Lion's lip movements stopped. The phone screen shown right in front of his eyes made him swallow harshly. Taking a bite of the second piece of waffle should have been no problem, until Theo came in drenched and with an intimidating gaze. The ashen glare seemed to strip him to the bone. Lion didn't think he had sent a text message, except to call Theo directly at Rose's request.
He didn't. Lion calmed his emotions as much as he could. Grabbing his own cell phone, he checked for messages that were never there. Someone who pranked him must have erased the digital trail so that he wouldn't realize such a thing. Travis! Lion's face turned warning. "I just left you for the bathroom. You hijacked my phone instead," he hissed in annoyance. The ignorant Travis, invited to dine together, plunged him into the abyss. "Your business is with me, Lion!" The piercing tone made Lion look straight ahead a"I just want to," Rose half-lied. If only Theo hadn't interrupted her the other day, maybe Rose wouldn't have had to hold herself back from saying something simple that could make her feel a little relieved. "Anyway, you have to accompany me to the movie," Rose continued, starting to position her phone into landscape. "Another day, can't you, Sugar? My eyes are so heavy." "No, it's not. You have to stay awake. You didn't let me sleep last night either. Now it's my turn." "But-" "Just accompany me to the movie, Theo. No need to exert yourself. Just sit tight. Then why are you protesting so much?" Rose stared intently at the man who fell silent ... no longer arguing. The resigned face was a source of amusement. Rose smiled, "Here. I need a cuddle pillow," she continued impatiently. She loved the way Theo pulled the thick blanket over both of their bodies.
Silence. Theo could feel Rose's arms tightening around him. The temptation to sleep was becoming something he couldn't resist. Slowly his nerves closed, leaving the rest of the sounds that were caught, submerged with the calm he was getting. "I want them to have a happy ending. But it seems difficult-" Rose's sentence caught at the end of her throat, choosing to let out a rough sigh. "After our contract is over for this one year, I hope you're not like that guy in the drama," she continued with a deep frown. It wasn't long before the blind blinked-realizing something. "Theo." Rose jumped awake with a surprised frown. Her eyebrows knitted together, watching as Theo closed his eyes perfectly. "Come with me to the movies, Theo. Not sleeping!" His arm stretched out, repeatedly shaking the body leaning against the headboard. "The movie's not over yet. Hurry up, get up!" "Sleepy, Sugar." "No. You can't sleep l
"No! Esme. Just be patient for a moment. You'll give my wife a heart attack if we rush in." "Let go of me. Ticklish, Esme!" "Don't stab my leg, you impatient bastard." Rose stared at the ceiling of the guest room uncomprehendingly. Her arm felt the emptiness beside the bed. There was no one but herself who had been woken up by the noise from outside. Last night, after thinking the whole time about the answer to her question about Theo's reaction, she had to be put to sleep by fear just because Theo changed positions at the same time. What if what Travis said was actually something bad? Rose couldn't imagine any other humiliation she might receive. "Esme!" A sharp tone followed by a long laugh from the same person, provoking Rose's curiosity to explode even more. She knew very well who the owner of the baritone voice was. But, she felt very unfamiliar with
Wet. Rose's body was submerged in the bath up with the soap suds covering her chest. Her fingers moved, rubbing the surface of her shoulders and the recesses of her neck just to clean the parts untouched by the daisy-scented liquid. Rose's every touch was tempered with a sense of caution. Theo was there, chin resting on the edge of the bathtub watching her activity without pause, occasionally blowing air until some of the foam moved away, leaving half-clear water, which made Rose have to repeatedly stop the ridiculous action. "You're weird," Rose said to start the conversation. Her words managed to make Theo frown in curiosity. "Weird?" "Yes." "I thought Esmeralda was your bedmate. That time you didn't defend yourself either. So even now, I believe that you're an asshole who likes to play with women." No one knows what was so wrong with her statement that Theo burst out laughing. Should Rose count the number of times this m
"Let me do it." The male doctor paused, watching as a set of cold faces glared at him sharply and intimidatingly. Occasionally, the gaze of the man in the white uniform shifted, giving Rose an uncomprehending look. Theo looked like a lion ready to stab him, once he moved closer to Rose lying on the blanket. "I said, just me, give me the gel." "But, sir. This kind of procedure should be done by the medical team." "I don't care. Give it to me-" "Theo, what's wrong with you? Instead of causing trouble here, you'd better wait outside," Rose interrupted half-angrily. The examination process would not go smoothly, if Theo continued to stop the activities of the doctor who was ready to apply gel on the surface of her stomach. "I don't want him to touch you. Why don't you give the gel to me, and I'll take over." "Seriously, Theo. Doctors touch pa
"You said you were hungry." Theo had been silent all along. Now his opening sentence was uttered when the waiters left after serving the order on the table, which made Rose shrug indifferently. "Yeah, so what?" asked Rose, occasionally looking around the restaurant building. "Does ice cream fill you up?" "No." Back in focus. Rose's first bite ended with a faint shake of her head. "So?" "Your child wants ice cream." Theo squinted. Rose's gestures and expressions were clearly saying something different. "Do you have something to hide, Rose?" For a moment Rose's face lowered. Similarly, Theo's question created a huge thud in her chest. Why was it that for a moment like this, Theo recognized the situation so easily? Rose let out a rough sigh. Her fingers clenched into tight fists. Then she looked up, smiling faintly - apparently Theo was still
"It's a punishment because you like making fun of me." Too relaxed, Theo sat back in his original position. Much different from his previous stance. He leaned back, folding his arms with a mischievous grin. The woman who had been staring at him was no longer in the same place-going with a man who came after. "I didn't order boiled crab," Theo said, followed by a small chuckle. "But it looks like my boiled crab is very ready to eat," he continued, deliberately dropping his fork down. "One moment, Sugar." Theo bent down. His arm reached under the table. Slowly creeping to touch the crossed legs. "Theo." Rose assumed a wary stance as the rough brush of a hand continued to tickle half of her calf, after revealing her oversized jeans. She glared at Theo's one free hand, beginning to raise it in a gesture of silence. "Stop this ridiculous behavior of yours, Theo. You're going to
The image of that beautiful smile, so unexpected and strangely contagious. Rose still kept remembering something new, even if it was only for a moment. In her mind, there was nothing more pleasant than feeling at peace by the gesture, which treated her like a warm embrace that was stretched so tightly. The fingers were still rubbing the surface of Rose's body soulfully, followed by the peck of lips on the open shoulder. However, her back was to the man with a hint of charm. Rose's eyes also lingered for a long time - savoring the remnants of the seduction made as explosive as the hot truce since they entered the hotel room, for the sake of both forgetting the chaos, for the sake of both expressing desire. One surrender, she'd said back then, no longer applied wherever Theo offered favors in the name of 'making love'. Rose can't argue that she's getting entangled in an activity she once rejected, especially with a man who's going deepe
Zever's sudden departure made quite an impression on Rose. At that moment she and Travis silently watched the backs of two people who were moving away. Rose didn't dare say anything as she herself realized Travis was leaving her behind—Travis looked down and Rose hoped he was okay, then followed with careful steps carrying her triplet into the mansion building. Two hours after the incident in the back garden, and after putting the children to bed, Rose soon caught up with Zever's whereabouts. Through the messages given to Lion, Rose certainly monitored whatever was happening outside. This included asking how Travis was doing. The man was behaving as before, but there was one problem. Zever in the living room with a ripple face so cold and gray eyes that stared half-empty arranged miniature joints on the table. Rose repeatedly took a breath just to steady herself sitting next to her husband. "Zever," Rose called out, wanting to make sure he would respond or not. Z
"I'm done, Theo. Now it's your turn—" Rose thought, after stepping out of the bathroom and changing there. She would find Theo keeping all three of their babies in their proper positions, but that big body—in his sideways sleep—seemed to be deeper than the three babies who were snoozing peacefully. Exhausted. That's how Rose interpreted it, because these days Theo was often busy in the middle of the night—looking after their babies, while Rose was forced to rest. Rose smiled slightly as she rubbed the top of Theo's head. It was only for a moment that she turned to her triplets to transfer them to the trolley. Rose would take them for a walk in the back garden. Finished with the transfer she returned to Theo simply covering her husband's body with a thick blanket. "We're leaving first." Rose briefly kissed the corner of Theo's face. She pushed the trolley carefully towards the elevator. Rose already knew where the elevator was, it was quite hidden—and Theo had no
"I got a lot of grandchildren." O'Douglas laughed like a pirate captain who had just discovered a historic treasure. Each of the middle-aged man's arms flanked two tiny babies, while the other was in the arms of Verasco, who continued to hold them, occasionally bringing them closer with a lighthearted joke. There was no telling what Rose would say as she watched her children being swarmed as soon as Verasco and O'Douglas walked into the ward. She had just finished breastfeeding, so the satiated babies would just sleep through the day, and not trouble their two grandfathers. "You never stopped looking at me," Rose said quietly. Most of the time Theo had a glare on his face, but right now the gray bead was shining something different. It was so loving and some of it Rose couldn't interpret correctly. How could Rose stand being shot at so closely. Theo had to, just once, look away from her. "Thank you, Sugar." A gentle touch on the skin of Rose's face made her
Rose didn't expect Theo to take her to the island of Ortogia, the historical center of the Sicilian city of Sirakusa, to enjoy the beauty of the Mediterranean sea. The scents by the sea were soothingly beautiful. Rose had not forgotten that Theo had not once let go of her body on the man's broad shoulders after walking along the old buildings on the islands of Ortogia. "Whose house is this?" asked Rose looking at a sturdy building that looked like it was meant for two people to live in. "Our house." There wasn't much Rose could say, except to bury her face deep in the hollow of Theo's neck. The masculine scent was still very much present, even after they had spent the whole day entertaining the guests, as if the perfume was very much at home on Theo's clay skin. "Want to go straight to bed or shower first, Sugar?" In front of a door Theo stopped and let Rose get on the floor. Between hesitation and the need for something fresh she finally looked up at Theo.
"Ready?" Rose nodded as Theo spoke over the top of her head. She was indeed standing with her back to Theo, holding the handle of a long cookie-cutter knife, while Theo's large fingers grasped each of her knuckles warmly. The multi-tiered cake, or not much different from a fragile tower, was being split open. The blade slowly descended downward to symbolize sharpness. Rose smiled almost melting into laughter when Theo whispered something funny to her, funny but Rose wouldn't tell anyone. Let her keep it to herself and make it an important fun moment. After the first slice of cake Rose and Theo should have been feeding each other. Instead Theo scooped out the cream and immediately applied it to Rose's lower lip. Rose's face was a mess, but that was exactly what Theo wanted. He took Rose's lips like he was taking a delicious cake. The sweetness of the sugar and butter mixture seemed to make Theo insatiable. He licks Rose so intimately—there's no end to it—that Rose
"It's enough. I'm full." Again Rose had to restrain herself as Theo's big fingers tried to push away the bowl of white porridge in her hand. "Just a little more, Theo. You have to finish your porridge." "Come on." Rose brought another spoonful of porridge closer, but that face refused. "Don't make me eat bad porridge, Sugar. It's tasteless." "That's why if you eat while looking at me, you'll get some flavor." "One more bite. I promise after this is over." "I don't believe it. You said that earlier, don't you remember?" Rose's wide grin completely fooled Theo. The man was exactly a child who had lost his appetite. It was very difficult to persuade him to open his mouth. "This time I'm serious about the last one. Ahk... open wide." Rose thought Theo would immediately accept her bribe. Instead, the man moved the elbow of Rose's hand, moving the bow of the spoon to Rose's own lips. "You should eat too." "I ate earlier," Ro
One day after Theo regained consciousness, Rose finally decided to return to her home, the place where she once lived alone next to her small restaurant. At the moment there wasn't much for Rose to do other than prepare to meet Theo at the hospital. Rose immediately drove her father's borrowed car. On the back passenger seat she placed a medium-sized box with several holes in it that was wrapped very beautifully. While beside her sat a cute little dog with curly hair and white color like cotton. Yesterday Rose had just bought the poodle breed at the pet shop. Intrigued. That was all that drew Rose's desire to bring home the poodle named Cocomelo. "We've arrived." Rose prepared a special backpack to carry Cocomelo on her shoulders, so that when she first entered the infirmary Theo would not immediately meet her Cocomelo but Rose would show him. And in her hand, she carried the medium-sized box and walked into the hospital. Not just daring, but Rose had already ob
Coming back from the bathroom, Rose thought she would be faced with the same situation. She had warned against it by waiting longer in the humid room until some of the noises from outside faded away. But everything Rose had expected was not true. The blood seepage on the floor when she opened the door was gone. Verasco's subordinates... even Verasco himself was nowhere to be seen, in his husband's infirmary. All that was left was Lion waiting very quietly, arms folded across his chest as he watched Theo silently. "Are you still here, Lion? Where are the others?" asked Rose as her steps brushed the side of the blanket. "Mr. Verasco asked me to wait here, Miss." Lion's attention was finally diverted. Rose suspected that he had just returned from the police station and helped Verasco and Elijah to execute George. As for George's betrayal, perhaps it was a wake-up call for Verasco to be more intolerant of hidden intentions and whatever else might happen. "Where is my
"On the way home. Their story has a happy ending. Finished." Rose closed the 400 pages book and placed it on the nightstand. Reading sweet stories had become her routine in the past few days. Rose smiled slightly at her husband's face who was lying so quietly. This morning the breathing apparatus had just been removed indicating Theo's condition was getting better after the bloody spear incident. Luckily, they immediately brought Theo to get the right treatment. Theo had to undergo surgery three times. He had lost a lot of blood and needed transfusions as soon as possible. Rose remembered that some arguments happened between them regarding Theo who had very step blood, even Verasco was helpless about it. Just a Wench .... That's what Verasco said at that time with a trembling tone of voice. Like he was so regretful. Really regretful, until finally Travis suggested the few people who were still left in Italy to bring some bags of Theo's blood that were taken two