“So… I heard that my son recently turned into an overprotective hulk.”
I looked up from the tailor who was helping me alter my wedding dress. Keeping as still as I could, I hesitantly asked Mrs. Cordova, “Are you talking about what happened last week?”
She nodded as she thumbed the edge of her magazine. “Benedict told me about it. He’s practically my third son and often whines to me about Rafael like a younger sibling who can’t win with his brother.”
I bit my lip nervously.
I had tried to apologize to Mr. Serman about Achilles’s behavior and the new holes in the walls of my office, but he had insisted that it was nothing and waved it off. He simply stroked the damaged walls over and over again with heavy sighs, muttering something about how he was going to get Achilles to pay back the damage in double.
And it definitely didn’t help that Achilles refused to apologize to Benedict for damaging his office building, saying that Benedict deserved it for not keeping a better eye on his employees’ behavior.
Mrs. Cordova added, “I also figured something happened when Rafael told me not to invite anyone else to today’s fitting unless you specifically asked for them.”
I chewed the inside of my cheek as I lowered my eyes, unable to meet her gaze.
I couldn’t tell if she was upset with me. Maybe she thought that I was being too sensitive and causing unnecessary trouble for everyone? Would she try to get me to break up with Achilles?
“Oh, sweetheart. Please don’t cry.” Mrs. Cordova bolted out of her chair and immediately scurried over to me, pulling me out of the tailor’s hands and into her arm. “I’m not trying to reprimand you. I just want to talk to you so that you can get things off your chest. You don’t seem to have anyone you’re close to, and I know that there are some things that you can’t talk about to Rafael, so I just want to be there for you.”
I nodded quietly, sniffling ever so slightly as I leaned into her warm embrace.
She rubbed comforting circles on my back and softly informed me, “Rafael told me that you think one of the girls that spend time around him has feelings for him… And that you wouldn’t tell him who it was because you didn’t want him to cut her out of his life for no reason… But you shouldn’t bottle up those kinds of harmful thoughts within yourself.”
“I-I…” I pressed my lips together as indecision swirled in my mind.
I didn’t want Mrs. Cordova to be estranged from her either. They grew up together, and I was sure that Mrs. Cordova saw her like her own daughter. What if Mrs. Cordova finds out about Cassy’s feelings and decides that she would be a better fit for Achilles?
I wouldn’t be able to handle it if I had to watch him get married to another woman.
A soft hand stroked my head, drawing me out of my thoughts. “Sweetheart, you’re overthinking again. Just know that I would never judge you or spill your secrets to anyone else, even if my son pesters me from the moon and back. I’m just here to listen.”
I nodded solemnly. Taking a shakey, deep breath, I slowly confessed, “C-Cassy has feelings for Achilles, but he has no idea about it…”
“Oh…” Mrs. Cordova stiffened against me for a moment, scaring me for a second before she started to relax. With a soft chuckle, she replied, “I guess I shouldn’t be so surprised. She had always followed Rafael around like a little puppy ever since they were little.”
“I-I know… I think she’s been in love with him since they were kids, but Achilles doesn’t even seem to remember her at all…”
“…” She sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of her nose, muttering, “My son is really a dunce.”
I giggled lightly at her deadpanned conclusion.
She continued, “It’s probably my fault. I had an inkling about Cassy’s feelings and pushed Rafael to go on a date with her, thinking he knew who I was talking about when I said Mellisa’s daughter, but I guess he never realized, and I ended up creating a bigger mess. I didn’t find out until a few weeks after the date that he was courting you. If I knew that he already had feelings for someone else at the time, I never would’ve pushed him.”
I shook my head and reassured her, “It’s not your fault. You didn’t know. Plus… Achilles and I weren’t in any special relationship at that time anyway…”
“You know that Rafael would never cheat on you, right? He looks at you as if you were the only person in the world.”
I nodded. “I know he wouldn’t. He isn’t that type of man… I guess I just feel guilty, like I stole Achilles from her…”
“Oh…”
I pursued my lips and continued solemnly, “She told me about what Achilles was like when they were younger and I can tell how much she loves him. I know she won’t be mean to me about it, but I saw how much it hurt her when Achilles suddenly announced our engagement and decision to move in together at the family dinner. He’s just… too oblivious…”
“Danary… I know you empathize with her, but I don’t think you should let her feelings keep you from being happy.” She stroked my head soothingly and continued, “I know you love my son more than anything in this world and I would never want you to leave him for such a reason. Even if you did, he still wouldn’t bat an eye at her. He’s a very committed and stubborn man. He would probably spend all this time trying to convince you to come back or spend the rest of his life in a loveless arranged marriage, ignoring whoever he may be bound to, so please don’t think that it would be better choice to step out of this situation.”
I nodded understandingly. “Thank you for talking to me. It helped me a lot, but I hope you won’t treat Cassy any differently after this… She can’t control who she loves.”
Mrs. Cordova gave me a reassuring smile as she lovingly kissed my temple. “Of course not, sweetheart. You are all like my children.”
Warmth bloomed in my chest with her gesture as I leaned into her comforting embrace.
Soon after our little moment, the tailor finished up arranging the last few pins for the alterations and helped me out of my dress before the boys came by to pick us up.
Right as I finished changing back into my suspender dress, the bell at the front door twinkled as the sound of little feet came pattering into the shop. I smiled as a familiar little head of black hair popped out from the corner and excitedly asked, “Mom, are you done?”
I nodded as I made my way over to Liam, patting his head lovingly. “I just finished, honey. Where is your dad?”
He closed his eyes with a happy hum as he leaned into my hand. “Dad’s waiting outside. He said he isn’t allowed to see the dress yet, so he sent me in to come look for you.”
I chuckled softly. “Why don’t we go see him then? Before he gets too anxious from waiting.”
Liam nodded eagerly as he took me hand and immediately started pulling me out of the shop. Before we left, I quickly turned around and waved goodbye to Mrs. Cordova who gave me a resounding verbal response that was much too lively for a women at her age in reply.
She was so loud that Achilles arched an eyebrow when Liam pushed the front door open and her voice boomed out of the shop.
“My mother is too much,” he muttered as he walked over to us, pulling his hands out of his pockets as he reached up to brush his fingers against my cheek. Changing the topic, he asked, “How was the fitting session?”
“Good. I like talking with your mom.”
He hummed mutely as his eyes traced over my features, almost as if he could spot the puffiness of my eyes that I had tried to cover up before coming out earlier.
Trying to divert his attention, I playfully teased, “Are you waiting for a hello kiss?”
His eyes immediately lit up at the offer. He gave a small nod as he leaned down and eagerly waited for said kiss.
I leaned up to my tippy toes and rested my hands on his broad shoulders to balance myself as I just barely managed to press my lips against the base of his jaw. I mumbled quietly as I came back down to my feet, “You’re too tall.”
He chuckled softly and leaned down to give me a deeper kiss on the lips in return. By the time he pulled away, I was left completely breathless with an uncontrollable red tint spreading across my cheeks from being whisked away in such a intimate act out in the middle of the streets.
He smirked at my flustered expression and cheekily asked, “Better?”
I turned my face away from him and pouted, grumbling about how unfair he was being.
Interlacing our fingers together, he easily coaxed me out of my pouting mode and told me, “I visited the chapel near our house that you told me about with Liam.”
I lit up at the mention of the chapel and asked, “What did you think of it? I know it’s a bit small and run down, but we could fix it up a little for the wedding and the pastor said that he would be more than willing to help us with it. But I get it if you don’t like it, I could also contact the-”
“Love, you’re rambling.”
I immediately snapped my mouth shut and looked up at him hopefully. I knew that it wasn’t much of a fancy setting, but I thought the historic mosaic along the chapel’s window were just too beautiful to give up.
“I already told the pastor that I would send some people by this week to fix it up the lights and furniture a bit.”
I unconsciously bounced my toes in excitement, delighted that he liked the place too. “The pastor is going to be so happy to finally get some new things for his chapel.”
He chuckled and nodded, “Yes, he was definitely more than happy when I offered to help him remodel the chapel a bit as a thank you for letting us have the wedding at his chapel. Probably fix his leaking roof and cracking walls, and maybe switch out a few of the worn down doors if he wanted to.”
My eyes widened in surprise. “You didn’t have to do that…”
He shrugged nonchalantly. “I don’t mind. After all, he is helping us hide our wedding from the paparazzi for the time being. It’s the least I could do.”
Liam interjected, “Well, actually, the pastor couldn’t stop talking about what an angel you were like and kept talking about all the things he wished he coupled fixed in the chapel to make the perfect wedding for a ‘descendant of the heavens’ and dad got carried away agreeing to all the his words and even corrected the pastor, saying how you were more than just an angel, but actually a goddess, which only made the pastor even more excited.”
I giggled as Liam ratted out his dad in a heartbeat and glanced up at Achilles for confirmation.
Achilles rubbed the back of his neck embaressedly and bashfully mumbled, “I was only telling the truth.”
I gently pulled him down by his collar and pressed a kiss on his cheek. “Then, if I am a goddess, that makes you my omnibenevolent god, right?”
He immediately flushed at my words, adorably stunned by my little attack.
Mrs. Cordova was right.
I never stole him from anyone because he willingly gave me his whole heart to me and me alone. He was rightfully mine and I would do anything to keep him with me.
My giant oblivious teddy bear.