Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 95013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
I wasn’t so easily swayed. “Tommaso texted me and asked what I thought of her, and it really hit me then that I’d crossed a line.”
Her playfulness flickered slightly, but she maintained her calm. “It’s over now. Just let it go.”
She let me off the hook quicker than I deserved, but I was happy to find peace again. Happy to be a family under one roof again, the three of us and Medusa. My hand moved down her body and cupped her flat stomach, a tummy that looked and felt exactly the same as it always had.
“I liked spending time with your mom.”
“Yeah?”
“She showed me one of your family photo albums.”
“Of course she did.”
“You look a lot like your dad.”
I nodded, having heard that assessment before.
“But spiritually, you’re the spitting image of your mother.”
I smirked. “I’ll take that compliment. What else did you guys do?”
“She made dinner and we talked. I told her how much I love you, that she reminds me of my own mother. I love you for you, even if she’d hated me like Beatrice does, but it’s nice to have her.”
“I know.” I pulled her into me, holding her close and resting my chin on the top of her head as I cradled her into me. We stood together under the warm shower, listening to the water fall like rain on a winter night.
After a while, she broke the silence. “What did President Barsetti want?”
I hadn’t thought about him since the moment he’d left my sight. My whole world revolved around Aurelia the second she returned to me. “Was in town and just wanted to catch up.”
We sat together at the dining table on the terrace, Medusa lying in her dog bed under the string of white lights that hung overhead, listening to the silence when the birds stopped chirping at sunset.
We’d only been apart for a day, but it felt like a lifetime since we’d had dinner together like this. The chef prepared sautéed fish with vegetables and a side of rice, a dinner that Aurelia probably found boring but I found essential. I was a little more flexible with my diet throughout the day, but in the evening, I tried to keep my nutrition as basic as possible. Besides, it was a healthy meal for both her and our baby.
She took a few bites but seemed mostly distracted.
“Something on your mind?”
She pushed pieces of her fish around as she considered what she’d say next.
Maybe she was still mad after all.
“When I saw you two together, it didn’t seem like old friends catching up.” She set down her fork and looked at me. “I know how you are when you’re with your friends or your family, and you aren’t like that.”
Damn.
“So, what did he really want?”
I wanted to spare her the guilt and obligation. Her only concern should be the life growing inside her. “He asked me to return to Rome and remove Darius from power.” I told her the truth since she wanted to hear it. “I declined.”
She gave a slight nod. “I’ve heard things are bad.”
“From where?”
She shrugged. “Just headlines and stuff. Haven’t looked into it too much.”
“I told him it’s not my problem. Don’t worry about it.”
“Then whose problem is it?” she asked.
“His.” He was the president of Italy. Not me.
“But he’s a politician, and Darius . . . is not.”
“He has the military and the police at his disposal. He’ll figure it out.”
“But if he could figure it out, he wouldn’t have come here.”
I cocked my head slightly, unsure of what she was trying to imply. “What are you saying, sweetheart?”
“That it must be really bad if he came all the way here to ask for your help.”
I wouldn’t tell her about the changes that had taken place. The destruction to the streets, the crimes against the good people who lived there. I needed to make sure she knew only peace. “Even if it is, it doesn’t matter.”
“I think it does.” She stopped eating altogether.
So did I. My appetite dropped out of my stomach like a stone. “No.”
“No, what?”
“You know what,” I said with a warning in my tone.
“I just . . . that place means a lot to both of us.”
“You mean more to me than anything else ever could.”
“I know, but . . . I could hide. You could hide me somewhere, and you could go—”
“No.”
“You act like you don’t care, but I know you, Constantine. I know how much this must be bothering you.”
“Do I look bothered?” I challenged, not wanting to have a fight the second she got home, but my temper got the best of me. “We’re having a baby, Aurelia. The single most important thing to both of us is our child. I’m sorry about what’s happening back in Rome, but it can burn to the ground for all I care. I’m not risking you or her or Medusa. Everything is different now, and I’ve moved on.”