Mom had stopped singing and was now asleep in our yard.
Brody pulled me closer to him as he hugged me. Then he whispered, ‘It’s okay, we’ll be okay. I’ll look after you. Pinkie swear.’ He wrapped his little finger around mine.
Together we looked at our linked hands and went back to our make-believe world.
‘Hey.’ I felt my left ear move as the earbud was pulled gently out of my ear.
I opened my eyes to see Nico’s face descending to mine. The panic I was feeling inside began to dissipate as his lips came down to mine. The briefest of touches was all it took to make me feel steady again.
‘What were you dreaming about this time?’ he asked with concern etched across his face. It was becoming quite regular for me to be having bizarre dreams. We’d found out after some research that it was fairly normal when pregnant.
‘Brody… well Brody and me when we were kids back in the U.K.’
‘Sit up,’ Nic commanded and pulling the other earbud out of my ear so my phone cable wouldn’t pull my phone to the floor as I moved, I did as I was told.
I felt his near naked body, bar the swim shorts he was wearing, slide in behind me and then his hands held gently onto my upper arms as he pulled me back to lie on him.
‘A bad dream?’ he questioned.
‘Well, yes and no.’
His arms wrapped around me tighter. ‘Tell me.’
I lifted my hands up and held onto his forearms and told him.
‘I was listening to music when I fell asleep. The last song I remember listening to was “Regret” by Default Distraction.’ I then went on to tell him about the memory I had of that day and how I knew that the song which had been written by my brother was about the regrets he had in his life.
‘You miss him, don’t you?’
‘I do, I always have… and now I have you, little star and our love… I miss him even more.’
‘Then it’s time.’
I turned around in Nico’s arms, feeling his arms relax a little and then retighten when he was certain I was where I was wanted to be.
‘It’s time?’ I questioned, as I traced a finger into the stubble filled cleft on his chin.
He used one arm to capture my hand and to place the finger I’d been using to draw on his skin onto his lips, where he placed a kiss to it. I watched as gold threads sparked to life in his eyes.
‘This love I share with you it makes me want my family back together again. Cade and I have been concentrating on just that for a while now and I’m also working on a hotel project with Default Distraction. You’ve given me the strength to know that I can and will safely look after you all, so it’s time. I want him back in my life properly and Brody back in yours… leave it with me.’
‘I don’t know what I’d do without you.’ I snuggled down onto his chest.
‘You’ll never have to find out, because I’m never leaving you again.’
‘I love you, Nico.’
‘And mio angelo, ti amo anch’io.’
THE END