41
ANNA
“I’ve never seen her this excited.” Sylas stares, enamored with Rosie.
She’s running in circles around us, and every so often, she stops to scoop up sand. She throws it in the air, and some lands on top of her head, while the rest falls back to the ground.
I attempted to get her to stop, knowing it’s going to be difficult to get it out of her hair, but she keeps doing it, and I can’t say I blame her.
“This is her first time being on a beach.” I smile, watching her dig her little toes in the cool sand.
The brightness and warmth that radiates off his eyes and smile could rival the sun. His gaze is hooked on Rosie, but it shifts to me. His eyes are a bright green, shining with endless devotion.
“I’m glad I got to be here for this. I don’t want to miss any more firsts.” He takes my hand in his, lacing our fingers together.
I hadn’t considered that, and now I’m mirroring his expression. “You won’t miss any more.”
We’re smiling at each other then looking back to our daughter who is high on energy. She’s running, jumping, giggling, and when she reaches the shoreline, Sylas drops our stuff on the ground and picks her up before the water touches her.
“Wait a minute. You need to wait for Mommy and me, okay?” He pokes her belly, earning more giggles from her. “You can’t go in the water by yourself, querida.”
“Okay.” She squirms against him, urging him to put her down.
“But we’re not swimming, okay? It’s a little cold. We’ll just put our feet in,” he warns her before he’s setting her down.
She wraps her hand around his index finger and eagerly tugs him closer to the water. I start recording on my phone, fighting back my laughter when she gasps and shivers. The foamy water sits at her ankles then recedes.
“See, I told you it was cold.” Sylas chuckles and peers over his shoulder, winking at me. “Come, meu bem.”
I’m blushing furiously, my stomach a mess of flutters. “I’m here.” I stand next to them and take more pictures than I ever have in my life.
We spend the next two hours going in and out of the water, walking along the shoreline, and playing with the sand until Rosie gets hungry.
Afterward we lay her down for her nap and sit outside on the sofa in front of the fire pit.
“I’m glad we came.” I nestle myself under his arm as he drapes it around my shoulders.
“I’m glad I listened to Matias.” Sylas smiles down at me and kisses my forehead. “Getting out of Boston was good for us.”
Guilt unravels in my stomach, making the food I ate earlier threaten to rise. I still haven’t told him about his parents. After we got out of the pool, we showered and went to bed. And this morning, we were busy with Rosie. I didn’t want to bring it up and ruin the mood.
“It was…” I push away from his body and turn to face him. “Your parents came to see me last night.”
My words instantly kill the smile on his face. His jaw tics, eyes darken and harden, but his stoic expression lasts a fraction of a second before it softens and he’s hugging me.
“I’m so sorry,” he says.
“Don’t be.” I thread my fingers through his hair, gently raking it.
I know he carries a lot of guilt over what they did, and he blames himself for breaking up with me.
But I don’t hold that against him, especially after knowing what he was going through.
I pull back, meeting his stare. “You’re not responsible for their actions. ”
His gaze veers away from mine. His eyes are sullen, and his lips flatten in a tight line. “I’m not, but I should have cut them off a long time ago. I should have—”
“And then what? Lose everything you worked so hard for?” I grab his hand, stroking the pad of my thumb over his knuckles. “Sylas, you didn’t do anything wrong. You did what you thought you needed to do.”
He sighs sharply. “What did they say?”
“They gave me a check.”
Indignation is etched deep on his face. I don’t have to explain why they gave it to me. He knows as if it’s something that has happened before. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”
“But I ripped it up and kicked them out,” I tell him. “They really want me to leave you.” My cheek twitches. I don’t mean to, but a laugh sputters out of me.
“What’s so funny?” he questions, confused, but then his lips are curling up.
“Your parents are so weird.” I don’t mean to laugh.
I usually don’t because this is serious.
His parents offered me more than five hundred grand to leave Boston, denied their granddaughter, and don’t care about their son’s mental health.
I should not be laughing, but I can’t stop. “I’m sorry, I know—”
I drop my head to his chest and he holds me. “So fucking weird,” he says around a laugh, though his words lack any real humor.
“This is like, straight out of a movie. Your parents need to take a break and touch some grass.”
He nods in agreement, chuckling. “I don’t even know what to say anymore.”
“I mean if they really wanted me to leave you, they should have at least offered me a million. I think it’s only fair,” I fervently state, looking up at him. “I bet they wouldn’t even notice it gone from their bank account.”
“Anna,” he starts, voice grim. “Know your self-worth. There’s two of you. A million for you and a million for Rosie.”
I click my tongue, humming pensively. “I hadn’t thought about that. You’re right.”
There is no trace of anger or resentment. He stares at me with an unwavering care. The tenderness in his eyes is so soft, so gentle, it has my heart beating madly for him.
“I never realized how dull my life was until you came into it.” Sylas tucks my hair behind my ear, his fingers brushing my earrings.
“I didn’t realize how much I was missing.
Before you, hockey was the only thing I looked forward to, but since you…
I love you. I love you with every inch of me, and I will until I can’t any longer. Let’s be forever?”
Since he came back into my life, there’s been this gnawing worry of all that could go wrong between us. I didn’t mean to let the fear win, but I couldn’t help being nervous about the future with him.
Now, sitting here with him, the usual anxiety that resides is nowhere to be found. I feel safe, secure, and grounded.
“Let’s be forever,” I echo, leaning in to kiss him.
Before he seals our lips together, he says, “I promise I’m going to take care of it.”
“Please don’t do anything stupid,” I reply skeptically.
“Trust me, I’ve never been more clearheaded. It’s all going to be okay.”
And I don’t doubt him as I let him kiss me.
“Now let’s stop talking about my parents. Your birthday is coming up.”
“Our birthday,” I correct him. It’s not the same day, but it’s a few days apart.
Just like Christmas, he was never a huge fan of celebrating. I know it’s because of his parents, but when we were together, he didn’t mind doing something.
“But your birthday is first,” he says.
I roll my eyes. “And a few days later, it’ll be yours.”
Sylas lifts me up, guiding me to straddle him. “I have everything I need. I don’t need anything else.”
I groan. “There has to be something you want.”
He flashes me a tantalizing grin, a dimple denting his cheek. “You, crawling for me.”
My lips hover over his ear. “But what if I want to see you crawl for me?”
Sylas wets his lips and shifts beneath me. “I can make that happen.”