mia told her son blandly, setting the boy in his seat.

Timothy sat at the head of the table with Mia and Caleb to his right and left. Ginger sat beside her mother. Mia sat Sage beside Caleb explaining to the two men that the boy couldn't stand how messy his sister could be and it had often caused fights at the table. For meals they were better off having some separation. For the next couple of minutes Mia placed food on the twins' plates and filled their juice. The twins bickered with each other over what dishes were best and who could eat the most good-naturedly.

Tim watched as these events unfolded around him in awe. This was his life now. These people were his family. His throat felt strangely raw and his eyes suddenly full of grit.

Caleb suddenly clapped his friend on the shoulder, "breathe man, here, have some wine."

Timothy took a deep breath thanking his friend with a quick nod and took the glass that Caleb offered to him. Caleb handed a glass to Mia, and she responded with thanks as well before glancing up at Tim.

Mia squeezed Timothy's hand understanding that this was a major moment for him because it was for her as well. This was their first true family moment. A simple meal together on a Sunday evening. Timothy included Caleb in this as well because he knew without a doubt that if Caleb hadn't helped him, Tim would not be sitting here tonight with his wife and children around him.

Sage ate meticulously once again reminding Mia of Timothy. Ginger was making a mess with her rice but mostly getting her meal into her mouth. Mia sometimes had a tough time believing how opposite the two children were but was thankful that their differences didn't stop them from being close. The two children continued their snarky banter for a while, but Sage went quiet after he saw Mr. Barrett clasp and then kiss his mother's hand.

Sage finally became too uncomfortable to stay quiet when Mr. Barrett leaned in close to his mother and said something causing her to smile at him in a nice way.

"Mom, why is Mr. Barrett in our hotel with us? Isn't this inappropriate? Do you want him to ruin your reputation?" Sage asked, feeling truly worried for his mom.

Ginger looked at her brother with annoyance. Caleb choked on his wine. Mia's mouth fell open in shock while Timothy turned dark unreadable eyes on his son. Mia sputtered for a second before draining the wine in her glass. Mia took the time to refill it trying to think of what to tell her son.

"Sage, honey, I know you don't understand but you just need to trust that it is fine that Timothy is here, and my reputation won't be damaged." Mia finally told her son.

"But the internet says you are engaged to Uncle Nick. Uncle Nicholas won't want to marry you if you have a man staying with us." Sage argued. He didn't really understand how grown-up relationships worked but he knew this much to be true.

Timothy cursed and Caleb leaned back in his seat uncomfortable.

Ginger's fork clattered to the table. "Mom, are you going to marry Uncle Nicholas? You promised no more dates."

"Both of you need to listen to me." Mia said quietly, "I am not marrying Nick. That will never happen."

"Then why does it say so everywhere?" Sage asked with true frustration.

"Sage, that is a grown-up matter and a misunderstanding. You don't need to worry about this. There is a good reason that your father is here, and you don't need to worry about that right now either. I appreciate you looking out for me but in this matter, you need to leave it to the adults. I promise that everything will make sense soon and nothing bad will happen to us." Mia explained the best that she could without telling her children the truth.

Sage huffed, "fine." He put his fork down. "May I be excused please?"

Mia sighed, taking a drink of her wine. Sage had eaten most of the food that he had been given. "Yes, you may but wait for us in the living room. We are watching a movie in a minute."

Sage looked at his mother with a scowl, "but I don't want..."

"Enough," Mia told her son. "Go to the living room we will be there in a minute."

After Sage had left the dining room Mia glanced at her daughter. "Why don't you go join your brother. Sweetheart."

Ginger had been worriedly staring at her empty plate. She liked the fact that her father was here with them. "Does Daddy have to leave now? She asked her mother quietly glancing at her father.

"No, bug, he is going to stay." Mia replied.

Ginger smiled happily bouncing down from the chair. "Good." Walking over to Timothy she patted her father on the arm. "Don't be discouraged. Sage will get over it." She sighed dramatically, "eventually." Then she skipped out of the room.

Mia sat back with a sigh and finished her second glass of wine. That definitely felt like a family dinner. Uncomfortable conversations were a staple of every family. Usually they didn't happen with four-year-olds, but it was just her luck to have produced not one but two genius children. Mia looked at Timothy, he had been noticeably quiet through the whole conversation. He was staring into his wine glass appearing lost in thought.

"Tim," Mia asked glancing at Caleb as the man stood and began clearing the dining table of food and dishes. "Are you alright?"

Timothy pulled himself back to the present. "I am fine, Mia. Let's go watch our movie with the twins."

Timothy wasn't fine at all. He was trapped in a sea of regrets. It was a terrible thing to have a son that wanted him gone. The boy had no idea how much his words cut his father. He knew that it wasn't his son's fault and that he had every reason to mistrust Tim, but he wanted it to stop already. He wanted his son to give him a chance to be a father to him.

Did the little boy even know he had just accused Tim of using his mother and having no regard for her reputation as a lady? How could the small boy even understand such things? Did he think his father was such a scoundrel that would willingly destroy Mia's life?

Mia thanked Caleb for clearing the table and told him that she would clean up the kitchen after the movie. Tim still seemed distracted, but she took his hand and together they walked into the living room. They found the twins seated on the floor having what looked to be a serious conversation. The children broke apart when they entered the room.

"Ginger, is everything all right?" Tim asked his daughter. The girl nodded emphatically.

Timothy picked up his daughter and sat down on the sofa with her right beside him. Mia sat down beside Tim, and he put his arm across the sofa behind her. Mia grabbed the remote for the television and beckoned to Sage. After a moment he came to his mother climbing up beside her. Mia started the movie. It was a film about monsters that snuck into children's bedrooms at night to scare them. When a child got stuck in monster land shenanigans ensued.

Ten minutes into the movie Ginger was lying on her father's leg watching the film and five minutes later Sage was in the same position on Mia's side. Tim put his arm around Mia and together the family watched the cartoon. Caleb walked into the living room. Knowing that it would make Timothy happy to have a keepsake of this moment, he snapped a couple of photos and sent the best one to both Tim and Mia.

When the movie ended the children started a heated discussion about what kind of monster would come to each of their rooms. Mia laughed listening to the children talk about what their monsters would look like.

Angela walked into the suite going into the children's rooms to run Ginger a bath. Sage preferred the shower which was convenient because they could both get clean without having to leave either alone in the water since the bathroom had both a bathtub and separate shower. She also picked out their night clothes and clothes for school the next day. After a few minutes she came and collected the children, herding them into the bathroom.

Tim had been running his fingers through Mia's hair absentmindedly but startled when she stood. He followed Mia into the kitchen where she started rinsing the dinner dishes and loading the dishwasher.

"Sweetheart, we have housekeepers that can do this." Tim told Mia, leaning against the counter.

"I don't want them to sit overnight. I don't like the feeling of mornings in a dirty kitchen." Mia said without inflection.

Tim took a washcloth and left the kitchen for the dining room. Mia watched for a moment as Tim cleaned the table before returning to the dishes. Tim came back into the kitchen, rinsed the rag, and wiped down the counters. A couple of minutes later Mia finished the dishes and washed her hands. She thanked Timothy for helping her clean with a quick kiss since the children were unable to walk in on them right now.

When the children were done getting cleaned, Angela got them dressed and put them into their beds. Mia and Tim went to Ginger's room first. Mia tucked her daughter into bed before kissing her cheek.

"I love you, little bug. sleep well." Mia smiled at her daughter before leaving the room. Tim stayed behind to say goodnight to Ginger. Mia walked into Sages room and repeated the sentiments to her son. Timothy came into the room and let Mia know that he wanted to talk to Sage.

Mia frowned, "It's right before bed are you sure it is the right time?

Timothy sighed and grasped his wife's hand. "This needs to be done. Things can't continue this way, Mia. We need to deal with our issues, or they will continue to fester. I want our family to heal and move forward." Mia nodded and told Sage to give his father a chance.

Timothy walked over to his son's bed and took a seat beside the boy. Sage had sat up and had his small arms crossed over his chest. Timothy chuckled internally. This was what he deserved. Having to reason with himself but with the maturity of a small child.

After a couple of excruciating minutes Tim decided on a course of action.

"Sage, if you could ask me any question, what would it be?" Timothy started with.

Sage huffed sitting back slightly to look at his father. "Why did you abandon us?"

This kid goes straight for the throat Tim thought. "I didn't," Tim tried to answer but the boy's scoff cut him off. "Are you going to let me answer you or just make useless noises?" Sage stopped and went silent.

"I didn't abandon your mom. I was told that Mia and her child died four years ago, but even though I was told that I never stopped looking for her and you. I had people searching every day." Timothy explained.

"But you divorced her when she was pregnant." Sage said angrily.

"Sage, that is an exceptionally long and complicated story, but I didn't want the divorce. I only agreed to it because I was trying to save my grandmother's life. Someone told me they could save her if I married them." Timothy sighed thinking how stupid he had been. "It was a lie; it was because of your mother that my grandmother was saved."

"You were mean to mom are you going to tell me that is not true, too?" Sage scowled angrily at Tim.

Tim stood up and began to pace by the bed. "I won't deny it. I was horrible to her, and she was so kind to me. I didn't deserve her then. I was a true jerk but that is not who I am now."

Sage looked at his father unmoved. "Just because you say so doesn't make it true. I won't let you hurt us."

Tim sat back down. "Sage, I will tell you the truth because you are too smart to lie to." Tim ran a hand through his hair. "There is nothing that you can do or say that will make me leave. The three of you are my family and I will not give you up. If you need to be angry with me then go ahead but I am not going anywhere. Eventually you will figure out that I am not the bad man that I used to be."

Sage looked uncomfortable but then rallied. "Uncle Dominic and Uncle Nicholas can get rid of you."

Timothy laughed humorlessly. "No, they can't. I am here to stay. Your mother wants me here and your sister wants me here. You will accept this in time."

Timothy rose to leave but stopped short. "You can ask me anything, any time. Goodnight Sage, get some sleep." Then he left the room shutting the door.