5. Marco

Chapter Five

MARCO

When Hyacinth returned from his walk with Azalea, he looked thoughtful and a bit distracted.

That didn't stop him from writing me out a detailed explanation of the routines and rules that the kids needed in order to be ‘happier and healthier'.

I managed to take it in stride this time. There was no point in beating myself up over things that I hadn't known.

He took the kids to the living room after that, letting me know that I was welcome to join, but I was still a bit tired and knew I would have to take over soon, so I went to my room instead and watched videos on my phone.

Eventually, when I knew I would have to get back to work, I stood, stretching and went back down to face the demanding toddlers and their far too gorgeous father.

He was sitting on one of the couches, a child on each knee, reading them a story book. There was already a pile of them spread out around him.

For a while, I stood there, watching them, smiling.

Hyacinth was a good storyteller. He didn't hold back from doing all the character voices and read each word with full engagement. I couldn't blame the kids for being enraptured, he was hard not to look at or listen to in general.

Sensing me, he glanced over his shoulder and paused at once, smiling warmly.

"Come sit with us," he said.

I didn't know why, but I was instantly nervous. Still, I came over and sat next to them.

Hyacinth continued the story but I could tell that his attention had shifted onto me rather than the words he was reading.

He kept glancing at me and I feared I was going to get the wrong idea if he did it one more time.

There was no way that he was interested, right?

"I don't have to work until noon," he informed me, "so I'll show you how to put Aster and Iris down for their naps."

"Great, thanks."

I glanced at the time, realizing that it was already late enough for them to have their naps. After reading his instructions plus browsing videos on toddler care in my room, I was surprised that they had both done so well yesterday in my inexperienced hands. We had had fun, but no sleep and no snacks should have equaled a meltdown. Apparently I had been lucky.

Hyacinth pushed to his feet with a kid in each arm and led me upstairs to their cozy, wilderness bedroom.

It was simple enough, but he showed me how to soothe Aster in case he was struggling or resisting sleep, and then let me take Iris and try it with her.

She gazed up at me from inside her little hammock, and my heart melted as her eyes drifted sleepily shut and he breathing evened.

A hand landed on my back as I gazed in at her.

Glancing over my shoulder, meeting Hyacinth's warm gaze, my heart melted even more.

"You're a natural," he told me in a whisper. "I know the kids will all be very happy with you here."

I felt my cheeks heat and shook my head, flattered despite myself.

"Thank you," I whispered back. "I appreciate it and I'll do my best."

"I know you will," he agreed.

God, these warm fuzzy feelings were a little overwhelming after so long living on my own with minimal love and affection.

In just one day too. I wondered how much I would love this little family as time went on. The thought in itself was intimidating.

"Do you want to have some lunch with me before you go?" I asked as soon as we were in the hallway. It would be nice to get to know each other since we were living under the same roof now, that was all. Nothing sneaky about that, right? Even though the two of us alone eating a homemade lunch, staring into each other's eyes across the table... well, it instantly made me think of a date.

But Hyacinth's eyes filled with regret and he shook his head.

"I'm sorry, I really should get going."

"Oh, it's fine," I said, brushing off his regret and trying to hide my disappointment. "Next time."

He nodded.

"Yes, next time."

His hand landed on my shoulder briefly, a strong, warm grip that seemed to leave an imprint when he pulled it away.

It may have been in my head, but after learning that things were supposed to be more difficult, that there were sleep schedules and snack schedules, everything got harder.

On one hand, Azalea had almost completely dropped the attitude and was easy enough to handle. In fact, she was sweet in a guarded way.

On the other hand, Aster started to fuss as soon as I was a minute behind in giving him something to eat and Iris was such a natural rascal that she would run giggling like mad anytime I tried to catch her for bed.

Naps were a struggle without Hyacinth there. I didn't blame the kids, his soothing presence was far better than my frazzled nerves.

Twice during the week, he was home for their naps, and once, he was home for their bedtime routines, but aside from that, I was left to figure it out on my own.

It was so exhausting that on the occasions when he was home to take over, I was too tired to watch on, or even to try to catch a word with him afterwards.

I so badly wanted to get to know him, but was quickly learning I wasn't cut out for the stay at home parent life. Seriously, I was freaking impressed by those that did this full time.

If I didn't get my feet under me soon and figure all this out, sadly, this arrangement wasn't going to work out.

But that thought alone sent me into a weirdly dark zone that was hard to address. Leaving the kids just as I was starting to get to know them... it felt like I was letting them down and that...

A lump formed in my throat at the thought of it and I had to physically shake it off.

No. I could do this. I just had to figure out the rhythm. Azalea up first, then the other two. Then breakfast for all three while they were conveniently strapped into their chairs with toys to distract them, and so on until the day was done.

"Are you okay?"

I started and glanced over, realizing that Azalea had entered the kitchen and was watching me cook with a frown on her face. Her normally big wide eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I'm fine," I said. "Are you done your homework?"

"Uhuh."

I glanced over at the other two.

Iris was still coloring—on the table now, rather than the coloring book, but I would deal with that later. Aster was still chewing on the carrot I had given him.Everything was fine, peaceful, even.

"It's just that..." Azalea went on, pausing and chewing her lip thoughtfully. "You're kind of oozing something bad."

I frowned.

"Bad?" I asked, sniffing myself.

"Well, Mrs. Stanley says that it's something called stress and anxiety."

"Delightful," I sighed. Even the six-year-old could tell I was freaking out. "Wait. What do you mean oozing ?"

"Oh, I can just sense peoples' strong feelings," she said nonchalantly. "Daddy says that humans can't smell it, but we can."

I froze.

"You can smell my feelings? And your dad can too?"

"Not all the time. Only if they're very strong. Mrs. Stanley says people need to take a walk when they small like you do right now."

I shut my eyes and considered for a moment before responding.

"Maybe I will when your dad comes home," I suggested.

She smiled, looking satisfied by that and before anymore could be said, to my chagrin, the front door opened and Hyacinth's voice carried into the house.

"I'm home!"

"Daddy!" Azalea cried, running off to greet him.

The other two joined in a chorus of Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, until he entered the room.

His steps faltered in the doorway and his gaze flew to me. Immediately, I knew that Azalea was right. Hyacinth knew how stressed I was and that was unnerving. Luckily for me, he didn't say anything that would make me feel awkward, instead going to greet the little ones with kisses and sweet words.

He spent a few minutes asking them about their day while I attempted to keep my attention on the food.

I was just waiting on the air fryer to finish though so there was nothing to keep me busy except my thoughts.

And that was when Hyacinth slipped up behind me, close enough to give me the wrong idea.

At the feeling of his scrubs brushing against my back, I jumped and turned around, finding myself closer to him than I'd ever been, only inches separating us.

"I'll take it from here," he said gently and his breath brushed my cheek.

"Huh?"

"You go relax," he said softly, his hands landing on my arms and stroking them gently. "Have a bath, or take a nap, or watch a movie..."

"I told him to take a walk," Azalea piped up.

"Great idea," Hyacinth agreed.

"Oh." Right. This was for my mental health and nothing more. He was kind and comforting. It was kind of his thing.

I chuckled, looking away.

"I guess being thrown into the childcare life is a bit much all at once," I admitted.

"Of course," Hyacinth agreed sympathetically.

"Maybe I will go take that walk," I said, forcing myself to move away now before I moved closer without intending to.

"Take your time," he said, and that was that.

He let me go and I walked away, nearly in a daze, half sure that he had done something to me. Something gentle and soft and lovely.

The outside air cleared my senses a little bit and I strolled down as far as the park where I took a seat in front of the water, thinking about nothing in particular. The feeling of hyacinth's large hands on my arms still lingered, making me shiver.

How had I gone from feeling so stressed to now feeling almost like my brain had taken a short vacation? I couldn't even bring myself to think about all the stuff that had been on my mind.

I was absently watching a duck drift by when I remembered that same peaceful feeling upon entering the house that first time and now that I thought of it, every time.

Holy shit.

Was Hyacinth actually doing something to calm me down? Was that what he did at the hospital too?

Why hadn't I thought about how odd it was that an alien from a different planet was working in a human hospital so soon after his arrival? Surely he hadn't had time to finish getting his equivalency in a human college in the year he'd been here.

I stood, suddenly filled with irritation and eager for answers as I began to head back.

By the time I arrived, the sun was dipping low over the horizon and the house was quiet.

I entered, feeling the calm rush as I did and even my annoyance faded a little. Not completely, but a little.

I went by the dark living room and then to the kitchen, because I had skipped dinner.

When I turned on the light, I froze.

The table was set, not for the kids, but for two adults, with plates and silverware already out on each side and the high chairs pushed against the wall. There was even a bottle of wine sitting chilling in the middle of the table.

"I thought we could eat together," Hyacinth said behind me, making me jump. "We've barely had any time to get to know each other."

I swallowed and nodded, stepping into the room to allow him to enter behind me.

"Sit down," he said.

I went to one of the seats and lowered nervously into it, watching as he began to warm up the food.

"God, now I wish I made something fancier than fish fingers, fries, and coleslaw," I said nervously.

"It's perfect," he said nonchalantly.

It wasn't. He liked fancy flavors, extra spices, things like that. He just didn't know how to cook, that was all—or at least, he didn't know what to do with human ingredients.

I bit my tongue though and let him serve me the basic dinner I had made. I even took the offered wine and filled a nice big glass all the way up.

"So, what do you think of this arrangement so far?" he asked.

I nearly choked at the sudden question. Luckily, I hadn't taken a bite yet.

I cleared my throat and took a big gulp of the wine trying to buy myself a few minutes to think of what to say.

"Honestly, it's a lot harder than I thought it would be, but I really like your kids, and I want to keep trying for now."

He considered for a moment, looking somber.

"You know, I don't usually work so many hours. One of my coworkers is on maternity leave though and they need the extra help. If you can make it for two months, I'll be here a lot more to do my part."

That was actually very relieving. It gave me a little glimmer of hope. I would be a child expert by the end of two months.

"And you'll have time for more of a private life," he went on, his gaze suddenly boring into me. "I know you wanted to meet someone, and now you are probably annoyed that you don't have the time."

My cheeks heated and I shook my head, but it was pointless. He remembered how we met. We both did.

"What about you?" I asked. "I mean, you were looking for someone too."

He nodded, not looking nearly as embarrassed as I felt.

"Yes, I do want someone in my life. A partner, a lover and of course, someone to be a parent to my children."

I took a sip of wine, trying to school my features. Hope was such a ridiculous emotion, especially when the man had given me no indication that he was interested in more.

"What about their mother?" I asked gently. "Is she not around?"

Hyacinth shook his head at once.

"We papilionoidean are different than humans. Females produce eggs yearly and leave them amongst the leaves of the tallest trees to be fertilized. Any male papilionoidean who desires to have children fertilizes the egg and then guards and raises the children. We seek mates when we choose, but it is unrelated to child-rearing."

I stared with wide eyes, trying to imagine it.

"Wow."

He chuckled.

"I know. It is very different. Truthfully, I have no idea who their mothers were, but could probably identify them by scent if we met."

"I see."

I turned to my food, knowing I should use this Segway for my other questions.

"So," I said after a couple bites. "Did you do something to me back there when you touched me? You made me calm down or something, right? Is that what you do at the hospital?"

I could barely force myself to look up at Hyacinth, and when I did, he was frowning deeply.

"I do calm people down at the hospital," he began slowly. "When they are very anxious and panicking, I douse them in my calming pheromone. I do the same to put people to sleep for procedures."

I looked down, disappointed. So, I was right.

"But today, I did no such thing. I only touched you because you seemed so tense."

My gaze shot up to him in disbelief.

"But at the door..."

"The door?" he asked, his frown deepening. "Ah. Yes, I do leave a welcoming powder there."

Shit, that actually made sense, but…

"But—I felt so—so good?—"

I clapped a hand over my mouth, realizing what was happening.

He hadn't done anything to me. He'd just touched me. And it had made me so freaking happy and distracted that I was accusing him of drugging me.

Suddenly, his chair scraped across the tiles as he stood and a moment later, he knelt next to my chair, suddenly taking my hands in his own.

"Marco, I give you my word I did not do anything to you today. I want you to be comfortable here in this house, and with me. Please, believe me."

Shit.

He looked so damn earnest that I completely believed him. He was the most gentlemanly guy I'd ever met. He was like a freaking dream. Hell, he even had the glittering wings to make the whole situation more surreal. There was no way he would do anything like that to me. He was far too loving and kind.

Crouching in front of me like this, holding my hands in his, our faces so close and those gorgeous pale blue eyes searching mine, I was overtaken by that same good feeling. Without thinking, I leaned forward, closing the distance between us and capturing his lips against mine.

For a moment, time stopped.

His lips were as warm as his hands and they were so soft, so full, that I moaned.

The sound of my voice in the quiet room sent reality shooting straight back into me like a bullet.

I pulled back with a gasp.

"Shit. I'm so sorry."

Hyacinth looked shocked. He opened his mouth but I cut him off, panic rising.

"I know I'm just here for the kids. I'm sorry. I just—I don't know what I was thinking."

I was on my feet, stumbling back toward the door as quickly as I could.

"Marco—"

"It won't happen again," I promised and practically ran.

It wasn't until I got to my room and shut the door behind me that I could breathe again.

Fuck, I was such an idiot. Aside from being nice to me, Hyacinth had never shown any indication of being interested in me.

He hadn't even kissed me back.

I was crushed.