Page 72
“You think you did something, huh?” he smirked at her.
Aella shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Aella Torrisi, you have no idea how much trouble your mouth just landed you in. Pun intended.”
Hours later, Cassius caressed Aella’s scalp as they lay in bed, spent from getting to know each other more intimately. “Don’t think you’re getting out of having a conversation just because your body is good,” he murmured, burying his face into her hair.
“What is there to talk about at this point?”
“Everything. More specifically, ground rules for us.”
Aella’s eyes rolled to the ceiling. “I believe I specifically said I didn’t want to lose my freedom in this marriage.”
“No one’s trying to strip you of your freedom, Elle. I’m not stupid enough to think you’ll always agree with me or that there won’t be moments where we don’t get along. But in the time we’ve known each other, I’ve never disrespected or turned my back on you. You did, though. With no hesitation. The least you could have done was let me get to the bottom of whatever the fuck was going on before leaving.”
“Are you offended because I left or because my leaving took a shot at your ego?”
“It doesn’t have anything to do with my ego and everything to do with respect. This is new territory for both of us, and it’s wild to me that with all the progress we’ve made and the fact that I’ve been honest with you the entire time despite you continuously lying to me, I couldn’t get the tiniest benefit of the doubt from you. That’s fucked up. And I’m telling you, if that’s how you want to play things moving forward, we may as well nip this in the bud now.”
Aella was surprised at how tightly her belly coiled at the thought of Cassius walking away. She hadn’t realized her mistake initially, but his vulnerability revealed how much her actions had affected him.
Curling onto her side, Aella brought her hand to his cheek. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d be so upset if I left. I was more worried about my feelings.”
“And you being pissed off was valid. Zelina should never have still had access to the crib, and I can admit that. I’ve been so busy trying to figure out who’s gunning for our families that she was an afterthought.”
“I believe you,” she told him truthfully. “And I wish I could explain why I reacted so strongly when I know you’ve dated several women, but seeing her here and having it sink in how much access she had to you—”
“Had your jealous ass ready to go to jail,” Cassius chuckled, pressing his lips to her forehead.
Aella smacked his chest. “Shut up. I wouldn’t go that far. But I can’t pretend as though I didn’t feel a way. I guess I might like you more than I realized.”
“Elle, you’re damn near in love. You just aren’t ready to admit it to yourself, let alone me. It’s cool, though. I’m a patient man.”
“Change the subject now before I change my mind and welcome the idea of a jail visit,” she growled, making him laugh. “I swear, it feels like life is changing overnight.”
“It is,” Cassius confirmed. “But the beauty of the situation is you aren’t dealing with it alone. We’re experiencing this together, and that’s how we’ll figure it out and get through it.”
“You have a lot of confidence for someone who hasn’t been married before and didn’t choose his wife for this marriage,” Aella snorted.
“Because I know I’m willing to do whatever needs to be done to make things work,” he retorted. “And I suggest you get on the same page. Once we say those vows, death will be the only thing to do us part.”
“Cassius Farina,” Aella’s eyes widened in the dark. “Did you just threaten to kill me?”
“No. But there won’t be a divorce, and there damn sure won’t be another man in your space or another woman in mine. If this doesn’t work, we’ll have to settle for being the married couple who have been together for 50 years but hate each other.”
Aella couldn’t hide her giggle. “First of all, sir. If I want to move out and find another man, that’s my business.”
“Finding another man who intrigues you more than I do is impossible. You’re more than welcome to try, though. But you know damn well it won’t end peacefully, Princess. Don’t even play yourself,” he released a yawn before drifting off to sleep.
“So,” Tristan said, entering Aella’s office. “You run off and get engaged and don’t tell anybody?” He chuckled, holding up a copy of the Whiskey Creek Times. “That’s what we do now?”
It had been nearly two weeks since Aella and Cassius had settled their differences, and tonight would be their official first appearance as an engaged couple, as well as their official announcement.
Looking up from her computer, Aella chuckled. “Listen, telling you was on my list of things to do. I just hadn’t gotten around to it yet.”
“Apparently, you’ve been keeping a lot of secrets,” Tristan teased, dropping the paper onto the desk. “I didn’t even know you were seeing someone.”
“It wasn’t common knowledge,” Aella glossed over the moment. Tristan had no knowledge about her family’s lifestyle, so explaining her sudden, arranged engagement in a way that made sense would have been next to impossible.
