Page 28 of Skylar

“Have they told Shiloh about us?” Aiden asked.

“Yes. They told her last night. They wanted to give her something positive to look forward to.”

“Did Charli say how she took the news?” his mom asked.

“Oh, she was surprised,” Cathy said. “But also excited. And she was happy to hear she has another grandma and a cousin close to her age.”

Aiden’s mom smiled. “That’s good. I look forward to meeting her someday. In the meantime, I will be praying for her.”

Cathy’s smile trembled a bit. “We sure appreciate that.”

Janessa came over to them. “You four ready?”

They had to wait for the technicians to finish up with the kids, then Cathy and his mom had their turn. Willow watched intently as the woman inserted the needle into her grandma’s arm.

Her arm tightened around Aiden’s neck. “Does it hurt?”

“A teeny tiny bit,” he said. “Kind of like a mosquito bite.”

Willow didn’t seem reassured by his words. Her eyes widened as she saw the blood flow into the tube. Meanwhile, his mom waschatting with the technician, not paying any attention to what was happening with the needle in her arm.

“Are they going to do that to you too?” Willow asked, turning her wide-eyed gaze towards him.

“Yep, but it’ll be fine.”

Willow encircled his neck with both her arms and pressed her cheek to his. “I hope it doesn’t hurt you.”

“I’ll be fine, princess,” he said, rubbing a hand up and down her back to reassure her. “Look, Grandma is all done, and she didn’t cry. I won’t either.”

He moved around the table to take his mom’s seat, while Skylar settled into the seat vacated by Cathy. Aiden tried to set Willow down, but she insisted on sitting on his leg with his arm around her.

The technician pushed his sleeve up and began the process of prepping his arm for the needle. Another person in a lab coat was labelling vials and putting them into a stand.

Aiden didn’t focus on the needle, not really being a fan of them himself. However, Willow kept a close eye on what was happening. And not just with Aiden, but with Skylar as well.

When it was done, Aiden got to his feet, keeping Willow with him.

“Did it hurt her?” Willow asked, pointing to where Skylar still sat.

It appeared that the tech was having a bit of trouble finding a vein, but Skylar didn’t look upset, so he felt safe saying, “No. She’s fine.”

When the tech finally had things working, Skylar looked up and nodded. “Yep. I’m fine.”

Her gaze lingered on Willow before meeting Aiden’s briefly.

“All done,” the tech said to her after she’d put a strip of tape over a cotton ball on the needle prick.

Skylar got up and moved away from the table. Aiden moved to follow her, but a hand on his arm stopped him.

Jay again.

“Out of respect for your niece, we won’t have a conversation here,” he said. “But I’d still like to have a chat.”

“Okay. Skylar has my number, so you can get it from her.”

“I will.” Jay smiled at Willow, then looked back at Aiden. “Regardless, it’s been good to see you again.”

“You too, Coach.”

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