Stefan's chin fell to his chest as his hands rested on his hips.He stood like that for a moment before he looked up and walked to Giselle.He stopped in front of her and grabbed her hands with his.“Come here,” he said quietly.His eyes were soft and kind—no hint of anger left in them.
But Giselle wasn't about to give in.“No, you're a big jerkface.How could you—” Her eyes welled up with new tears.“We almost lost you, Stefan.You were bleeding.So much—blood.There was so much—”
Stefan leaned over and pulled her up out of the chair and into his arms.“Shh, stop,” he whispered into her hair.“It's fine.I'm fine.I'm right here.”His hands rubbed her back as she clung to him.
“You wouldn't go back to the hospital?Were you trying to die?”
Stefan's eyes clamped tight.“I was so fuckin' fevered I couldn't see straight.Couldn't even walk without Francesca's help.And yeah, I was fuckin' stubborn.And I also had to pull off some shit to get myself into her apartment.She was ready to say goodbye to me at the hospital.And I couldn't let that happen.I also knew that if she took me back there—” he tipped her head back and peered into her face, “that I'd never get back into her apartment again.And I knew I loved her.I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.No matter how long that was.”
Oh.
My.
Heart.
Stefan's words swirled around me as I began blinking away my own tears.
Eve's hand covered mine, and she squeezed it.When I looked over, I saw tears already falling down her cheeks.She mouthed a “Thank you” to me and brushed away the tears with her other hand.
“Okay, well, I guess that's a decent excuse.But you still should have gone to the hospital.What if something happened?”
Stefan kissed her forehead and said, “Nothing was going to happen.Francesca was taking care of me.She's great at her job.Maybe I played it a little too close to the line.But it worked.For a while, anyway.”His voice trailed off.“And even though she ended up leaving me anyway, it was still worth the risk.And I'd do it again.”
Giselle sighed and gave him a hug.“Do—not—do that again.”
Stefan chuckled and hugged her back.“I'll try my best.”After that, he helped her sit back down.
Everything was fixed between her and Stefan.But something kind of bothered me.I caught Giselle's gaze.“He was being really stubborn.And he should have gone in.He's very persuasive, though.So, I decided to try a few things first.But I told him if what I did wasn't working, that I'd call an ambulance.”I swallowed and gave her a sad smile, and lowered my voice.“I wouldn't have let him die.No matter how stupid he was being.”
Giselle looked at me with red, puffy eyes.“I know, honey.I know.I also know how persuasive these men can be.And how stupid they can be.Trust me.”She put her hand on top of Eve's—which was still on top of mine.“They've all pulled some pretty dumb stuff with us.”She sighed and shook her head.“You have no idea, Francesca.None at all.”She sent me a smile and then dug into the plate of fruit and cheese.
“I promise that it's not always this dramatic around here,” Eve said before removing her hand from mine.
Giselle gave her a side-eye and raised her eyebrows—but didn't say a word.
Stefan walked over and gave me a kiss.“She's lying,” he whispered with a smile.
I grinned right back and said, “I know.”
Then he sat down beside me and grabbed my hand.
Nick and Carlo wandered off to the kitchen, and Eve stood and followed them.She gave them instructions on what to do.And what not to do.
We chatted at the table about the kids, the weather, my dress—basically nothing that was full of drama.And certainly nothing about last night.
Or this morning.
Stefan excused himself and took my now empty cup, and strolled into the kitchen.It looked like there was some kind of controversy over the pancetta.
When he was gone, I looked at Giselle.“Can I ask you a question?”There was something she'd said—but not explained.And I wanted to ask her about it.
“Of course.Anything,” she said, chewing on a strawberry.
“Why were you crying last night?”I wanted to know if it had anything to do with her husband fucking her best friend.Not that she'd necessarily tell me.She probably wouldn't.But if it wasn't that—then maybe I could help her with the reason.
She picked up a piece of apple and shrugged.“I miss the kids being around all the time.I go over to the other house during the day to visit.But it's not the same.And last night,” she shrugged and looked at the fruit she held between her fingers, “I was just sad that they weren't here.”She popped the piece of apple into her mouth and chewed.“And I feel like a bad mom.You know?I mean, I get that I'm pretty useless at the moment.But that doesn't mean I don't wish I could be around them.All of them.”
I chose a piece of cantaloupe and bit into it.A bit of the juice dribbled down my lip.I swiped it away and said, “You're not a bad mom.You're a great mom.Those kids are lucky to have you.Nick and Eve's kids, too.I can see how much they love you.I can only imagine how difficult it must be to hand over even a tiny bit of control over your own kids, though.”
