Page 40 of The Story of You

“Mama’s special lemonade,” Silas scoffs, but his eyes smile. “It’s regular lemonade. She stole the recipe from a magazine and called it her own.”

“I don’t hear anything, Oliver, do you?”

“Not a thing. As far as I know, this is Mama’s and it’s blasphemy to say otherwise.”

Lakshan crosses his arms, but he dazzles us with his big smile. Silas does his half-smile thing and I still claim he’s lost the muscle strength for smiling.

“I would like some of Mama’s special lemonade,” Lakshan says.

“Me too. Where are the others?” Silas asks.

“Building shit,” I answer.

“Shirtless. You guys should come watch,” Oliver says mostly to get a rise out of everyone. I laugh. Maybe he is growing up.

Silas isn’t amused. He leans across the counter at Oliver. “You know what I do with cheeky eaglets.”

“I do, Dad. But I also mean it. That’s what Darius and I are doing.”

Silas melts at the mention of the word “Dad”. I know he’s not seeing Oliver the man who’s about to turn twenty-five, he sees his little boy in the pink tutu who trailed after him like a shadow. He peels himself away from the counter.

“Lakshan, we still have the information about that nunnery, don’t we?”

“Yeah right, Baba. You wouldn’t sleep a wink if I were out of the house that long.” He pours a glass of lemonade and slides it toward Silas.

As he takes a sip, I think about that. They still can’t sleep without each other around. They know, but does Oliver know how cellular that is for him? Guess he’ll soon find out.

Silas’s lips twist. “This isn’t right. Here, allow me.” He rolls up his sleeves and then adds a little more lemon juice and some more cane sugar. “Ah. Try it now. C’mere, baby,” he says to Lakshan who obediently moves to his side.

Silas pours the cloudy liquid past his lips; Oliver and I try our own. Ah. Yep, that’s it.

“It’s perfect, Sye.”

“I love that,” Lak says. “How come you’ve never made this for me? I’d rather have this than flowers.”

“You’re not getting out of the flowers, but I’ll make you some, Shanni.” Silas leans down to kiss his husband with all the love he has. Oliver’s smiling at them.

He didn’t get Mama, but he got them—two parents who love each other.

The major enters through the sliding glass door on cue. He hasn’t let me out of his sight for long since I almost drown in kiddie-pool deep water. He probably expected to find me chugging scotch. Fair. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised to find he’d injected a tracking device under my skin while I slept.

That would be hot.

His brow is soaked with sweat. I want to lick it off him. “See? Lemonade.” I hand him a glass. He crowds me, pulling me flush with his wet body. He’s always been toned, but with all his extra training for the fire force, he’s shredded. He’s managed to get wider too, his muscles are taking on a life of their own.

He drinks it, but keeps a hand on my low back, needing to touch me.

I hate how much I’ve fucked him up. If I were a better man, I’d leave him, but I’m not so I won’t. He trembles and my heart squeezes.He’s been through war Darius; he can handle you.That’s my new chant so I don’t get lost down dark paths.

“Haven’t had a drink all day,” I whisper into his ear.

“Really?”

“Yup.”

He smiles. Chugs his lemonade. Then he spins and lifts me like he’s fucking Julius Vincenzo and sets me down with a kiss. “That’s great. I’m gonna need more ah this, darlin’. Keep it coming.”

I get a smack to the ass before he heads back out the door and I’m too awed by his perfect ass to yell any sass after him.