Chapter 13
THIRTEEN
Maria
As the plane descended into Fort Lauderdale, I stared out at the dreary sky thinking it was reflective of my mood. I still hadn't heard from Adam, still didn't know what was happening between us, and at this point, I didn't know whether I was going to kiss him or strangle him when I found him. Juliet had told me he was home, but he hadn't answered any of my calls or texts.
I had a plan, though.
I wasn't giving up on the man or the marriage without a fight.
In some ways, I'd given up on my first husband because I hadn't wanted to nag him. About his smoking, his weight, his drinking. He was a good man, who loved me, worked hard, and took care of our family, so it seemed petty to start on him about his bad habits because they were how he'd relaxed.
Except nagging might have saved his life.
And Adam's bad habit—at least the one that bugged me the most—was his need to protect people. Even when they didn't need it.
We were going to have to work on that.
But first I had to get him to listen.
We hadn't been married long, but I knew my husband better than he thought, so I had a good idea what was going on in his head. He was concerned that being together would somehow cause a rift between me and my children, and I'd worried about that initially too, but we were married now.
That meant something.
I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't been a thousand percent sure I wanted to be with Adam. No matter what anyone thought.
I loved my kids and wanted what was best for them, but they didn't get to tell me whom I could and couldn't fall in love with.
And I loved Adam.
Even though I was pissed at him right now.
"Mom, do you want me to stay?" Juliet asked as she pulled up to the house to drop me off.
Adam's truck was in the driveway, so I shook my head. "No. He and I have to talk. Otherwise, how are we going to make a life together?"
"Promise you won't get upset?"
"I won't be upset unless he tells me he doesn't love me anymore."
"I don't think that's happening."
We smiled at each other. "Stop fussing over me. I'm fine. Go home and bake something."
She chuckled. "You sure you don't want me to sit outside and wait…just in case?"
"Just in case what? I chase him out of the house with a broom?"
She laughed. "All right. You win." She wheeled my two suitcases up to the door, kissed my cheek, got back in her vehicle, and drove away.
Well, this was it.
Either the beginning or the end.
I unlocked the door and walked inside. "Hello?"
"Hey, Maria." Adam came into the foyer, his face devoid of emotion.
"You owe me a suitcase," I said, fixing him with a glare.
"Uh... what?"
I would have laughed under other circumstances, but he had to understand he couldn't cut and run whenever things got complicated. Because life was messy and ours would undoubtedly be difficult sometimes.
"You left with our shared suitcase," I responded. "And all the clothes I'd unpacked wouldn't fit in my carryon so I had to buy one. At hotel prices."
"I'm… sorry?"
I made a face. "We need to talk, Mr. Elliott."
"Yeah, I guess we do."
"Let's do it in the bedroom. I need to lie down."
"All right."
I headed for my—well, hopefully soon it would our —bedroom and stretched out on the bed, resting against a stack of pillows.
Adam stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame, his broad shoulders taking up most of the space.
He really was the most handsome man I knew.
I almost smiled.
Almost .
"You realize your body language is a metaphor for what's going on between us," I said in a snippy tone. "One foot in and one foot out."
Adam sighed, coming over to stand next to the bed. "That's not my intention, babe."
"What are your intentions, Adam? Because when we said our vows four days ago, you promised to love and cherish me forever. The you snuck out of Vegas like a thief in the goddamn night and it hurt my feelings."
"I'm sorry, darlin'. I just thought…" His voice trailed and he finally sat on the edge of the bed next to me.
"What were you thinking?" I asked quietly.
"I don't want you to have to choose!" he said, throwing up his hands. "How could you look at me every day if your kids refused to have anything to do with us?"
"You honestly believe I raised children who would just stop talking to me because I fell in love?"
"If you didn't, why were you so worried about anyone finding out?" he demanded. "And why did we sneak off to Vegas instead of planning a wedding here?"
I chewed the inside of my cheek. "Because initially I was nervous about getting remarried. But once we did it, once I became your wife, I realized how right it is. How much I love you and how silly I've been. There was also some unfinished business with Mario and me, and we've cleared that up." I explained about the argument he'd had with his father.
"Oh, hell. I'm sorry. I didn't know that."
"I thought eventually he'd either come to me to talk or work it out on his own. I screwed up on that front, but we've cleared it up now. And I think he's on the mend emotionally. I might have even talked him into getting some therapy."
"So he's okay with me being in your life?"
"It doesn't matter if he is or not. We're married. Don't you get that?" I looked at him impatiently. "What else, Adam? I know there's more to this than just my kids' needing time to adjust to having a stepfather. Talk to me. How can we be a couple if we don't communicate?"
He sighed.
Looked away.
Fidgeted.
Men were really a pain in my ass sometimes, but I had to let him work through it, just like I'd done with Mario.
"Vaughn said something that kind of hit me right between the eyes earlier."
"What did he say?"
"He basically said… I took the easy way out by walking away from my wife and son all those years ago. That I should've fought for them. Looked into more options. Something, anything other than what I did."
I shrugged. "Maybe, but we can't go back and change the past, and we all made mistakes when we were young. What was his point?"
"That I should fight for you."
He lifted those gorgeous blue eyes to mine questioningly and I saw the vulnerability there. The pain. The worry.
Did he somehow believe he wasn't good enough for me?
"Adam."
"Yeah?"
"Do you love me?"
"You know I do."
"Do you want us to be together?"
"More than anything."
"Then yes, I want you to fight for me. Today, tomorrow, forever."
"You sure? I come to you without much of anything except this." He put his hand over his heart. "And these." He held out his hands. "And a few investments I'm trying to cash out."
"I don't care about your investments," I muttered, reaching out to run my knuckles along his jawline. "I care about this." I rested a hand on his chest. "I care about these." I slid my other hand into one of his. "I love you just the way you are. And if you love me too, everything else is just background noise."
"You're a hell of a woman, Maria Conchetta Calavope Cicero-Elliott."
"Thank you."
He leaned in to kiss me, and his mouth tasted like home.
"As soon as you're feeling better," he whispered against my lips, "we're going to Paris."
"And New York."
"Okay."
Our eyes met, and we laughed.
"Are we good, darlin'?"
"We're better than good." I wrapped my arms around his neck. "But I need a little nap before everyone gets here."
"Everyone who?" he asked, frowning slightly.
"The kids are coming over."
"Why?"
"To welcome you to the family."
He looked startled for a moment but then he smiled. "That sounds nice."
"You know how you like to be overprotective?"
He chuckled. "Yeah?"
"I can be overprotective too."
"I love you, darlin'."
"Thank goodness. I don't know what I would do if you didn't."
"You're never gonna have to find out."
"You should nap with me."
"I thought you wanted to rest."
"Rest is overrated." I patted the spot on my other side.
"You sure about this, Maria?"
I pulled my blouse over my head. "Shut up and kiss me."
He laughed.
Then his eyes turned smoldering blue.