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“I’m sorry, sir,” Aldo said. “You said you didn’t want to see her and?—”
“Leave my sight.” Axel’s eyes shifted to me. “Andyou.” His eyes narrowed on me, vicious and scathing. “You came all the way down here to say something, so say it. Get your ass back over here and tell me what’s so goddamn important that you would defy my wishes and get my butler canned.”
Aldo bowed his head and walked to the staircase, his eyes purposely down to avoid my stare. He passed me and took the stairs, his footsteps disappearing after a few seconds.
Now it was just me and Axel—and I was terrified.
Axel continued to stare me down with ferocity. “I said, get your ass over here.”
I turned back to the stairs. “I don’t want to meet my replacement?—”
“Get your ass over here, or I’ll make you.”
I gripped the banister and breathed hard, all the little hairs on my arms standing on edge. “Don’t tell me what to do?—”
“Don’t barge into my house like you own the place. You’re the one who took your shit and left.” He raised his voice. “Now, get over here, or I swear to fucking Satan, I will throw you over my shoulder and toss you on the bed.”
I started down the stairs.
“The hard way, then.” He ran down the hallway, and the glimpse of him charging me reminded me of a bear chasing down its prey.
I rushed down the stairs.
He caught up to me effortlessly, and even at a downward angle, he grabbed me and hoisted me over his shoulder. It happened so fast, my face dropping to where my ass had been seconds ago, and the whole world flipped, the stairs above my head. My face was close to his ass, which was tight as hell in those sweatpants. “Jesus…”
He carried me up the stairs like I weighed nothing and into his bedroom. He flopped me down on the unmade bed.
When I hit the mattress, I bounced a little, and my body immediately remembered what it was like to sleep on this mattress, to feel us bounce together when he was on top of me.
His hands landed on either side of me, pinning me against the bed. “Does it look like anyone’s here?” His eyes were sharp like broken glass, wanting to stab me all the way through. He pushed off me then stepped away, the muscles in his back muscular and tight. He paced for a moment, breathing through his rage, like just being in the same room with me was too much.
I sat up and moved to the edge of the bed before I got to my feet. With a quick scan, it seemed like Axel was telling the truth.There was no one else here but him. Aldo had fed me a lie to get rid of me, but he accidentally got rid of himself.
Axel turned to face me, his big arms crossed over his chest. His head was cocked slightly to the side, and he stared me down with impatience. “Is this about the divorce papers? All you have to do is sign them and drop them in the post. I enclosed my lawyer’s information so he can handle it.”
“It’s not about that?—”
“Then what the fuck do you want?” He took a step closer to me.
“If you would stop yelling at me and cutting me off every two seconds, then maybe I could get a sentence out,” I snapped. “Jesus Christ.”
He clenched his jaw. “I said I didn’t want to see you.”
“Well, we need to talk?—”
“Wedon’t need to do anything. There is nowe. There hasn’t been awesince you left me, since you packed up your stuff and walked out of my life. I used to be wrapped around your goddamn finger and would do anything for you, but that shit is over. Get used to it because I’m not your man anymore?—”
“I believe you.”
“Good,” he barked. “Glad we’re finally on the same page.”
“I mean…I believe you about my father.”
The tightness in his neck and arms suddenly went slack. All the rage that filled the air around us suddenly evaporated like water boiling in a pot. Even his breathing changed, going from short and shallow to slow and steady. His eyes narrowed then theywidened again, as if he was replaying the conversation in his head because he was in disbelief.
“You were telling the truth.” Distant tears started in my throat, hot and fresh, a dull burn. My sinuses started to hurt from the strain because ocean-sized tears were being restrained by that dam. “And I didn’t believe you.” I hadn’t really had a chance to reflect on what had just happened with my father, to absorb his betrayal for the unforgivable backstab that it was. I hadn’t even had a chance to accept it. I had no actual proof, but the words I’d overhead told me the truth about his character. “I’m so sorry…”
He inhaled a slow breath, and finally, the Axel I remembered came back to me. His eyes were still focused with powerful intensity, but it wasn’t fused with anger anymore. It was simply intense, like the way he used to look at me. “And why do you believe me now?”
