Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
Lola
I wake up feeling groggy but not anywhere near as disorientated as I have been.
I move my arm to ease myself up and collide with a body lying beside me.
My eyes are still swollen, but I can see a little more than before.
Even if I were blind, I’d know that body anywhere.
Hannibal’s eyes open, and the second they collide with mine, he relaxes.
“Hey, doll.”
I lift my hand and run my fingers through his hair.
“What are you doing back here already?”
“I missed you.”
There's something about a man who just lays it out like that, not giving a single fuck about playing it cool. I think after everything I’ve been through, his ability to just be honest is the best gift he could have given me.
“I love you. I’m a mess in more ways than one, and I’ve been broken so many times I’m not sure I’d recognize the old me anymore. But you, you make me feel whole. You make me feel like I’m enough, like I’m a gift you can’t believe is yours. I’m not the kind of girl that believes in fairy tales, not after falling for a prince charming who always fell short.”
He tugs me toward him and kisses me, his tongue sliding between my lips to play with mine before he pulls back.
“Princes need princesses. You’re a fucking queen. It was never you that wasn’t enough, Lola. It was them. They were never worthy of you. I know this because I’d crawl over broken glass just to sit beside you.”
A tear slips down my cheek as he delivers that line like a vow, his eyes locked on mine, showing nothing but honesty.
“And just in case there was ever any doubt, I fucking love you too.”
I chuckle and bury my head against his shoulder. We lay there together in the quiet for a little while, finding peace for a moment while the world carries on without us.
Eventually, I start to fidget, feeling uncomfortable. I need more painkillers, but I’m loathe to let anyone intrude on our moment.
Of course, the man misses nothing. He leans over me and slides my hair back from my face. “You hurting?”
“A little.” I squirm, feeling something pressing against my leg. I slide my hand between us and feel him up. When I realize his front pocket feels a little full, I grin. “Is that your dick or?—”
His eyes flash, and his expression changes, making me close my mouth. He doesn’t look excited at the prospect of me groping him.
I still my hand, trying to figure out what’s wrong. “What is it?”
“Well, you’re right— a dick in my pocket. It’s just not mine.”
My brain goes offline for a second while it tries to process the words that just came out of his mouth. When it finally clicks, I let him go so fast that I almost break my finger.
“You have another man’s dick in your pocket? A dead dick. You have a dead dick in your pocket?”
Now, there’s a sentence I never thought I’d ever say.
“I wanted to bring you a gift,” he tells me gently. Honest to god, I know he’s serious. I feel my heart take off at a wild gallop because, apparently, dead dicks are more than I was mentally prepared for this morning.
I freeze when I realize what it means. “He’s dead?”
“Yeah, doll. He’s dead.”
“He can never hurt Millie or come for Evan?” I whisper.
He shakes his head and grabs my hand, lifting it to his face and kissing my palm. “Never.”
I blow out a shaky breath and feel more tears slip free. This time, they come with such an acute sense of relief that I struggle to suck in a breath for a moment. “You saved me. No. You set me free. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for that.”
“Live happy, doll. That’s all I want.”
He leans down and kisses my tears away, whispering soft words until I finally get them under control.
“I gotta ask. Why his dick?”
He laughs loudly, shaking both me and the bed. His laughter is infectious, and before I know it, I’m laughing along with him.
“I wanted to get you something nobody has ever gotten you before.”
“Well, just saying, nobody has ever bought me—a Lamborghini before either, if you need ideas.
“Noted.” He grins as his laughter tapers off. “Truthfully, I thought it was fitting. He hurt you. Hurt you in a way no man should ever hurt a woman. So I unmanned him.”
It’s horrific, but I can’t help but appreciate the karma of it all. “But still. You walked into a hospital with a dead man’s dick in your pocket.”
“I didn’t want to leave it with my bike.”
“Yeah, coz that would be weird.”
“Well, what are you gonna do with it?”
“Wait, you’re seriously going to give it to me?”
“Well, yeah.”
I blow out a deep breath and remind myself that Hannibal's not normal.
That’s part of his beauty, so I need to shut up and roll with it.
I’m sure he’ll end up doing a bunch of weird shit over the years, and I can either let it roll off my back or freak out.
Fuck it. “Any ideas what I should do with it?”
“Dog chew?”
“Gross, like hell are you giving that thing to our dogs. Next.”
“You could pickle it. Preserve it in a jar and keep it for something.”
“I mean, sure, or I could just put the jar in a time capsule and see what people make of it fifty years from now.”
He nods, liking that idea.
Of course, he does.
“How about we keep it simple and just…” I bite my lip, wondering if Hannibal has a point.
Maybe I can borrow a little of his crazy.
Why shouldn’t Driller suffer a bit more?
I kind of like the idea of him looking up from hell and seeing me finally getting one over on him.
“Can we get a new blender?”
He frowns.
“Of course. But what’s wrong with the one we have?”
“It’s gonna have dick juice in it.”
His eyes light up.
“You’re gonna put his dick in the blender!”
“Say what now?” Gunther asks from the doorway.
He looks from me to Hannibal before he shakes his head.
“I need more caffeine for this,” he mutters before walking back out and closing the door behind him.
We look at each other for a beat before we crack up laughing again.
It’s later in the morning and I’ve just managed to force some breakfast down my throat.
Hannibal's giving me what I can only assume is the PG version of what happened last night, when the door opens and Millie walks in.
“Did you seriously forget your daughter?” She stands with her hands on her hips, glaring at Hannibal, whose lips twitch.
“Of course not. I called, and apparently, you were fast asleep. I was planning on waiting for you to text me that you were awake so I could get one of the brothers to drop you off here.”
Her shoulders drop, her anger dissipating as quickly as it arrived. “I’ll allow it.”
“I see you didn’t forget the sass this morning.”
“I’m a teenager. I’m eighty percent sass and twenty percent sarcasm.”
Hannibal opens his mouth to argue but ends up shaking his head.
“No, she’s right.” I chuckle, beckoning her over so I can look inside the huge bag she has slung over her shoulder. “Tell me there's some real food in there.”
Millie grins. “Would I let you down?” She rolls her eyes, sits on the edge of the bed, and places the bag in my lap
I dig through it like it’s Christmas. Honestly, I feel a little emotional that she went through all this trouble for me. I pull out a couple of books that have been on my list for ages.
“Oh wow, I can’t wait to read these. Thank you so much.” I keep digging and find a bunch of snack cakes, candy, and chips. I probably won’t be able to eat most of that because my throat is sore, but I’m sure Millie can while she’s with me. At the bottom of the bag, I find some puzzle books, some playing cards, and a travel-sized version of Scrabble.
“This is all awesome, Millie. Thank you so much.”
I reach for her and give her a squeeze. She holds herself a little stiffly to start with. I don’t know if it’s because she’s still new to me hugging her or if she’s worried she’ll hurt me, She eventually relaxes and hugs me back gently.
When she pulls back, Hannibal stands up and kisses me on the lips before kissing Millie’s temple. “Well, now that you have company, I’m going to head back and grab a shower. Jolene packed you a bag, so I’m going to grab that and bring Evan for a visit. I know Jolene said she would, but it will give her and Germ a break.”
“Okay, see you later.” I watch him leave
Before the door can close, Elmo pokes his head in. “I’m taking over for Gunther for a bit. I’ll be right outside if you need anything.”
“You can come in. I don’t mind.”
“And intrude on the sanctuary of girl time? Never.” He winks at Millie, who laughs as he closes the door.
She turns back to me and bites her lip.
“You okay?”
She nods.
“Is being back here too much for you? If it is, we can do girl time when I get home. I don’t want you to?—”
She reaches out and squeezes my arm. “Chill out, Lola. I’m okay. Mom…she was sick for a while. It was shocking when we first found out, but it wasn’t shocking when she died, if that makes sense.”
“You had time to prepare, not that you ever really can.”
“I got to spend a lot of time with her toward the end. I read to her a lot, and we’d watch movies and play games like this one.” She lifts Scrabble and runs her fingers over the box, a smile on her face as she remembers.
“I got to tell her I loved her every single day, and she did the same. There were no angry words or missed chances. We said everything we needed to, and when she died it was at home in her bed. She was in so much pain at the end. It was almost a relief for it to be over, for her to find peace, you know? So no, being in the hospital doesn’t upset me.” She dips her head.
“She sounds like she was a good mom, Millie. I’m glad you got fourteen years of magic with her.”
She lifts her head, her eyes damp with tears. “Me too. I’m sad she’s gone, but I know I was lucky to have her to begin with. Some of my friends don’t have great parents and I feel bad for them.”
“Not all of us are lucky.”
She frowns. “You got bad ones, too?”
I shrug. “They weren’t monsters. They didn’t abuse me in any way, but let’s just say their morals didn’t line up with mine. They care about money and status more than anything else. And let me tell you, that kind of life is exhausting. Every girl I went to school with had a credit card and an eating disorder, and parents who were only around when there was a possible photo op.”
“You grew up rich?”
“I had money, but trust me when I say I was poor. I had everything I wanted and nothing I needed. Now I have everything I need in you, Evan, and your dad, and I’ve never been happier.”
“Even though you got hurt? What if who did it comes back? Aren’t you scared they’ll hurt you again?”
“Bruises heal. I’m okay, and so are you. That’s all that matters. And no, I’m not scared, because your dad will never let anything happen to either of us again. Be prepared to have a cutie in a cut following you around for the rest of your days.”
“They’re not so bad.”
“Remind me of this when you start dating.”
She giggles, moving the bag off the bed. “So what should we do first?”
“Have you ever played poker before?”
She shakes her head.
“Grab the cards and a bag of candy. We can use that as chips. Push the table up here so it’s between us and then get comfortable. We’ll have you fleecing the guys in no time.”