Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem

How lucky I am to be cherished like this!

The trio of little ones moved their lips, and Elliot said, "My mommy always says, 'All love in the world is mutual. You love us, and naturally, we love you too.""

Evan added, "Anyone my mommy likes, I like too! And anyone she protects, I will protect as well! Plus, you're my daddy, Evan's daddy. If anyone dares to bully you, I've got to stand up for you!"

Elijah chimed in, "Mommy told us, a real family shares joy and sorrows together. If one person in the family is unhappy, it's like a cloud over our whole household. Everything we do for daddy, it's for him, but it's also for the sake of our family."

Tarquin's throat tightened with emotion. He wrapped his arms around the three kids, a wounded heart warming under their care. It took a while before he could let go, saying, "Your grandma's ashes being disrespected like that surely made daddy both angry and upset. But now, daddy is okay. As an adult, I won't dwell on the sadness forever. We've retrieved grandma's ashes, and Gideon has been punished. That's a cause for celebration. So, you don't have to worry about daddy anymore. It's over, and you all should get some good sleep."

Evan's deep eyes rolled skeptically, "Are you really not sad anymore?"

Tarquin ruffled Evan's hair, "Do I look like I'm still sad?"

if you're not sad. But if you are, it's okay to cry. We won't make fun

"Next time I'm

it! Can't you just hope for happiness every

wider, "I can see it now, Evan really adores daddy. Have

down. And remember, I like you because my mommy likes you.

pessimist. How could your mommy ever stop liking me? If she dares,

Evan frowned, "Do what?"

without missing a beat, "I'll cry. I'll lay on the floor, clutching her

gave him a thumbs up, "...That's the spirit, I

himself that this kid would

and seeing that the kids were more

make a call, arranging for someone to investigate Verity

the call,