Page 83 of For his Surrender

“A decent one,” I grumble and decide to lie down as well.I nest the infant body on mine, and Graziella starts circling the room as I put my daughter to sleep.It’s a lot faster than I’d like.

Bella falls asleep pretty much the moment she’s lying in bed, so five minutes later, I have an anxious Grazi, arms crossed, tapping her foot on the floor.

I get up carefully and point to my favorite corner of the room.I sit in the armchair and my friend in the puff, facing me.

“Spit it out.”

“What do you want to know, Grazi?”

“Well, why don’t we start with the fact that you left here about to kill each other and came back happy and smiling?”

“What can I say? Sex is relaxing!” I joke, and her eyes narrow at me.

“Antonella!”

“All right, Grazi...We talked! That was it, Marcos wasn’t happy, he definitely doesn’t like you, but, what can I say? Sex and conversation have solved our problems!”

“Simple as that?”

“What could he do, Grazi? Because killing me wasn’t an option, and what’s done is done, we’re married for a reason.”

“You told him everything? Everything?” I look away for almost a whole minute.

“No... But I think I should...”

“Don’t freak out, Nel...Just because you had sex, your life doesn’t have to be an open book. I’m sure his isn’t!”

“I know… I just… I don’t like that he thinks I told him everything when I didn’t, you know? Maybe I should have said I wouldn’t say everything, because now I just look like a liar.” I rub my hands on my face.I’ve avoided thinking about it over the past few days.But now, at home, with Isabella close to me, it’s impossible to continue to keep those thoughts away.

“Nel, it’s just Marcos. You’re exaggerating!”

“It might even be just Marcos!But he’s never done anything but be decent until now, Grazi! Even though he has every right to be pissed off for a while, after all, I may not have lied before, but I omitted a lot.Even so, he understood that I wasn’t the only one to blame for it and took his share.”

“I’m sure all the sex helped him see better!” she disdains. “But whether he’s playing wise or not, I don’t trust him.

“Don’t worry, same goes to youand even if you said that mocking me, yes! Sex helped, but it doesn’t change anything, Grazi!It was the first and last time...” My friend looks at me with a single raised eyebrow.

“Was it good?” Three little words.Three little words and my mind gets lost in memories impossible to ignore. “Fuck off, Antonella!” she curses, whispering, but that’s not why her tone becomes less threatening. “If your face tells me anything, it’s that no fucking way that was the last time!”

“It was!” I don’t leave room for discussion, because God knows it needs to have been, all I can’t do is further complicate the already shitty relationship that Marcos and I have. “Now, why don’t you update me on how much you ruined my daughter during those three days?”

?

I put away the unused clothes during the trip in the closet and, as if they were waiting for it, knocks sound at the door.I look at the bed.There are only two people who could call me at eleven at night.One of them finally fell asleep just ten minutes ago and I need to think of a pretty cruel way to get back at Graziella for completely disorganizing Isabella’s sleep schedule.

With a sigh, I make my way to the door, ignoring the shiver that swept over my body just thinking about Marcos.I find him leaning against the ledge, with a naughty smile on his face, his arms crossed in front of his bare chest and his body dressed in nothing but a sleeping shorts.

I laugh, turning my face quickly.It’s stronger than me.My eyes appreciate the sight, my tongue licks my lips and I deny with my head, of course it will not make our lives easier, will it?

“What do you want?” One of his eyebrows rises, and his face gets a fun look.

“Say good night?”

“Good night, Marcos!” I begin to close the door, but his hand stops me.

“All right, maybe I want more than that...”

“No.” I’m categorical.

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