45. Savannah
forty-five
Savannah
“Savannah, can I come in?”
Charlotte’s sweet voice squeaks through the crack as she raps on my door.
I tug the blanket over my head tighter. I’m curled in a ball in the middle of my mattress, where I have been since I peeled myself off the bathroom’s tile floor and dragged myself to bed.
“I’m not leaving until you talk to me,” she sings, drawing a small smile from me.
I’m not ignoring her, just taking a minute to myself. I still have a lot to explain to her, and she deserves to hear it from me.
“You can come in.” I slip off the blanket as my little sister enters the room, and I pat the spot on the bed beside me.
Charlotte lies down, her head resting on the pillow. She smiles weakly, and the look breaks my heart.
“Is everything okay?” I place my hand on hers.
“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” she asks sadly.
“I’m fine. Promise.” I pat her hand reassuringly. “Where’s my nephew?”
“Savannah.” She sighs. “You just watched the man you have feelings for on video with another woman, and you want to know about Thomas.”
“Let’s not talk about that. Now tell me about my nephew.”
I listen as Charlotte tells me that Thomas is doing great. Growing like a weed. He’s home with Jonathan and her in-laws, who, according to Jonathan, are already driving him crazy, so she plans to return home first thing tomorrow morning.
We both fall silent.
“I just want you to know I’m not mad at you for dating Nico,” she says.
“Really?”
“Really. It was a long time ago. I was just shocked. And stressed out with Thomas being sick. It was a lot.”
“I know. I was shocked too,” I admit.
Nico came out of left field and caught me by surprise. Making me fall desperately in love with him.
“I’m sorry that you’re going through this. That you’re hurting. I know how it feels to watch him replace you without a care in the world. It hurts like hell.” Her words are like tiny daggers, hitting me in the chest and slicing into my skin. She has no idea.
“Charlotte, it’s not like that. Will you please listen to me? I want to tell you how all this happened.”
She hesitates, her eyes darting between mine. I’m not sure what she sees, but she nods, allowing me to continue.
“I work with Nico’s sister, Talia, who is a wonderful nurse.
She reminds me of you. Ridiculously smart and sweet.
Always smiling. I tried not to be her friend, but she wasn’t having it.
When Bradley was harassing me and I needed a new apartment, she offered me this apartment.
I didn’t know Nico lived next door. If I had, I wouldn’t have moved in here. But I’m glad I did. He’s—”
A loud knock on my door has us both sitting up. The silly organ in my chest leaps. It can’t be Nico. His game starts soon.
“Do you think it’s Mother?” Charlotte whispers, like we did when we were kids and didn’t want to get caught staying up late.
“She doesn’t knock; she bangs,” I say in a flat tone.
“True.” Charlotte laughs, and I follow. With more time and a longer chat, I have a feeling that she and I are going to be all right. “I’m sorry I brought Mom down here.”
“It’s fine. I couldn’t avoid her forever. It was best to get it all out in the open. Thank you for standing up to her.”
Confronting my mother was long overdue. Having Charlotte, Denver, and my dad to back me up made it so much easier to say what I needed to. The ball is in my mother’s court. If she wants to talk, I’ll be here. Until then, I’m good with where things stand.
“I should have done it sooner,” she says sadly.
“But you did it now, and that’s all that matters.” I wrap my arms around my sister, hugging her tight. “Love you, Char.”
“Love you too, Sav.” We break apart as the person at my door knocks again. Louder. “Stay here and rest. It’s probably just Denver. I’ll get rid of him.”
“Thanks.”
Charlotte exits my room as I lean back against the headboard and stare at the ceiling. My eyes are puffy from crying, and my throat feels scratchy from throwing up. The short seconds it takes for her to walk to the door feel like forever.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Charlotte exclaims.
Leaping off the bed, I rush out of my bedroom and down the hall. My feet slide across the slate floors and stop at the deep, whiskey-warm voice.
“Hello, Chuck. Long time, no see. Is Savannah home?”
Shivers rush down my spine as if his words caressed my skin themselves.
“Don’t call me ‘Chuck’. We aren’t friends anymore.” I peek around the corner to see my sister, with one hand on her hip and the other on the door ready to slam it in Nico’s face. “I should kick you in the balls for hurting my sister. How could you do that to her?”
I want to interrupt, but I think Charlotte needs this.
Sneaking another look, I watch Nico raise his hands in surrender as my little sister stands sentient at my door.
He looks tired and a little surprised to see my sister.
Dark circles underscore his eyes, and his usually thick stubble has grown into a short beard.
“I know it looks bad,” he admits.
Bad, pfft. More like awful. Disgusting.
“Looks bad? You’re on video screwing some other woman,” she sneers.
“It’s not me,” he declares.
“Liar. That’s what you do. You just move on without thinking about the person you’re hurting. You—”
“I’m sorry,” Nico blurts.
“What?” Charlotte squeaks.
“I’m sorry I hurt you, Charlotte. I wish you had never seen me at that party.
I wish I had never gone to your dorm afterwards and yelled at you.
I was wrong. You were my friend, and I took things too far between us.
But back then, I was an immature ass. I wasn’t ready to be in a relationship with you or anyone. ”
“But you’re ready now?” Charlotte scoffs in disbelief.
“Is anyone ready to get knocked on their ass when they meet the one?” Nico jokes, but I can’t see Charlotte’s face to know if she’s responding to his joke or not.
My heart, on the other hand, responds with a little pinch at hearing Nico say “the one”.
“Yes, I’m ready. Savannah is it for me. She is everything I never knew I needed.
I lo—” Nico cuts himself off, and my ribs squeeze.
From over the top of Charlotte’s head, I watch him run his hands through his hair, and his shoulders fall as he blows out a harsh breath.
“I really wish I was saying this to Savannah right now.”
The desperation in his voice has me stepping out from behind the wall that separates the living space and the bedrooms. “You are.”
Nico’s gray eyes crash into mine and hit me like a Mack truck. His gaze is a swirl of emotions. Shock, awe, love, desire, longing, fear. A mirror of my own feelings.
Neither of us dares to look away as I speak to my sister. “Charlotte, do you think you can give us some privacy?”
“Sure.” Charlotte leaves the door open and steps towards me. She places a hand on my forearm and whispers, “I’m okay if you decide to be with him.”
“Thank you, sissy.”
She kisses my cheek and turns back to Nico. “I’ll forgive you if she forgives you.”
“Duly noted,” Nico says as he keeps his gaze on me.
Over her shoulder, Charlotte waves her hand in the air and disappears into the hall towards the spare bedroom she demanded to stay in.
“Ciao, amore mio.” His deep voice fills my chest with warmth, making it tight.
I fight the urge to be close to him, and the smile pulling at my mouth. Brow arched, I ask, “Your love?”
Nico smirks. “I see someone is learning Italian.”
“Maybe.” I shrug.
There may be a language-learning app downloaded on my phone that I’ve been using.
Finally breaking eye contact, my eyes do a full sweep of his body.
He looks like he came straight from a workout.
He’s wearing gray sweatpants, a dry-fit Evader’s T-shirt, and sneakers.
His raven-colored hair is wild and mussed like he’s spent the better part of the day running his hands through it. Was he worried about me?
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
“I’m here for you.” As if he’s afraid I’ll run, he takes a tentative step forward.
“You have a game tonight. Won’t you be in trouble for missing it?” The last thing I want is for him to jeopardize his career.
“I don’t give a fuck about baseball.” Nico takes the last few strides between us. His clean leather scent fills my nose and wraps around me like a warm blanket from the inside out, and I long to be in his arms again, but I hold myself back.
“But it’s important to you.”
Nico shakes his head and falls to his knees in front of me. He reaches for both my hands and threads our fingers together. “No. You are important to me. More important than baseball. More important than anything else in this world.”
“Nico.” My voice is raspy, thick with affection for the man on his knees before me. Those three words dance on the tip of my tongue as tears collect at the corners of my eyes, clouding my vision.
“Shh, gattina. Let me finish.” His silver gaze holds mine as he grips my hips. His voice is pleading. “You must know I would never cheat on you. It’s not me in the video. I swear on my life. I would die before I did that to you.”
I press my palm over his beautiful mouth. “You can stop now. I know it’s not you in the video, Nico.”
His eyes flare in shock as he mumbles, “You do?”
“Of course I do.” I place my hands on his head and run my fingers through his hair. “I have to admit it took me four views, one round of vomiting, and a lot of crying before I saw it, but I did.”
“How?” His grip tightens, fingers digging into my butt.
“She was touching you. And you have very strict rules about touching.” I scratch my nails over his scalp.
“I do.” He smirks as his hands slip under my sweatshirt and his fingers dance across the skin on my lower back. “Only you get to touch me.”
Guilt creeps in for not having recognized the signs sooner. It’s hard to see the truth through the lies when my family and the whole of the internet were coming after me.
“Then I zoomed in and saw a tiger.” I drag my fingers down the side of his face, over his scruffy jaw to his throat. “Where a lion should be inked.”
“I’m so sorry, gattina.”
“What are you sorry for? You did nothing wrong.”
“I hurt you. Worried you. Brought you into my mess with Damien. I outed you and your family to the public. Which should never have happened. I should have protected you.”
This man. Such a protector, even when it’s not his job. “You can’t protect me from everyone and everything.”
He scowls, not happy with my rebuke of his caveman attitude. “But I sure as fuck can try.”
Such a gentleman. Still… “I can take care of myself.”
“I know you can take care of yourself. You’re fucking amazing. And strong. And brilliant. You’re a badass doctor, who is also the most gorgeous woman on the planet.” He winks, and my body practically melts.
Between the sexy smirk and his declaration, I find myself falling for him even more.
I run my thumbs over his cheekbones like I did during his last migraine episode. “So are you.”
He shakes his head. “You don’t get it. You are everything. My everything. My every thought. My every breath. My heart beats only for you. I love you so fucking much, gattina. Amore mio.”
My heart trips over itself; the kaleidoscope of butterflies that live in my stomach take flight, and I feel as if I could float away with happiness. He loves me. Deep down, I knew he did. He’s been showing me from the start. But hearing those three words directly is even better.
I cup his face in my palms and tilt his head back. “I love you too, baseball boy.”
A wide grin spreads across his face. “Yeah, you fucking do.”
“So cocky.” I lean down.
“You love me cocky,” he whispers.
“I do,” I admit, then press my lips to his in a searing kiss.
Sparks crackle in the air around us as we embrace. Without breaking our connection, Nico stands, placing a hand on the small of my back and the other around the back of my neck. He pulls me tight and tilts my head to the side, deepening our kiss.
Our tongues tangle in a sensual dance, and the familiar flame ignites low in my belly and spreads through my veins like wildfire, burning every nerve ending in my body. It’s a sensation I’ve only ever felt with Nico.
The man may have taken me by surprise and turned my life upside down, but he did it in the best way possible. Now I can’t imagine my life without him. Nico was the missing piece of the puzzle that made me, my heart, and my life complete.
Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, I lift onto my toes and kiss him harder. Nico hoists me up, placing his hands under my ass, and I lock my legs around his waist. He turns on his heel, carrying me out of my apartment.
“What are you doing?” I ask completely breathless from his drugging kisses.
“Taking you home,” he mumbles into my neck. My skin breaks out in goosebumps as Nico rains kisses along my neck and jaw.
“Wait.” Nico freezes as I twist my head, cup my mouth, and shout, “Did you hear all that, Char?”
I chuckle as she hollers back, “Yep!”
“Does that mean I’m forgiven?” Nico asks.
Charlotte barks a laugh. “Don’t push it, bub.”
“Fair,” Nico mumbles as he kisses my cheek.
“See you later, Char!”
“Don’t have too much fun, Sav,” my sister shouts back.
Nico scoffs as he hauls me out of my apartment and slams the door shut behind us. “Baby, we are about to have so much fun. You’re going to be feeling me for days.”
“Do your worst, baseball boy.”
“You know I only do my best with you, gattina.”
You better believe Nico does his best.
All night long.