Page 13 of Stutter

My room is next to theirs and I’m grateful I can’t hear their late-night activities.

In the morning, I wake to the low sounds of a cello playing something haunting and mournful. I wake to thoughts of Raven because my dreams are the only way I still allow myself to have access to her. I go, open the French double doors, taking in the sight of the sun rising over the horizon behind the glittering Eiffel tower and watch her play.

Because I’ve never seen something more tragically beautiful than her.

Chapter Three

Jonas.

Axehole: You’re in Paris?

I roll my eyes at Axel’s text. It’s the second morning I’ve woken up to Raven playing her cello out on the balcony and this time, I made sure to grab my phone and record her so I can post it on my Instagram. I mean, the scenery is perfect. Sun rising, the Eiffel tower is still lit, you can see the Sienne, but the main beauty is her. She’s playing something she’s been working on for weeks now and it’s so damn heart wrenching but alluring. I never thought of classical music as wondrous, but when she plays… I love it, because it’s her.

I keep thinking now is the perfect time to propose.

Here, now, in the city of love.

But Damon keeps saying it’s not. Not while Maverick is still fragile and indecisive. We have to play our cards right. ‘Be patient.’ Whatever that means.

Whether or not we actually need him is up in the air. We only know she loves him.

And that he’s gotta get his head out of his ass.

When she stops playing, I take a picture and this time, when I post it, I make everything else black and white and leave her in color. Caption:The Future Mrs. Jonas Anderson.

Yeah. I like that a lot.

She always stays outside for a moment after playing, looking over the sleepy city that’s not even close to waking up. It’s freezing outside but not as cold as Massachusetts, there’s a soft flurry of snow that melts before it touches the ground and when I hear a knock on the door behind me, I know Damon ordered room service while I was entranced. But how could I not be?

My phone vibrates in my hand, and when I look down to see Axel is calling, I can feel my molars grinding together.

“Yeah?” I answer without pleasantries.

“What are you doing in Paris? What if she has an attack? What ifsheattacks?”

“Well, I’m mostly fucking your sister to answer your first question,” I reply crudely. “And secondly, she’s doing great. We’ve been out and about just fine. I told you; you don’t need to worry about her anymore. She’s mine. I got her.” There’s a tap on my arm and when I look down, I see a mug of coffee. I look up at Damon and he’s smiling. I grab the mug and take a sip. “I gotta go.”

Hanging up on Axel always feels great.

“She really is doing great isn’t she?” he asks, looking like a proud papa as Raven turns around in her chair and grins at us. “You played beautifully, little bird.”

Where there’s a part of me that is jealous at the way my girl blushes, looks down, lashes hitting her cheekbones and then back up at the man that watched over her for years, that emotion is overpowered by the way my own smile appears on my face, happy thatsheis happy. Damon sets down his mug and tugs on his overcoat, goes to her, plants a kiss on her forehead and she lights up even more when he towers over her, cupping her face in his large hands. Images of the way she came between us last night make me smirk because she looks so sweet and innocent with those big brown eyes I know make Damon’s heart flutter, but deep down, she’s an insatiable, sick little slut.

Mysick little slut.

He helps her up and they come back inside, closing the double glass doors behind them, and she strides to me, the room feeling at least ten degrees warmer now. “Morning, baby.” I kiss her. “Did you sleep good?”

She blinks as if thinking over her answer, as though if she tells us she dreamt of Maverick again it will hurt my feelings. It won’t. I’m actually surprised the man came with Damon but I know it tortured her to be near him as he barely glanced at her. If only she knew he can barely keep his eyes off her anywhere else – school, the library, Inferno… they’re both suffering without the other but he has to be the one to reach out. Raven finally nods but I can’t help the sinking feeling that she’s perhaps lying to me to save face.

I hate that.

“Want to get dressed so we can wake Maverick and have some breakfast? Walk around and shop, maybe? I found this bookstore online that’s two blocks away. They have a little café…”

The smile on her face makes my knees buckle.

It’s so easy to make her happy. I hide my disgust at the Monroe family for thinking she’s a menace to their image, to society, and keeping her locked away. I mean, she is, but she’s only a menace to a special secret society but not – it doesn’t matter. I plant another kiss to her cheek and tap her hip twice. “Get ready, baby. I’ll go get Maverick”

As soon as she’s in the bathroom with the door closed Damon shakes his head. “He checked out last night.”

---