Page 193 of Punishing His Runaway Bride
The dining room fell quiet for a while, only the sound of forks against plates. Macy circled twice under the table, realized nobody was feeding her, finally gave up, and flopped down by my feet to doze.
"By the way," Ezio suddenly spoke, tone as casual as discussing the weather. "Do you have plans today?"
I looked up at him. "Juliet's ballet class this afternoon. Why?"
"Nothing," he turned a page of the newspaper. "Be home for dinner."
"Okay," I said.
He turned another page, but his gaze looked over the top of the paper, landing on my face, pausing for two seconds. "You have a mark on your cheek."
I instinctively touched my left cheek.
"Must be from the pillow," I said.
He blinked, those deep green eyes staring straight at me. His finger deliberately rubbed slowly on his own cheek a few times, then brought it to his lips, tongue tip flicking out to lick it.
My gaze involuntarily fixed on those seductive eyes, heart pounding like a drum.
Damn. This man was sexy as hell.
Ezio's eyes rested on my flushed face. He smirked, said nothing more, and lowered his head back to the newspaper.
Leo finished his last piece of pancake, pushed the plate aside, and leaned back against the chair with satisfaction. "Mom, can we go see that cat this afternoon? Juliet said the backyard cat had kittens!"
"Yes," I said. "But you need to finish your homework first."
"I already finished it!" Leo puffed out his chest proudly.
"He finished last night," Juliet testified from the side. "And got two problems wrong. I helped him fix them."
"That's because those problems were too hard!" Leo protested.
"How is addition within ten hard?"
"It just is!"
"It's not."
"Is!"
I watched them bicker without interrupting. Juliet's English was way better than Leo's—she'd grown up here, after all, while Leo had only learned basics in France. But Leo had a natural stubbornness. The more he couldn't argue, the more he insisted. And Juliet's mouth didn't give quarter, but every time Leo really got upset, she'd be the first to comfort him.
Like that day Leo fell, Juliet ran over to blow on his knee. She didn't even notice how worried she was.
"Alright," Ezio folded the newspaper, voice not loud, but both children immediately quieted down. "Whoever clears their plate first decides what cartoon we watch this afternoon."
Leo and Juliet looked at each other, then simultaneously started scarfing down the last few bites on their plates, so fast it looked like a race.
I glanced at Ezio. He shrugged, picked up his coffee cup, and calmly took a sip, as if he hadn't just said that.
But I saw the laughter in his eyes.
After breakfast, the children followed the servants to change clothes. Only Ezio and I remained in the dining room.
Sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a warm patch on the tablecloth. Macy changed positions, belly up, sprawled on the floor, sleeping without a care.
"Nice weather today," I said.
