My Ex-Stepfather

Chapter 12

"Do you remember Teddy?" I ask and Harry smiles softly.

"Of course."

"Where did you get him? Do you think they still make them?" I press and Harry furrows his brows. "Nissa and Jaxon got rid of the majority of his stuff, he's been sleeping with my old teddy but misses his so I was hoping I could replace it." I explain, his eyes flush with anger and then pain for his son.

"I got it at FAO shwarz, I was just there a few weeks ago shopping for my niece and saw they had brought them back." Harry says before pinching his lips pensively. "We can stop by there really quick on the way back to my place." He adds with a shrug.

"Yes please, that will put a smile on his face." 

Once we had finished lunch, which was extremely tasty by the way, Harry leads me back out to his car and opens the door for me like the gentleman he is. As we got into the ride to the toy store Harry asked me questions about Ariel along the way. What he likes, what he dislikes.

Honestly, I wasn't expecting this. I was hopeful but wasn't expecting him to dive in head first, at the same time he's respecting me

"Do you love Xander?" Harry asks out of the blue taking me by surprise.

"I do." I reply softly and Harry chuckles under his breath.

"Why do I feel a but coming?"

"When we got together I was so set against having children, I didn't want to be a failure like my mother." I reply and Harry sighs as I look down and play with my fingers. "Over the last 9 months I've realized that I may actually want them in the future, like my biological clock kicked in or something. I was hoping Xander would change his mind over time since he's so good with children but when he found out I had full custody of Ariel he completely flipped." I explain further, Harry reaches over and places his hand over mine.

"You are allowed you change your mind Angel and for what it's worth, I think you'd be a good mother. A lot of women you age would of called me the day they left Ariel with you and just left him on my door step but you actually care. It takes a certain emotional intelligence to raise a child you didn't birth, blood or otherwise." He says softly as he pulls up to a red light, he looks over at me and his green eyes are full of emotion and admiration. "You're so lucky you have a father as good as Ezra is." He adds gushing about my father.

"What about your dad Harry?" I ask, wanting to know him more, Harry sighs and runs his hand through his long locks as he accelerates past the now green light.

"My father was an arsehole, left my mum when she was pregnant with me. She never remarried, I had lived with her up until I met your mother. My mum had been diagnosed with breast cancer but never told us until it was too late, she passed right after the divorce." Harry explains with his voice soft, his eyes crestfallen eyes look down the road. "She never got to meet Ariel." He whispers, it was my turn to console him so I place my hand on his surprisingly firm and toned bicep.

"I'm so sorry Harry, If I had known sooner-"

"There was nothing you could do Angel, if you had come to me like this a year ago I wouldn't of been able to handle it." Harry assures me. "Everything happens for a reason, I just hope your mother and Jackhole didn't fuck him up too bad." He adds and I giggle at his attempt to break up the somberness of the ride with a dig at Jaxon.

We soon pull up to the toy store, I open my door before Harry gets to it and he narrows his eyes at me. "Let me open the doors Angel, my mum did raise me right." He says in a stern voice, my voice disappears as I'm left nodding, in shock of the dominance in his voice.

I feel like I should say "yes sir".

I fall back to allow Harry the time to open the door to the store for me. "Thank you." I say softly before walking in. "Holy shit, how have I not known about this place?" I mumble in awe of the massive two story toy filled wonderland, Harry smirks before shrugging.

"Come on, the bears are this way." He says before grabbing my hand and pulling me through the store, his hands are soft but his fingertips slightly calloused as the rough skin of his thumb pad caresses the back of my hand causing shivers to shoot straight to my heart. "There he is." He says as we approach the wall of bears, he releases my hand and grabs a suitable replacement for teddy.

"Smile." I say holding my phone up, Harry furrows his brows at me. "I want to show Ariel that it's friend you and how much you too look alike." I assure him, he nods and smiles a genuine, knee weakening smile as I click away.

"Do you two want me to take a picture of you together?" A store employee offers, I shake my hear no as Harry says yes.

"You should show Ariel that I'm ok, I'm not like what his mother told him." Harry says and I nod before handing the worker my phone and walking towards Harry, When I reach him I turn around to face the camera but Harry wraps his arm around me pulling me closer to his body.

Holy shit he's built.

I look up at him and he looks down at me and smiles before shrugging and looking back at the camera. The worker snaps a photo and I retrieve my phone as Harry bites his lip pensively.

"Can I buy him a few more things?" He asks sheepishly and I smile up at him.

"He's your son Harry, you can buy him anything you like."