Dave seemed moderately appeased by my response because he left it at that. He also joined us for dinner, and when people started to arrive, their concern about Twitch being present was worn so clearly on their faces they didn’t have to say a word about it.
Thankfully, nobody said a thing about it, and honestly, I wouldn’t have either, given the daring glares Twitch handed out. It felt awkward for a while, but when Ana began to talk to Twitch, the table came alive with conversation. Sure, Twitch wasn’t terribly involved, but he stayed, and Julius remained civil, watching his old friend, his brother, with a light in his eyes I couldn’t exactly read.
What was it? Wistfulness? Anger? Sadness? I couldn’t put my finger on it. Perhaps a bit of all three.
When Happy stepped through the door with Nikki, I found it hard to look at him, and when he approached me carefully, as one would a spooked deer, I looked up at my friend and watched him crumble. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He peered over at a watchful Twitch before his lips thinned and his eyes closed, as he muttered, “Lex, I... I’m so sorry.”
When I took the three steps over and wrapped my arms around his middle, he held me so tightly I choked up. I felt his apology, felt his sorrow at disappointing me, felt his regret in that tight embrace. I didn’t speak. I couldn’t. I simply reached up and took his face in my hands, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek.
It wasn’t forgiveness, not exactly. It was a small mercy I bestowed on him, because I loved him, my dear friend.
Soon after eating dessert, everyone was making a move to leave, and Twitch was in the middle of saying goodnight to A.J. I hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but when I approached, my son’s question held me captive.
“Uncle Dave said you hurt Mummy.” He paused a moment. “Is that why she’s mad at you?”
“Yeah, bud,” was all Twitch said.
“Did you say sorry?”
“No, I didn’t.” He hesitated. “I can’t say sorry for what I did.”
“Sometimes when I make Mummy upset, she needs a hug.” My heart jolted. “Maybe you should hug her.”
Twitch snuffled out a light laugh. “I might try that. Thanks for the advice.”
A.J. sounded pleased with himself. “You’re welcome.”
I couldn’t help but smile as I walked back into the kitchen.
Truth was, after the month I’d had, I could’ve used a hug.
Chapter Seventeen
Lexi
Twitch spent the afternoon with A.J. after picking him up from school, and when I came home from work with a headache and in a foul mood, he cornered me in the hall as I was coming out of my room.
His watchful gaze roamed my face. “You okay?”
What do you care?
Ugh. Knee-jerk reaction. I really needed to stop with that.
I winced, then looked up at him through squinted eyes, speaking quietly. “Yeah. Just need some pain pills and I’ll be good.”
When he marched into the kitchen and opened the cabinets, it took me a moment, but I followed him, and when he filled a glass with water and approached holding the pills in one hand, the glass of water in the other, I stood there, lips puckered in thought. “What are you doing?”
He frowned down at the pills, then looked back up at me without speaking.
I hesitated.
Twitch sighed, taking the glass and resting it on the edge of the kitchen table; the pills followed. He took a long, hard look at me before he uttered, “Stubborn-ass woman,” then left the room to sit with A.J. on the sofa, watching The Lego Movie.
I wasn’t used to this, to Twitch being an active participant in my life. Even when we dated, we had an odd relationship. It was give and take.
I gave while Twitch took, sometimes more than I had to give.
So sue me for being hesitant. I wasn’t used to being looked after by a man who once told me he’d break me.
Sighing lightly, I took the pills with a big gulp of water, then walked into the family room and looked to Molly. “I need a few minutes for these pills to work.”
She nodded. “No problem. I’ll take care of dinner.”
I threw her a look of pure gratitude. “You’re wonderful.” When my eyes settled on the two entangled bodies on the sofa, my heart melted. Twitch lay on his back, his arms twisted up and behind his head, causing his biceps to bulge in a way that was almost sinful. The little boy draped across his legs with sock-covered feet hugged his dad with both arms, as if he were scared he’d be taken from him, and my melting heart ached painfully. When A.J. reached into Twitch’s hoodie pocket and retrieved a couple of chocolate rainbow-colored buttons, throwing them into his mouth, memories of a time long past came flooding back.
Those sweet brown eyes focused on me. “Are you okay, Mummy?”
I smiled at my son. “Fine, honey. Thank you for asking.” I chanced a sneaky look at Twitch that turned out not to be so sneaky because said man was staring right at me, a familiar heat in his gaze.
My last thought before I went back to my room was bleak.
If you hurt him, I will kill you myself.
And if it came to it, I was sure I would.
“Hey, mama bear.”
I stretched under the covers and blinked through the drowsiness. The long shadow lying beside me spoke again. “Your cub’s askin’ for you.”
Confused and blinking through my slumber, I asked a rough, “What time is it?”
“Seven thirty.”
My eyes snapped open. “What?” I sat up in bed and the covers fell to my waist. I stretched languidly, and spoke through a yawn, “Why didn’t anyone wake me?”
Twitch elevated himself, resting his head on his upturned hand. “Because I told everyone to shut the fuck up and let you sleep.”
I let out a long breath. “You didn’t need to do that.”
“I know I didn’t, but I did.” His eyes rested on my collar, drifting downward. “You need to look after yourself, baby.” I suddenly realized I was wearing a tiny tank top without a bra, and when I tried to discreetly cover my chest, his lips lifted at the corners. “Nothing I haven’t seen before.” As he stood, he said, “Only a matter of time before I see it all again.”
A shocked laugh left me. “You’re so full of shit.”
“I’m not.” He sounded slightly insulted.
“Oh, but you are,” I insisted then released an offhand smirk. He didn’t need to know I was burning up at the thought of being with him again. “What makes you think I still want you, Twitch?”
He leaned into me then and I pulled back at the intimacy in that small move. And when he spoke, the words hit me with the force of a thousand orgasms. “Because I’m your motherfucking king, and you are my beautiful queen. So be good, bow down to me—” His voice lowered a notch. “—and let me love you.” He slid off the covers, leaving me feeling bereft and alone. He straightened, and the air of cockiness about him increased a whole level. He slowly moved toward the door. “Come say goodnight to our son so I can bring you back to bed and show you how much I missed you.”
The air burned in my lungs. “You’re fucking crazy.”
He grinned then. “Guilty, baby.”
If chaos and fury were ever joined, Twitch would be the child born of the coupling. And what a crazy, beautiful hurricane he was.
My resolve was wavering at an alarming pace. I couldn’t deny I wanted him. The question was, was I senseless enough to let him back in?
Later that night, it took some convincing, but Twitch finally left, and as he did, he shook his head and sighed. It was after eleven when I got up to get a glass of water, and when I put the glass to my lips, my heart stuttered at the shadow sitting on the back porch.
My brows narrowed, as I muttered under my breath, “What the hell is he doing?”
Why is he hiding out there?
As quickly as the thought came, I recognized the error in my assumption.
He wasn’t hiding at all. He was waiting on me to find him.
Taking my glass of water, I unlocked the sliding door, stepping outside. Without a word, I came to sit on the top step, wrapping my kimono around my legs as I did. Twitch sat on the bottom step, and when he put something to his lips and a soft orange glow shone bright in the darkness, I glowered in the dark. “Are you serious?”