I Choose You (The Billionaire Brothers Series) (43 page)

He wanted it to be him. All the time. He wanted her thoughts consumed by him. Was that selfish? Or was it cocky? He didn’t care. He held his breath and hoped he’d get his wish.

“This is how I was found as child. Lying on the seashore. Unwanted. Unloved. Unowned.”

Slowly, she turned her head and looked at him, the rare blue of her irises were almost luminescent with moon’s gloss reflecting on them.

“I thought my second chance at life was when my parents adopted me. But now I know it wasn’t, because I’ve never forgiven my biological parents for not wanting me, and I’ve never allowed my adoptive parents to love me the way they wanted. I’ve never accepted anyone’s love. Until you.”

She took a deep breath and held his gaze. “Trev,
you
are my second chance at life. My soul was left on the waves of the ocean, it stayed there when I was found as a child. So I’ve been walking around life empty, without a soul, without emotion. And you, unknowingly, brought me back to face the ocean, to restore my soul from the captivity of the waves. I’m here a second time on the seashore. But this time, I’m wanted. This time, I’m loved. This time, I’m owned.”

Trevillo wasn’t sure how to respond to that revelation. It was probably the most Krissan had ever opened up to him. But he wasn’t comfortable dealing with that kind of insight just yet. Relationship wise, he was somewhat tactless, insensitive. But he realized this was one of those times the partner’s job was to just listen and be
present
. He sucked big time at this, however, so he could be wrong.

When she raised a slim, delicate hand up to his face and gave him an appreciative smile, he was convinced he did the right thing by just listening.

See? He was learning.

“Is it unfair to others of the world that I’m so content?” she asked in that whispery voice of hers. “So happy?”

“Have you always been this happy?”

“Never.”

“Then how is it unfair that you, after twenty-six years, have finally found your happiness?”

Her eyes skittered away for a beat as she seemed to ponder this. Then a wide smile brightened her face as she shifted her gaze back to him and said, “Much so you love I.”

I love you so much.

Trevillo smirked. “You wouldn’t have married me in the same minute I proposed if you didn’t love me.”

One brow lifted in a perfect arch. “You can be nastily arrogant sometimes, you know that?”

In mock shock, Trevillo dropped his mouth open and brought a hand to his chest. “Since when did undying, indubitable, passionate, overflowing, abounding
love
become arrogance?”

She bubbled into a fit of giggles, and Trevillo knew for the rest of his life, he would never become immune to the sound. Krissan’s voice was soft and airy, breathy when she’s angry, and much like a feather’s caress when she laughs. It was that voice — her voice — and its ethereal quality that would make his death a peaceful one.

“Since
you
did it,” she answered, “Since
you
loved.”

Her words were true. Love had indeed transformed to arrogance if
he
could do it. In his mind, love was a decision. It took confidence and guts to make a life-altering — perfect decision.

Close to a year ago, he remembered confessing to Axia how much he wanted to experience this ‘thing’ he now felt. What he hadn’t realized back then, was that by just those words, he’d made a decision to love. He’d been searching since then and hadn’t even realized it until Krissan walked into his office. He knew in that moment he’d found what he wasn’t aware he was looking for.

The decision was made.

An angel’s feather was found, then chosen.

Then love happened.

My life is complete, my purpose is fulfilled
, he thought. But when he looked at Mrs. Nelson peering up at him through those exotic blue eyes, with those rose-red lips sinfully parted, he knew that wasn’t fully the case.

Lying back on the sand, he reached across for her and hauled her on top of him. Hands cupping her face, he kissed her with a ravishing greed, much longer than he intended. It always happened whenever he kissed her, even when he meant to go slow. There was no control with her, because she tasted
that
good.

The kiss came to an end sometime in the next lifetime, and they were both struggling for breath, yet he managed to rasp out, “I suggest you get used to my nasty arrogance, Mrs. Krissan Nelson. Because I’m going to ‘arrogantly’ love you to death. Hard. Fierce. Fast. Savagely. I’m gonna be one cocky ass husband.”

Grinning, she breathlessly whispered, “Ditto,” before crashing her lips back down to his.

Thirty-two years of sins, and Trevillo Nelson’s life had only just begun.

This was chapter fucking one.

Five years into the future …

“A
rrrgh!! Nothing fits!”

Crash!

Clatter!

Clang!

Natalio winced as he swiftly escaped his wife’s wrath and sought refuge in Nathan’s room, closing the door behind him. His son’s room was his safe haven whenever Sadie had one of her ‘I’m-too-fat’ meltdowns. He’d long ago given up explaining to her the ‘fat’ she hates so much wouldn’t go away if she continued to find excuses not to workout with him in the mornings
and
continued eating greasy pepperoni pizza every single day. She never listened.

Yet, whenever she had to dress to go out, she would trip into a pit of depression, or more like a tumultuous meltdown, becoming quite hazardous to any unlucky bastard in her vicinity. Natalio knew to stay as far away from her as possible in those moments.

Truth be told, he loved her new size. What she called ‘baby fat’, he called curves. If she was as fat and unattractive as she thought, he wouldn’t ‘suggest’ she workout with him in the mornings; he’d
haul
her ass out of bed and
force
her to workout. And put her on a diet.

But ‘fat’ was far from what his wife was. In his eyes, she was sexier than she’d ever been. Her curves were now accentuated and exaggerated, her thighs were a little thicker — those, he
loved —
her lips were fuller, and her rack was wolf-whistle worthy.

Nonetheless, he couldn’t tell her his true thoughts, or he’d be ducking flying bricks the next second. She accused him of saying those things just to make her feel better, so he kept his compliments to himself.

Hearing another loud crash echo from their bedroom, Natalio unbuttoned his suit jacket and lowered himself down into an armchair next to his son’s crib. They were going to be late, and Marcello would be pissed. Thanksgiving dinner with the family was scheduled to commence in less than an hour, and Sadie’s meltdown had yet to subside.

Shrugging to himself, he thought,
better Marcello’s wrath than my wife’s.

A faint hiccup sounded from Nathan’s crib, and he peered inside to check if the little bugger was awake. Of course, he was awake with all that crashing and clanging his mother was making.

Natalio stood and reached inside the crib, and bundling Nathan into his arms, he sat back down. The heart-swelling feeling that always overcame him each time he looked at his son flooded in again.

At eight months old, Nathan was a chubby little man with piercing blue eyes and a head of thick, raven hair. He looked exactly like his father with no traits from his mother. That pissed Sadie off, the fact that Nathan took nothing from her, except to make her “fat and unattractive”.

“Hear that,” he whispered, as he heard another crashing sound. “Mommy’s wreaking havoc because of you.”

Nathan just glared up at him. Another thing: since this little boy was born, he never smiled. Ever. It was frightening to most people, but Natalio loved he was such an intimidating little thing at eight months.

Nathan’s hands were perpetually fisted and he never, ever kicked or wiggled about like normal babies. Most of the time, he was still and quiet, far from a nuisance. The only time he made any noise was when he was hungry. He would open his mouth wide and let out one long, unwavering shriek until his mother’s breast was in his mouth.

He didn’t drink from bottles, and he accepted no kind of infant formulas whatsoever. That sucker forced the bottle out with his tongue, narrowing his eyes, and shrieking like a motherfucker until he got the real deal — Sadie’s breast. Yet another thing that pissed Sadie off; she couldn’t go anywhere without him because of that.

Everyone thought him to be a strange little baby, but Natalio loved him to pieces.

As he trailed an idle finger down his son’s cherub cheek, Nathan reached up and latched on to it, not letting go. Natalio leaned back into the armchair and let him hold on to his finger, sighing contentedly.

He’d waited forever for Sadie to give him this, this little bundle, this little piece of joy. She refused to have a child until he gave up his need to maneuver all his businesses simultaneously, a controlling need rendering him absent from home quite a bit.

He wanted a family. He wanted this son. So between work and family, he chose
her
. Their family. And he was glad he did. Pissed he hadn’t done it sooner. Because he never, in all his life, felt so settled, peaceful, unstressed, and downright content. He loved being home, close to his child and his wife. So he worked a lot from home now, having meetings via Skype and only leaving when he had to. That made Sadie an extremely happy woman, and that’s all he ever wanted.

To make his wife happy.

Minutes passed by, and Nathan still held on to Natalio’s forefinger. He also noticed the clanking and clanging had quieted. Not long after, he heard stiletto heels clicking down the hall and doors opening and closing. His wife had finally calmed down and was searching the house for him.

Nathan’s room door opened, and Sadie popped her head in. Finding his hiding place, she pushed the door open wider and stepped inside.

Natalio’s heart shifted in his chest.

Christ, it never grows hoary.

Wasn’t this schoolboy, heart-pounding feeling supposed to die a brutal death or fade into indifference after spending
years
with the same woman? Wasn’t his lust switch supposed to be turned off by now, especially after witnessing his son’s head being forced out of her? Wasn’t he supposed to be like, “eh, that’s just my wife, whatever” after going to sleep with her every night, waking up next to her every morning, seeing her every day?

That’s what the world says. What divorced couples say. What people who are miserable in their relationships say.

But with his wife, there was none of that. His heart still beats a million thuds a minute — as it was doing at the moment — whenever he saw her. Especially when she was dressed like this.

Sadie was breathtakingly beautiful in a flowing red gown clinging to her curves like leeches, a long split traveling up her right thigh. Her hips were wider now, rounder, which made her slim waist all the more pronounced. Her full breasts filled out the deep V at the front of her dress perfectly — seeking his attention. A wild mess as usual, her honey-brown hair flowed around her shoulders and down her back in a riot of curls. He really loved when she straightened her hair, but the curls were just as much of a turn on.

“I scared you off again, huh?” she said, flashing him a sheepish smile as she walked up to him.

“Just steering clear of flying missiles, that’s all.”

She groaned and covered her face with her hands. “I’m so sorry … ”

“It’s okay, baby,” he assured her. “You can have as many hissy fits as you want. It doesn’t bother me. I know how to get out of range.”

Dropping her hands from her face, she looked at him with sheer determination. “I’m going to start working out with you in the mornings, and go on a diet, and stop eating, oh God,
pizza
.”

Natalio had heard it all before, but when he woke her up in the mornings to go down to the basement gym with him, she would always start singing a different tune. He wanted her to be comfortable with her body, but it was all up to her. For him, it didn’t matter if she was slim or curvy, he loved her both ways. “Okay.”

Her eyes squinted at him. “You don’t believe me, don’t you?”

“What?” he asked innocently. “All I said was ‘okay’.”

“I know you don’t believe me.”

Shifting Nathan — who still hadn’t let go of his finger — to the crook of his left arm, Natalio wrapped his free hand around his wife’s wrist and pulled her down onto the right side of his lap. “Don’t curse me out for saying this, but, baby, you look absolutely gorgeous right now. You keep taking my breath away like this, I’m not sure how much longer I’ll live.”

Her features arranged in a scowl. “I’m fat!”

“You’re sexy.”

“My face is chubby.”

“You’re beautiful, and I love you.”

He leaned in and kissed her, meaning for it to be short and soft, but it morphed into something more, something deep, something waking the third person in the middle of his lap.

At the sound of a giggle, they both froze, lips still melded together. Nah, that wasn’t a
giggle;
it couldn’t be. Natalio shook it off and resumed kissing his wife, thinking how much he wanted to throw her up against a wall for a quick explosion before leaving for the dinner. As Sadie greedily dug her fingers in his hair and started kissing him deeper, the giggle sounded again.

Both freezing again, they slowly turned their heads to the left where Nathan was resting in the crook of his daddy’s arm with a toothless grin on his face. A grin!

“Oh my God, is he … ?”

“Yes, go get your camera, cellphone, whatever!” Natalio said quickly.

Sadie leaped off his lap and rushed out of the room, but by the time she came back with her cellphone, Nathan had returned to his usual glaring. This little dude was peculiar, to say the least.

“You think it’s because we were kissing?” Sadie asked, looking disappointed she didn’t get Nathan’s first smile on camera. “We’ve never done that in front of him before.”