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I can’t help but laugh. “I think we both need some time to catch our breath.” I kiss him again, letting my arm rest on his chest.
“My breathing is fine,” he reassures me even though he can barely keep his eyes open. I place my hand on his face, brushing away some of his dark curls, and kiss him again before getting up. He doesn’t protest this time.
I head to the bathroom and take a quick shower to calm down and wake myself up a bit. The room fills with steam but does not reach the mirror on the other side, allowing me to get a good look at my face before heading out. My eyes are red from the heat and so is the rest of my face, the cheeks flushed, my lips swollen, but most of all, I look satisfied.
There’s no denying that I want him like crazy, with a passion that I thought I had lost a long time ago. But no, it’s right here, making my heart pound so hard that I’m sure anytime now it will jump out of my chest.
What should I do now? What should I say? He wants an answer for where we are heading, and I want that too. While I had every intention to get to this once our deal was completed, it’s better to just have the talk with him now and let the chips fall where they may.
I straighten my shoulders and push my wet hair back, working it with a towel until it’s not dripping everywhere. It’s buying me some time, in the hopes that by the time I go back,
he’ll be asleep. I mean, having the talk can wait another day, right?
I drag my feet back to my bedroom and no, he’s not asleep. In fact, he’s on his feet, pacing around the room naked, his phone to his ear. There’s a deep frown on his forehead and his mouth is open and twisted as he listens but when he sees me, he raises his hand, gesturing that everything is alright.
Doesn’t look like it, but I nod and head to my closet. I grab a pair of jeans and a shirt, like I did this morning, and quickly get dressed. We are definitely not having a second round today.
“No, I don’t want to hear it. I’m coming now, okay? I’ll be there in a bit.” With that, he hangs up.
“What happened?”
Brian sighs and looks at me then at his own jeans on the floor. “My mom’s back from her holidays, and she didn’t tell me because she’s broken her leg.” He says it like reciting a poem.
“What? How? Is it serious?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “No, at least that’s what she told me. Mary is with her. Apparently, she’s been back for days but they were hiding it from me. That’s why Mary kept leaving Daniel with Sunny,” he says, more to himself than me. “I need to go,” he tells me, looking like a scolded puppy.
“I know,” I say, torn that he’s leaving. On the one hand, I’m skipping the talk for now, but on the other…
My sadness that he’s leaving is probably plastered on my face because he asks me to come with him.
“What?” Maybe I didn’t hear him right.
“Come with me. She’s in a good mood, don’t worry and, you know, you’ll get to meet her. I remember you wanted to…” His voice trails off.
I nod, well aware that my mouth is hanging open, failing to turn it into a smile. Meeting his mother, under these circumstances, seems a bit rushed. But on the other hand, that’s how we’ve been doing things since we found each other again.
“It’s okay if you don’t—”
“I want to,” I assure him. “The invitation was a bit unexpected, that’s all.” My words are followed by a burst of nervous laughter. First, I met his son, and now his mother. This means something, right?
He kisses my nose and hurries into the shower allowing me some time to process what’s happening. Half an hour later we’re both standing in Sophie Knight’s living room.
Brian and his mother share the same features but there’s a softness in her face that is missing from Brian’s. Despite the hardships, she radiates calmness even before she speaks. Sophie crosses the living room using her crutches and kisses Brian on both cheeks. Then she turns to me.
“Carol?” Her eyes widen in recognition though we’ve never met. “It’s so nice to see you.” She pulls me closer, a sweet, flowery scent filling my nostrils, and kisses me like she did with Brian. “This meeting has been long overdue.”
Brian puts his hand on my back and guides me to the couch. Sophie heads to the armchair across from us so that she can use the armrests for support. There’s a cast on her right leg, from below her knee up to her toes. She flinches slightly as she sits but, once she’s settled, she looks perfectly fine.
“How did this happen?” asks Brian.
“It was nothing, we were walking along a cobblestone path, and I slipped.” She claps her hands and then rests them on her lap, like a child waiting for a scolding.
I can feel Brian tense beside me and reach out for him. He’s still worried about her but there’s no point in telling her she should have been more careful.
“How was Italy?” I ask to help diffuse the tension and awkwardness of this first meeting.
“Exactly like I’ve dreamed of for years.”
