Chapter 137 Choosing Happiness

Chapter 137 Choosing Happiness
Maddie's POV

Sophia and Bradley had left. Mariko walked them out. I went into the lounge and the door opened. I turned around as Mariko closed the door. He came further into view, moving closer to me in the lounge.

"So, what is going on with Bradley?" I asked as Mariko came to a stop in front of me.

He moved my hair over my shoulder, "He is worried about Amber. She is partying like crazy with alcohol. She is ruining her own life and I need to have a word with her when we get back to Seattle. For the sake of Bella. It's like she hasn't learned her lesson. What comes to mind is the accident that happened and if she is drunk, I'm afraid that something will happen, especially if she has Bella for the day." he twirled my hair around his finger.

"I don't want her to get hurt either. For such a tiny person, she had suffered enough, and yet she still sees the happiness in things. She is strong and she has her mother's personality. So you will have a handful when she is a teenager." I smiled.

"Please, don't remind me." he cupped the side of my face and leaned in. "We haven't had s^x in a while." he pressed a chaste kiss against my lips.

"Maybe tonight," I said against his lips.

"Daddy! I have more dresses," We pulled away as Bella sprinted into the lounge with pages in her hand. She was such a daddy's little girl. She loved him so much, you can see it all over her face. She lights up with happiness. Mariko crouched as she stopped in front of him and showed him what she sketched. "Look, Maddie!" she called out to me and I moved behind Mariko to see her sketches.

I smiled, "They are good. How about when we are back in Seattle, we make our own dresses? We can sell them and, in that way, more little girls get to be princesses," I said.

"Yay!!!" she jumped with excitement.

"So, do your sketching, and then we can start with making those dresses." I smiled at her.

"Angel!" she called out as she ran back to her bedroom. Mariko stood up, chuckling.

"She is going to be a handful to Angel now. I better save her." He said, but then he remained in his spot. "I want to talk to Angel about the adoption, I hope she will be okay with it. I won't be happy leaving her here when we go back home."

"Then talk to her. I think that it's best if you talk to her in her room because Bella will be a disturbance. I will keep an eye on her," I smiled.

"Thank you. Are you sure you're okay? I did notice that you weren't that talkative this evening," he said.

"Yeah, I was just emotional due to our twins. Seeing Sophia enjoying her pregnancy was something that I wish that I had been able to enjoy, but the stress, preterm labor and every situation that came our way just ruined that for us. I'm not saying we should try again because I'm done, I won't go through this again. Our twins are enough," I smiled. "Gaining Angel is another blessing. So, talk to her, she needs us."

"I love you," he said as he stepped closer to me, and then he wrapped his arms around me, placing a chaste kiss against my lips.

"I love you too."

This is the kind of life that I want with Mariko. No drama, but there is that pending drama when my father tries to make more amends with Arden and Lana. That is something that is tough, and I hope that they give my father a chance other than just to forgive him. To get to know the person that he is now.



Mariko's POV

I walked down the hallway and stopped at Bella's bedroom. She was sitting on her bed and sketching while Angel was writing in a notebook. Her hair was in a messy bun at the top of her head.

"Bella, please go to Maddie, she is waiting for you with your sketches," she looked up at me, then she took the pages and got off the bed, running out the bedroom without another word. I had to step out of the way for her.

I made my way into the bedroom. Angel looked at me expectantly as she sat on the bed. I sat on the edge of the bed, facing her. "I want to talk to you about something," I said.

"Please, don't send me back there," she begged with fear in her eyes.

"That is not going to happen. What I wanted to talk to you about is something that both Maddie and I have considered and that is what we both want. We would like to adopt you. We are moving back to Seattle once the twins are okay, and we want you to move with us. I know it's a lot to take in when moving to another country. You knew London all your life, but we do not want to leave you here. You can have time to think about it, we do not want to pressure you at all. I do hope that you love being here with us and that we are treating you well. If Bella is too much to handle, you can always let me know. You do not need to look after her all the time."

"I don't mind taking care of her. If I need to study, I go to my bedroom. Rosie tends to her when I can't ,but most of the time Rosie is with her. I am just happy that I get to be with this family. I never had this before. I would've still been there if you had never came to London. I would've had to endure it all. I will agree for adoption because I don't want to lose this family. So, please sign those legal papers," she smiled.

"Are you one hundred percent sure?" I asked her. I wanted to beam but I kept it in.

"Yes," she said with a bright smile.

"This is the best news," I said as I scooted over to her and took her into my arms, embracing her. She held onto me and this is what she needs; love and affection. She can get this from us. I pulled away from her, "So, how about we go get ice cream?"

She nodded, "Yes, please," she beamed with excitement.

"Let's go," I stood up.

I want us all to have this time to be out with my little family and celebrate everything. Maddie might be emotional due to the twins and I know that anything could happen to them. I choose to be happy in this time.