After some delicious milkshakes and burgers Veronica finally walks into her new home. The kids are very excited, especially Ella.

Let me show you your room!" she squeals. She grabs Veronica's hand and pulls her upstairs to the guest room which is now Veronica's. There is a bed in the middle and a big tv on the wall. There is dresser and a desk which she will definitely use as a dressing table. "Isn't it a pretty room?"

"It's very pretty thank you"

"I drew a picture for you it's in my room. You can hang it on your wall if you like"

"I'd love to. Can you show me your room?" Veronica smiles as she places her purse onto the bed.

Ella nods excitedly. She takes Veronica's hand back into hers and wants to pulls her out of her room but when she opens the door Archie stands in front of them with a couple of boxes in his hands. Ella jumps to the side causing Veronica to trip and fall into Archie arms. He lets go of the boxes. They fall to the ground but at least he saved Veronica from falling. He has his hands on her waist. She hides her face in his chest and holds on to his shirt. Her eyes are shut. When she recognizes she's not moving she slowly opens her eyes and pulls away. "You good?" Archie asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks"

His hands drop to the side. "Ella honey you need to be a little more careful. How many times did I tell you no running in the house?"

"Sorry Daddy"

"It's okay. Just don't do it again"

"Okay. Can I show Ronnie my room now?"

"Sure" he smiles as he picks up the boxes.

"Don't worry about dropping them. I only have clothes in these" Veronica giggles.

"Good. I was scared for a second" he says with his cheeks blushing in embarrassment but before he or Veronica can say something else Ella grabs her hand again and pulls her towards a room with a big princess poster and her name on the door.

Veronica eyes widen when she sees the beautiful room. It looks like every little girl's dream. She has big bed, beautifully painted walls and a lot of toys. She has a little ball pit with pink, white and grey balls and a slide right next to it. In the middle of the room lies a huge white, fluffy rug.

"Wow, you have such a beautiful room. Does Benny's look so cool too?"

"Yeah but he has a boy's room. Mine is prettier" she says as she walks over to a little table with sheets of paper and coloring pens all over it. She grabs one of the papers and hands it to Veronica. "Here, this is for you. I drew a rainbow and a sun and a lot of flowers. Do you like it?"

"It's beautiful Ella, thank you so much. I will definitely hang this on one of my walls"

Ella giggles and claps her hands. "Thanks"

Veronica turns when she can hear someone else walk into the room.

"No Benny, out!" Ella screams "this is a no boys zone!"

"Hey don't be so mean" Veronica giggles. She runs her fingers through Ella's hair but looks at the little boy. He takes a step back and is now technically not in his sister's room anymore. "Why is Daddy allowed to come in here then? He's a boy too" he asks madly.

"Because he's daddy! Duh" Ella answers. She rolls her eyes and turns away from her brother.

"Then you're not allowed in my room either anymore! No girls! Except for Ronnie!" He screams. He turns away and stomps his little feet on the ground.

"That was not very nice honey"

"He knows that there are no boys allowed in my room"

"But he didn't even do anything and he's your brother. You said there is an exception for your daddy why not for your brother too?"

"He's mean sometimes" Ella's says and crosses her arms in front of her chest.

"Listen honey, when he's mean and you come in here to have a brother free time I'll make sure he won't come in but don't tell him you don't want him here when he didn't do anything. It makes him upset. Just like you're upset now that you can't go to his room anymore"

"Yeah" Ella mumbles. "I like his room, I like to play together with him"

"See" Veronica smiles "I'll talk to him and I'll make sure you can go to his room and play with him"

"Okay"

Veronica runs her fingers through the girl's hair one last time before she walks to Ben's room. She knows because just like Ella, is name is on the door. She knocks.

"Go away Ella!" he screams.

"It's Veronica. Can I come in?"

He doesn't answer. Instead he walks to the door opens it and looks up to her with tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Oh no honey don't cry" Veronica says. She kneels down on the floor to wipe the boy's tears away but he wraps his arms around her neck and rests his head on her shoulder as he continues to cry.

She holds him close. "It's okay Benny. I'm here to tell you Ella said sorry and you of course can come into her room and play with her"

"Really?" he sniffs as he pulls away.

"Mhm" Veronica smiles and can now wipe his tears away. "She asked if you guys can also play in here, in your room?"

Ben nods . He turns around and then begins to point to all the things in his room as he proudly explains he helped his daddy build some of the stuff. Just like Ella he has a slide next to a little ball bit. But those balls are green and white. The walls are white too, except for one wall. One wall has a giant but friendly looking dragon painted on it. His bed is as big as Ella's. He has a bunch of blankets and pillows on it. "We can build cool forts" he explains. His little hand holds on tight to hers. It makes her smile.

"What's that?" she asks as he points to a ladder that leads to something like a second floor.

"That's my snuggle area" he says and pulls her towards it. He climbs up the ladder and ask Veronica to follow him. When they reach the top she can see a lot of blankets and pillows and stuffed animal on the floor. There is not much space, it looks more like a giant bed, another one.

"I come here when I don't want to lie in my bed. Here, no one can see me and I can read books". He says and points to some bookshelves next to him. "Well I can't read so I just look at the pictures. I also have pretty fairy lights"

"This looks very comfy" Veronica smiles. You and your sister have really cool rooms"

"I know. Thank you"

"Ella! Ben! Veronica!" Archie shouts from the living room "come here please!"

Ben groans. He just lay down and now has to get up again. Veronica already climbs down the ladder.

"Wait for me!" the little boy says.

"Of course"

As Ben climbs down too she puts her hands on his sides to lift him down but the boy shakes his head. "No Veronica. I'm a big boy. I can do that on my own"

"I'm sorry. Of course you can" she grins.

Ben jumps down, skipping some of the last steps and grabs Veronica's hand again. He looks up to her with a little smile on his face before they walk to the living room. Ella already sits on the couch and swings her legs back and forth.

"What's up daddy" Ben asks. He lets go of Veronica's hand and runs to his dad.

"Well, Veronica has a lot to unpack and I want her to be able to do that without anyone interrupting her. So you and I and Ella will play in the backyard and Veronica can unpack her stuff"

"Can I help you Veronica?" Ella asks.

"Honey I think Veronica wants to do that on her own. We will go outside"

"Fine" the little girl groan. She gets up, grabs her brother's hand and pulls him outside.

"You take your time. When you need help or have any questions, ask me"

"Thank you Archie" she smiles.

•••

Veronica and Archie sit outside, in the backyard with a glass of red wine in their hands. They are enjoying the warm summer evening. The kids are already in bed.

"Today was exciting" Archie chuckles.

Veronica grins and nods in agreement "Very"

"The kids love you. I really hope this place will feel like home to you. We're very happy to have you here. When you need anything and I mean anything tell me. I want you to feel good here"

"Thank you. That's very sweet"

"Of course" Archie smiles "like I said I want you to feel at home"

"Thanks"

"Uhm so are you ready to start working on Monday?"

"Mhm" she smiles "I'm excited. The twins are so cute"

"So on Monday I have to work early so you have to take the kids to kindergarten and pick them up. I'll be back around 4pm and then I can cook dinner. I'll give you the address of the school. It's close you can walk there with them if you want"

"Okay that sounds good but you don't have to cook after a long day of work. I can cook and the kids can help me"

"That's a great idea. It's been forever since I had dinner at home with kids. They either eat at my parent's house or when I get home earlier but got up early we order food or go to Pop's"

"Well then" she smiles "what's your favorite dish?"

"Spaghetti cabonara"

"Mine too" she smirks. "Then the kids and I will make that tomorrow"

Archie chuckles. He's happy she can't see the blush on his cheek because it's too dark already. "I think I'll head to bed but you can stay out here if you want"

"I think I'll stay for just a little longer" she smiles.

Archie nods. He takes one last sip from his glass before he walks inside.

Veronica giggles quietly. Her heart beats a little faster. It's probably because she's excited.

She looks around the backyard. There are swings, monkey bars, a trampoline and a big pool with a slide. She loves how the orange light of the sunset reflects in the water.

This is definitely a place where she will feel comfortable and at home.

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I'm sorry it's been so long I'm just really busy at the moment 😩💕