He’s always looking at me like this. Like I’m the center of his world; like I’m his knight in shining armor here to guide and protect him from the world.
Huh. I guess I am, aren’t I?
“Why are you grinning like that?” Atlas asks, narrowing his eyes as he grins even wider.
“Just thinking that I love you,” I lie, though it is true that I love him.
“Mhm,” he repeats. Then, he leans in and places a kiss on my lips, dipping his tongue into my mouth briefly. “You’re right. Itissweet.”
“Tease,” I chastise, but Atlas just laughs, pulling out of my arms as he looks around the garden.
“The flowers are coming in so nicely,” he observes, bending over to pet one of the azaleas. “It feels so bright out here.”
“I’m happy you like it,” I respond, taking another sip of my lemonade as I watch him take in the nature around us.
“Mm. Well, get back to work, then,” he says, making a shooing motion with his hand. “I’ll just be here.”
With that, he turns and walks toward the cliffside, plopping down in the chair his father placed out here a month ago, when he realized Atlas was still coming out here daily.
I observe him for a moment. The way the wind rustles his brown curls, how he draws his knees to his chest as he sits, and the way he smiles so contentedly, as if he’s the happiest man on earth.
And maybe he is. Maybe now that he’s free and he’s constantly showered with the love he deserves without guilt or reservation, heisthe happiest man in the world.
But not for long. Nope, soonIwill be the happiest man in the world, because this morning the doctor cleared me, saying that my ribs were completely healed.
And you know what that means: I finally get to fuck Atlas again.
I spend the majority of the rest of the day finishing the garden, then helping my father clear the shed. It leaves me exactly twenty minutes to talk to Susie as I shower before dinner.
She tells me about her newest fling now that she’s officially over Kimberly. I get all of the gory details of the night she spent with the girl and then hear about how she doesn’t plan on calling her back.
The irony is thick with this one.
Then the conversation moves to Landon, who’s been absent lately. Susie is worried about him, but he won’t answer my calls, so I have no clue what’s going on with him.
In fact, I still have to ask Barfred about his visit to California.
Susie and I talk for a while, and inevitably, just as it always does, the call shifts to Atlas and me. She loves talking about our relationship and hearing about how cute we are together.
“So you’re finally getting laid?” she asks, her tone full of humor.
“Yep. As much as I love blowjobs, I think I’m going crazy withoutactuallyfucking him,” I confide.
“Well, I think it’s cute that he put aside his own desires for your recovery. He must really love you.”
I roll my eyes, though she can’t see me, and begin slipping on my clothes for dinner. “Yeah, yeah. Of course you do. You’re an Atlas super fan.”
“Guilty.” She laughs. “Alright, I have to go. Let me know if you hear from Lan, okay? It’s driving me crazy that I never see him when Ilivewith him.”
“Will do. Love you, Sue.”
We hang up, and I make my way downstairs for dinner.
I moved into the west tower with Atlas shortly after Dad and I were reinstated at Chastain Castle. At first, I would just sneak up there every night, but after a while, Abraham said he was tired of Atticus complaining about my tiptoeing around at all hours and that I should just move my things.
I was surprised by his leniency, considering Atlas is his youngest son, but happy to be accepted nonetheless.
Dinner goes by smoothly, just as it always does, with Abigail and me getting chastised by Theodora for playing with our food. I can’t help it; she’s a bad influence on me.
