“I’m sorry I ruined us,” I say instead.
El smiles, a half-smile that lifts only a corner of her lips. “You didn’t do it alone. I broke my promise to you.” Retracting her hand to hide them inside her—my shirt, she adds, “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No. I want to talk about us,” I reply. I shift towards her, she inches away from me until her side hits the headboard. I grin evilly, she pouts and hugs herself, batting her lashes like a puppy. “You’re too cute, El.”
Dragging her to my laps, her squirming ends when I trail a finger on her inner thigh. El sucks in a breath, her gaze lowers to my lips and everything slows to a stop as we wait for the first person to make a move.
Desire blankets her eyes, same as it does mine. I don’t make a move, neither does she.
“I want to fix this, Elna.” Her silence spurs me on. “I can fix this.” Her lips part, she remains speechless. “I am not taking no for an answer.” Her lips twitch. “We can renew our promise. We can have it all, Elna.”
An abrupt knock on the door interrupts us, she yelps as I hoist her up, hooking her legs around my waist while my arms lock around hers. I am not letting her go. Not when I know we have a real shot at forever.
I start for the door. El struggles in my grasp but a slap on her butt silences her. We stop at the door.
“Brandon, put me down,” she whispers when my hand closes around the knob. “Please.”
“Nope.” I want the kids to see us this way, especially Bren so she never has to ask me that silly question again. El’s protest dies when I flick a finger over her nipple, she hisses and I knead the beady nipple gently, loving her soft moans and the friction created by the fabric of my shirt. “Be good and I’ll stop.”
She acquiesces with a nod, I peck her lips and unlock the door. The twins falter in their tracks, their eyes narrow suspiciously at me but they don’t say a word as they walk around me, sniffing us like patrol dogs.
“Mummy, what’s going on?”
Our heads round in El’s direction, she tries to get down but I glare at her, she is not getting away even if the kids are glaring at us—me.
“Daddy won’t let me go,” El says. My cock twitches at the use of that word, I like it. Her hair falls over her forehead, she pushes it out of her face and gives them the puppy eyes. Bren hides a smile, she’s so pleased with this new development. To me, El says, “Put me down.”
Wyn crosses her arms, she doesn’t look as pleased as Bren. “Daddy, put Mummy down,” she orders. So bossy, eh? I let her attitude pass. El is my wife, I can carry her as long as I want. “Daddy, we will be late.”
Late? My eyes zero in on their uniform. Right, they still have to attend school. I pinch the bridge of my nose. El is still on house arrest until I say otherwise. Enzo dropped them yesterday, I want to do it today.
“I can take them,” El volunteers as I set her down.
Her voice comes out unsure. I have not left her alone with the twins since we moved here. At first, it was her punishment but now, I am scared. I trust she will take care of them but I don’t want to lose anybody.
“Yeah.” Bren steps forward. “Let Mummy take us.” Wyn nods in support. “Mummy?”
El doesn’t look my way but I know similar thoughts are running through her head. “I’ll take you,” she whispers to them as if afraid I’ll change my mind. I can’t. They are her kids too. “I’ll be outside in a bit.”
The girls eyes narrow, their heads bob in unison and they walk out holding hands. They will be nothing like me and my brother and I am grateful for that. I am grateful to El for being a great mother to them.
“Hey.”
Her sweet voice runs through me like warm honey. I snap out of my reverie and grin. She twiddles her fingers. Her mouth opens and closes, she repeats the gesture twice but I don’t put her out of her misery.
My lips lift in a smirk. She clears her throat and rubs her hands on her hips, begging me with her eyes to help her out. If she wants something from me, she has to say it. I’ll not make assumptions on her behalf.
“I hope you are okay with me dropping them off?” El finally says. Her eyes are big and hopeful, I find myself nodding and she lets out a nervous laugh as her fingers curl into her hair. The gap between us is inexistent but I need her closer to me, to feel her body. “I just want to spend some time with them.”
Time she couldn’t spend because I took them from her. Her lips ease into a friendly smile. I trace the outline of her lips. Her eye bags are back, thanks to me. She swipes her tongue over her lip and gulps. I want to kiss her. My head dips so I can claim her mouth but I hesitate when our lips are inches apart.
El palms my face before I can pull back, her lips brush mine and a thousand and one tingles erupt on my mouth at the contact. I tense, nervous and afraid to ruin this moment. Everything feels so different now.
“Brandon,” she breathes out. My eyes flicker to hers which darken with lust. “I want to kiss you.” She sucks on my lower lip as if giving me a chance to turn down her offer, I will be insane to do that. The tension in my joints dissolve and my hands roam her perfect body. “Stop me if you don’t want it too.”
The kiss is gentle at first, almost uncertain like we are rediscovering each other’s lips.
Her fingers sink into my scalp, I moan and El slips her tongue into my mouth, performing a tongue tango with mine as we explore our lips. She pulls back for a nanosecond to recapture my lips. I allow her lead, following her hint, sucking her divine lips, grinding my body against hers while she moans into the kiss.
I cup her butt and my fingers scrap her soft skin. She lets out a delicious sound I want to play on repeat.
Our breaths mingle, our moans and gasps punctuate the morning quiet as we make love with our lips. I touch her with a tenderness that’s new to me, wanting more from her. To give more and to take as much. We break apart to catch our breaths, our foreheads touch and an impish smile spread on our lips.
My eyes lower to her swollen lips, I hook a finger under her jaw and claim them again in an urgent kiss.
“Mummy. Ew.”
We jump apart. El smoothes her hair and fidgets with her shirt. The girls fold their arms across their chest. Bren lifts a brow, Wyn wears her signature scowl. We are the parents but it doesn’t feel like that.
“I have to go now,” El says. Loneliness washes over me as the twins take the first step to the door. I should join them but I need to sort out a few things first. El brings my head down for a forehead kiss and my cheeks burn a bright red. “Don’t go anywhere, okay?” Her eyes linger on my lips. “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay, love,” I tell her and peck her cheek for the last time.
“Bye, Daddy,” the girls chorus at the door.
“Bye.”
El stops at the door to blow me a kiss and the girls’ faces scrunch up in fake disgust. I love my girls.
The weight on my shoulders disappears, the smile remains on my lips as I move back to the room to clean last night’s mess. I push back the dark memories, I will have to tackle them later but for now, I want to bask in the happiness of having my wife and kids love me again.
It feels like old times but a premium version.
My leg hits the stand, coffee splashes over the surface and I wipe it with the torn fabric in my grip. I take a sip of the coffee and cringe at the bitterness that assaults my tongue. This used to be my best drink. I take more sips till the mug is empty. If my wife made me coffee, I have no business refusing to finish it.
There’s a bounce in my step as I dart to the bathroom, a slight fluttering in my heart and my chest threatens to explode from happiness. A familiar tune plays in my head, I spin and perform the criss-cross dance I have seen the girls do. My hair falls into my eyes, I don’t care to swipe the strands irritating my eyes.
I hit the buttons on the tiled walls and soft music pours in from the hidden speakers. I move offbeat to the foreign song, laughing at how ridiculous I look dancing in front of the mirror.
Ridiculous but happy.