Chapter 14 #4
“I’ll find a flat and take care of everything.” I smile. Even without me saying yes yet, he is already planning. Is this love? I want to ask, but fear wraps tape over my mouth. “Until then, you need to stay in your routine. Make sure Mara doesn’t suspect anything.”
“But how will we see each other, then?”
“Ashford Building, after your shifts, and I'd like to… I’d like for someone else to do your work so we could simply enjoy the time together. Teach you chess, that sort of stuff.”
“No.”
“No to chess?”
“Yes to chess, but no, I am not letting anyone do my job. This is my job. I will do it, then we will spend time together, and you will have to wait until I’m done.
” A shadow of a smirk tugs at his lips, and I wonder if he is about to call me on it, but instead, all I am met with are flames dancing in his gaze.
“So shy but stubborn, huh?” he murmurs.
I cannot repress my smile, mouthing, “Stop it.”
“Alright, then. I respect that. I will wait until you, sweetheart, are done, and then we will play chess.”
“Thank you,” I say silently, as his hand runs along the side of my throat, the air thickening around us.
“That’s how I like you, Ella. Honest.”
“I’m always honest.” I look away for a second.
“I think sometimes you would rather please others than yourself.”
“I’m afraid I’m a pathological people pleaser.
“Givers need protectors,” he murmurs.
“Who is this from?”
“My father.”
“A wise man.”
“Not always; violent and cold are more suited.”
“I’m sorry.” My lips find his jaw and I drop a light kiss over his skin. “Do you ever miss him?” His shoulder falls a little, and then he shakes himself back to reality, putting his armor back on after removing it before me.
“Can I stay until you fall asleep ?” he asks, changing the subject.
“I was afraid to ask,” I admit, biting my lips, his eyes catching the motion.
“Then I’ll stay, nothing could make me happier, but I will have to go before the sun rises. I’m meeting with my team at six to discuss plans to hunt Cole before he strikes back.”
“Are you…in danger?”
“You don’t have to worry. This is not my first time chasing bad guys. I think he’s the one who should be worried, because I am the worst of them.”
“Is it horrible that I would rather not know?”
“What you don’t know cannot hurt you. I would prefer it that way, but…
” He winces. “I don’t want you to fall for someone I am not.
I am a ruthless businessman and a dangerous man, Ella.
I’m trying to stay legit and keep things civilised but, multiple times a month I fight in underground matches to blow off steam and make something with…
” he opens his palms, “this.” Cupping my cheek, he continues, “there’s violence in me for those who deserve it, men from my world and you have to be aware of that. ”
“I think…I think as long as you keep me safe, then…I want you just the way you are. Just Tristan.”
“It’s the same for me Ella. Maid or not, studying or not, with a voice or not…
just the way you are.” With those kind words sinking into me, he shifts us until we are both lying on the bed, him on his back, me curled by his side, held tightly beneath his bicep.
A small yawn escapes me as I nuzzle against his chest. What a day.
Sleep calls me, and I try to fight against it, focusing on his heartbeat, my palm resting hesitantly on his muscular chest.
“Go to sleep, sweetheart.” I shake my head, wanting to absorb every inch of this moment, staying awake.
He lets out a deep chuckle, learning to read me and my stubborn head.
“Okay, okay… How about I tell you a story while you fall asleep?” I nod against his black long sleeve shirt, loving how his muscles fight against the fabric.
“Once upon a time…” he starts, low and with a hint of sadness, “in a distant land, there was a young woman named Aria. She did not have much, but what she lacked in money, she outgrew in beauty and wit. She was promised to a rich, disgusting merchant, but she managed to escape and elope with a young man she had fallen in love with. His name was Peter, Peter Ashford, and what happened next defined the rest of my family history.” I listen as Tristan unfolds his past, explaining the injustice his great-grandparents went through because of the Vodianov family, and why their hatred was passed down from generation to generation until him.
Little by little, pieces come into place, and my heart aches for this young woman who, despite finding the man of her dreams, had to lose him and give birth on her own.
I can only imagine how afraid and helpless she must have felt, losing it all.
And for some reason, I see myself in her, in her resilience, raising her child without the love of her life, trying despite the situation, never giving up.
I fall asleep to the tale of a family that I am starting to understand more.
To the voice of the man holding my heart in his hand, hoping he will take care of it.
Drifting into the abyss, I pray that everything will be all right, because Tristan is here now.
And with him by my side, I feel like a wounded soldier who, after crawling, bleeding, and praying, has finally found a shield on the battlefield.