“Just finished cleaning up at the docks. We’ll be home by late morning.”
I still wasn’t sure if I could sleep until he came home. “Okay, are the guys okay?”
“Yeah, Ash and Damien are fine.”
“Good. Tell them I said hi.”
He didn’t respond to that. “I gotta go. I just called because I knew you’d worry.”
I felt like an overprotective mother who couldn’t let her kids grow up, but I didn’t care if I was overdramatic. I wanted my husband to come back in the same condition as when he left. “Thank you. I’ll see you when you get home.”
Before he got off the phone, he had one more thing to say. “I love you.” It was the first time he’d said it to me over the phone, the first time he’d said it to me in the way couples usually did. It was so normal. But it was such a lovely thing to hear, such a comfort since I was home alone.
I loved my husband so much, I could barely take it. I didn’t know how this happened, how I fell so madly in love with a man. I’d been detached my entire life, never clinging to any man I met. But now I was obsessed with my husband. “I love you too…”
He came home just before noon. In the same clothes he’d worn when he left, he looked the same as he stepped inside. There were no new bruises or scars, and no signs of blood or injury. The only difference was he seemed exhausted.
I ran into his arms right away and wrapped my arms around his neck. I was still in his t-shirt because I didn’t get ready for the day. I’d been too stressed to sleep or shower. “I’m so happy you’re home.”
He lifted me from the floor and held me so we were eye level with each other. He hadn’t been able to pick me up in a long time, but now he was strong enough to lift me effortlessly. His large hands gripped my ass as he carried me back to the bed. His lips moved to mine, and he kissed me as he held me in the air. He should be tired and eager for a shower, but he cared more about curing my broken heart. “I told you I would come back.”
“I know. But seeing your face is so much better than hearing your words.”
He studied my gaze for a while, looking into my eyes like he could do it forever. “You didn’t sleep.”
“How could I, when you weren’t next to me?” I’d never committed to a man before, but now I was the clingiest woman the world had ever seen. My priorities had changed, and the most important things to me were this man and the little boy we’d made together. It was crazy how so much could change in the blink of an eye.
His eyes softened slightly, so subtly it was hardly noticeable. My husband was a strong man, the strong and silent type, the kind that thrived in the shadows and winced in the light. That was why I was so attracted to him in the first place. So when I saw him soften for me, have emotion for me, it spoke volumes. His hand moved to my cheek, and he brought our foreheads together. His fingers moved down to my neck, and he lightly pressed into me as he held me. “I’m here now. And soon, this will all be over.”
I knew Hades would get rid of Maddox. I had no doubt he would give me the revenge I deserved. I just needed to be patient a little longer, accept his absence a little longer. This would come to an end soon, and we would never have to think about it again.
After he pressed a kiss to my forehead, he released me and stepped back. “I’m gonna shower and get some sleep.”
It was almost noon, so he’d been up for almost two days. I wasn’t surprised by his exhaustion.
He stripped off his jacket and tossed it on the chair for Helena to grab later. His watch came undone, and he set it on the nightstand instead of in his special drawer. He wore the same watch every single day…the watch I gave him.
Our relationship had changed so much, and he never put me down for feeling differently. He reciprocated my affections and never made me feel stupid for putting my heart on the line. That made me more secure, made me more loved. “Can I join you?”
He lifted his gaze and looked at me, his jaw tight but his eyes soft. “Always.”
We sat in the doctor’s office and waited for the results to come in. I sat in the chair with my hand on my slight stomach, unafraid of what we would find out. I knew my son was alive and well inside me. I could feel it; I could sense it.
I could also tell my husband was stressed.
He sat in his jeans and jacket, his eyes on the opposite wall without really looking at anything. His eyes were open and unblinking, and it was clear he had a million thoughts on his mind. He hadn’t been very affectionate or talkative lately. I knew it had nothing to do with me, but I worried anyway.
“Andrew is fine.”
When Hades heard my voice, he slowly turned to me and met my gaze. It took him a few seconds to process what I’d just said. “I know, baby.”
My hand moved to his on his thigh. “Then why are you so upset?”
He faced the wall again. “I’m not.”
“I can tell something is on your mind.”
After a few seconds, he sighed. He slowly turned back to me. “I don’t think a doctor’s office is an appropriate place for this conversation.”
“No place is appropriate.”
He was quiet for a while before he answered. “I expected to hear from Maddox by now. I hit his distributors hard and took out most of his men.”
“He’s probably just stubborn.”
He shook his head slightly. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
I squeezed his hand. “I’m sure he’s running out of options, and he’ll surrender soon.”
His hand finally came to life, and he slipped his fingers through mine. “Let’s not worry about that now. This should be a happy moment for us.”
“It is.” I leaned into him and rested my face on his shoulder. “Our son is healthy, and you’ll be getting rid of Maddox soon. We’ll have the life that we want…soon enough.”
He turned his head my way and pressed a kiss to my forehead. “Yes, we will.”
Hades was out of the house, so I texted Damien. How are you? As time went by, I heard from him less and less. He used to be a big part of our lives, and now he’d ceased to exist. He wasn’t just a friend of my husband…he was a friend of mine too.
Shitty.
I could hear the sarcasm in his reply. Damien, I’m being serious.
So am I. Shitty.
Are you with Hades right now?
No.
I picked up the phone and decided to call him instead.
When he answered, he was just as annoyed. “Did you need something?”
I ignored his assholeness. “I just want to see how my friend is doing.”
He sighed loudly. “Tensions are high. Shit is taking forever. I’m not getting laid. So yeah, I’m not doing too well. And since Hades and I are enemies, that means you and I are enemies too.”
I refused to take that literally. “No matter what’s going on between the two of you, it doesn’t make us lesser friends. And you two are not enemies.”
“When this is all over, I doubt I’ll ever see him again. I doubt I’ll ever want to see him again. And I know that feeling is mutual.”
It was crazy to see how far they’d fallen. I used to think this whole thing would blow over, but now I realized it was here to stay. Hades couldn’t forget what Damien did, and Damien grew resentful of his best friend’s coldness. Things seemed to be getting worse by the day, not better. “I hope you two find your way back to each other.”