Chapter 21
Charles set the small table in his kitchen with the handmade placemats he and Nina had woven the day before out of strips of colored construction paper. They had also made napkin holders out of an empty paper towel tube and a little turkey centerpiece that didn't really look like the mommy blog said it would, but Nina had enjoyed the day so he counted it as a win. He felt bad that she'd had to miss her class Thanksgiving party and hadn't wanted her to feel alone or left out.
The second day of her illness went much better than the first. She hadn't thrown up at all, but did have a slight fever that had kept him on edge until it faded entirely by the early afternoon.
Erik had told him in no uncertain terms to expect her to be quite sad about missing the Thanksgiving party and being disappointed over not seeing her grandparents and cousins on the holiday itself. She was still contagious and couldn't be around other kids or the elderly until several more days passed.
"Is that why you didn't call your parents to come get her from school?" he asked the other man quietly.
"It's one of the reasons, yes. But other than that, I want my parents to see that I can do this on my own. They worry about us so much; I try not to contribute to it too often." He admitted hesitantly.
Charles understood the impulse, but didn't see how anyone who knew their situation could go a single day without worrying about them. He kept that observation to himself and simply said, "that's understandable," with a warm smile as he rolled out of bed, shivering when his feet hit the cold floor. "Well, I'll see what we can come up with for today. And tomorrow you all can just come to mine, we'll make it seem like great fun!" he smiled and leaned in for a kiss which Erik returned with a worried frown.
He knew how awful and complicated family relationships could be, but Charles rarely mentioned his parents and had said that his holiday plans were to lie around overeating and watching old movies. He hadn't invited Charles to their family dinner, not wanting to overwhelm him with his family's excitement about their fledgling relationship, but Erik had to wonder, "Not visiting anyone?"
Charles looked startled at the question, "Oh. I have no one to visit. My father passed away years ago and mother never really recovered from his loss. She died a few years back of a simple infection that turned into pneumonia. I was expecting it. She didn't put up any sort of fight. Once he was gone she just lost interest in living and nothing could get through to her. Besides, they were pretty old when I was born so...I never expected to have them long," he finished with a small shrug.
Erik's heart broke for him and he leaned in for another kiss, "Well, you won't have any more lonely holidays ahead of you," he promised with a smile.
Charles grinned at the memory as the doorbell rang. This was shaping up to be his best holiday in years.
~~
"I made that!" Nina pointed at the table settings proudly, cheeks flushed with cold and happiness. Charles had let them in moments before and rushed off in a flurry of kisses to attend something in the kitchen while they took off their outerwear and made their way to the dining room.
"No! These are too nice to be homemade. I"ll have to ask Charles where he bought them," Erik said with a smile at the adorable table his boyfriend had laid for their meal.
"No, papa! Charles showed me!" she insisted proudly.
"Great job, sweetie. Everything looks perfect," he told her honestly. She beamed up at him before scrambling after Charles to help with whatever he was up to in the kitchen.
Erik took a moment to compose himself. He listened to their muffled voices chattering excitedly in the next room. He hoped his news wouldn't cast a pall over the day's festivities.
"Dinner!" Nina called as she proudly walked in holding a small bowl full of soft dinner rolls right from the oven.
Charles followed with his hands full of baked macaroni and cheese, sausage-cornbread dressing, and mashed potatoes with a tiny gravy boat. His years working in restaurants showed in the ease with which he carried so much and set the table so expertly.
"Wow, you two outdid yourselves," he smiled at them. "This looks and smells fantastic! Is there anything I can help with?"
"No, you sit. I'll be right back with the duck," Charles waved him away and hurried back to the kitchen, Nina hot on his heels.
Erik sat and tried not to have a stare down with the potatoes. They looked like heaven in a bowl and knowing Charles they'd be the best he ever had.
"Here we go," Charles came back into the room with a roast duck on a platter, Nina at his side with a little pat of butter in the shape of a turkey. She seemed fascinated by it.
"Where did you get that?" he asked as she set it carefully on the table like it would shatter if she moved too quickly.
"Charles says people carve butter for their job!" she announced with an eager gleam in her eyes.
Erik groaned internally, already seeing half melted blocks of butter in misshapen chunks all over the house.
He and Charles shared a look over her head Sorry he mouthed with a wry look. Erik shrugged, Nina would like what she liked, and there was no rhyme or reason to it, at least as far as he could tell.
"Let's eat and you all can tell me all about butter carving," was all he said as they sat down to their first holiday meal as a family.
And, to no one's surprise, the most delicious of his life.
~~
Nina still tired easily, partially from her illness and partially from the excitement of the holiday. The early afternoon saw her napping in front of Snow White, which Charles had put on to entertain her while he and Erik put the food away and washed the dishes in companionable silence.
He'd enjoyed their small family holiday more than he'd expected. He was looking forwards to more family time once they'd moved in together. There were still several months before he was due to move in with the Lehnsherr's. They hadn't told Nina their plan, not wanting her to be overly excited about something so far away when their relationship was still so new.
Charles was straining to put his Dutch Oven on the shelf above the stove when he felt Erik press against his back to lift it from his hands and slide it into place. He turned to face his boyfriend and rested his hands on his slim hips with a small smile. "Hey."
"Hey," he said softly, leaning in for a kiss that turned more heated than they really had time for at the moment.
"Mmm," Charles huffed when he pulled away, causing the taller man to chuckle at his impatience.
"Time for that later," he chided gently. "We have important things to discuss." He said it lightly, but the concern in his eyes put Charles on edge.
"What is it?"
"Mrs. Munroe's plan," he said stepping back from Charles and running his fingers through his close cropped hair.
Charles felt his heart leap to his throat at the mention of the lawyer, "What is it? Have they started therapy? Do we need to move?" he demanded urgently, feeling his dinner churn in his belly at the thought of the Eisenhardt's
"She thinks we'll have a good chance of winning our case against them with a combined strategy of proving that they're not safe to be around Nina-or any of us, really. And by...being an intact family," he rushed out at the end.
Charles frowned, how was this bad news? Why was Erik so nervous to tell him this?
"That's great isn't it? Your family is wonderful. She already has an aunt and uncle and lots of cousins and very loving grandparents. Not to mention the rest of your extended family. It should be easy to prove that the Eisenhardt's are extraneous to her life," he frowned. Erik had only grown more anxious as he spoke and was now pacing beside the island, a pinched look on his handsome face.
"What's wrong?" he demanded, his boyfriend's odd behavior beginning to concern him.
"Intact means married," he said firmly. Stopping across from Charles and watching him closely for a reaction.
He didn't have one for the longest time. "Oh."
"I know we've discussed it and we were planning to give it a while. A long while just to make sure we could make it work," he said softly. "But I have every faith that we will. I wouldn't bring this up if I didn't see us making it in the long run. I wouldn't put any of us through that," he promised softly.
"I know," Charles agreed, head spinning with the news.
"The thing is, it's a rare judge that will rule against a united front of parents. There would also be a child advocate to testify at the trial that this is what's best for Nina. I know this is a huge thing to throw at you and I want you to know it is a request. I don't expect you to agree, we barely know each other," he said earnestly. "I didn't even want to bring it up to you but Ororo thinks that if we're married and you adopt Nina she can get their blood ties to her terminated. Legally at any rate. It's...the best she can do. Honestly our next best option would be moving and doing our best to stay hidden," he finished softly.
Charles stayed silent, looking everywhere but directly at Erik. He wished he had waited to bring this up, but time was of the essence. Their restraining order was expiring in just under eight months. If they managed to rush the process, Nina could be safely adopted by then, but only if they married basically immediately.
He toyed with the idea of a marriage of convenience if Charles wasn't ready, but that would likely become needlessly complicated. Besides, with what the P.I had uncovered about the Eisenhardt's level of involvement in their lives, there was no one he could trust not to be under their influence or in their employ.
They had been so lucky to find Charles, he reflected sadly. If only they were a normal couple dating and planning their future one day at a time.
This was yet another thing he'd never forgive his former in-laws for.
Charles looked up at him, bright eyes brimming with shock and uncertainty and Erik held his breath anxiously, wondering what his answer would be and what the future would hold for all of them.