CHAPTER 32AureliaLeviAurelia
Aurelia
Aurelia sat in the passenger seat of Levi’s SUV, pretending to be absorbed in the passing scenery as they drove toward the grocery store. It was necessary now that meals were no longer a solo endeavor, and snacks would mysteriously vanish twice as fast.
But grocery lists were the furthest thing from her mind.
She couldn’t stop thinking about Owen.
Or more specifically what Owen saw through her bedroom window last night.
Her entire body burned remembering it. She had already died of mortification once that morning; she didn’t know if she would survive dinner with him tomorrow night.
Meeting Levi’s closest friends had been daunting enough.
Now she would be doing so knowing at least one of them had witnessed her most intimate moment like a live-action movie.
And she agreed to go before Levi told her what Owen said.
Such a rookie mistake.
Levi kept stealing sideways glances at her while he drove, like he expected her to unlatch the door mid-turn and execute a tuck-and-roll escape.
Which honestly wasn’t entirely off the table.
The urge to disappear from this planet was currently ranked right up there with her desire to disappear into the leather seat.
Still, she tried to refocus on something safe, like dinner. Planning dinner didn’t come with a side of emotional whiplash.
“Any thoughts on what you would like for dinner,” she asked, forcing her voice to sound neutral.
“I was thinking of one of my favorite dishes unless there is something else you prefer. It's this amazing, braised pea soup that has—” She stopped mid-sentence at the sheer horror etched across Levi’s face.
Her brow furrowed. “What now? Is it soup that you have some deep-rooted issue with or is it peas…” Her voice trailed off as she watched him recoil like she had threatened his life.
“ Peas are Satan's food ,” Levi declared. “If I died and went to hell right now, Satan would make me eat peas for all eternity. Peas and broccoli together .” He shuddered like a man who had survived an unspeakable trauma.
Mouth tight, Aurelia exhaled through her nose, unsure if she wanted to laugh or attempt a leap from a moving vehicle.
Her husband was turning out to be a man-child. An absurdly charming, occasionally ridiculous man-child.
“You know, I feel like everything I learned so far today should have been disclosed in your file.”
“You wound me, my wife .” Levi pressed his hand dramatically to his chest. “Would you have passed on our match because of my strong waffle convictions and anti-pea mentality?”
He batted his lashes at her in mock innocence, momentarily taking his eyes away from the road—and nearly sideswiped a parked car.
“Shit!” he hissed, abruptly jerking the wheel as he glanced in the rearview mirror. “Okay, in my defense, that car came out of nowhere .”
Aurelia rolled her eyes as he refocused on the road. Without another word, he reached across the console, slipping his hand into hers. He peppered small kisses along the back of her knuckles that had her cheeks heating for the hundredth time that day.
He didn’t let go.
Not until they pulled into the grocery store parking lot.
Levi
The trip to the grocery store had gone off the rails.
Not because Aurelia reached for a box of plain Cheerios instead of Honey Nut , or because she placed a bag of regular Doritos in the cart while neglecting to add a bag of Cool Ranch flavor. No, the problem came when she started asking him for help finding ingredients on her list.
What should have been a simple errand turned into something else entirely.
At first, he tried. He tried so damn hard.
But as the labels blurred and the words refused to stay in place, the familiar knots of anxiety curled tightly within the very fibers of his being. He played it off, weakly joking that he was terrible at locating things in stores.
She hadn’t said anything in response…but it was obvious she didn’t buy it either.
Normally, Levi ordered his groceries online. The convenience was one part of it, but if he was being honest with himself, it was mostly to avoid this exact situation.
On the rare occasion he shopped alone, no one noticed how long he stared at a box. No one saw the way he sometimes had to read and reread the same label, hoping it would make sense the second or third time around.
He hadn’t thought about any of that when he agreed to come along with Aurelia.
Now, the ride home was uncomfortably quiet. And Levi knew the silence was his fault.
Lips pressed together, he helped carry the bags in. Unpacked items onto the counter and shelves with the same soundless effort. Moved about the kitchen like a ghost, caught in his head, spiraling.
Aurelia stepped in front of him and gently took his hand.
She didn’t say anything at first, the silence stretching taut between them.
With quiet determination, she led him into the living room and guided him down onto the sectional.
Before he could so much as object, she settled herself on his lap, her legs tucked on either side of him, anchoring him in place.
An effective maneuver to prevent escape.
Levi blinked up at her, temporarily startled, only to shy away again. His jaw was tight, clenched in frustration, his eyes locked on something far beyond the back porch and the sparkling lagoon beyond it.
Aurelia gently cupped the side of his face, guiding his face to hers.
“Yesterday, someone made me promise to try and talk when something upset me. And now, that same frustrating person has gone completely silent on me twice .”
Levi continued to brood. But he didn’t pull away. He let her thumb gently stroke along his cheek, unable to break away, as if her touch steadied something in him.
Aurelia’s voice dropped lower, more intimate.
“First, it was when you found out the menu had changed at Chez P'tit Chou-Fleur. You stared at it with this look of defeat on your face. The second time was today at the grocery store when I asked you to help me find some ingredients. You stared at the shelves with that same look.”
She was undeterred, waiting for him to extend a sliver of trust.
He kept his eyes closed, soaking in the comfort of her hand like it was the only thing tethering him to the present moment.
“Levi,” she whispered. “What is it that puts that look on your face?”
Slowly, he opened his eyes and found her patiently watching, unafraid, and unpitying. He stared into the brown depths of her eyes, temporarily mesmerized by the innocence and the raw honesty within them.
Covering her hand with his, he lowered them both to his lap. Drawing in a quiet breath, he gathered the strength to share one of the deepest pieces of himself.
“I’m dyslexic,” he said. The words felt heavier than they should have, like they had been carried far too long.
He tensed, waiting for her reaction.
Aurelia
She wasn’t sure what she expected to hear, but his admission wasn’t one of them. It was a small extension of trust, and yet Levi looked up at her with something akin to worry and shame.
Aurelia frowned at that, confusion flitting across her features. That wasn’t okay—not with her, and not about this.
Was he seriously ashamed to admit this? Ashamed of something he never chose; something that had shaped him into the brilliant, accomplished man sitting in front of her? The thought made her throat tighten.
No. Absolutely not.
She straightened her spine before looking him dead in the eyes.
Time to be fierce.
“So, you’re moping over something you have no control over?”
Levi’s head snapped toward her, his eyes flashing hot with sudden anger. “I’m not moping , I’m embarrassed that I couldn’t do something basic in either of those situations. It makes me feel stupid when I can’t even read a simple menu without it taking an extremely long time.”
“ I could barely read it and half of it was in French,” she offered, trying to lighten the mood. Levi glared at her. She rolled her eyes in irritation. “Okay fine . Wrong time to joke.”
She regarded him carefully, the firmness in her tone refusing to balk.
“So…are you suggesting that I married a dumbass?”
That, as expected, got a rise out of him.
“I’m not a dumbass,” he snapped, insulted.
“Then why are you treating yourself like one?” she shot back, unable to hide her rising anger.
Levi opened his mouth to reply, but the words never quite made it past his lips. He had nothing to say.
She was on a roll and didn’t let the silence stretch too long.
“While you were sleeping this morning, I searched your name online,” she said, her tone calmer now, but no less resolute.
“I have to admit, I’m extremely impressed that someone was able to take a disability and turn it into an empire.
Especially one that is focused entirely on technology that helps others with disabilities navigate the world.
That seems impossible for someone who supposedly can’t keep up to achieve. ”
His green eyes fixed on her with rapt attention. He didn’t interrupt this time, though he was still glowering.
“I guess I’m simply confused then. So please explain to me, my darling husband , how someone who founded a thriving company like Neuronix, that helps so many people just like him , is still ashamed of it—of being a customer.”
His entire demeanor softened as her words sank in.
“The only stupid thing here is that it wasn’t disclosed in your file,” she continued, “because you were too afraid to tell your wife about it. So now I’m a little peeved because I could have learned more about it and avoided what happened today.”
While Levi now felt a bit sheepish about not disclosing it sooner, he still believed his reasons for not doing so were valid.
“Congratulations on our first official fight as a married couple.”
He couldn’t help but notice how gorgeous Aurelia was even as she glared at him.
Levi gave a small nod, his gaze never leaving hers.
“When you put it that way…I’m sorry for not telling you sooner,” he murmured, voice tight.
“But I won’t apologize for not including it in my profile.
This isn’t something that’s easily summed up in a couple lines of text, and considering the impact it has on my life, I deserve to decide how and when to disclose it. ”
Aurelia studied the man before her as she mulled over his logic. Realizing it wasn’t all that different from her unwillingness to open up about her past, she relaxed in his lap.
“I understand why you didn’t tell me—we’re still very much strangers. But I don’t ever want to see you pitying yourself like this or diminishing your contributions to the world. There’s nothing to apologize for. It’s as ridiculous as apologizing for your eyes being such a lovely shade of green.”
She paused for a moment, watching him closely.
Levi knew she was right but still struggled to form a response. It was a welcome respite when her fingertips grazed his cheek again.
“It’s up to you to decide if you want to treat it as a gift or a burden. All I see is how you’ve taken a piece of yourself and used it to create something bigger than all of us—something that helps others. Don't let anyone, including yourself, lessen that.”
She barely finished speaking before Levi surged forward, devouring her mouth and overtaking her senses. It wasn’t gentle; it was intense and full of everything he couldn’t say aloud.
And she kissed him back with a ferocity that said more than words ever could.
When they finally parted for air, he rested his forehead to hers.
“Day two and I have to say that I’m really starting to enjoy how wise you are, dear wife,” Levi murmured. He trailed featherlight kisses along her neck, and Aurelia laughed.
“Alright, Casanova, let's finish putting the groceries away before they begin to rot and have some lunch. Meanwhile, I want you to tell me everything about dyslexia.”
She stood, despite his half-hearted protest, and tugged him up with her.
Together, they walked back to the kitchen, not only as husband and wife, but slowly, steadily, something stronger.