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“Thank you,” she acknowledged stiffly and made to leave the room. But Xavier arrested her when she was almost at the stairs.
“I will have dinner ready when you’re done.”
She stayed still, frozen to the spot, then finally acknowledged him with a swift, curt nod.
Josh was in bed when she walked into his room, a smile on his face, like a perfect little angel.
“Good night, my darling.”
“Buenas noches, mama,” he grinned smugly, and her heart turned over, both at the softly spoken Spanish and the beatific look on his handsome little face.
“Buenas noches,” she repeated, sitting on the side of his bed, taking his little paw in her hand.
“Xavier says I can paint the room whatever colour I like.”
Ellie’s pulse throbbed. “I see.”
“And that he is going to take me to a toy store and let me choose whatever I want to fill that shelf.” He nodded across the room to a large, empty unit.
“And he says he likes to read me books very much.”
Ellie’s heart tugged. “Mmm,” she said, stroking his hair.
“I like him,” the little boy said. “I want to stay here.”
Ellie nodded, emotions throbbing in her gut. She leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead then stood, spinning away before her perceptive little son could notice her turmoil for himself. “I’ll see you in the morning, darling.”
“Si.”
She ground her teeth together and pulled the door shut softly as she left, bracing her back against it for several seconds before pushing away and padding, with a heavy sigh, towards the grand and intimidating State room.
It was no less intimidating the second time she entered, though it did smell utterly delicious. Her stomach growled and she realized she hadn’t eaten all day – not more than an egg for breakfast, but she didn’t think she’d actually finished it.
Xavier was sitting on one side of the table and he’d set the place directly opposite. A bottle of red wine was between them, a glass poured for each.
His eyes bore into hers as she swept into the room, a look that was impossible to interpret, impossible to meet, so she glanced away, feigning fascination with the food.
It looked to be some sort of crumbed chicken, and crispy potatoes.
Her tummy groaned again.
She took the seat opposite him, and he continued to watch her, so that her skin prickled all over with goosebumps and her cheeks flushed pink. She reached for the glass of wine and, despite not being a big drinker, took a large gulp. She needed the fire of courage.
“He is a remarkable child,” Xavier drawled, and though it was a compliment, there was a warning in the praise too, something that made her breath heavy in her lungs.
“Thank you,” she said stiffly, placing the wine glass down and tracing her fingertip distractedly around the bottom rim.
The air seemed to crack with words they weren’t speaking. Tension zapped at Ellie’s spine and she expelled a soft, gentle sigh, then sipped her wine once more. This time, when she laid the glass down on the table, she lifted her gaze to his face.
“What happened in the accident?” She asked, as her attention slid to the scars on his cheek, then back to his eyes.
A muscle throbbed in his powerful jaw and for a moment, she thought he wasn’t going to answer. But then, with a sigh of his own, he leaned forward and templed his fingers beneath his chin, speaking in a graveled voice. “A truck crossed to my side of the road. I saw it and slowed, but couldn’t swerve out of his way.” He frowned. “My car was totaled.”
Ellie’s eyes jammed shut as the vision from the news replayed in her mind’s eye. She remembered the crash just fine. “You were in a coma,” she said, the words dragged from the past. “Was anything else broken?”
“Besides my mind?” He asked, lifting a finger and tapping the side of his head.
She nodded awkwardly.
