Page 67 of Code of Heart

“Go on…you can’t just stop there!”

Levi chuckled. “Isaac was insisting it be some kind of software code,” Aurelia scrunched her nose in disapproval, “…and Owen was all in on it needing to be something manly and dominant like a bare-chested behemoth of a man riding on the back of a gigantic hawk as it flew over a sea of naked swooning people. After I promptly shut that idea down, I caught him trying to bribe the tattoo artist into hiding small penises in the branches of the tree.”

The belly laugh that burst from his wife was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard—second only to how breathtaking she looked while cackling with unfiltered joy. It took her a moment to settle, wiping at her eyes as she eased back into the conversation where they’d left off.

“How does that affect you now?”

Levi sobered quickly and shrugged. “It’s still part of my everyday life, but I’ve spent years building something that turns it into a strength, so no kid like me ever feels broken because their brain works differently.”

Aurelia gave a small nod, the weight of it carrying silent understanding. “Good thing you now have an amazing wife on your side too,” she said, her voice laced with warmth and certainty.

Levi studied her for a moment, the corners of his mouth lifting. The smile he gave her then was different than the others; not the cocky, practiced kind, but something gentler and authentic.

And for the first time in a very long time, he didn’t feel alone.

Aurelia

Their earlier conversation echoed in Aurelia's mind as she worked beside Levi in the kitchen, hands dusted in flour, helping prepare the pizza dough.

She learned so much about her new husband and his harsh upbringing that it seemed no easier than hers. She admired how he turned his dyslexia into the basis for his success, instead of hindering it.

Despite wealth and privilege, he managed to raise himself in the ways that mattered most. She was unsure which was worse: growing up without any parents or growing up with parents who were physically present but emotionally void.

“So, what about you? What was it like growing up? Your profile didn’t list too many details other than no other family and beinga ward of the state,” Levi asked, cutting through her thoughts with a question that was both direct and vulnerable.

Aurelia sucked in a breath. “Oh…um, there isn’t much to say really,” she hedged. “It wasn’t the best situation—I think I grew up before I should have to be honest.” Levi frowned but kept kneading the dough. She swallowed hard, fighting against the instinct to change the subject, never having warmed up to anyone enough to feel comfortable sharing. But that promise to be honest lingered in her mind.

Levi didn’t push. He simply kept kneading, a frown tugging at his brow. If he could trust her with his truths…maybe she owed him the same.

She inhaled deeply, grounding herself.

I can do this, no big deal.

“My mother was an addict and I’ve never known who my father was. She never talked about him. I had to make dinner with whatever food we happened to have and figure out how to wash the minimal clothes I owned when I was really young through reading books at the library...sometimes I learned the hard way.” She held out her forearm, displaying a patch of skin different from the rest. A burn-related scar. He blanched.

“One of our neighbors in the rundown complex we lived in could barely afford to take care of herself but still managed to give me food when she could. My mother liked to party hard and often wouldn’t come home for days, so my neighbor kept an eye on me.”

Levi stilled, dough forgotten as he gaped at her, horrified, but Aurelia didn’t notice. She was no longer present, mind locked on the past.

“One night she came home, worse than I’d ever seen her, but I helped her undress and get into bed. I made sure she was lying on her side so she wouldn’t choke if she threw up, like I usually did. The next morning, I looked in her room, and shewas sleeping—which was normal—so I got myself ready and off to school.”

“When I got home, she wasn’t out of her room yet, which was unusual. I went to check on her again, only to find that she was—she hadn’t moved at all, still in the exact same spot and position as the night before. I didn’t feel anything other than fear of what would happen to me. I knocked on my neighbor’s door and told her what happened. The next thing I knew, the police were there trying to explain what ‘overdose’ meant, and I was taken to a stranger’s house.”

Aurelia’s voice was flat now, devoid of emotion. She focused on slicing the bell peppers for the pizza toppings with unnecessary force. “Then I was hopping from home to home, hoping some family would adopt me, fighting to keep whatever possessions I had safe, trying to make it through school. Cycle repeated until the last home where I stayed until I turned eighteen and aged out.”

She finally looked at Levi when he let out a low whistle.

“How old were you when your mother died?”

“Eight.”

He paled. “No other family that could take you in?”

“None that they could find.”

Levi shook his head, rattled. “What was school like?”

She shrugged. “Lonely but otherwise fine. Making friends was tough because of the constant moving, especially in middle school and high school. I kept mostly to myself—wasn’t bullied except for a brief period when I was twelve.”