That sounds better. The whole idea of having an alliance with the Mexicans rubs me the wrong way. Although, a few years ago I couldn’t imagine having an alliance with the Messinas, being Louis’s wife, and… well, enjoying it, so who knows what’s waiting for us in the future.
I put my head on Louis’s shoulder, stroke Misha’s back, and close my eyes. For now, I’m pretty content with what my life has given me.
Soon after, Olga hints that she has plenty of things to take care of as the new head of the Russian Bratva, and despite the exhaustion weighing me down, I pull Misha up and follow Louis out of the mansion. They’re talking about something with Riccardo and Elena, but I don’t listen. It’s their family’s business, although I guess it’s time for me to call myself a Messina. It feels weird, but I think I can live with it.
“Well, hope to see you soon.” Riccardo raises his hand in a farewell, and Elena gives me a tentative smile.
“You’re welcome to visit us. Max would be happy to have someone to play with. You know, I haven’t been in shape lately.” She pointedly looks at her belly, and I chuckle and nod, squeezing Misha’s shoulder.
“Sure. That would be nice.”
Are we gonna be one of these sickeningly sweet families that visit each other every weekend? Well, to be honest, after spending a month in Louis’s house with no friends, it doesn’t sound that bad.
Finally, Louis takes the driver’s seat, Misha and I settle in the back, and we drive away from the Pushkov mansion-hopefully, to never see it again. I watch familiar streets and buildings pass behind the car window, bathing in the sunlight peeking through the clouds, and at last my heart feels at peace.
I catch it right away when Louis suddenly changes course and, instead of taking the shortest road home, drives off the highway and to the rest area. But Misha has already dozed off on my shoulder, so I decide not to wake him up and wait to see what Louis wants to do. I have to trust him more if I want this relationship to work, right?
But all Louis does is drive to the gas station to refill the tank before making a turn toward the closest pizza place. Oh. I blink. I completely forgot about his promise to Misha this morning. My heart warms up at the realization, and I close my eyes and hide a smile in Misha’s hair.
Louis keeps his voice low as he places his order at the drivethrough, and it sounds like he thinks we’re both asleep. To be fair, the afternoon sun does make me drowsy, and my sore muscles and bruised lip remind me that I spent two days in a row fighting for my life. I probably doze off while Louis picks up the order because the next time I open my eyes, we’re already pulling into our driveway.
When the car slows down, Misha fidgets as well and rubs his eyes, looking around. “Are we already at home?”
“Almost.” Louis chuckles and looks at us over his shoulder. “All that’s left is to get to the door. Do you think you can handle that?”
Misha whines out loud, stretching his arms over his head in a pure expression of laziness, and I huff and jokingly nudge him with my elbow. At the same time, Louis turns around in his seat to look at us properly and quirks his eyebrow with a challenge.
“Alright, what about-whoever gets to the door first chooses the first piece of pizza.”
Misha’s eyes immediately light up, and he almost bounces on his seat. “Pizza?”
“Yep.”
Louis nods and demonstratively reaches for his door handle. Of course, it spurs Misha to get out of his seat, almost kicking me with his feet in a hurry, and the two of them take off toward the house with loud giggles.
God, why does it feel like I have two babies now, and why does it make me so fond?
“I don’t know which one of you won,” I announce loudly as I enter the house with the boxes of pizza that Louis, of course, has left behind. “But Mom had to carry all this on her own, so she gets to choose the first piece. Got it?”
Misha jokingly whines but doesn’t complain further, jumping off his place on the couch and running to the kitchen. I guess the car nap was enough to restore his energy, but it’s good. I’m glad to see that the morning’s events didn’t have a lasting effect on his mood-and I have to thank Louis for that. The two of them joke around in the kitchen while choosing what box to open first, and my heart grows warm when I realize how easy it is for Misha to be a child with Louis.
Maybe in the past Louis rejected Misha out of fear and inexperience, but I can see that he has grown to be a father.
“Mom, are you coming? I’m hungry!” Misha pulls me out of my thoughts, impatiently drumming his hands against the table, and I shake my head with a chuckle and walk over to join them in the kitchen.
We spend the rest of the afternoon together, eating pizza and watching Misha’s favorite movies. And later when Louis takes a seat next to me on the couch, I don’t move away, letting him wrap an arm around my shoulders and ignoring the sparkles of heat in my belly. But by the evening, the exhaustion of the morning seems to take over all of us, and before Misha and Louis pass out in the living room, I shoo both of them upstairs.
I can’t help but laugh when Louis pretends to be too tired to walk and wraps his arms around me, leaning on me with his weight. The heat of his breath and the closeness of his body create a wave of desire so strong I feel the heat of it on my cheeks-but Misha is here, laughing at Louis’s antics, so I can only push him away and huff.
“You’re a big boy, Louis. I’m sure you can put yourself to bed.”
With some dramatic sighs and grunting, Louis does go to his bedroom while I take Misha to his own. Despite his bright mood, I know Misha isn’t ready to stay on his own, and the way he tenses up when I turn off the light only proves it. So I read a pirate story to distract his thoughts, and eventually his grip on my hands relaxes.
“Mom,” he calls me quietly when I put the book away and get ready to leave.
“Yes, teddy bear?” I turn back to him and stroke his hair, smiling when I see him close his eyes and tighten his grip on the pillow.
“I like it here. I don’t want to leave Louis.”
Oh. I forgot that I had told him about my plans to leave soon-as soon as I could kill Louis. God, how much has changed in just two days, huh? My heart tightens with a rush of affection, and I stroke Misha’s cheek and press a kiss to his temple.
“We won’t leave, I promise.”
With that, Misha breathes out and relaxes his shoulders, and I wait for his breathing to turn deep and steady before walking out of his room. Yeah, who would’ve thought that things would go this way? I huff under my breath, and my gaze automatically darts to the door of Louis’s bedroom.
Ah, damn it. The memories of our wedding night flash in my mind, and my body reacts to them with a wave of heat. Aren’t we like…officially together now? I linger in the middle of the hallway, hesitating. Can I go in there and, I don’t know, let him take me in whatever way he wants?
The thought makes me tighten from inside, but-
Damn it. I’m being stupid. Louis was clearly so sleepy in the living room, and here I am, thinking about waking him up and demanding to have sex. Besides, we haven’t really talked things through. I mean, Louis confessed to me and all that, but…ah, I don’t know!
My thoughts turn into a mess, and in the end, I turn around on my heels and storm to my own room. I feel like a teenager, or no, even worse than that! Because when I was nineteen and met Louis for the first time, I knew very well who he was and I refused to pine for him like that. But now, I’m almost thirty, yet I feel even more awkward than before.
I drop onto my bed, gather the pillow in my arms, and huff into it.
Whatever. Why am I even thinking about this? We are married, so we have all the time in the world to sleep together again. But no matter how many times I tell myself this, I keep thinking about Louis until my mind finally drifts to sleep.
When I wake up, at first I feel like I’m still in the midst of my lewd dreams. I feel the warmth of Louis’s touches, his palm sliding up and down my waist, and I instinctively lean back and into his embrace. My body is so hot and tight after my dreams that I release a whine, still keeping my eyes closed. God, why does it feel so good?
“I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” I hear Louis whisper all of a sudden, and only then does my mind catch up with the present. Wait, so it’s all real?