Page 85 of Fractured Empire

Leo curls himself into Katya’s side as she crouches down to check on him. Concern for my son replaces my disappointment in our moment being ruined in an instant. My attraction to my wife still flares hot, though, watching her take care of my boy like she was born to do it.

I’ll have to show her how thankful I am later.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Katya

Unfortunately, Leo’s tummy ache was more than just a little pain and discomfort. A stomach bug hit him swiftly and took no prisoners. The poor boy threw up every ounce of food in him, and took almost a whole eight hours before he could hold down water. He only had a minor temperature, thank God.

Bastian was spared from getting sick alongside his little brother, but he was a bit distraught with worry for Leo. I think it would have been more difficult to calm him if Leon hadn’t stepped in to remind him that he’s had stomach bugs before himself and he was perfectly fine within a couple of days. No one needed to say it out loud for us to all understand he was worried about his little brother following in his mother’s footsteps.

When you watch someone you love get sick and die, it’s difficult not to associate sickness with the unforeseen and unrelenting call of death.

But nothing more than a couple of days of discomfort and sickness were in the cards for our Leo. He recovered quickly with some good old fashioned rest, relaxation, and chicken soup. Despite being upset that he couldn’t simply eat whatever he wanted as soon as he was feeling better, Leo took being taken care of in stride. He adored being doted on, and it helped him get through the worst of it with a silver lining.

Letting myself into my husband’s office, I don’t feel trepidatious or even the slightest bit uneasy. This may be his private area, but he’s never told me to avoid it.

“The boys asleep?” Leon asks, looking up from his desk with tired eyes as I softly shut his door behind me. His lips are turned down in an almost stern-looking frown, but he’s not sad. His voice gives away his exhaustion—his stress.

“They are,” I confirm, keeping my voice down despite our distance from the boys’ bedroom. “They were disappointed when you didn’t come say good night but I told them you had to run out and that you would see them in the morning. An extra bedtime story made up for the letdown.”

If the kids thought their daddy was only a short walk away, working in his office, they would be even more upset about missing a good night with him. I know why Leon couldn’t bring himself to go down the hall and up the stairs to see them off to bed, but children don’t understand the complexity of adult moods.

Leon is the kind of father who refuses to let his shitty day affect his babies. He wouldn’t want them to come face to face with anything other than their perfectly loving father. On any other day, he might have been able to mask his obvious sullen mood and heavy stress, but not today. It’s radiating off him in waves, and we both know that Bastian and Leo would notice.

“You didn’t have to lie for me,” Leon replies, shaking his head. “But thank you.”

“I didn’t really lie,” I reason with a little shrug. “You’re not here right now, even if you’re in the house. You’re not yourself.”

His head tilts to the side, just a fraction. Just enough for the action to reflect his questioning look. “You sound so sure of that for someone who doesn’t actually know me yet.”

I try not to smile hearing his last word. Yet.

“I know enough.” Walking further into his office, I ignore the open chairs across from his desk and set my sights on a more appealing seat. “I know that you try to be snappy when you want to be left alone, like you did just now. I know that you want to be left alone because you refuse to let your misery seek company.”

“I didn’t mean to imply⁠—”

“See?” I question, cutting in. “You can’t help but try to take back a cutting comment that was far too dull to hurt me.”

He sighs, and it’s like tension is trying to flee him but it can’t escape. “Katya, it’s been a long day.”

“I know, bohatstvo. Leo got sick, and you threw aside all of your responsibilities to help me nurse him back to health. Taking three days off made work build up for you, and you were already stressed before it happened. But he’s better now, and you can’t possibly think that you’re going to catch up on everything in a single day, can you?”

He forces a tight smile. “Stranger things have happened.”

I click my tongue, shaking my head in disapproval. “You’re a good father, Leon. A very good father, and a good man. You’re also so hard on yourself. I think your expectations are higher than anyone else’s, and you shouldn’t be so rigid in your standards. You’re doing enough, anyone can see that.”

He digests my words with a blink, watching as I finally bridge the gap between us. He doesn’t try to move away, watching while I perch myself at the edge of his desk—the same edge that he’s sitting behind. The satin of my maroon pajama pants slips against the solid wood of his desk and I cross my arms over my stomach loosely. A bit of the bare skin of my navel is peeking out from my shirt, and I watch as his eyes track it, noticing the small exposure.

“You need to relax,” I inform him softly. “You don’t take any time for yourself, and it’s beginning to catch up with you. Any time you take away from your job is for the kids, and never for you. Have you done anything for yourself since Cleo passed?”

“I married you.”

His words send a flutter of heat straight to my core.

Still, I press on, “Working so much, and worrying so much about the boys, it’s not healthy. You have to take care of yourself, or I’ll be forced to do it for you.”

A dirty blonde brow lifts up in challenge. “Pot meet kettle, baby. All you do is work and worry about the kids too. Your job is the kids.”