Second Chances - Chapter 29
A/N: I love this chapter <3
Series masterlist and content warnings 18+ only, so please, MDNI.
A few days before Rossi’s wedding, Aaron, Riley and Jack were standing in a jeweler, each of them looking through the rows of rings, hoping to find one that spoke to them.
Aaron was about to give up, to tell the kids to look in another shop, when Jack called out to them “Look over here“. Riley sidled up next to him, gasping at the ring he found.
Aaron walked over, watching over both their shoulders at the display and knew exactly which one Jack had found. He agreed, this one would be perfect for Katie.
Katie wore only silver jewelry, so the white-gold band was a great choice. It had a pear shaped, bigger diamond on top and was surrounded by smaller, little diamonds that were set in a unique pattern, the ring almost resembling ranking leaves that tried to hug the bigger diamond in the middle..
He had never seen a ring that embodied the playful, fantastical personality of his hopefully soon-to-be-fiancée more.
“That’s perfect, Jack“ he praised his son, without taking his eyes off the ring.
“She’ll love it! It’s not the classical, boring style“ Riley said, a bit too loud so he knew the clerks had heard her. But luckily, the one standing closest to them only chuckled under her breath and came over.
“Would you like to see it a bit closer?“ She asked, already unlocking the display case in front of her.
Both kids nodded excitedly. Aaron also nodded and took the ring from the clerk, holding it up for the kids and him to see up close.
“Oh Dad, you have to buy it!“ Jack said. “What do you think, Riley?“ Aaron asked the girl next to him.
“It’s perfect. And so shiny!“ Aaron chuckled, handed the ring back to the clerk and asked, if they had this ring in Katie’s size.
They did, so Aaron bought it outright, not hesitating even a second.
When their shopping was done, he and the children ate at some restaurant, chatting about the proposal and their plans for the wedding.
Riley wanted to be a flower girl, Jack wanted to be a ring bearer and they both agreed that an ice cream cake was superior to a normal wedding cake.
Aaron shook his head, amused by their enthusiasm. He was glad that both didn’t have problems with him moving forward. Jack could have been resentful, feeling someone take over the spot of his mom, but he seemed happy.
Riley got quiet for a minute, so Aaron asked her if something was on her mind.
“I don’t know what to call you, when you’re married to my mom.“ Aaron knew what she meant, but asked her nonetheless to explain.
“Well, now I call you Aaron, my mom’s boyfriend. But will I call you my stepdad after the wedding? Or Dad?“ Her gaze was thoughtful, so Aaron took his time, silently checked in with Jack who just shrugged.
“You can call me anything you’re comfortable with, honey. If you want to call me Dad, that’s okay for me. You know I never would or could replace your Dad from your life, so please don’t think that way, okay?“ - “That’s just it, you’re more of a Dad to me than he ever was“ she replied solemnly.
“I’d be honored to be called Dad by you, Riley. But don’t feel any pressure in this matter, okay? Just call me by the name you’re most comfortable with.“ - “Okay.“
Jack had a soft smile on his face, glad for his best friend to be a part of his family soon.
———————
Katie had a doctor’s appointment in the meantime. Her IUD had to be replaced.
The new doctor in D.C. was a friendly woman in her late 50s and when she asked Katie, if she was sexually active, Katie’s blush seemed to tell her everything she needed to know, so she only chuckled and continued with the exam.
“So, Ms. Johnson. We would need to remove the expired IUD and insert a new one since you didn’t have any severe side effects, right?“ - “Right…“ Katie thought about it.
The IUD she used would last for 8 years, a very long time. If she would have any additional child with Aaron, which she wanted desperately, she would be over 40 then.
Would she want to wait that long? Or risk having more side effects if she inserted another IUD with a shorter lifespan?
“Are you questioning getting a new one?“ The doctor inquired softly, reading her mind.
“Actually, yes. I have a new partner and I don’t know if I want to wait another 8 years to have a baby with him, but we haven’t discussed anything yet.“
“That’s no problem. We can just remove the old one now and you can schedule the insertion for another day. That gives you time to discuss this topic with your partner.“ - “That would be great, thank you.“
After the removal, she called the nice doctor every swear word under the sun, but just in her head. She knew that the woman wasn’t at fault for her pain. But the pain killers didn’t really help, so she just laid down on the couch after she returned to their home.
She woke up with a start when she heard voices in the hall, Aaron and the kids returning from their shopping trip they didn’t inviter her to.
Riley came over, starting to show off her new clothes. Jack took his shopping bag from Lego and a smaller one to his room, exchanging an intense look with his Dad.
But Riley was so excited that Katie forgot about the strange exchange immediately.
Aaron leaned over her, kissing her head softly.
“Are you okay? You look like you’re in pain, honey“ he implored softly.
“I am, but don’t worry. It will pass soon. Give me a kiss, that will make everything better“ she teased him. He chuckled and did exactly that, kissing her softly on her lips.
“Quit kissing, look at my new clothes, mom!“ Complained Riley next to them.
She indulged her daughter, but after wincing again, when she just wanted to rearrange her limbs on the couch before getting bedsores, Aaron held a glass of water and some pain killers in front of her.
“You can stop profiling me now, Aaron“ she glared in mock-earnest.
He still watched her with furrowed brows, so she knew she wouldn’t get around that topic after Riley’s departure.
“Can we talk about this tonight after the kids are in bed?“ She tried to win some time, to bring order to her thoughts.
“Okay. I’ll make dinner. Any wishes?“ He asked, but Katie just shook her head.
So Aaron cooked and Katie rested on the couch after having found a perfect new spot to lay in.
After dinner, the kids went to their rooms to read or play with their new stuff, so Aaron cleaned up after everyone.
Katie sat down on the couch again, her pain had lessened significantly, but pain killers always made her drowsy and tired, so she laid down again, listening to Aaron in the kitchen.
She hadn’t realized that she had fallen asleep, but she woke up when she felt Aaron behind her, curling up next to her, hugging her back to his chest.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to wake you, love“ he murmured quietly, laying one of his broad, big hands on her belly.
Katie moaned lightly, the warmth giving her instant relief from the residing pain in her lower abdomen.
“You want to talk about it now?“ He asked softly, rubbing soft circles over her skin.
“After Riley was born, I didn’t have anyone in my life. Kyle was obviously out of the picture and I knew I wouldn’t get together again with him, so contraception wasn’t on my mind. But when I started dating again, I decided to get an IUD. I never slept with anyone without a condom after Kyle, but I wanted to be sure I wouldn’t do the same mistake twice, getting a baby with someone who doesn’t love me. So I knew I was safe for the next 8 years.“
He hummed softly to show her he was following her thoughts.
“Now that the 8 years have elapsed, I went to the clinic today to get the IUD replaced.“ Aaron’s movement halted for a second, so she continued. “But when I sat on this chair, faced with the decision to renew it, I realized that we haven’t ever talked about the possibility of us having a kid together. Don’t worry“ she hurried to add „I don’t want to pressure you. I can always go back to the clinic and have the insertion at a later time, but I didn’t want to get a new one without having talked to you about this topic.“
Katie was glad that she didn’t have to face him for this admission, but Aaron tugged at her softly, making her turn, so she avoided his gaze and zeroed in on his lips.
“Honey, look at me, please.“ She looked up into his eyes that were full of love and warmth, not panic like she thought when he halted his movements earlier.
“What do you want?“ He asked, laying his hand over her jaw, stroking his thumb over the apple of her cheek.
She steeled herself and took a deep breath before blurting out “I want a baby with you. I don’t care if it’s now or in a few years, but I want that. I want us to be a family.“
He smiled the most beautiful smile she had ever seen and kissed her softly.
“So I guess you agree?“ She asked, smiling herself now.
“Yes, I do. I can’t wait to make us a family.“ His gaze went to Jack’s bedroom door over her head.
“In fact… wait a minute“ he kissed her soundly before jumping over her, leaving her behind, a bit confused but happy. She turned around and sat up, waiting for his return.
When he returned, Jack was with him, but he rushed to Riley’s bedroom, tugging her out of her bed, made obvious by her yawn and the PJs she had put on already. The kids stayed in the small hallway, but were obviously watching Aaron.
Katie turned her confused look to Aaron, who had a small jewelry box in his hand and who lowered himself down on one knee in front of her.
She gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. She felt the burning sensation of tears behind her eyes.
“Katie, I can’t tell you, how much I love you. You’ve made my life so much brighter. In our darkest hours, one of the hardest times of our lives, you turned my grey sky blue. You brought sunshine to us, you brought love. I can’t imagine a life without you, without Riley. And I know Jack agrees with me on this one…“ - “I really do“ interrupted Jack from the hallway, making you chuckle through your tears that blurred your vision now - “… see? We love you both so much and we want to build a real family. With you. So I ask you in front of the two most important people in our lives: will you marry me?“
Katie sobbed, her tears now flowing freely, a crazy sensation running through her.
“Yes! Of course I will, Aaron“ she answered, more squealed, and tugged him to her, kissing him with full force, pouring all her love into the kiss.
The kids cheered for them and tackled them to the ground, or Katie to the couch, making them all laugh.
“You knew?“ She accused Riley and Jack, tickling them lightly.
“We were sworn to secrecy! And we helped pick out the ring“ said Jack, gasping for air after she stopped.
“Dad, show her the ring“ Riley exclaimed, taking all the breath in her lungs. She watched the moment it registered in Aaron and at seeing his tears, she cried with him, her heart full of love and warmth for the people in this room.
Aaron knelt in front of her again, opening the jewelry box. In it was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. She gasped again and couldn’t take her eyes off the shiny, whimsical ring.
“Here, let me“ Aaron took it out of the box, lifting her left hand into his hand and putting the ring on her ring finger. Of course it fit perfectly.
She looked at it a few seconds longer but then decided, kissing her future husband was more important. The kids were disgusted as usual by their PDA, so they just said “Congratulations! And good night“ before returning to their beds.
“Thank you, Aaron. It’s perfect“ she marveled at her ring, moving it under the light to see all the reflections. Aaron kissed her ring finger and said “Thank you for saying ‚yes‘“
“Did you really doubt it?“ - “I wouldn’t say doubt it, but I’m still convinced you could find someone better.“ His gaze turned down and she could see the self-doubt in his face.
“Aaron? You’re the most thoughtful, the most generous and overall best man I have ever met. You’re not without fault, but who is? I love the life we’re having together. The family we’re building. Not only are you the best man for me, but also for Riley. Did you not hear her call you ‚Dad‘ just now? She loves you. So do I. And I really can’t wait to be Mrs. Hotchner.“ He kissed her softly, full with promise and love.
“Katie Hotchner sounds really nice“ he chuckled, letting his forehead rest softly against hers.
“Right? And if I wasn’t in so much pain right now, I’d show you how much“ she giggled at his heated look.
“Come on, let’s get you to bed with a hot-water bottle“ Aaron pulled her up from the couch, hugging her to him, kissing her head.
