CHAPTER 63
NINA MARCHESI
Kael seems just as far from sleep as he was half an hour ago, when I slipped out of the bathroom and hurried to the bedroom, hiding after the longest shower in history.
Nero’s incendiary gaze clung to my skin and left me unsettled. Cold water alone hadn’t been enough to calm it.
Now changed and with my hair brushed, I step back into the hallway. My son’s laughter is so loud that even my mother laughs too, without knowing why, listening from our bedroom.
I can’t bring myself to interrupt when I see Nero with a sheet wrapped around his neck, acting like a—
Is that a flying penguin? Where did he even get this story?
“And then the super penguin found his friends and they flew all the way to the polar ice caps.”
It’s priceless to watch Nero holding two bedside lamps to represent the super penguin’s friends.
“What are polar ice caps, Daddy?” Kael asks.
“Very, very big ice beds that penguins call home.”
“Their bed is made of ice?” Kael asks, astonished.
“Yes,” Nero answers—then scratches his head, as if deciding whether that was quite right.
“And they don’t feel cold?”
“No, Kael. They have very thick fur that keeps them warm.”
“Like this blanket?” Kael pulls the blanket back to show the furry lining.
“Exactly like that blanket.”
“Daddy, can you tell my mom I don’t want a penguin bed anymore? I don’t have fur, I’d be cold.”
Nero laughs, and Kael looks at him, confused. My son is pulled into a tight, cozy hug, nestling his face into the hollow of Nero’s neck before giving him a small kiss. I almost feel jealous, seeing how safe he feels in his arms—remembering the time when I felt that way too.
In profile, the two of them are exact replicas of each other. Beautiful—my son and my—
I shake my head, chasing the thought away before it can finish.
“Are you already missing me, Daddy?” Kael pulls back and looks at Nero, resting his hand lightly on his face.
“I think so, buddy,” Nero answers—and I feel he means it.
“Do you want me to asking my mom if you can sleep here?”
“Do you want me to ask, buddy,” Nero corrects gently.
“I do. You can ask.”
I don’t have to be the wicked witch who says no, because Nero rushes to correct him again.
“No, buddy. I meant that you don’t say do you want me to asking—you say do you want me to ask.”
“Okay, but are you going to ask?”
“Not today, buddy. Remember I told you I have a house?”
“The one where the uncles live?”
“That’s right. I have to sleep there.”
“Why?”
“Because otherwise your uncles get sad and cold.”
“They have beds like penguins?”
“They do.”
“Then it’s okay, Daddy. If you want to take a blanket, there’s one downstairs.”
Kael settles in, and Nero tucks him in, kissing his face twice without getting up.
“You can go now, Daddy. I’m already sleeping, see?”
My son points at his closed eyes. “And I’m warm.”
“Good night, buddy.”
“Good night,” he replies.
Nero leaves the room and closes the door, meeting me in the hallway.
The look we share needs no words. Every feeling vibrating in his chest is written plainly in his eyes: warmth, pride, love. For my son. For our son.
And in the snap of a finger, I’m transported back to a time when everything was easy—when everything was simple. And just for this brief moment, I allow myself to miss it.