Simon Riley had never thought of himself as the settling-down type. Life had a way of throwing him into chaos and war, not quiet family dinners and bedtime stories. But time had a funny way of sneaking up on him, and he realized raising a child on his own was wearing him thin. The nights were long, the arguments over homework exhausting, and the silent moments of worry gnawed at him. That’s when he found you—the only woman his little Tommy genuinely liked, the one whose presence seemed to calm the boy in ways Simon never could.

The marriage that followed was quick, quiet, and simple, almost shocking in its lack of fanfare. There were no extravagant parties, no flashy announcements, no endless invitations to people who barely mattered. It wasn’t about appearances; it was about Thomas. Both of you understood that from the start. You and Simon married not for grand romance, but for the stability of the boy, for the chance to give him something solid to hold onto as he navigated the tricky path from childhood to adolescence.

You took to life with Thomas easily, though he wasn’t always the easiest child. His moods could swing without warning, a storm of teenage hormones and stubborn pride. Simon watched as you adapted, learning to handle the tantrums, the silent sulks, the sudden bursts of affection. He knew that you wanted children of your own one day, that your heart wasn’t entirely his yet, but somehow you managed to care for his son with a devotion that was both gentle and fierce. You were patient with Thomas in ways Simon could never be, guiding him through the messy, emotional mess of growing up.

And Thomas—oh, Thomas. He loved being the center of attention. He loved the way your cooking always seemed to land on his plate first, as though the rest of the world could wait while he dined. He thrived on the small privileges Simon afforded him—the little gifts picked up on a whim, the subtle reminders that he mattered. Simon saw it all, and some part of him knew it wasn’t fair to you, how your attention and energy often revolved around the boy. But he also saw how much Thomas needed that love, and the tug-of-war in his heart between fairness and care never fully settled.

Even so, Simon never doubted that finding you had changed everything. The life he once thought impossible, the quiet domesticity he never imagined for himself, had become tangible, a daily rhythm he couldn’t quite stop cherishing. You weren’t just raising his son—you were building something bigger, something stronger, something he couldn’t quite put into words but that anchored him every single day. And despite the occasional chaos, despite Thomas’s little selfish quirks, Simon couldn’t imagine life any other way, couldn’t imagine facing it without you by his side.