deep breath to maintain my composure. I knew Nicholas was just checking up on me because he cared, but in my aggravated state it just riled me and made me think he lacked confidence in my ability to control my anger. I grimaced as I begrudgingly realised that I often did. My free hand came up and scrubbed across my face to try and rub away the tension of the last few hours before raking it through my hair and finally coming to rest on my neck as I continued to stare at the ceiling. ‘I’m fine.’ Regardless of my previous deep breathing I still sounded terse, so with a huge amount of effort I performed a silent countdown and forced myself to relax.
‘My apologies, Nicholas. Seeing Stella so sick has been quite trying. I’m sure she’ll be better soon though, plus the doctor is coming soon.’ ‘Quite trying’ – talk about an understatement. The last few hours had been hideous. Not to mention a complete eye-opener with regards to acknowledging the depth and gravity of my feelings for Stella. Shaking my head I sat on the edge of the bed. I loved my brother, but I wasn’t going to have that conversation with him. Clearing my throat to ease my discomfort I changed the subject, ‘I heard from Rebecca that you have the wedding venue confirmed. Congratulations.’
I heard a soft chuckle down the line, ‘Thanks, brother. Yes, we’ve just arrived home now. Rebecca loved the hotel so it all worked out really well. We’ll have to meet up soon and I’ll tell you all about it.’
‘Sounds good,’ I agreed, not entirely happy with the idea of getting too soppy discussing wedding venues.
‘Actually, thinking about it, Rebecca is going to be away for a conference soon, maybe you and I could get together then? I’ll just need to confirm the dates with her,’ Nicholas suggested.
‘Sounds good, we could meet for a meal or drinks. Perhaps that Italian place you love so much?’ I suggested, thinking that being out and about would limit the possibilities for too much wedding talk.
‘Perfect, I’ll drop you a text with a date. Well, I’ll let you get back to Stella. Call me if you need anything, Nathan.’ With that my brother hung up, leaving me to fuss over Stella some more. After checking her temperature again and finding that it was still too high I called my personal doctor again and arranged – demanded – for him to bring forwards her appointment and meet me at my apartment in an hour. Then I placed a call to my driver before finally packing some of Stella’s clothes into a case. Stella might not want to move in with me, but this situation left me little choice. If I moved her temporarily to my apartment I could continue to care for her and access my computer to do the work I needed, thus solving both my issues in one go.
As I anticipated, Kenny wasn’t too keen on my plan, but after I gave him Stella’s key to my apartment and told him he could come over at any point to check on her he gave in and offered to shift her case for me. With Kenny’s assistance, I bundled Stella into a blanket, scooped her limp body up into my arms, and carried her down to the car where Ryan was waiting for us.
I was mid-way through trying to untangle Stella’s arms from around my neck so I could fasten her in when her little hands clutched at my neck and she murmured against my cheek, ‘Nathan … don’t let me go.’ My heart constricted at just how much her words meant to me. I was never letting her go, and I dropped a long, possessive kiss on the top of her head as I climbed into the car and settled Stella in my lap. ‘Never,’ I murmured. If Stella wanted me to hold her, then fuck it, I would – seatbelt rules would have to be broken this time.
Six –Stella
Hmm … I was so comfortable. My bed was cosy and warm and just utterly lovely. Rolling over I sunk deeper into the mattress before it occurred to me just how very deep and squishy the bed was. Too squishy. My bed had a firm mattress, but this was positively
‘My apologies, Nicholas. Seeing Stella so sick has been quite trying. I’m sure she’ll be better soon though, plus the doctor is coming soon.’ ‘Quite trying’ – talk about an understatement. The last few hours had been hideous. Not to mention a complete eye-opener with regards to acknowledging the depth and gravity of my feelings for Stella. Shaking my head I sat on the edge of the bed. I loved my brother, but I wasn’t going to have that conversation with him. Clearing my throat to ease my discomfort I changed the subject, ‘I heard from Rebecca that you have the wedding venue confirmed. Congratulations.’
I heard a soft chuckle down the line, ‘Thanks, brother. Yes, we’ve just arrived home now. Rebecca loved the hotel so it all worked out really well. We’ll have to meet up soon and I’ll tell you all about it.’
‘Sounds good,’ I agreed, not entirely happy with the idea of getting too soppy discussing wedding venues.
‘Actually, thinking about it, Rebecca is going to be away for a conference soon, maybe you and I could get together then? I’ll just need to confirm the dates with her,’ Nicholas suggested.
‘Sounds good, we could meet for a meal or drinks. Perhaps that Italian place you love so much?’ I suggested, thinking that being out and about would limit the possibilities for too much wedding talk.
‘Perfect, I’ll drop you a text with a date. Well, I’ll let you get back to Stella. Call me if you need anything, Nathan.’ With that my brother hung up, leaving me to fuss over Stella some more. After checking her temperature again and finding that it was still too high I called my personal doctor again and arranged – demanded – for him to bring forwards her appointment and meet me at my apartment in an hour. Then I placed a call to my driver before finally packing some of Stella’s clothes into a case. Stella might not want to move in with me, but this situation left me little choice. If I moved her temporarily to my apartment I could continue to care for her and access my computer to do the work I needed, thus solving both my issues in one go.
As I anticipated, Kenny wasn’t too keen on my plan, but after I gave him Stella’s key to my apartment and told him he could come over at any point to check on her he gave in and offered to shift her case for me. With Kenny’s assistance, I bundled Stella into a blanket, scooped her limp body up into my arms, and carried her down to the car where Ryan was waiting for us.
I was mid-way through trying to untangle Stella’s arms from around my neck so I could fasten her in when her little hands clutched at my neck and she murmured against my cheek, ‘Nathan … don’t let me go.’ My heart constricted at just how much her words meant to me. I was never letting her go, and I dropped a long, possessive kiss on the top of her head as I climbed into the car and settled Stella in my lap. ‘Never,’ I murmured. If Stella wanted me to hold her, then fuck it, I would – seatbelt rules would have to be broken this time.
Six –Stella
Hmm … I was so comfortable. My bed was cosy and warm and just utterly lovely. Rolling over I sunk deeper into the mattress before it occurred to me just how very deep and squishy the bed was. Too squishy. My bed had a firm mattress, but this was positively
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