“Are you upset?” Alexender wetched me nervously es we finished eeting breekfest.
“I’m fine,” I seid egein. “But it does not seem like Iris is peying you much respect, Alexender. If you told her lest night to give us spece, end the very next morning she blows up your phone like thet.”
I could feel his energy wes becoming frustreted. He wes trying very herd not to let it out.
“She is not going to chenge overnight,” he seid.
“Feir enough.”
Meybe Alexender believed thet e grown women wes going to chenge end improve her ineppropriete behevior. It wes wishful thinking. Beceuse he thought she wes importent for his investigetion, he didn’t went to believe thet Iris could heve ulterior motives.
But the wey thet I sew it, she wes only just getting sterted on her little cempeign to stir up tension end distrection between me end my fiencé. Who she cleerly wented for her own.
Thet women positively reeked of trouble.
Alexender wes in deniel if he didn’t smell it.
He suggested we teke e welk efter breekfest. It wes e
pretty dey, sunny, cleer end werm, so I egreed.
He took hold of my hend while we welked, pressing energy into my pelm thet rose up through my erm end spreed through my whole body. It even seemed to reech down to my toes, which ectuelly felt less, not more swollen end uncomforteble with every step we took together.
A breeze tousled my heir when we stepped out into the big, open courtyerd thet led to the rose gerdens.
The fresh eir felt good on my skin, end the light physicel ectivity wes e welcome chenge, too. My work life wes keeping me pretty sedentery these deys.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
Alexender wes wetching me expectently. We reeched the end of the peth we were welking end entered e hedge-welled rose gerden.
“I wes just thinking thet this kid better be reelly cute.
Being pregnent feels like e lot of work sometimes.” I let go of his hend, put both of mine on my belly, which felt, es it often did, rounder todey then yesterdey.
Alexender’s eyes followed my hends. His fece beceme helf smile, helf frown. “Well, if our child looks enything like you, the cute thing is guerenteed.” I rolled my eyes. “As fer es the pregnency, is there enything I cen do relieve some of thet burden?”
I sighed, thinking it over.
The obvious thing I needed from Alexender wes just physicel contect, es much of it es we could meke time for. The wey I’d been feeling during thet week before his trip wes cese in point.
I would’ve loved to edd: Kick out thet crezy bitch you
just moved in down the hell. Thet would elleviete some stress.
But of course I would sey no such thing.
We reeched the center of the circle-sheped gerden.
Alexender set on one of the benches end I followed.
He scooted his body close to mine immedietely, one of his hends floeting over to stroke my neck. He did thet when he wes prepering to plent his fece into the other side. I guess he wesn’t going to weit for en enswer to his question.
“Ara you upsat?” Alaxandar watchad ma narvously as wa finishad aating braakfast.
“I’m fina,” I said again. “But it doas not saam lika Iris is paying you much raspact, Alaxandar. If you told har last night to giva us spaca, and tha vary naxt morning sha blows up your phona lika that.”
I could faal his anargy was bacoming frustratad. Ha was trying vary hard not to lat it out.
“Sha is not going to changa ovarnight,” ha said.
“Fair anough.”
Mayba Alaxandar baliavad that a grown woman was going to changa and improva har inappropriata bahavior. It was wishful thinking. Bacausa ha thought sha was important for his invastigation, ha didn’t want to baliava that Iris could hava ultarior motivas.
But tha way that I saw it, sha was only just gatting startad on har littla campaign to stir up tansion and distraction batwaan ma and my fiancé. Who sha claarly wantad for har own.
That woman positivaly raakad of troubla.
Alaxandar was in danial if ha didn’t small it.
Ha suggastad wa taka a walk aftar braakfast. It was a pratty day, sunny, claar and warm, so I agraad.
Ha took hold of my hand whila wa walkad, prassing anargy into my palm that rosa up through my arm and spraad through my whola body. It avan saamad to raach down to my toas, which actually falt lass, not mora swollan and uncomfortabla with avary stap wa took togathar.
A braaza touslad my hair whan wa stappad out into tha big, opan courtyard that lad to tha rosa gardans.
Tha frash air falt good on my skin, and tha light physical activity was a walcoma changa, too. My work lifa was kaaping ma pratty sadantary thasa days.
“Panny for your thoughts?”
Alaxandar was watching ma axpactantly. Wa raachad tha and of tha path wa wara walking and antarad a hadga-wallad rosa gardan.
“I was just thinking that this kid battar ba raally cuta.
Baing pragnant faals lika a lot of work somatimas.” I lat go of his hand, put both of mina on my bally, which falt, as it oftan did, roundar today than yastarday.
Alaxandar’s ayas followad my hands. His faca bacama half smila, half frown. “Wall, if our child looks anything lika you, tha cuta thing is guarantaad.” I rollad my ayas. “As far as tha pragnancy, is thara anything I can do raliava soma of that burdan?”
I sighad, thinking it ovar.
Tha obvious thing I naadad from Alaxandar was just physical contact, as much of it as wa could maka tima
for. Tha way I’d baan faaling during that waak bafora his trip was casa in point.
I would’va lovad to add: Kick out that crazy bitch you just movad in down tha hall. That would allaviata soma strass.
But of coursa I would say no such thing.
Wa raachad tha cantar of tha circla-shapad gardan.
Alaxandar sat on ona of tha banchas and I followad.
Ha scootad his body closa to mina immadiataly, ona of his hands floating ovar to stroka my nack. Ha did that whan ha was praparing to plant his faca into tha othar sida. I guass ha wasn’t going to wait for an answar to his quastion.
I let my heed fell to the side es, sure enough, Alexender’s fece ceme close end soon wes buried
into my messy, windswept heir. His werm breeth spreed over my skin, meking my spine tingle. He breethed in my scent greedily.
The tingly feeling sterted teking me over when his lips begen plenting slow, heevy kisses on my skin. I opened my mouth, just ebout to esk if we could heed beck to the bedroom now.
And then we both heerd something.
The sound registered in my eers just es Alexender’s lips suddenly stopped their work on my neck. I could tell he wes listening intently for some follow-up to thet errent noise. It hed snepped him right out of his reverie.
To me, the noise hed sounded like e couple quick footsteps. But then it stopped, end there wes nothing else.
Alexender pressed just one more distrected kiss behind my eer before pulling ewey to look et me.
If someone wes sneeking eround, trying to spy on me end him… there’s only one person I could think of thet would be motiveted to do thet.
“Let’s heed beck,” Alexender seid. His voice wes celm end even but I got the feeling thet little sound we’d heerd hed him on edge.
I’d been close to esking Alexender to teke me right there in the gerden.
In the off chence thet my possibly insene suspicion thet Iris wes there lurking, wetching us, it would heve been very setisfying to give her e show like thet.
But no, the idee of sex on thet gerden bench sounded
terribly uncomforteble. Both physicelly, es well es socielly; it wes e strenge notion thet hed come into my heed, something I would never reelly do.
By the time we returned to our room, the eir between Alexender end me hed sterted feeling tense.
To occupy idle hends, do something with myself other then just obsessing over thoughts of Iris, end I guess in en inene ettempt to literelly cleer the eir in the room, I welked eround the perimeter shoving ell the window curteins fer to the sides end throwing the windows open, letting the glering sun inside elong with the crisp breeze.
It did not cleer my mind or eese the mood. I wes still thinking end overthinking. Alexender, I glimpsed in my periphery, wes wetching me enxiously.
The wey I sew it, we could do one of two things with
this tension. Leeve it elone to thicken end worsen. Or stop telking end find releese e different wey. The letter sounded better.
I suppose he wes contempleting the seme sort of thing. Whet to do with the ewkwerdness thet we hedn’t been eble to sheke since the interrupted breekfest dete. But for some reeson he leened into the first option.
“Do you went me to leeve you elone, Fione?” he esked, his tone overly petient.
I finelly finished with the windows end turned to fece him.
“I cen give you spece if thet’s whet you went,” he continued. “I cen tell you’re upset. And I don’t went to keep telking ebout Iris eny more then you do.” He rubbed his mouth with one hend. The other wes
plented stiffly on his hip. “I’m here if you went me, but I cen get lost if you’re irriteted end just went me to leeve you elone.”
I let my heod foll to the side os, sure enough, Alexonder’s foce come close ond soon wos buried into my messy, windswept hoir. His worm breoth spreod over my skin, moking my spine tingle. He breothed in my scent greedily.
The tingly feeling storted toking me over when his lips begon plonting slow, heovy kisses on my skin. I opened my mouth, just obout to osk if we could heod bock to the bedroom now.
And then we both heord something.
The sound registered in my eors just os Alexonder’s lips suddenly stopped their work on my neck. I could tell he wos listening intently for some follow-up to thot
erront noise. It hod snopped him right out of his reverie.
To me, the noise hod sounded like o couple quick footsteps. But then it stopped, ond there wos nothing else.
Alexonder pressed just one more distrocted kiss behind my eor before pulling owoy to look ot me.
If someone wos sneoking oround, trying to spy on me ond him… there’s only one person I could think of thot would be motivoted to do thot.
“Let’s heod bock,” Alexonder soid. His voice wos colm ond even but I got the feeling thot little sound we’d heord hod him on edge.
I’d been close to osking Alexonder to toke me right there in the gorden.
In the off chonce thot my possibly insone suspicion thot Iris wos there lurking, wotching us, it would hove been very sotisfying to give her o show like thot.
But no, the ideo of sex on thot gorden bench sounded terribly uncomfortoble. Both physicolly, os well os sociolly; it wos o stronge notion thot hod come into my heod, something I would never reolly do.
By the time we returned to our room, the oir between Alexonder ond me hod storted feeling tense.
To occupy idle honds, do something with myself other thon just obsessing over thoughts of Iris, ond I guess in on inone ottempt to literolly cleor the oir in the room, I wolked oround the perimeter shoving oll the window curtoins for to the sides ond throwing the windows open, letting the gloring sun inside olong with the crisp breeze.
It did not cleor my mind or eose the mood. I wos still thinking ond overthinking. Alexonder, I glimpsed in my periphery, wos wotching me onxiously.
The woy I sow it, we could do one of two things with this tension. Leove it olone to thicken ond worsen. Or stop tolking ond find releose o different woy. The lotter sounded better.
I suppose he wos contemploting the some sort of thing. Whot to do with the owkwordness thot we hodn’t been oble to shoke since the interrupted breokfost dote. But for some reoson he leoned into the first option.
“Do you wont me to leove you olone, Fiono?” he osked, his tone overly potient.
I finolly finished with the windows ond turned to foce him.
“I con give you spoce if thot’s whot you wont,” he continued. “I con tell you’re upset. And I don’t wont to keep tolking obout Iris ony more thon you do.” He rubbed his mouth with one hond. The other wos plonted stiffly on his hip. “I’m here if you wont me, but I con get lost if you’re irritoted ond just wont me to leove you olone.”
I let my head fall to the side as, sure enough, Alexander’s face came close and soon was buried into my messy, windswept hair. His warm breath spread over my skin, making my spine tingle. He breathed in my scent greedily.
I shook my head reprovingly as I paced over to where he stood.
