Ash's Marriage Trigger - 15. Chapter 15- Moving

“When I suggested celebrating after work, I was under the impression that we actually had something to celebrate. But, you’re turning it down?” Brit questioned.

"Yes, I’ve something else in mind for work altogether,” Ash admitted.

“Wait, he’s leaving us?” Brit gestured towards Michael.

“Not us, his shitty career,” Mike amended. “It’s not far from here, so we should still be able to meet for lunch or after work as usual.”

Brit let out a sigh of relief. While her workday would be boring without one of her favorite co-workers to conspire with, she’d at least still get to see him every other day. “I’m not happy. But, I’ll live with it.”

Many things changed in the last 10 months. Ash's therapist, Inessa, had urged him to bring his parents with him for family counseling. He found out that everything he had initially believed about his parents pressuring him to form his own family had been wrong. They'd just been worried about him being alone in the future beyond their passing. Their fears simmered when he told them about getting back together with Cove.

On the subject of the Mitchells, Ash gradually moved more and more of his clothes and items into Cove's house. He even began taking Ashley to school and researched what certifications he needed to teach at her school. If they continued to live in the area, the elementary school was only a block away from the preschool, and the middle school was right across the street. When he mentioned that the high school and community college were also nearby to Cove, he admitted that he had yet to think past elementary school for Ashley, so he was glad Ash was mapping some of that out.

“A family man (a family man)…Mother, father, brother~”

“Why is Todd calling me?” Ash murmured as he dug for his phone and answered it. “Butler. No, I’m at a cafe with my co-workers. How would she know that? Whatever, I’ll meet up with you two.”

“Heading out already?” Mike questioned.

"Ashley's uncle said she was adamant about stopping at the bus stop in front of our work building to pay me a visit," Ash said as he grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair he'd been sitting in and shrugged it back on.

"Wait, she's there right now?" Brit asked as she gathered her things and stood up as well. "I want to meet her!"

“Me too!” Mike chimed in.

Ash let out a snort. “Well, we’re all heading in that direction anyway,” he conceded.

The trio made their way out of the cafe and walked towards the entrance of their work building. Ashley was a vision in a traditional Dominican white, red, and blue dress with matching flowers in her hair. She had joined her family in a musical event all day since it was a school holiday. But Ash hadn't expected to see her so soon.

“Whoa,” Brit said as they approached the uncle and niece. “Who is that handsome man wearing a straw hat and red kerchief?”

Ash rolled his eyes. “That’s Todd. I wouldn’t exactly call him ‘handsome.’”

“Ha!” Mike responded. “Are you kidding me? That’s the kind of face I always wished I had growing up. The very definition of handsome.”

Brittany tapped Mike with her elbow in agreement. "Right? I think Ash's too love-blind to recognize it," she addressed Ash. "Hey, is he married or gay?"

“Neither,” Ash responded hesitantly.

Brit straightened up and fixed the hem of her shirt. “That is good enough for me,” she declared as she walked on ahead of them to greet the half-Dominican.

Upon seeing Ash, Ashley held the skirt of her dress and ran over to him. "Bigger-me! Look!" She exclaimed as she spun and moved in a flurry of a dance move, the skirt of her dress fluttering around her.

Ash smiled as he bent down to pick her up. “That was amazing,” he admitted. He then placed his free hand on Michael’s shoulder. “This is Michael Meza. He’s one of my closest friends. Michael, meet Ashley, my mini-me.”

“Nice to meet you, Ashley!” Michael greeted her with a gentle handshake. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

“You’re so pretty,” she replied with an awed gasp. “Can I marry you?”

Ash laughed as Michael blushed. “I’m sorry, sweetie,” he explained. “He’s been married for a good while now.”

“Aww,” Ashley pouted. “Nevermind then.”

“How did you know this is where I work?” Ash inquired.

"Uncle Todd and I passed it on the bus sometimes on our way to Nana's," Ashley explained. "Sometimes, he even lets me buy the pass and pull the string all by myself!"

“Yeah, I don’t really doubt there’s anything you couldn’t do at this point,” Ash mused. He then called out to Todd. “Want me to give you a ride, Butler?”

Todd glanced at Brit and then back to Ash. “No, I think I’m good. Tell Cove I’ll send him the videos later!”

“I have mixed feelings about this,” Ash grumbled low enough for only Michael and Ashley to hear.

"Oh?" Mike commented. "I don't know; I think they'll be good together."

Ash shook his head with a sigh. “I’m heading home with Ashley. I’ll see you Monday, Mike.”

“See ya!”

The copper-eyed man allowed the little girl to talk his ear off about the event she attended with her mom's side of the family. She continued to talk animatedly when he strapped her into her car seat and didn't stop until he pulled into the driveway. Though Ash couldn't grasp the entire picture she painted, he understood enough to know that she had a great time and learned a few dance moves along the way.

After getting out of the car and helping Ashley out of her seat, Ash opened the front door with his key and called out. “Cove, I think I picked up an extra out of nowhere today!”

“An extra what?” Cove called back.

"An extra Ash!" Ashley greeted as she rushed to hug her father.

“I thought you were with your Uncle Todd,” Cove said.

“Well, they met up with me at work. The last we saw of Butler, he was willingly kidnapped by my co-worker Britt.”

“Was he?” Cove laughed. “Sounds like an eventful day.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Alright, Ashy, let’s get you showered and changed so I can talk with your Bigger-me about something important,” Cove suggested.

That "something important" was about Ash figuring out what furniture he'd move in with him and what he'd have to pass on to the Mezas for them to use. Ash felt a fluttering in his stomach at the thought of being officially moved in and considered part of the Mitchell household. The two of them decided not to talk to Ashley about it until Ash felt adapted enough to not do something crazy like leave. And, at first, that had been a genuine concern.

As Ash ordered them some Chinese food for dinner, he realized that the changes were so gradual and purposeful that he hadn't felt the need to run away in nearly a year. One of the needs he felt the strongest about was witnessing Ashley grow into the fantastic adult she'd undoubtedly become. The other needs involved keeping Cove in his life.

After changing into her pajamas, Ashley continued to regale them with tales of her eventful day while they ate. The three of them then sat on the couch together to watch a movie, and Ashley fell asleep on Ash's lap. By then, it was such a regular occurrence that Ash no longer hesitated to gently scoop her up in his arms and tuck her into her bed.

“So, tomorrow, you’re going to headquarters?” Cove asked softly so as not to wake his daughter.

“Yeah.”

“And when’s the move happening?”

“Right after.”

“You’re sure you won’t miss anything?”

“No. And I don’t need any help, either. You stay with Ashley.”

Cove shook his head, a grin tugging on his lips. “Abandoning us already, I see,” he teased.

“You’ll get over it,” Ash responded.

As the two men softly padded out of Ashley's room and closed the door behind them, they didn't notice the little girl's breathing pattern change. As soon as the door was shut, Ashley sat up in her bed, eyes wide in the darkness. What in the world had she just overheard? Was Ash really leaving them?

::::

The following morning, Cove stirred briefly when Ash kissed him goodbye before he left. He was so sleepy; he could have sworn he heard the door shut twice. Did Ash forget his cell phone and come back for it? With a yawn, the silver-eyed man headed to his daughter's room to wake her up. When he saw that her bed was made and her pajamas were on top, he wondered how early the little girl woke up. He searched for her in the restroom, but she wasn't there either.

A coldness seeped up from his stomach as Cove stepped out onto the hallway and checked the kitchen. "Ashy?" He called as he scanned the closets and under the bed. She wasn't usually the kind of kid to play hide-and-seek alone. Could she be hiding because she did something wrong? But why was her bed made, and why did she change out of her pajamas if she wasn't getting ready to eat breakfast?

“Ashley!?” Cove called out again and again. “Ashley Mitchell, where are you?”

Cove felt his panic rising when she wasn't in either the guest room or the living room. He checked the backyard, and she was still nowhere in sight. After checking every nook and cranny of the house, the silver-eyed man was about to lose his mind. He had to stop reacting long enough to think. If Ashley was nowhere inside the house, maybe she left with Ash in a rush, and they forgot to text him about it. With a frown, he dove for his phone and called Ash.

::::

Ash had just finished shaking the hand of the CEO at headquarters and had given his final farewell to his boss Mr. Bowman when he felt his cell phone vibrating in his pocket. When he saw that it was Cove, he excused himself. "I'm sorry, I have to take this."

“Cove?”

“Ash, did you take Ashley to headquarters with you?”

Ash frowned at the level of panic he heard in Cove’s voice. “No, I haven’t.”

“Fuck! I can’t find her anywhere. I’ve searched the whole house!”

“I’m heading over right now,” Ash responded as he walked out of the conference room he was in and headed down the stairs. “When was the last time you saw her-”

"Last night when we tucked her in…."

Ash stopped in mid-sentence when he caught sight of Ashley herself running through the automatic doors of the building and looking around frantically for him. "Cove? Cove! Calm down; I've got her. She's right here. I got her." Ash rushed over to the little girl, who clutched him tightly and began to bawl. "Hey, hey, what happened? How did you get all the way out here?" He asked as he placed a hand on the top of her head.

“T-took the b-bus,” She responded between sobs. “Ash, p-please don’t leave us!’

Her words hit him like a punch to his abdomen. Something had gone terribly wrong for her to think such a thing. Ash crouched and pulled a handkerchief from his suit to gently dab at the little girl's tears. "I don't know why you think I'd do such a thing," he began, barely able to talk through the tightness in his throat. "But I assure you, I'm not leaving you, sweetheart. Neither you nor your dad."

"B-but, last night, daddy said you were moving!" Ashley insisted while sniffling.

Ash had never been more grateful for his overactive mind than that moment when everything suddenly clicked into place. Ashley must not have been asleep when they tucked her in the night before. Worse yet, she had perceived their hushed conversation in the worst way possible. The copper-eyed man wanted to kick himself for not explaining everything to Ashley sooner.

He lifted Ashley into his arms, and she clung to him like a koala. Ash held the phone back to his ear, knowing that Cove was still on the line. "Love, I'm bringing Ashley with me to the apartment complex. Looks like I'll be needing your help after all."

Half an hour later, the Mitchells and Ash sat on the floor of an emptied apartment complex. Ashley was seated on Ash's lap. "I just want it to be clear that while we're all at fault here, your dad and I are at bigger fault," Ash explained. "We've been waiting to tell you about my moving in completely to the house until I finished sorting out a few things, such as turning down a promotion that would involve commuting to headquarters every day and getting rid of half my furniture…."

“Yes, we should have told you all of this sooner. But, Ashy, you gave us quite the scare yourself when you ran off without telling anyone or at least leaving a note,” Cove admitted. “Ash and I thought something bad may have happened to you.”

Ashley nodded with a pout. “I-I’m sorry, too. I just didn’t want Ash to go away.”

"I can't promise I won't have to go somewhere else temporarily, but my home is where you both are now." Ash continued. "I'll always let you know where I go from now on so long as you do the same for us. Does that sound fair?"

Ashley gave another nod. “You’re going to live with us for real now?” She asked.

"I am. I can even prove it…." Ash said as he patted down his jacket. Not finding what he was looking for, he handed Ashley over to Cove. "Hold her for a sec." He then checked his pants pocket and sighed in relief when his fingers met with velvet. Ash pulled out and opened a little velvet pouch and shook it over his palm until a pair of rings emerged.

"This isn't how I planned this at all. I swear that dinner and at least some dessert was involved…." Ash rambled as he shifted so that he was on one knee and held one of the rings towards a stunned Cove with a hand trembling from nervousness.

"But I wanted to marry Michael!" Ashley complained, causing both men to burst out laughing.

"No, I meant your dad…." Ash clarified. "I want to marry your dad."

“Oh…” the little girl replied. “Sure, you can marry my daddy.”

"Thanks for giving your consent," Cove teased as he took the offered ring and placed it on his left finger. He was still smiling when he focused his attention back on Ash. "Because I want to marry him, too."