Page 13 of Unyielding
The house was empty. I knew my brothers would be out all night working, but Z had already sent me a million texts trying to push for more details as to why Namazzi wouldn’t be able to attend work for the foreseeable future, assuring me that he would sort it out.
As we entered, Sunshine marveled at the modern interior. Each of us had our own level and only shared the common spaces, but even those were large enough to provide us with ample space when needed. I could feel her skin crawl with discomfort at how different her apartment had been in comparison. It was the same look she had when she’d seen my car. She knew I was well off, but it wasn’t until she took in the large marble countertops, high ceilings and luxurious furniture that she understood just how wealthy I was.
She quickly crashed after a warm bath and a glass of wine. She looked breathtaking on my four-poster bed. My room was nothing but black-stained wood, emerald-green velvet, and gothic décor, and amidst it all, she was a beacon of light, my little ray of sunshine. My brothers had laughedwhen I decorated it assuming I would opt for colour given my penchant for artistry. After looking at vivid colours all day, I liked the solitude and calm deeper and darker colours brought. It allowed my brain to switch off.
At some point, I dozed off, and when I awoke, my girl was trembling in her sleep as the early morning sun streamed through the gaps in the curtains. She was having a fitful nightmare. Slowly I coaxed her out of it, stroking her hair to rouse her until her bleary eyes locked on mine. She was confused for a moment but then, as she took me in, her signature smile returned before she winced in pain, the cut on her lip cracking open once again. I licked up the drop of blood as it pooled on her lips.
‘Sunshine,’ I breathed against her ear. Her body shuddered in response. She pulled herself up, wanting to crawl into my lap, to be held. I let her.
‘I didn’t get a chance to tell you last night but I live with my brothers. Now don’t panic—they know you’re here, but I didn’t say anything. That’s your story to tell. You won’t see them, though, unless you want to join us for meals. We each have our own level in this building. But… I want to know how you would like me to introduce you. I know what you are to me but I don’t know what I am to you.’ Her cheeks flushed as her eyes darted away.
Barely above a whisper she asked, ‘What am I to you?’
Without hesitation, the word fell from my lips. ‘Everything.’ Nodding, she took in the word, letting it settle into her bones.
She pulled my face to hers, placing a chaste kiss on my lips, branding me with her piercing eyes. They were the most alive I had seen them since I found her on the floor of her shower, looking at me with a certaintythat I had never seen in her before. It was as if she had finally made an irrevocable decision.
‘Everything,’ she breathed.
After that we held each other in bed, watching the rest of the sunrise. We spoke about our dreams while whispering sweet nothings to one another. Not ready to talk about anything real yet. We wanted to ride out this happy moment where we had claimed one another. After texting into work to say she wouldn’t be there, not knowing I had already taken that liberty, she agreed to meet my brothers for a lunch. I messaged the boys to come home and asked Xavier to order in her favourite cuisine—Japanese.
It wasn’t long before lunch. Zane had said he would be a couple of minutes late, so we headed down to set the table and pick out a bottle of wine from the cellar. She was partial to a deep, robust red like myself, settling on a Malbec. I had dismissed Evelyn wanting to give my girl as much privacy as I could while she both mentally and physically recovered from yesterday.
As we poured our wine, I prepared to rip the Band Aid off and tell my girl exactly who my family was. She seemed calmer now, but I waited too long. Xavier walked into the kitchen.
‘Food’s set up in the dining room if you two ladies are ready,’ he said. Walking towards her with his arm outstretched, he shook her hand.
‘I’m Xavier, you are?’
‘Namazzi.’
His eyes took in the split of her lips and the cuts on her hands; every other bruise was covered by my favourite track pants and jumper I had given her. Xavier’s eyes flickered to mine in question, concern etched on his features, buthe didn’t probe, instead sweeping her into the dining room as I trailed behind them.
‘Wow, what’s all this? Are we celebrating something?’ she asked, taking a seat beside me as Xavier took the one across from her. He knew Zane was intimidating, to say the least, so he thought it would be best if she wasn’t directly facing him. Too bad he didn’t know they already knew each other.
‘We’re celebrating you, Sunshine. It’s rare that I bring anyone home, so I wanted to do something nice,’ I explained. Her cheeks flushed as she flashed me her winning smile.
‘You shouldn’t have, V. It’s too much.’
Ignoring her, I filled her plate with all of her favourites that we had spoken about during our first date at Guido’s: salmon sashimi, scallops, thinly sliced teriyaki beef and a katsu chicken curry with pickled daikon.
‘So how do you two know each other? Better yet, who are you to each other?’ my brother asked, looking between the two of us. My girl tensed, fearing the judgement that typically came with her line of work, which she didn’t realise she would never find here. Leaning into her side, I grabbed her hand under the table and nudged her shoulder.
‘This is my everything,’ I said to my brother, but my eyes never left hers.
‘I suppose I should cancel your engagement then.’ Xavier chuckled as my girl choked on her wine.
‘Xav!’ I scolded. ‘He’s lying, Sunshine. I’m not engaged. It’s a bit more complicated than that.’ Slowly, she swallowed, composing herself as I shot daggers at Xav. I knew what he was doing; he was testing me. Teasing me. Not her.
Before I could explain any further, Zane blew through the door.
Shit.I hadn’t found the time to tell Sunshine, and now she was confronted and cornered.
She stood, shooting out of her chair and backing away. Zane looked pissed, as though he were on a war path, but that was just his demeanour and partially my fault for not replying to his messages. He hadn’t even really taken in who our guest was yet. Her sudden movement drew his attention just before he went to sit down.
I stood, blocking her from his view. I wanted her to feel safe.
Xav was the first to break the tense silence. ‘What am I missing here?’
