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“The tips you must have gotten…” He smirked again before he took a drink. “But it was probably nothing compared to the phone numbers.”
I grabbed the orange and squeezed it into my glass before I took a drink, noting the refreshing taste of citrus.
He took a big drink then licked his lips.
I waited for him to ask me about the conversation I’d had with his parents, but he never did. “This is a nice building.”
“It’s as old as the Duomo. My family has renovated it a couple times to keep it standing.” He took another drink then left the empty glass on the table, the workers cleaning up around us. “Want me to show you around?”
“Do you actually want to show me around, or just fuck me on a sarcophagus?”
He smirked as he got to his feet. “Let’s find out.” He took my hand, and we walked down the hallway, heading to the first exhibit, which was everything related to the Renaissance. There were paintings, sculptures, schematics of architecture.
“This place is huge.”
“But nothing compared to the Louvre.”
“How does someone run a museum? How do you get people to hand over pieces for exhibitions?”
“The museum is considered to be a heritage site. And since it’s been designated as such for so long, it’s just always been that way.” With my hand in his, he guided me down the hallways and into the Byzantine Empire and then the Egyptian section.
“Have you been to Egypt?”
“My family and I went when I was younger. Explored the pyramids.”
“Wow, that’s so cool.”
“It’s a lot of stone and sand, if you ask me. Now the beach, that’s where it’s at.”
“Because of the women?” I teased.
“I was a teenager at the time,” he said with a grin. “I had different priorities.”
We stopped in front of a sphinx statue, protected behind thick glass with several paragraphs of information written beneath it. It was quiet on this side of the building, the sounds of plates and cleaning absent this far from the lobby.
He continued to stare at the sphinx with a haze over his eyes, like he’d had too much to drink or didn’t care about the history right in front of his eyes. “My parents always wanted me to be an ambassador…since I was good with people. But I’ve never been interested in politics. It’s just a bunch of bullshit, and you can’t punch someone to get something done.”
“You are good with people.”
“I just know how to smile at the right times.” He turned away from the sphinx and looked at me. “So, what did you think of Mom and Dad? They’re lovely, aren’t they?” His eyes were hazier than they’d ever been, a little watery, and I knew he really did drink too much tonight.
It was the first time I’d ever seen him hit the bottle too hard. There was always a drink in his hand, so I assumed his tolerance was sky-high—but he seemed to have reached his limit this evening. “I’m not their biggest fan.”
He gave an exaggerated nod, like that gave him all the details of the conversation. He looked at the sphinx again.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine.” His voice was quiet, so quiet it was practically a whisper. “I didn’t expect that conversation to accomplish anything. But at least they met you, I guess.”
“It’s not my place to say anything, and I should probably keep my mouth shut?—”
“I never want you to keep your mouth shut, baby.” He turned to me, looking at me with hooded eyes. “You’re smart. Beautiful. Passionate. I hang on to every damn word that leaves those lips.”
Now I knew what kind of drunk he was—a sweet one. “Your dad’s a prick.”
He smiled then released a chuckle. “Yep. That’s my old man.”
“I asked if he’d be willing to reconcile if you left this profession, but his answer was no.”
“Told you. He wants nothing to do with me.”
But I hadn’t believed it until I’d seen it with my own eyes. “I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault, baby.”
“I went over there to make things better, but all I did was make myself angry.”
“Welcome to my life.” He grabbed his tie and tugged it farther apart like it was constricting his neck. “But it doesn’t matter.” He swayed slightly, but his strong body righted itself instantly. “You’re my family, baby.” His hand dug into my hair, and he cupped my face, bringing me close to him. “This is what matters.”
My heart burst from my chest with both joy…and utter pain.
His hand went to my stomach, and he cupped it, even though there was nothing there. “We’ll have our own babies, and I’ll be the best father there ever was. My love will be unconditional, and they’ll never wonder if I’ll be there for them. They’ll know there’s nothing they could ever do to lose me.”
“Axel…”
He rested his head against mine, his big arms pulling me close, his hand supporting the back of my neck.
