Her head was still heavy from last night's wine, making it hard to open her eyes. She heard the steady thud of her pillow's heartbeat; she heard the comforting sigh of Janabelle trying to pull herself out of sleep. Alexa turned her head to see her eyes fluttering open. Each one laying their head on the opposite ends of Gauge's stomach. Each comparing their position.
Janabelle thinking of the near perfection of Gauge's body, the long sinewy lines, the firm muscles, the eat radiating from his skin. His fingers brushed absently in her hair, the soft constant snore brought on by too much wine and the combination of kitchen spices that seemed to cling to his skin. She met Alexa's eyes blankly, oblivious to her friend.
Alexa's thoughts ran some what of a different path, running closer to curiosity. How would it feel to lie on Connor's hard rippling stomach? Would it feel like laying on a slab of marble, like she did when her family went to visit her Nonna Hadrian in Italy, cool and smooth? Or would it be hard but pliable? Would the heat from his body waft up and wrap around her? What rhythm did his heart beat? Was it a long hummmm or did it beat wild and free?
She closed her eyes too weak to will away her thoughts. She lifted herself on her elbow peering over Jana to see Gauge lost in his own thoughts and fantasies, which she was sure Jana was the star. He gave her a weary smile and glanced down at Jana. It broke Alexa's heart when she saw the raw longing in his eyes. She wondered if anyone would ever love her the way Gauge obviously loved Bella. And would she fight it as much as Janabelle tried. Alexa glanced around looking for any sign that Connor came back. He'd been gone since Saturday and it was Monday morning. She hadn't heard hide nor hair and she was starting to worry, it didn't help that the kids kept asking when their uncle Nathan was coming back.
Disappointment and relief twisted her insides creating a physical ache so intense she gasped. Both Gauge and Jana snapped out of their reverie to gaze curiously at her.
"Is it your wrist?" Jana asked anxiously, sitting up ready to inspect Alexa's weak throbbing limb.
"I-" alexa smiled sheepishly her face warming, "no I'm fine- it's fine I just sat up too fast. It-um made my head hurt." She mingled the truth with her own denial. She rushed up before they could ask any more questions ignoring the heavy dizziness threatening to take her back down and the awkward stares from her two friends.
She went to the kitchen sitting at the table with her head in her hands. She had to wake the kids soon Daniel had school and Clara would go to Jen's parents. She straightened when she heard the back door open but didn't turn. She wouldn't give that asshole the benefit of seeing how worried she was about him, or how relieved she would be to see him.
"It's about time you got back. Where the hell have you been?"
"Is that how I get greeted when I come home from a long trip?" She jumped at the deep smooth voice, running into his arms like a little girl greeting her father.
"David!" he swung her in his arms. Realization engulfed him with her hug;
this is what coming home is supposed to feel like.
No heated yelling, no cold silence, no bitterness or anger, just a nice warm hug. Now David knew what he had to do, if not for himself then for his children, for his whole fucking family. He closed his eyes pushing away the sudden weight of duty, forcing a smile.
"Hey, sweetheart," he held alexa so tight she didn't have the breath to tell him that he was crushing her. She laughed when he let her go, falling back slightly as he steadied her, "so who were you cussing out this time?" he demanded leaning against the counter folding his arms, his dark heavy brows raised expectantly, his forest green eyes twinkling with mischief.
Alexa shrugged embarrassed, she'd almost forgotten about Connor, she'd almost forgotten how worried she was, and she knew she wouldn't be able to hide anything from David.
"Tell me or I'll tell dad about his princepessa's temper."
"Ha! Like he'd believe anything bad about his princess!" Alexa scoffed folding her arms across her chest and raising an eyebrow.
"Willing to bet on that?" David grinned mocking her posture. They played the staring game they always had as kids and maybe played too often now as adults. Alexa bit her lip a sure sign that she was about to loose, maybe she should tell him. What would be the harm? Maybe she'd be able to get some information about Connor, like why in all the time he's been married to Jenny, she is just meeting him. Why was he just now coming into their lives?
David watched her eyes, he could see her working out her thoughts as their game became more than that. He was starting to worry.
"Alexa," her name was enough of a warning to make her jolt.
"Nathan, he left Saturday, he called to tell me to pick up my car and that he'd be home in a few hours and we haven't heard from him since." She shrugged heading toward the fridge to pull out breakfast. She pulled out a couple of boxes of juice and was about to pull out some of the left-overs from the dinner Gauge made last night but thought better, maybe he could fix breakfast for the kids, he was drooling last night when he saw a cooking show on some food channel.
"It's probably for the best, he has a lot going on." David said evenly, watching his baby sisters nervous fidgeting. The funniest part was half the time she didn't know how obvious she was, "did something happen that I should know or talk to him about?"
"What?! Wh-why would you ask me something like that?" she demanded turning on him so fast she dropped the juice boxes.
"I just wanted to make sure he wasn't trying to take advantage of my little sister."
"Is he the type?" she asked remembering the other night how Connor pressed her against the door his hand in her panties his fingers-fuck his fingers.
"Maybe," David shrugged," I only met him a few times, but be careful. If he tries anything-if he tried anything I don't want you protecting him." He said running a finger over Alexa's braced wrist. She flinched, why did everyone keep talking about her wrist? Did she not exist before the whole debacle with Marcus? Why wouldn't they let her forget about it and him? And why did everyone say she was protecting him? She wasn't she was just too humiliated to tell them what happened. What was she supposed to say? I wasn't a good enough lay so my boyfriend handcuffed me to the bed because he thought it would turn me on.
"I better go wake the kids," she stepped away avoiding David's out stretched hand. She brushed passed Gauge and Bella muttering a quick apology.
"Hey what's up?" Bella asked giving David a long hug while he extended a hand to Gauge.
"Same bullshit, what's been going on here?"
"Nothing really, we met your brother-in-law, Connor." Janabelle shrugged pulling out supplies for Gauge to cook. It was pretty much a given that he was going to make crepes with strawberry wine sauce.
"You haven't eaten have you?" He asked before taking the supplies.
"Yup, but if you're cooking I'm eatin' again." David said as he sat down on the Kitchen Island watching him work and Janabelle prep.
"You don't mind?"
"Whenever you have the urge to make anything please do, I've living on fucking gruel and ramen."
---
She gripped the steering wheel with shaky sweaty hands, ringing it nervously. Her breath was heavy with emotion but if you asked her she wouldn't be able to tell you which ones, a mix of anger, frustration fear and anticipation, but mostly it was fear. She slowed her breathing trying to gain control. She knew everyone waiting in that house was against her and she had to figure out how to turn it into her favor, how could she play this?
She let out one last cleansing breath, checked her make- up if only for something to do. She played with her long mousy brown bangs contrasting with her cornfield blue eyes.
"I can do this," she muttered leaving the safety of her car to the lions den. She tried calling back up but he wasn't answering her calls, not that she was surprised. Her brother always had better things to do than help her, she thought bitterly. She pushed her key in the slot, jumping slightly at the loud laughs coming form inside. Of course he'd have back up. It was bad enough she'd have to conjure up an excuse for her husband and his perfect fucking brat sister, but she'd have to do this in front of said sister's friends. All their eyes would be on her judging her, sizing her; reminding her that she didn't fit.
She met her husband's frosty green glare with false calm. They didn't speak as she pushed her way passed him. She breezed to the fridge pulling out a bottle of beer, feeling their eyes on her. She wondered when David would loose control and start the argument. She didn't have to wait long.
"So you want to tell me where the fuck you've been?" David was at the kitchen island, his dark hair mussed, his forest green eyes flashing with cold anger. His voice had a hard edge she hadn't heard before and she briefly wondered if she should be worried, if maybe she over-estimated her ability to manipulate a situation. She watched his hands on the counter balling into fists then releasing repeatedly. Knuckles-white, knuckles-red over and over.
"Are we really going to do this now?" she moved to kiss his cheek slightly stunned when he pulled away.
"You're goddamn right; we're going to do this now-"
"But the kids-"she licked her lips nervously
"Now you want to worry about the kids?" his voice was low and cool. He wouldn't look at her. He stared down at his fists.
"I'm not doing this in front of your fucking entourage! The only thing missing is miss fucking perfect princess Alexa. That's what you all call her right? She can do no wrong-" David stood up so fast the stool slammed against the floor. Jenny flinched as he got in her face. She knew he wouldn't hurt her but there was still something about the Hadrian's that made them a force to be reckoned with.
"This has nothing to with her and everything to do with you! Your lying! Your manipulating! Your need to be the center of a-fucking-ttention! Tell me what she ever did to you, other than be a better friend than you deserve?!"
Jenny had never been as relieved for Janabelle's presence as she stood between them and Gauge as he hooked an arm around David's shoulders pulling him away.
