Chapter 44 #2
Gabriel chuckles, taking a long pull from the bottleneck. “Actually, we only have one. The other two are Rolls-Royce cars.”
“They’re super cool, Dad. Maybe the next time we go to Spain, you can come with us.”
I cringe, watching Gabriel’s mouth stretch into a warm smile, like he’s truly not bothered by her impromptu invite, even though I most definitely am.
“Ana, love, would you mind sliding the divider up? I need to speak privately with Alex.”
“Sure, Papi.”
A thick tinted-glass partition soundlessly glides up, and now we’re alone.
Wonderful.
I run my fingers nervously through my hair and then send them skating across my bouncing thighs.
I must look a mess.
“Nah, I think you look sexy as fuck,” Gabriel gushes, and my cheeks flush in embarrassment by my obvious failure at keeping my thoughts to myself, yet again. I shift in my seat and take a heavy swallow of beer, attempting to look relaxed, but I’m anything but.
“So, Elijah sent you to save us?”
“I wouldn’t go that far.” He grabs two more beers, pops the tops, and holds one out. I drain the last of mine, reach for the second, and catch another smile spreading across his ridiculously handsome face as he sinks back into his seat.
“Is something funny?” That’s a loaded question, especially with him, but I’ve never been so irritated by a smile in my life.
“Do you not like my smile?”
“I like your smile just fine, Gabriel. I just don’t appreciate it when it’s aimed at me.” I scowl, setting the bottle down on my bouncing leg.
His smile widens. “Well, that’s a damn shame. So, tell me then, what exactly would you like me to aim at you?”
Ugh, this fucking guy.
I hold my beer out to the side as we take a sharp corner—thank fuck this ride is over. I set the bottle down and shift sideways just as the car takes another turn into the underground garage.
“Ana, sweetheart,” Gabriel lowers the partition just an inch. “Tell your father that Alex and I will be up shortly. We’re just finishing our conversation.”
“Okay, Papi,” she singsongs.
I scoot forward. “Emilee, wait right there.” I reach for the door, jaw tight with irritation, then pause, turning back to meet Gabriel’s gaze head-on.
“This conversation is over.” I glare at him, really glare, hoping my eyes might burn a hole right through his smug face.
Apparently, they do, just not in the way I intended.
His tongue sweeps slowly across his curvy lips as I yank the handle. I’ve had enough.
“Close the door, Alex.”
“Gabriel…”
“Please. Would you please close the door?”
He runs his hand through his hair, and for a moment, something in his eyes shifts. Not that they were hard before, but…
Against my better judgment, I lean forward and shut the door.
“Happy?” I huff, flopping back in my seat.
“Very much so. Now, as—”
“Wait.” I hold up a hand like I’m stopping traffic. If we’re going to do this, I need to get something off my chest first.
He slides in beside me, close enough that our knees almost touch. “Sure thing, Alex. What is it?”
I swallow down my annoyance and brace myself.
“About last night,” I stutter, forcing myself to look away from his patchy gray eyes. They’re making me nervous—like staring out an airplane window just before you hit turbulence. Where the sky looks dark and unsettled.
I blink the image away and push forward.
“I… um. I’m sorry for what I did to Elijah. In front of you.” The words taste bitter going down. “It was in poor taste, and I’m really embarrassed by my actions.”
There. I said it.
“You mean fucking him?”
“Yeah, that,” I say quietly, eyes following his hand as it moves to rest gently on my thigh, halting my nervous fidgeting.
“Alex… I loved watching you fuck Elijah.”
“Oh, for Christ’s sake. This isn’t the time to be fucking with me!”
My patience snaps like a rubber band.
“No?” His lips twitch, something between a smirk and a smile. “Then tell me… when would be the right time for me to fuck with you? Because I have to admit, I’ve been looking forward to fucking you for a while.”
I’ve got nothing. Not a damn thing.
He shakes out his hair, then drags a hand down his face, dragging the smirk off with it.
“Sorry,” he says—and it actually sounds sincere.
He exhales, long and slow, then pushes his hair back again.
“Elijah and I saw the news. Damn, Alex… what were you thinking?” His voice drops, worry bleeding into it.
“We told you to stay away from your building. Not with the paparazzi camped out in front like that. They’re vultures. We were scared for you and the girls.”
Whether it’s deliberate or not, he keeps referring to him and Elijah as a couple, and it’s getting under my skin.
“Elijah insisted on coming to your rescue, but I wouldn’t let him. I couldn’t let him leave in his state.”
I lift my head. “His state?”
“He’d been crying, Alex. A lot. More than I’ve ever seen.”
There’s sadness buried in his voice, quiet but heavy, and it stirs something deep in my stomach. Nausea rises like a tide, and I reach for the door. But his hand finds my elbow before I can escape.
“Alex, he loves you.”
His words hit like a freight train.
Please don’t do this.
My heart kicks up, faster and faster, until it steals the breath right out of my lungs.
Damn it, I need air.
But instead of fighting for it, I fall back in my seat and start counting. Because, deep down, I know… it’s not air I actually need.
It’s Elijah.
I need him like I need my next breath.
“I love him too,” I finally admit.
“Then go to him.”
I swallow hard, letting the tears wash over my heart before I turn to face Gabriel.
“I can’t,” I whisper. “Not when you’re still in love with him.”
His hand rests on my knee, squeezing it gently. I feel it all the way to my chest.
“Ahh, let me explain,” he says softly. “You’re right—I do still love Elijah. Very much. He’ll always be a part of me. That won’t change. Not after everything we’ve been through.
“But, Alex… there’s something I want you to understand.
I never meant to walk away from our marriage, from my family.
I felt like I had no choice. I didn’t know what Mimi was capable of.
The only thing I knew for sure was that I had to keep my family safe.
And, unfortunately, I had to keep my secret safe too.
“That’s why I left for Spain. I knew she’d follow me because I was her only source of money.
I told Elijah it was because I didn’t love him anymore, that I wanted to take some time away and think things through.
But that was a lie. I was a coward, Alex.
Afraid that if he found out the truth surrounding Ana, that I was paying Mimi to keep her mouth shut, especially when I discovered her intentions about the puzzle piece, he would leave me, and I’d never see my daughter again.
I couldn’t take that chance. For fuck’s sake, Alex, Ana and Elijah are my world. ”
I bow my head. “I’m so fucking sorry for what she did.” My hands go numb from how tightly I’m squeezing them together.
He pats my knee again. “Don’t apologize for her actions, Alex.”
“But what she did to you… to your family… it’s inexcusable.”
“And I’d say what she did to you and Emilee is also inexcusable, sí?”
It is, but still…
I drop my head in my hands and let the tears flow freely. But Gabriel reaches over, gently pulling my hands away from my face, baring the emotion I so desperately want to hide.
He holds my hands in his, his thumbs brushing softly over the love lines on my palms. Then, slowly, he brings them to rest in his lap—his fingers grazing over the tattoo on my wrist.
A shiver runs through me. His touch is so gentle, featherlike, and for a moment, I close my eyes and simply breathe.
“You share this with my daughter,” he whispers.
When I open my eyes, I’m stunned to find I’m not the only one crying. Tears streak down his tanned cheeks, and before I can think better of it, I reach up and brush them away with my thumbs.
He hums low in his throat, and a swirl of dismal gray clouds his irises like a storm rolling in.
I trace the edge of his cheekbone, my hand drifting until my fingers rest on his trembling lips.
He blinks, slow and heavy, a quiet breath leaving him as he reaches for my wrist.
“You can have Elijah,” he says softly. “But please… don’t take our daughter.”
I slide my fingers away from his lips and move them under his chin.
“Elijah and Ana belong to you, Gabriel. It’s why I’m leaving. You can finally have your family back.”
His fingers weave through mine, and he uses the back of my hand to brush a tear from his cheek.
“But that’s where you’re wrong, Alex.”
His voice softens, laden with the weight of something unsaid. “I never lost my family.”
I’m so lost in his eyes, in the shimmer of his tears, that I don’t even notice when he moves our joined hands over to his chest. He presses my palm flat over his heart, covering it with his own. The steady beat beneath my hand sends a flutter through my body, like an invisible tether.
“One can never lose what’s in here,” he continues, his voice steady.
“You belong here too. As does Emilee. There’s room for us all.
This”—he taps his chest with our joined palms—“is where my family lives, Alex. Within my heart. My love for Elijah will always remain here… but Elijah’s heart belongs to you now.
He loves you, Alex. If you leave, you will tear apart everything I’ve worked so hard to hold together. ”
A smile tugs at the corner of his damp lips.
“Plus, I have a really cute boyfriend, and I’d kinda like to keep him.”
My eyes widen.
His smile broadens, spreading so wide it almost bounces off his face and crashes onto mine. That’s just how contagious his happiness is.
I burst out laughing, unexpectedly, but full of warmth. For a second, it feels like the whole world lifts. It’s hard to explain. Because not long ago, I hated him, but in this moment, I feel so much love for him—love for the light he brings to everyone’s life.
And a boyfriend? How did I not know this?
I bite my lip, eyes wide with curiosity. “Elijah never mentioned you had a boyfriend.”
Those stormy eyes light up with mischief. He slaps me on the back as he opens the car door with a grin.
“That’s because I haven’t told him yet. I don’t tell him everything, you know.”
I’m taken aback by his admission, a surprised laugh slipping out as I fall in step beside him. I practically skip across the garage, heading toward the elevator. Gabriel tosses an arm around my shoulders, pulling me close.
“I would love to introduce him to both of you though. You’ll really like him.”
“We’d love that!” I declare, my excitement bubbling over. I’m fully back on board with rekindling things with Elijah—and now, with Gabriel too.