Chapter 13
Thor was nowhere.
Disoriented, I pushed the sheet aside to make sure I wasn’t crazy. I scanned the floor, but there was no trace of my clothes, or his.
We had been together.
I ran a hand through the tangled mess of my hair.
Christ, my mind wouldn’t deceive me to that extent, would it?
It had been real. The signs were on my body…
He regretted it.
All the words, the vows, and the beautiful declarations had only been said in the fucking heat of the moment.
On the wave of unbridled excitement. In that moment, Thor hadn’t been thinking with the head above his shoulders, but when he could, probably when he woke up beside me in the morning, he regretted it and left before he had to give me an excuse.
There was no other explanation. Or maybe I had understood everything wrong…
I slid back beneath the sheets, burying my head in the pillow. I took a deep breath. His scent there confirmed my ruin as my eyes leaked.
“Hey, you.” The deep voice rescued me from the dam of bitterness.
I sat up as fast as I could, drying my face with my hands. Thor closed the door with his foot and came closer, smiling, carrying a breakfast tray.
“T-Thor?”
“Were you expecting someone else?”
“No… It’s just…”
“Are you crying? What’s wrong? Do you feel anything?”
I threw my arms around his neck. “No.”
His arms went around me, and instantly, I felt safe. In the blink of an eye, his presence had replaced my sudden sadness with joy.
“Are you sore? Did I hurt you last night? I know that…”
“No. I’m perfect.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“It’s just that I woke up and you weren’t here. I… I… I thought you…”
“Look at me, love… I don’t regret it.”
“Va bene.”
“I wanted to be here when you woke up, but when I got up, you were still sleeping deeply and looking so beautiful, I didn’t want to disturb your rest. After our antics, you needed a little more time to recover.
So I showered and went downstairs to get your breakfast. I was counting on having to wake you. ”
Overcome with happiness, I kissed him hard and urgently.
“Wow… Now that is a good morning.”
“Grazie.”
“For what?”
Heat spread across my cheeks.
“For still loving me and wanting me. For giving me a second chance and believing in me… After everything that happened, I think the least I can do is thank you for still being here… I love you so much. I’m so happy, and at the same time it’s strange, you know?
It’s strange, the two of us here like this…
Not that I don’t like it, far from it. I’m in a state of ecstasy, to tell you the truth, so much so that I’m having a hard time believing this is real.
That’s why it’s strange… Christ, I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore…
But you understand, right? I’m happy, immensely happy. It’s just…”
“It’s strange for us to be the way we always should have been, if you hadn’t been so stubborn.”
“I’m not stubborn! Maybe a little.”
“And what a little that is.” He laughed. “I understand what you mean. It’s a little strange for me too. But you know what? This is where we belong. Together. This is how we should be right now, and I’m not going to let anything get in our way.”
“I…” I swallowed, gathering my courage, which was threatening to run.
“I’m scared. Everything is so much better than I dared to imagine.
That scares me. Even more considering my endless streak of bad luck.
We aren’t perfect. I changed. We changed.
And because of that, I’m afraid I’ll end up making more mistakes, and worse ones than I already have. ”
“That’s good.”
“How can it be good, Thor?”
“Because that… Cover yourself, please.” He did it himself, pulling the sheet over my breasts. “I can’t concentrate on what I have to say when those tits are staring at me and asking to be sucked.”
“Oh!”
I held the sheet in place, disguising my smile.
Thor took a deep breath and looked into my eyes.
“Being afraid is good because it makes you think before you act, sweetheart, something you never did before. And that’s why so many mistakes happened that didn’t have to.
And yes, we really aren’t the same anymore, and I’m happy about that too.
Don’t worry, because we’re going to learn together how to make our relationship work.
We love each other and we want each other.
We have enough to move forward.” He pressed his forehead to mine.
My heart swelled with the words that followed.
“I love you, Antonella. I waited for you for a long time, to the point of almost losing my sanity, and now that I have you the way I always wanted, I won’t let anything get in our way. ”
Tears sprang up again, but these were pure and extreme happiness when I wrapped myself around his neck again.
“Promise you won’t leave me? That you won’t give up on me? On us?”
“I’m still here, aren’t I?”
He was. After everything, he was still here.
“You are my life, Antonella. My home. Without you, I am nothing. How could I leave you or give up on us when I’m completely dependent on you? I’m never going to leave you or give up on the two of us. I love you too much… I’m too selfish to let you out of my life, even if you get sick of me.”
“I’ll never get sick of you.”
“Good to know. I’m never going to let you go. You should know that.”
I kissed him urgently.
“I’m fine with that,” I said, smiling against his lips.
“Now, please stop crying. It kills me to see you like this.”
“It’s not my fault!” I wiped my face with my hands, laughing. “It’s these damn hormones making me crazy!”
We shared breakfast, traded teasing remarks, and talked about our baby, and at some point the tone lowered, our looks and touches taking on another meaning…
I was still dying for him.
He was still dying for me.
…So we killed what was killing us.
***
We left the bedroom close to dinner time.
If it were up to me, I would have stayed secluded with him all day, all week, all month. We had so much to make up for. I would never have enough of him. It wasn’t just about sex, it was his presence, having him there, within reach of my eyes, my arms, my kisses.
Carnal and emotional pleasure.
A potent mixture I had never known before.
I had this very territorial part of me screaming to mark him however I could, even though I knew I didn’t need to.
Thor was mine. Simple as that. But then, in an unfortunate moment, I remembered the bitch, and it made me possessed with the need to remove from his body and mind every tiny trace of her that might still exist. Maybe Thor had been right about me being possessive now, but I didn’t care.
Thor was marked in places only I had access to.
We entered the kitchen, and it was like there was a magnet in our linked hands. Every gaze fixed there for a full minute. I blushed. I was nervous and embarrassed. Thor, on the other hand, seemed relaxed. He gave my hand a light squeeze.
Martha was the first to break the awkward silence, followed by my former backstabbing friends. After I ignored them, they left with their tails between their legs.
Thor, on the other hand, seemed willing to defend his accomplices.
“I don’t believe they plotted anything, and even if they had, being angry at them is the last thing you should do given the result.”
“Devils’ advocate?”
“Antonella.”
“Fine, fine, fine… I got it. I’ll talk to them, but I’m still going to punish Pietra a little longer, after all, she was the one who had the idiot idea. Josie only…”
“What idiot idea?”
I planted my hands on my hips.
“Sending you there with the albino bitch!”
Thor threw his head back and roared with laughter.
“Pietra didn’t send me there, love.”
“What do you mean, she didn’t? You don’t expect me to believe it was a coincidence, do you?”
“I happened to hear Pietra commenting to Martha that you were going to Jared’s club.
I wouldn’t have gone there if it hadn’t been for Sophie.
She called me that night saying she was in town and invited me out for a drink…
When I told her I was going to be a father and mentioned us, she wanted to meet you. ”
“Why?”
“Sophie didn’t believe you’d passed up a hot, perfect man like me and wanted to see it up close,” he bragged.
“Well, it was either take her to the club or have my balls hanging on her front door like a Christmas ornament. I’m surprised you didn’t realize she was only provoking you to see your reaction…
Then again, when you’re angry, you can’t see an inch in front of your nose. ”
“Oh, believe me, I noticed. And your sister, she messed with me.”
“Think of it as her and Josie helping us. If they hadn’t left you, maybe we’d still be suffering like two idiots. Or not. Who knows?”
“Fine. You have a point.”
“An excellent one. Now go talk to them.”
“Can’t I at least punish Pietra until tomorrow?” He shook his head, pursing his lips not to laugh. “Hmph! You’re a spoilsport, you know that?”
Thor pulled me out of the kitchen and pressed his mouth to my ear. “If you’re good, I’ll lick that sweet little clit of yours until you beg me to stop.”
After a promise like that, I made my way to the girls.
Little faces like abandoned puppies stared at me. I couldn’t keep pretending anymore. I smiled as wide as anatomically possible. I sat with them, and within a minute, I was shocked to learn that it had been Thor who asked them to “abandon” me.
“I can’t believe it!”
“He was very persuasive,” J commented.
“And, well, we kind of helped you two make up, so you can’t blame us,” P pointed out. “Now stop stalling and spill!”
I gave them what they wanted, but hid the details that belonged only to Thor and me. As I spoke, I heard a lot of “oh my God,” “oh, how sweet,” and “aww, that’s so beautiful.”
Pietra stretched out her hand and squeezed mine.
“I’m so happy for you two!”
“Me too,” Josie said. “I nearly died when Pietra called me. It’s so good to see you happy, both of you. Even the atmosphere feels different. Lighter. Better.”
“I’m very happy too, girls.”
“Soooo,” P clicked, drawing it out. “After everything we heard, can we start looking for bridesmaid dresses already?”
“Why?”
“What do you mean, why, Ella? It’s obvious my brother is going to propose to you again, especially now that you’re all in love and declared yourself to him.”
“That was because of the pregnancy. Don’t confuse things.”
“You’re so blind,” she mocked.
“And if he asks, will you say yes?” J wanted to know.
“Honestly, I don’t know.”
Would I say yes if he asked again? For that matter, would he ask?
I didn’t know the answer to either of those questions and tried not to rack my brain over them. Which proved difficult. They stayed tattooed in my mind.
Thor appeared not long after.
“Could you rest your tongues long enough for us to have dinner?”
I went into his arms as if it were as natural as breathing. Thor surrounded me. I rose onto my toes and gave him a little kiss.
“I’m starving.”
“The miracle would be if you weren’t,” P mocked, passing us with J laughing beside her.
“I’m eating for two, bitch,” I shouted at her, then turned to Thor. “What’s this story about you dismissing the girls, Castellammare?”
He shrugged, his expression carefully innocent.
“I was just sparing you an annoyance.”
“We’ll talk later,” I promised, devilishly.
Dinner went perfectly well. The food, the atmosphere, the company. Everything was in perfect harmony. Old funny and somewhat embarrassing stories came to the table and pulled laughter from us. Nathan led the moment, telling us a few about his personal life and when he had met Thor.
Once I was satisfied, I lost myself in the innocent, almost unconscious caresses Thor gave me, his arm over my shoulder, until something that didn’t belong in the perfect picture burst into the air.
It froze me in place, my face tilted toward Thor.
My nerves suddenly snapped at the sound of the unpleasant voice.
“What the hell is this, Heithor?”
“What are you doing here, Norah?”
Her eyes flashed with fury.
“I’m the one who should be asking questions, aren’t I?”
“No,” Thor said calmly. “I don’t owe you any explanations, and you know that perfectly well. Now I’d appreciate it if you left.”
The malicious gleam in her eyes when she looked at me gave me chills.
“At last, you got what you wanted.” Her laugh was nervous.
“Actually, you both got what you wanted, didn’t you?
I wasn’t wrong, was I, Heithor?” Nathan stood and went to her, touched her arm while saying something, but she didn’t seem to hear him, her furious gaze now on Thor.
“I just expected you to be man enough to end our relationship before crawling after that little girl.”
“We ended…”
“No! We fought. Couples fight all the time. You never told me we were over. You cheated on me! And you did it in the worst way while I was visiting my sick mother. You didn’t even have the decency to wait until I came back to end our relationship.”
“Norah,” he said in warning.
Nathan tried to pull her with him, but she stomped her foot, crying.
“You two really do deserve each other. A perfect pair of hypocrites. Just keep one thing in mind, Heithor, no one builds happiness on someone else’s misery…”
She fell silent the moment Heithor stood and silently closed his hand around her arm, exchanging a look with Nathan.
Thor lowered his head… I didn’t hear anything else.
I was numb when I left the kitchen behind.
Tears took me before I reached the bedroom.
In no way did I feel bad for her. As far as I was concerned, Norah could explode into a million little pieces, and it wouldn’t affect me at all.
But knowing they were still together, that Heithor hadn’t ended things with her, as I’d thought, even after knowing what she had done, was too much.
I felt angry, outraged, and a little betrayed.
Thor came into the bedroom shortly after.
“Grab some clothes, your essentials, and the vitamins,” he said, making me turn to face him. “We’re leaving.”