Chapter 97 My Heaven
Enzo
I should take the various works of art back to the room, the ones she's finished and the ones she's unfinished. But I'm only looking at her. I continue to study her for a few seconds and come to two conclusions. First, she's the most beautiful here, in her element. She looks like a goddess.
The second thing I realize is that I love her. I love her, and the world isn't falling apart. Nothing is falling apart around me. Everything is perfectly calm, and my heart beats with realization. Rose's eyes finally lift, her blue ones staring at me. They widen in surprise, then narrow just as quickly.
Her movements are slow as she takes out her headphones and rises to her feet. She walks toward me.
"You could have told me you'd come back," she breathes, a slightly hesitant expression on her face.
I need to touch her more than I need to touch the air.
"Are you going to hug me or not, baby?"
"I'd like to, but I'm really dirty," she says, gesturing to the apron covering her dress and arms.
"I don't care, princess." Her expression softens, and she sighs. With her next breath, she throws herself into my arms. I pull her close and am surprised when a slight tremor runs down my arm. Her hair presses against me as I hold her even closer.
"Damn, I missed you, darling."
"I missed you too," she whispers. "Even though you're the biggest asshole in the world."
That makes me laugh. And then she lets out a soft laugh of her own, and it's like heaven. It feels like heaven in her arms.
We're lying in my bed, and Rose She confessed that she's been sleeping here every night since I left. If I didn't already love her, that confession would definitely be a breaking point for me. We're lying on the bed, still fully dressed, and she's telling me how she's spent the last few weeks.
"I've already picked out my wedding dress," she informs me. "I'm having it custom-made from an Italian designer."
"Yes, Roman mentioned to me that the wedding is a few weeks after Thanksgiving," I say with a sigh. I'm a little worried that she's decided against a Christmas wedding, despite my reservations about it.
"I decided to pick a date without you," she announces. "I figured since you 'don't care,' I'm allowed to. Don't worry, it's not Christmas. I'll spend the day with my family, because you seem to hate it so much."
My eyes narrow. "I'm your family."
"Yes," she nods. "And officially it'll be the twenty-eighth. A few days after Christmas. Do you like that?"
"I don't particularly like the brashness in your tone," I mutter.
She rolls her eyes. "Idiot."
I pull her closer. "Keep saying things like that, and you'll have a really hard time working tomorrow, baby."
"Okay," she whispers. "You have a lot of catching up to do. Six weeks."
I smile, running my hand through her hair. "I'm sorry I can't throw you a Christmas wedding."
"It's okay, baby," she whispers. "It took me a long time to sort out my issues about this. I may have accidentally drawn you slapped to ease my anger," she says with a grin. "But I'm okay now."
A dry amusement fills me. "Can I see the drawing?"
She shakes her head. "No one will see this. Ever. I made some vases and ceramic sculptures you'll love. Dani has an art show coming up soon, and she's trying to convince me to auction off some of my latest pieces.”
"Do you want to?"
"Let's see if they sell."
I'd buy every last drop of her art, just to make her happy.
"But tell me about yourself. How are things in Russia?"
My lips curl into a smile as I tell her everything that happened, trying to soften the more brutal parts of the story.
"And Jason? I haven't seen him."
"He's still there. Taking care of the last details."
"He'll be okay, right?" Rose asks worriedly.
I nod. “Don’t worry, princess. Jason will be back soon.”
I look at her. “Now that we both have all the answers, can I kiss you?”
She smirks.
“You can do that as much as you want. But tomorrow we need to talk about wedding preparations. We have so much to do, Enzo. You won’t believe it.”
“Of course, no problem,” I murmur. I’ll say anything to get her to press her pink lips to mine.
When she leans closer, I don’t hesitate. Her lips are soft, her tongue hot and wet. When she sighs into my mouth, a wild lust boils in my blood, blurring my vision. She has no idea the effect she has on me. How deeply she's imprinted on me.
The weeks fly by. Rose and I have developed a real relationship, and our wedding draws closer with each passing day. My eyes open to the rustling of sheets and her warmth flowing from my arms. We stayed up late last night, and I've been trying my best to make up for lost time over the past few weeks.
"Where are you going?" I ask as she gets out of bed and stretches.
"To church," she tells me. "I try to go more often. Mom used to get on my nerves about this.”
"No," I groan, pulling her back into bed. "If you want to go to church so badly, how about you lie on the bed while I say a prayer between your legs?"
My voice is low and husky as I whisper in her ear. I don't miss the way she trembles. Her lips twitch, but she doesn't smile, instead punching me on the shoulder.
"You're disgusting. But I have to go, baby. How about you come with me?"
My eyebrow rises. "I doubt they want me in church. What if I catch fire?" I ask.
Rose smiles, amused. "I'm sure that won't happen. Come on, it'll be fun."
"When was Mass ever fun?" I grumble.
I honestly couldn't remember the last time I went to church. Maybe when I was little, and I had no choice but to go with my uncles and their families.