Anna stilled as soon as she felt Colton's thumb caress her hand.
A wave of nostalgia and regrets crashed over her like the ones that slammed against the southern docks. Images of a past life swarmed her thoughts threatening to make her eyes spill. But she wouldn't let herself be weak. Not in front him.
She quickly regained her composure and gripped his hand in hers tightly. Without even meeting his gaze. It would weaken her resolve.
Using her free hand, she started to slide his casted leg closer to the edge of the bed. Making Colton slowly give in to her silent demand with an internal sigh. Shifting his body, he started to sit at the edge to move into the chair. The movement made his abdomen seriously hurt causing a wince to almost escape his lips. His wounds were still tender. Even so, he ignored the stabbing sensation for a few more seconds as he used his good leg and Anna's support to lower himself down in to the wheelchair.
The pain was still there, but nothing was going to keep him from finally having a normal moment with all of his girls. Not after almost dying. He knew there would be other moments, but there was nothing better than the present. A motto he was quickly adapting to after his conversation with Claire.
They made their way to the living area where Claire and Lily were finishing with placing everything on the coffee table. As soon as Lily noticed the door open, she turned around to see what it was that Anna went to get. Once her eyes landed on Colton's smiling face, her own face lit up like a Christmas tree.
Without a second thought, she dashed towards him, stopping right in front of him. She knew she couldn't hug him, as she could clearly see the bandages wrapped around his waist, so she went around his good side and hugged his arm.
"What's up Kiddo?" Colton said as he chuckled. Her reaction alone was worth his struggle to get out of bed.
'How come you're here?! Isn't Mr.Doctor supposed to take care of you?!' Lily's eyes showed both excitement and concern.
"He said it was best if I recovered at home. Something about it being better for me." He said as Anna positioned him near the table filled with food.
"Good morning." Claire said as she placed a bowl of mixed chopped fruits on the table. She didn't even comment on the fact that he was still shirtless. Colton would always get hot easily so it didn't faze her in the least.
What did however, was the blush Anna was currently sporting while hiding from him by standing behind his chair. She inwardly smirked.
'My brother works fast huh?' She thought to herself.
"I thought my meds had knocked me out or made me hallucinate." Colton started to say as he eyed the basket of muffins on the table. "But apparently I'm just living the dream."
"Seeing as it was a special occasion, I thought I'd do a little extra this morning." Claire said as she pushed one of the lounge chairs closer to Colton. Since she was petite and Lily was small, they both fit perfectly in it. They wanted to be as close to him as possible. Something Colton was very much in agreement with.
"Well it's for sure special now. I haven't eaten one of your muffins in forever." Colton said as Anna sat facing him on the couch. Her face now graced with her usual composed expression.
"Then dig in. Eat them while they're still nice and warm." She replied as she placed a napkin on Lily's lap.
They all enjoyed their breakfast with gusto. Nice chatter accompanied the meal as they had a genuinely good time. Claire had made quit the spread. There were bagels with cream cheese, fresh fruits, scrambled eggs, crisp bacon, different kinds of home made jams and of course, her cinnamon and pecan muffins that had everybody practically begging for seconds.
But even though the girls were all smiles and laughter, Colton was taking in the scene before him with great detail. Although happy about being there, alive and spending time with the loves of his life, he was also a bit lost in thought. Being so painfully aware of how things would start to change regardless of how much any of them avoided talking about it, had him feeling conflicted.
Between the chain of events the attack on them had started, his new found determination to make things shift in his relationship with Anna and Aiden's appearance in Claire's life, change was something Colton was certain he couldn't prevent from happening. And he wasn't sure how he felt about it yet.
It had been him, Ben and his girls for years now. Even before Lily was born, his life had been one that moved along the shadows. Unseen, untouched and unknown by not only his enemies, but all of society in general. He had always been clear about the possibilities of the future bringing change, as the future was always uncertain no matter what a person hoped or planned for, but he was still reluctant to simply accept things wouldn't be the same. It felt like losing control. Something nobody with so much to lose liked feeling.
'Uncle?' Lily signed to him after snapping him out of his daze with a small tug at his finger tips. 'Are you okay? Does it hurt somewhere?'
Colton's eyes soften as he reached towards her and patted her head. She was without a doubt Claire's clone. They didn't skip a beat to call him out on the things they caught him doing. It was border line scary how they could read him. He was good at it too, but they were on a level of their own.
"I'm fine Kiddo. Just thinking about how I need to quickly get better. I really want to play with Miss Clemson." He said with a sly smile that made Anna choke on her orange juice. Claire's eyes widened as she held back her laughter.
'With Auntie Anna?' Lily innocently asked not realizing she was the only one out of their loop.
"Yes. She said I could only play with her once I got better." His voice sounded dejected which made Lily want to find a solution for it.
'Auntie Anna, you have to be nice and play with uncle okay?' Lily said to Anna who was desperately trying to regain her composure after being utterly shocked by Colton's subliminal message. 'He's hurt and Mommy always says that happiness helps those who are hurt. Playing with him will help him get better.'
Claire was proud of Lily who was standing up for Colton, but couldn't find how to face Anna without bursting into laughter. She hid her face behind her mug as her friend turned as red as a tomato on the sofa.
"Thanks Kiddo." Colton said with a wolf like smirk on his face. He was obviously enjoying teasing Anna. "I'm sure she'll play with me now that you explained it's importance to her." Lily smiled up at him satisfied with herself after being able to help.
Just as Anna was about to say something, the front door opened. Ben walked inside and slightly bowed in their direction. "Good morning." Reading the mood, he noticed his sudden appearance paused whatever they were talking about. Closing the door behind him, he excused himself. "I'm sorry. Did I interrupt?"
"Yes!" Anna practically yelled as she shot up out of her seat. "Thank you very much Ben." She huffed as she picked up her plate and marched over to the kitchen to start cleaning up.
Colton and Claire looked at Ben's confused face and then glanced at each other. Not being able to hold it back any longer, they both burst out in laughter.
All in all, it truly was a good morning.