Chapter 8
brUNO
The door slams behind me, and I whirl around with fiery fury in my veins. I would never hit my child or any child for that matter, but my anger at his antics makes my fingers itch.
“Johnny,” I hiss at him, so abruptly he winces. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing? You disrespect me and Aurora in a single breath, and instead of apologizing, you go on and?—”
“Why would I apologize?” He curls his upper lip in disgust. “You were the one embarrassing yourself. Fucking a girl twenty years your junior. She’s my fucking ex-girlfriend,” he hisses, narrowing his eyes. “What? You saw a fat girl like her and thought she’d be easy?”
The mere possibility of that makes my face warm up. “What? No, I would?—”
“Because I get that. I thought that when we met. But she wasn’t like that with me.
” He rolls his eyes, stepping away until he presses a shoulder to the wall.
“Stuck-up bitch, that’s what she is. That’s why we broke up.
She never felt ready. And then she fucks my father, out of nowhere?
I don’t get women. A bunch of stuck-up bitches, everywhere. ”
It happens before I have a chance to stop it. My hand slams onto the wall, right next to his head. Johnny winces away from it. He opens his eyes and glares up at me. The fire in his eyes is the same burning within me, but at that moment I see how different we are.
“Johnny,” I roar. “Johnny. What are you saying?”
He narrows his eyes. “Are you deaf? I don’t fucking care what you two do. You two are sluts, and?—”
I punch the wall again. “Enough.”
This time, he stops babbling. Johnny locks his jaw and glares at me. I tremble from head to toe, staring back, unable to see through the person in front of me. All the time I spent trying to build a relationship with him, I didn’t see the sort of man he grew up to be.
“First,” I hiss, my blood boiling in my veins. “Don’t you ever call any woman a slut again. Ever.”
He rolls his eyes. “Come on...”
“Second. You will never, ever refer to Aurora like that again. Next time, I won’t be this understanding.” And by the way I clench my fists, I know he gets my meaning. I watch his throat bob and make sure he catches the drift, then I go on. “Third. You made her pay for her stay?”
Johnny bares his teeth and looks away. For the first time, I think he’s ashamed. “Shit...”
“I paid for it. Not one cent came from your pocket. Did you need to use her like that? After being an asshole to her through the break, you also had to make her pay?”
“I could have used the money...”
“So you could have asked me! You were a bad boyfriend and an awful friend, Johnny. And you’re being offensive and you’re not trying to understand our side.”
He deadpans me. “Oh yeah? And what’s your side?”
“I’m in love with her.”
His eyes go round. “Her?”
“Her. This beautiful, strong, incredibly smart woman you rejected and mistreated. Her.” He opens his mouth, and I know he’s going to say shit, so I raise a finger to stop him.
“And don’t you dare say anything else. If you couldn’t give her the love she deserves, I don’t care.
I’ll make her happy, and you won’t put her down ever again.
She does not deserve this kind of treatment, and you know that. ”
“But she’s?—”
“Johnny,” I roar again, my voice buzzing out of my chest. “Careful with your next words. You’ve already fucked up too much.”
And he pouts, like a child, like a brat.
That makes my stomach churn even harder, but I step away and exit the room.
This doesn’t end here. He doesn’t respect women, clearly, and it’s not the first time I’ve seen that.
He’s always been this way with his mother, and I regret I couldn’t be more present to put him in line, but she preferred it this way, and I had to respect her choices.
But I have more important things right now. I exit the room to find the rest of the tiny apartment empty. Shoving my pants on, I go for the door, barefoot and shirtless, knowing Aurora has run off. This was too much for her. She didn’t deserve to hear all those things, and she needed the space.
I can read her like an open book, and I can’t wait to explore every quirk and story of hers. I run out of the door and then out of the building. My body takes me to her as if I can feel her proximity. As if her soul calls to mine.
I take a turn and stop at a small square next to the building. A couple of benches, loads of shrubs. Aurora sits under a tree, knees brought up to her chest, her face buried in her hair. I can feel rather than hear her sobs, and every one of them is a sharp knife to my chest.
My feet eat up the distance. I kneel in front of her, cradling her ankles in my hands. She looks up from her hiding spot, eyes red, veiled with tears.
“Oh, love.” The sight breaks my heart. “I’m so sorry you had to hear that.” My grip tightens. “I swear I’ll fix it. You’ll never have to hear another insult ever again. Not if I can help it.”
She puts her feet down and sinks her teeth onto her lower lip. “You don’t regret it?”
That takes me off guard. I arch an eyebrow. “Regret it? Regret what?”
“Us. You looked like you regretted us because Johnny found us like that and... And you’ve been trying so hard to build your relationship with him. Anyone can see it.”
I shake my head, my hands running up her legs to curl around her hips. Getting to my feet, I pull her legs around my hips and sit down with her straddling my lap. Her hands come around my shoulders as if that’s only natural. As if we’ve always been meant to be this way.
My lips brush hers. “Never. I could never regret it. You’re the brightest thing to ever happen in my life.”
She breathes out a sigh. “Am I?”
“Of course. And I’m so in love with you I will never, ever let anyone hurt you again.”
Aurora gasps, her pretty eyes going round. “You’re in love with me?”
“I am. And you don’t need to say it back. Take your time. I’ll make you fall in love with me, and...”
She kisses me. I kiss her back because, how couldn’t I? Aurora pulls back, and her lips stretch into the most beautiful smile. “I’m in love with you too.”
My heart skips a beat at her words, and I hold her close, kissing her eyes and her nose and her lips, and I commit her taste and her scent to memory and lock her body to mine as if I could absorb her through my skin.
This woman takes me as I am, and I will love her for the rest of my life.