The tension started to ease as Alyssia kept stroking his head, her touch soothing him as it had always done. Thescent of her perfume gently found its way into his nose, a delicate balance of jasmine, rose, and another flower that he couldn’t quite identify. He swallowed hard, desperately trying to resist the urge to kiss her, and then felt his arms gently wrap themselves around her, pulling her closer.
Alyssia stepped closer to her husband, the musky scent of his cologne as familiar as always. It was her favourite, the smell of amber, cinnamon, and spice bringing her back to her childhood on the Andalucían coastline. He was as strong and powerful as she remembered, and the breadth of his chest practically begged her to rest her head there. She hesitated, wondering if she was making the right decision, and then gave in to the urge, feeling his breath catch in his chest as she rested her cheek on his shirt.
Her mind raced as she wondered if she was doing the right thing by trying to forgive him. It had been almost four and a half months since she’d asked for the divorce, and he had been trying his absolute hardest to earn her trust back, but the fears were still present in her subconscious. All the dinners and flowers in the world couldn’t make up for the betrayal, nor could the appointments they’d been to together.
Even when she saw him gazing in wonder at the sonograms, or asking the midwives a thousand and onequestions about how best to look after her and the baby, the doubts still crept in. Would he remain faithful after their baby was born? Or would she end up the same way her mother did – sitting at home, slowly going insane, until somebody else stepped in to fill the role that he either couldn’t? or wouldn’t?
Antonio’s heart pounded in his chest, but it was no longer because of his fears. Instead, all of his withheld emotions started to bubble to the surface as the days and weeks of loneliness finally hit him. He reached up and brushed a stray lock of hair from her face, hearing her breath quicken ever so slightly at his touch. Slowly, painfully slowly, she raised her face until she was staring directly into his eyes, a lifetime of unspoken words hanging in the air between them.
Time seemed to stand still as they stared at each other, the world around them fading away in a blur of sorrows, love, regrets, and pain. Antonio wondered if his wife’s eyes had always been that beautiful, or if he’d just never noticed them before, the deep brown flecked with gold as hypnotic as ever. There were a few more lines on her face than he remembered, but neither of them were as young as they’d once been. Even so, she was still a breathtakingly beautiful woman. Her hair smelled ofjasmine, the intoxicating perfume enough to make a man risk everything to be at her side.
Before he could talk himself out of it, he gently cupped her cheek in his hand and pulled her face towards him. The world seemed like it was holding its breath until, like a tidal wave, their mouths met, and time snapped back into motion. Her lips tasted like strawberry and honey, an heady mix that instantly transported him back to the first time he’d kissed her. He’d been nervous then, but the desire and need to have her was still as strong as ever.
He started to pull away, realising that she might not be receptive to his advances, but was startled when Alyssia grabbed his shirt and tugged him back towards her, not wanting the moment to end. Their lips met again, this time with urgency and passion, their tongues gently entwining in a dance that felt both ancient and new at the same time. Her grip slowly loosened as her palms remained on his chest, his racing heart almost exploding from his chest as he tried his best not to break down in tears.
“Caro mio?” he breathed, his voice causing her lips to tingle. She let out a soft moan in response, her grip tightening on his shirt, and he felt tears spring unbidden to his eyes.
God, I love this woman, he thought, his entire body full to bursting with emotion. The tears slowly ran down his cheeks, their saltiness dragging him back to reality. Slowly, painfully slowly, they parted, eyes searching each other’s faces as if the answers to all their unspoken questions could be found there.
“I love you so much,” Antonio whispered, gently stroking her cheek with his hand. Alyssia turned her cheek into his palm, feeling the weight she’d been carrying on her shoulders slowly lighten. While it wasn’t going to solve all their problems, hearing him say that he loved her meant more than she could ever say. Maybe, just maybe, when all this was over, there would be a chance for them to rebuild, forgive, and repurpose their lives.
“I love you too, Antonio,” she murmured back, planting another gentle kiss on his lips. He’d always been her kryptonite, the one man who she’d throw everything away for, even if he hurt her a thousand times over. It made zero sense to her, but she supposed love didn’t have to make sense. It just had to be there.
The jarring noise of Antonio’s phone ringing shattered the moment, and he couldn’t help but let out a frustrated groan, pulling her closer even as he dragged his phone from his pocket and looked at it.
“Why is italwayswhen I’m in the middle of something?” he laughed, pasting a smile on his face.
Alyssia smiled back, knowing the feeling all too well. Antonio answered the phone, gently stepping away so as not to be too loud, the conversation tense but not too heated. It was Douglas, one of his father’s bodyguards, phoning to ask where he was. After a short conversation, he hung up and took Alyssia’s hands in his.
“Pack your bag with things for you and the baby,” he told her firmly. “Go stay with Ricky, like I suggested – he’s expecting you. Douglas will be here shortly to take you there, and I’ll follow you there in a few days. Don’t worry,amore.I’m not going to let anything happen to you or our daughter.”
Alyssia’s eyes searched her husband’s face as if trying to find the answer to the meaning of life, but there were no answers there, just worry and love. She gently stroked his cheek, watching his eyes flutter closed at her touch, and then left to pack, trying to swallow her nerves down for the sake of the baby.
Antonio stood in the kitchen until Douglas arrived, his usually taciturn face etched with concern. They shook hands briefly, the atmosphere so tense you could have cut it with a knife.
“You’ll protect her?” Antonio asked, hardly daring to ask the question. Douglas nodded silently, then cleared his throat.
“With my life, Mr Blackwood,” he replied, his gruff voice uncharacteristically gentle.
Antonio nodded, forcing himself to look calm as Alyssia walked into the room, a large duffel bag gripped tightly in her hands. He took her in his arms and held her tightly, the smell of her hair etching itself on his brain, and then reluctantly let her go. She found a smile for him from somewhere, and he did his utmost to return it.
“Drive safely.” He smiled, trying not to show his worry. “Text me when you get there, and I’ll call you later.”
“We’ll be fine,” Alyssia smiled. “Douglas has never let us down yet.”
With that, she turned and left the house, Douglas less than two feet behind her. The house fell eerily silent, as if in mourning, and Antonio felt the gravity of the situation weighing down on his shoulders. He stood there for what felt like eternity, wondering how his life had become so confusing, and then sent a text to his father to let him know that Alyssia had gone to New Jersey. The reply was shortbut sweet – a simpleGood– and he wished his father would sometimes say more than one word.
It wasn’t to be, however, and he didn’t let his mind dwell on it for too long. With the threat from Maria growing ever larger, there was no time for sentimentality, and deep down, he knew that. Only action would suffice.
15
Meanwhile, Maria was pacing backwards and forwards in her living room, chain smoking like it was going out of fashion. She’d had absolutely no word from anyone in the Blackwood family since she’d made her demands, and as the New Year drew ever closer, she began to wonder if she’d ever get what was rightfully hers.
The other thing that was driving her mad was the news that Alyssia Blackwood was not only pregnant, butheavilypregnant to boot! Not that it made much of a difference to her plans, although it did complicate them somewhat.
“And you’resureshe’s not going to any of the family houses?” she growled down the phone to her terrified lackey. The man stuttered out a response, to which she growled even louder and hung up, before throwing her phone down on the desk. The screen cracked, a spider’s web shivering across it, and she let out a small scream of frustration.
“Perfect,” she muttered, before snatching up her spare phone and scrolling through her contacts. “Douglas … Douglas … ah, Douglas. Let’s see ifyouknow anything.”
