Chapter 26
AVA
Ilie back with Theo on the bed, my hand gently rubbing his belly.
He gargles and turns to me, a goofy smile on his face.
I love the way his eyes meet mine, then light up in delight like he’s shocked it’s me next to him.
It’s been a day and a half since the phone call, since Rafe told me he had business to settle.
“It’s to make us safe,” I whisper, walking my fingers up his body and making him giggle adorably. “Whatever us means.”
Part of me regrets ending the call like that. I don’t know all the specifics, but it’s obvious he had to do some bad, violent things to end this. I could hear the cold deadness in his voice, even when he was being nice. I should’ve supported him.
But it hurt, how heavy he was coming on. It made me want to run. And yet I can’t imagine running from him either. He’s proven he’ll do anything for us, and yet I’m still clinging to this scrap of independence. It’s the only thing he left me when he disappeared last year.
Theo starts to cry, as if sensing my mood. I sit up and rock him gently, rubbing his back, humming in his ear. I stand and start turning in a circle. He likes that, the motion, the rhythm.
My circle leads me all the way round to the doorway.
Rafe fills it, shirt messy, collar undone, a shadow across his face.
He approaches us, breathing heavily. He looks like a man breaking apart.
He comes to a halt inches from us, like he’s afraid he’ll break us.
Then gently wraps his arms around us both.
I lean against him, blinking away the tears in my eyes.
“I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner,” he says, voice husky, kissing the top of my head. “I wish I could have, Ava. But I had to make sure. There’s nobody left, nobody who will stand against me… against us.”
Us.
There’s that word again.
I look up into his amber-gold eyes. “Kiss me,” I whisper.
He claims me gently, aware of Theo between us, his rough lips caressing mine. Then he leans back and brushes his hand along my face, all the way down my neck, then gently caresses Theo.
“I’ve got an idea,” he says, a small smile on his lips. “We had that night together. Then all this…” He gestures with his hand. “We need a chance to feel like a couple.”
“A couple?” I murmur.
“Two people on a date,” he corrects. Have I offended him? “Let me take you on a date. Just a fun, silly date, something normal people do.”
“You want to feel like a normal person, Rafael Bellini?”
He slides his hand around to my back, spreading his fingers, warmth imprinting on me. “I do, Ava. So badly. There’s a reason I don’t run my business in the bloody, ugly way my cousin would have. We’ve got enough money. And people just deserve peace.”
He leans forward, kissing me on the cheek again. I turn my head against him, that special warmth filling me. But I’m not sure I can give him what he wants.
“I’ll ask your parents if they’ll watch Theo,” he says.
“I’d better come with you.”
“I passed them on the way in,” Rafe says. “They seemed… civil.”
Let’s hope so, I think but don’t say. I carry Theo into the living room with Rafe at my side. I feel like doing giddy jumps at seeing him alive and here and… mine. That’s the thought that keeps trying to punch through.
“Sir, ma’am,” Rafe says.
Dad stands and shakes Rafe’s hand. “I hear we can leave now?”
“Yes, you’re safe now,” Rafe replies. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come sooner.
I’m sorry you were even a part of this at all.
” He swallows, his voice breaking slightly.
“The truth is, one of my biggest fears has been to bring this to an innocent person’s door.
” He looks at me with blazing emotion in his eyes, and I know he’s thinking of his mother, what happened when his father fled and left her defenseless.
When he ran from me, that was to keep me safe.
“I’m sorry,” Rafe croaks. “Sincerely, and I feel bad for what I want to ask you now.”
Dad sits, holding Mom’s hand. They both seem more accepting of Rafe. Maybe it’s seeing him with Theo. Or maybe it’s the raw honesty and humanity he’s offering them. I like it. A lot. A man who can take responsibility.
“Go on, Rafe,” Mom says.
“I want to take Ava on a fun date. Just something to make us feel normal. That’s what I want everything to be going forward…
normal. I know there are parts of my business you can’t agree with, and maybe I can do something about that.
But for tonight, please, will you allow me to take your daughter out? And will you watch our son?”
Mom looks at Dad, a wry smile on her face. They don’t seem as affected by what Rafe had to do to get back here. Maybe they haven’t thought about it. They didn’t hear the gunshot through the phone, thankfully.
I think it’s a good thing, them not thinking of him like that, as a killer.
Can I see past that?
“I don’t know, Tom. What do you think? Can we watch our grandchild?”
Dad smirks. “I think we can handle that.” He turns to Rafe. “I know you and Ava will have a lot to talk about. But just remember…” He smiles knowingly at me. “It’s a long road. It’s important to go at your own pace.”
That’s a tune change from what he was saying before. But after I told him my feelings about all that, he said sorry and understood where I was coming from. I know I can be old-fashioned, but that’s no excuse.
Rafe turns to me, a nervous smile on his face. “I’ll need to change,” he says, gesturing at his rumpled suit.
“No,” I say. “You don’t.”
He rests one hand on my knee as we drive under the clear sky. The roof is down on his car. The early evening air whizzing by. I’m wearing a hoodie and jeans. Rafe said if he didn’t need to dress up, then neither did I, with that hungry, excited glint in his eyes.
He pulls into an outdoor movie theater, cruising past the gate and parking directly in the middle.
I look around at the empty lot, laughing. “We’re the only ones here.”
“Maybe I don’t want to feel completely normal,” he says with a smirk, leaning in for a kiss.
I kiss him passionately, wholeheartedly, holding nothing back. When we kiss, our lips brushing together roughly, our bodies hot and close, there’s nothing complicated about this at all. He slides his hand up my leg, squeezing hungrily.
My core aches and pulses… again, not complicated. My nipples rub against my bra, tempting me.
He leans back, breathing hard. “If I don’t stop, I’ll take you right here. How the fuck did I forget how good that curvy body feels, angel?”
My cheeks heat up, my heart picking up speed.
“Maybe we should wait for the stars to come out,” I murmur.
He nods, trembling a little. “Plus, we’re here for a date. I thought we’d watch Frida. It’s about—”
“I know what it’s about,” I say, smiling. A famous surrealist painter. A movie tailor-picked for me.
“Have you seen it before?” he asks.
I shake my head.
He smirks, coming closer again, his warm breath whispering over me. “Why do I get the feeling you just lied to me?”
I mirror his smile and seal our lips. He groans, kissing me hungrily. “I want to watch the movie, big scary mafia man. Isn’t that enough?”
“I better not be big and scary to you,” he whispers, kissing me softly.
“Well, not scary. But big?”
He smirks. “Okay, I can take that.”
I rest my head against his shoulder, turning to the giant screen. “So, are we going to watch the movie or not?”
He turns and wraps his arm around me. “Like a normal couple.”
“In a movie lot you hired just so we could have it to ourselves…”
He kisses me on the top of the head. I love it when he does that. It makes me feel nestled in and safe. Special somehow. “Almost normal is as close as I’m going to get, angel.”
“I think that’s better anyway.”
I’m not sure how he does it, but exactly when we’re ready, the movie starts. Neither of us talks for the entire duration. It’s enough to just be together, to experience this journey about art and perseverance.
He finally turns to me, emotion on his hard-lined face. “You know what I’m going to say.”
“Don’t,” I whisper.
“She reminded me of you.”
I roll my eyes. “That’s insulting to her. She had it worse.”
“Maybe,” he agrees. “But her passion for art. Her dedication to it. Never giving up. That’s all you, Ava.”
“Thanks,” I murmur, moving slightly closer for a kiss.
I barely have to move. A twitch is enough for him to surge forward, claiming me with that ever-present hunger. It’s like it’s bubbling under the surface even when we’re just sitting together.
I feel it too, a tight ache between my legs, my clit rubbing hard against my underwear as though in protest.
“What now?” I ask.
He nods to the sky. “It will be getting dark soon. I’ve arranged for us to have dinner under the stars.”
I squeeze my legs together, wondering if he can tell. My mind is always a mess around him, but my body never.
“That sounds perfect,” I whisper.