Being with Harry, as it turned out, was quite easy.

He made everything seem less daunting which was odd because he had tried so hard when I first met him to intimidate me out of his house.

We had become a small unit, Harry, Darcy, Jamie and I- we flowed together like it was natural- and it was the best thing that had ever happened to me in a long time.

The kids made it easy too.

Darcy, who to be fair had always been wonderful, was exceptionally excepting of her father and I.

It was both sweet and intimidating.

Here was this child that was looking at me with these big pleading eyes begging me silently and probably unknowingly, to stay forever.

It was such a big promise to make, even if it was made just as silently and not nearly as unknowingly.

And Harry and Jamie were just beyond words.

There was no doubt that Harry was meant to be a father.

The way he handled not only Darcy but Jamie gave him away and made me want to melt into a puddle at his feet.

His whole persona changed around the children, and although it wasn't something I hadn't seen from him before, it was strangely different under the new circumstances, especially when I watched him with Jamie.

It was like for the first time, I wasn't the outsider watching him be this person so few people got to witness, now I was on the inside too, and I loved it.

So for the past month and a half we shared, as Darcy had once asked me to do. We became an odd, slightly unconventionally quick-made family.

Which ended up making something's a bit awkward.

Like my job.

It was very strange to me to be living in Harry's house, mostly sleeping in his bed although that is about the only thing we had managed to do much to my frustration, and having him pay me for watching our kids.

In a nutshell, I was being paid to help my... boyfriend? I wasn't quite sure that's what he was since we hadn't really discussed it.

So to handle that situation, Kendra and I had spent the day at hers trying to find me a job I could do to earn money but that wouldn't interfere with watching the kids while Harry was recording.

As it turned out, short of being a prostitute at night or working stocking shifts into the wee hours of the morning at the local grocery, I was out of luck.

Slightly disheartened at the failed attempt but grateful to be home after Kendra's and my job hunting adventure, I quietly entered Harry's house surprised by the silence that greeted me.

Furrowing my brows and slipping my flats off my feet, I slowly padded towards the living room, figuring it was the best place to start looking.

There are moments when you think I wish I had a camera to capture this image and then there are moments when you see something and just want to freeze the actual moment and stand there and exists in it forever.

This was the latter.

Laying on the sofa, long body barley fitting on it, was Harry completely knocked out with his mouth hanging open slightly.

On his chest under one large hand that secured most of his smaller body in place lay Jamie with his mouth similarly open, and tucked into Harry's side between the sofa back and her father, was a sleeping Darcy, Harry's arm wrapped around her body and hand holding a story book open on his lap.

It was complete precious and the best thing in the world to come home to.

It was such a change from what I had accepted my life to become. I had this now, how lucky was I?

I wasn't sure how long I stood there watching them, thinking how fortunate I was to have this be part of my life now, when I heard the phone ring.

Jumping nearly out of my skin I rushed to pick it up before it woke my little family.

"Hello?" I practically whispered as I peeked over my shoulder towards the three still sleeping on the sofa, the phone hadn't even registered to them.

"Hello, may I speak to a Miss Aria Reid please?"

I'm sure if anyone had been watching me at that moment they would have seen the utter confusion on my face.

For starters, no one ever called me on Harry's home line, Kendra was really the only person to regularly call and she used my cell, and second, anyone who would possible be calling me on Harry's line I would recognize, not this voice though.

I glanced down at the caller ID to see it was an unavailable name and number.

How odd.

"This is she; may I ask whose calling?"

And then the line went dead.

Now I was really confused.

What the hell was that about?

"Babe?"

I placed the phone back in its charger before turning back towards where Harry was now squinting at me from his spot cuddled with the children on the sofa.

The call was quickly forgotten as his sleepy smile pulled me in until I was kneeling in front of the sofa and leaning in to place a quick kiss on Harry's smirking pink lips.

"How was your day out with Kendra?" He asked not moving an inch. I suspected Harry very much enjoyed having our children nestled into his body so trustingly in their sleep. I imagined it made him feel invincible, if I could judge by the way his arms were still protectively around them.

"It was. We didn't do much really. Just job hunting."

Harry looked a bit confused at my words as he chuckled. "Kendra is actually looking for a job?"

I leaned forward over Harry to place quick kissed to both Jamie and Darcy's heads before standing up to make my way into the kitchen. "Not for Kendra, silly, for me."

I put a little extra speed in my step knowing by Harry's furrowed brow and deep frown that he wasn't a fan of the idea.

If I thought the fact that Harry looked plainly comfortable on the sofa with the children and the hasty escape to the kitchen I had made would keep the conversation from continuing, boy was I wrong.

Quicker than I thought was possible, and that worried me slightly, Harry was standing behind me in the kitchen. I peeked over his shoulder to see he had placed Jamie in his play pen and both he and Darcy, who was still tucked into the corner of the sofa, were sleeping.

"What do you mean, for you? Why were you looking for a job? You don't need a job?"

Now I was on the defensive because as much as I had let Harry in, as much as I wanted this to work, I needed him to understand why I couldn't continue taking his money and be with him at the same time.

"Harry, we've got this... thing going on between us. It's not right for me to just take your money."

If possible his frown deepened. "You're not taking my money. You're watching my daughter for me."

He looked genuinely upset by the idea of me working somewhere else; I could actually see the cogs in his head turning as he tried to think of something to say.

I stopped him before he could even continue. "I would still watch the children. It just wouldn't be my source of income anymore. Trust me it's for the best anyway. If we keep this up the way it is, making money any part in this," I waved my hand between the two of us. "It would complicate things so much more then they need to be, I don't want to set us up for failure Harry."

He closed the space between us to wrap his arms around my waist, I could tell the mood had shifted back just by his slight pout.

"Of course I don't want to fail at this, Aria, I just don't want you to have to do more then you already are. You watch our babies and that is more than enough for me. I told you I wanted to do this right, show you how this is supposed to go and to do that I need to be able to take care of you. You need to let me take care of you."

I couldn't find it in me to argue with him when he looked at me so desperately.

Both of us had failed so miserably in our last relationships, was it so wrong that we wanted to make this work out better? Even if he and I had different ideas on how to do that.

I kissed his lips quickly before leaning back to look at him, completely ready to let this die... for now anyway.

"It's a moot point. I didn't find anything, so as it stands I am a jobless moocher." I said with a shrug.

Harry threw his head back and laughed at my words before tilting his head forward to rest his forehead to mine. "Just how I like it. Do you have any idea how hard it was to find you?"

I knew he was referring to the whole nanny thing, but the gleam in his eyes and the slight tilt to his lips let me know he meant more than just that.

"I had to go through a lot, in case you hadn't figured it out, and Darcy very rarely takes to anyone as quickly as she did to you. I hated it for a while but I always knew you were something special so forgive me if I don't want to share you just yet."

I tried; I really did try to hide the soft smile from taking over my lips or the color from tinting my cheeks. I didn't want him to know what he was doing to me, how quickly he was making me fall deeper and deeper, but I couldn't help it and damn him for that pleased smirk that shined back at me when he realized it.

"I hate you Styles." I said with a giggle after my failed attempt.

Harry chuckled and kissed my lips again, this time dragging it out as his lips moved against mine in an almost painfully perfect way.

I certainly hope I never get used to this feeling; I wanted to always feel the butterflies in my belly, the pleasant lightheadedness, the flutter in my chest, and the sheer magic that swallowed me whole whenever Harry Styles kissed me like this.

His hands griping my hips and pulling me closer to his warm, long body made me moan into the kiss and had Harry once again smirking even as his lips worked mine over.

Ass.

But an ass who certainly knew how to kiss.

And as my hands slid down his shoulders, over his torso, around his hips and down a little farther until I had a nice handful, I realized he was an ass with a nice ass.

Harry jumped slightly and chuckled while pulling away to look down at me with a slight blush.

"Woman, did you just squeeze my bum?"

I just shrugged and let go as I pulled away. "I may or may not have felt up your bum." I mocked his accent and deep voice at the last word.

His jaw dropped in fake horror as I laughed and took a few steps back.

"Just you wait."

I winked at him and stepped around the breakfast bar.

It only reminded me of the lack of a sex life we had. Man did I hope that changed soon.

"How was your day anyway, sir?"

He leaned forward onto his elbows on the counter. "Good. I bathed the monsters, feed them, and then read to them until we fell asleep."

"Sounds productive." I said nodding while I looked at the contents of Harry's refrigerator trying to decide on what to make for dinner.

"And what did you do beside hunt for a job you don't need?"

I rolled my eyes and sent Harry a withering look from over my shoulder before continuing on my refrigerator hunt. "Nothing much. Listened to Kendra go on and on about Niall, eat junk food, fall into the black hole of youtube. The usual."

"Did you go on and on about me?" He asked and when I turned to look at him he was giving me the most innocent look he could possible muster, complete with hands tucked under his chin and wide toothy grin on his face making his dimples pop out on his cheeks and his eyes wrinkle at the sides.

"No." I deadpanned and then laughed when his face quickly feel into an unamused pout. "And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. I don't think your body could handle the extra weight to your head."

His smile returned full force. "So you did talk about me."

Now I was the one with an unamused look. "Harry go check on the kids. Leave me alone, I'm making dinner."

He chuckled, blew me a kiss and then began to make his way back towards the living room.
"Hey did someone call earlier?"

My thoughts returned to the weird phone call I had completely forgotten but I quickly shrugged it off. "Yea, but it was nothing."

Even as I said it something told me it was most definitely something, but the voice was so small, so far behind images of Harry smirking and memories of his lips on mine, that I ignored it.

Notes

so I'm sorry for the late update. I'm kinda sick, but hey I actually updated so thats a good thing right? And the drama is about to begin. I promise this story is far from over so no worries about it ending anytime soon.
I might updated again to night if A) people review and B) I don't fall asleep. Let me just tell you that next chapter is jam packed with drama.
Enjoy kiddies <3