Page 56 of Stolen Fate

Evelyn

We walkedout to the pool house in silence, Jace carrying the picnic basket in one hand and holding Elliot’s hand in his other. I was on Elliot’s other side, watching as he skipped along with us. I was convinced Elliot learned to skip before he learned to walk.

I wished we had met sooner. That I could have been there for Elliot’s important milestones. Surely, Elliot wouldn’t have been left alone had I been hired earlier.

My heart hurt at the thought.

I rubbed my chest absently and caught Jace’s inquisitive blue eyes. I looked away from him, feigning ignorance. I didn’t want to have to explain why I was feeling the way I was, especially when I didn’t even know the reason myself.

Jace opened the door to the pool house and let Elliot and me go in first. My eyes widened as soon as I crossed the threshold.

This wasn’t a pool house.

Surely it had to be a guest house.

But a quick look around told me it didn’t have any of the things a guest house had, like a kitchen or bedrooms.

It had a changing station, a patio table and…

“A playground?” I looked over to Jace.

He smiled a little at that. “New York isn’t always warm, and Elliot likes to go to the park. This way, he can play when it gets a little cold. This is one of his favorite places to visit on the property.”

I nodded in understanding. I knew why Elliot insisted on going to the pool house, now. It had everything he could ever want, and it was relatively warm in here, too.

I watched him take off his coat and throw it on the ground before he ran to the slide.

“Watch, Evelyn!” he shouted just as he slid down, laughing a little.

“Oh, that looks like fun,” I said, walking over and picking up his jacket.

“You can come play with me.”

I shook my head. “Oh, I don’t think I’ll fit, sweetie. Why don’t I just watch you?”

He nodded and went back at it. I knew from the short time I spent with Elliot that he was used to playing by himself. I wondered if he ever wanted a little brother or sister he could play with, though I doubted that would be possible, considering his parents were divorced and Jace wasn’t dating anyone that I knew of.

I hated the thought of Jace seeing anyone, anyway.

And I knew why I hated it, and I didn’t like that I hated it.

I needed to get over him.

Jace dating was a very real possibility I needed to prepare for, especially if I planned on staying in Elliot’s life for a long time, as I did.

“Do you want to sit down?” Jace asked.

I jumped back, more from surprise than fright.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said.

I shook my head. “You didn’t. I just didn’t realize you were so close.”

He smiled a little at that and nodded toward the patio table. Jace had all the food set out already, and I was pretty curious as to what he had packed. I moved over to the table and, to my surprise, he actually packed a decent meal with fresh fruit, carrots and broccoli, a small container with what I assumed was ranch dressing, the grilled cheese sandwich I made Elliot, some fresh slices of turkey and a loaf of bread already sliced with all sort of cheese and crackers, and even sparkling apple juice.

“How long were Elliot and I gone getting him changed?” I asked when I noticed him coming back with a reluctant Elliot in tow.

His eyes sparkled with amusement. “This was prepared this morning because Elliot asked me to come home early to take him out on a picnic.”

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