Page 50 of Oblivion
I didn’t know what to say, so I just stared at her, hating that the vodka blurred the lines in my mind.
“You seem confused.”
“Because I am,” I blurted out. “They usually keep wives out of the business.”
“Ophelia,” she started and placed her hand on top of my knee. “They might be kings. They might think that they have the upper hand, and we let them be macho and whatever they want to be, but us…” she trailed off and leaned closer to me. “We are the queens, aren’t we?”
I could only nod, completely taken aback by the situation at hand.
“Now, we’re going to sober you up and we will talk. I have a feeling that we are going to be very good friends.”
Something inside me warmed up, feeling her words in the core of my being.
“I would like that.”
* * *
Carbs and waterwere a cure for everything. Broken heart? Get yourself a hamburger. Pissed off? Drink some water and have a pizza.
Drunk as fuck? Stuff your face with the best Italian bread, chug down a liter of water, and pray that you wouldn’t pee yourself.
Alessia wasn’t kidding when she said that she would sober me up, and I had never seen someone so determined to get me up on my feet. After the water came to our table, she kept pushing it at me, all the while talking about her job, her life here, and how much she hated the big wedding. But Nico wanted it and they decided to compromise.
He would get a big wedding, fit for a king, and she would get a honeymoon in New Zealand, even though he hated flying more than he hated the American version of Italian food.
There was something comforting in the way she spoke, how happy she was, how content, and I yearned to have that one day. She was stronger than me. She didn’t allow bad things to break her mind, or to break her relationship.
She fought for him even when he wanted to push her aside.
And Nico tried—several times.
As soon as the alcohol started dissipating from my system, or well, at least I was able to walk properly, she took me to the room she had pointed to. As she opened the door, I realized it was an office of sorts.
I didn’t want to sit anymore, and instead, I walked toward the bookshelf on the opposite side of the door, lining the entire wall.
“A bookworm?” she asked, joining me immediately.
“I used to be,” I whispered, dragging my fingers over the spines of old books. “I can’t remember the last time I was able to sit down and read a book. There’s always something that needs my attention, or I’m always on the run.”
“Are you still on the run?”
She sat down on the sofa chair situated across from the large mahogany table and looked at me.
“Sometimes I feel I will always be on the run.” I chuckled, but even I could hear how broken it sounded. “But maybe one day, I will be able to have a house filled with books,” I shrugged. “It’s a dream at least.”
“And it will happen.” She grinned. “I am sure of it.”
I opened my mouth to ask her about her family, when the door slammed open, revealing a pissed-off Nico.
“What the fuck, Tesoro?” He breathed heavily, fear etched into every pore on his face. Without even looking at me, he went straight to her, pulling her into his embrace. “You can’t just disappear like that.”
“You were busy with your buddies. What did you expect me to do? Wait around?”
“No.” He shook his head, taking a step back. “But I don’t expect you to go into small offices with the Queen of Carnage herself.”
“Oooh,” I exclaimed. “I actually like that one.”
“Darling,” Alessia started, taking his hand. “If she wanted to kill me or any of us, she would’ve done it already. I’ve heard of Ophelia Aster. We all have.”
