He must have seen something in my expression because he grinned and suddenly—and very proudly—announced, “I bought your building. Sorry, honey.” And with that, he trotted down the stairs, leaving me to gape after him in disbelief.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Luca
I was in the process of hanging up my phone when I heard the door open and close behind me. When Remy's slim arms slid around me from behind, some of the tension I'd been feeling eased a bit.
"What? What is it? Gio?" Remy automatically asked as he moved around so he could face me. The fact that he was already so in tune with me wasn't a surprise.
I held up my phone for a moment and then said, "It was Lex."
"You heard from him? Is he all right?" Remy asked, his hand reaching for mine. I welcomed the contact. It was yet another sign of how so many things had changed for me since Remy had come back into my life. A month ago, I'd avoided physical contact with anyone and everyone, because it’d always felt like I was too raw and that one touch would somehow ignite the fuse that had been simmering inside of me for years. But not Remy. He'd been different.
"He says he is," I murmured.
"You don't believe him."
I shook my head. "He was asking about Gio, but he didn't say anything about coming to see him. He and Gio were just as close as Gio and all my other brothers. Gio's finally back, for real, but he still isn't coming to see him. It doesn't make any sense."
"Did he say where he is?" Remy asked.
"No. He's hiding something. King says he knows what it is…"
"Do you trust King?" Remy asked.
"With my life."
"What about with your brother’s life?"
I didn't need to think about that answer either. "Yes."
"Then trust King to tell you if and when Lex needs you. He may not be ready to ask for help," Remy pointed out.
I nodded, but it wasn't an easy concept to swallow. Lex had always been sickly and weak and that’d made him a target for bullying. He’d grown into a capable, talented man, but he’d still always be the heart of us… the softness of us.
"You're right," I forced myself to say. The fact was that Lex was a grown man and if he wanted my help, he'd ask for it. At least he’d finally made contact, and from the way he'd spoken, he sounded okay. Quiet, but okay. And he'd been beyond happy to hear that Gio was finally making progress.
My thoughts turned to my son. Today had been a good day with Gio. We hadn't really talked about anything in particular, but we’d watched some sports on television, including several soccer games. At one point, Gio had made a comment about a referee's call, and that had been enough to get us talking about the different players. I knew it would be a long time before we got around to the subject of his abduction and what had happened, but he was no longer ignoring or avoiding me.
Remy took the phone from my hand and went to set it on the nightstand by my bed… or our bed, rather, since we’d been sleeping in it together ever since our first date. Things had been too crazy with Gio for either of us to consider moving forward with our physical relationship, but that hadn’t mattered today as I’d left the hospital, eager to get home to Remy so I could talk to him about our future.
I stayed where I was as Remy came back around me and began working on the buttons of my dress shirt. I couldn't help but reach out and run my fingers over his face. He'd already changed into his pajamas.
Although he was focused on the buttons, his mind was definitely somewhere else when he said, "Did we get engaged today, Luca?"
He looked up at me as he spoke the last words. His expression was soft, almost dreamy. I still couldn't believe that he loved me. It felt like I’d finally done something right in my life.
"I think we did," I said. "Actually, I think I kind of asked you, but I'm not sure you answered me."
"Are you sure you want that? If it's because of what I said about feeling like I deserve—"
"I want it. I want it more than you'll ever know, Remy. I want to walk in a room with you on my arm. I want everyone to see that wedding ring and know that I was the one who was lucky enough to be worthy of you. I want to wake up with you every morning in our bed and I want you in my arms at night where you belong. I want to share all the ups and downs I'll be going through with Gio, and I want to watch you find yourself for real and live the life that you want, not the life you think you're supposed to have. And someday in the future, I want to have children with you because you're going to be the most amazing father. So yes, I want to be your husband," I said as I drew him closer to me. While my proposal this afternoon hadn't exactly been romantic, I'd meant every word of it.