I’m giddy. I practically skip all the way to his door. I practically throw the gate open that leads to the rear apartments and Sebastian’s entrance…
I practically choke on the air I breathe as Carlos wrenches the door open and storms past without acknowledging me.
Oh God, he knows….
I hesitate between the door and him until I see Sebastian pick himself up and sit down on the couch. His face is bloodied and swollen. His knuckles are red and bleeding.
“Seb, what happened?” I descend on him and cradle his body in my arms. The coffee table is smashed and broken. I clutch my belly too, protecting the baby growing inside of me.
But Sebastian just wipes his bloody nose on his sleeve, and he looks up at me. His face is grim and sad. “He knows,” he says, confirming what I already know. “He knows about us and how we feel. Or at least, how I feel about you.”
I lay my hands on his, and we hold each other. “Did it really have to come to fighting?” I ask.
Sebastian grunts a laugh, but it hurts his ribs. He holds them tenderly. “Probably not. But I asked him about the note. About the Russians.” He gestures at himself. “I let him win though.”
“You don’t have to say that,” I force a grin, tapping his shoulder. “He’s not here.”
“But I did. Really.” Sebastian’s face is sincere. “I don’t care anymore. We can finally be together. We can finally be a couple.”
Sebastian lays his head in my lap, and I stroke his hair. Suddenly telling him about the pregnancy feels really scary. Really fucking scary.
Chapter 17
Sebastian
I’mplayingNBAonthe TV when Carlos comes through the door. He gives me a nod and proceeds through to his room. He’s been a bit quiet these last few days, but then again, I’ve been a bit quiet these last few weeks. We’ve been working together so much during the days we sometimes need this silence at night.
Mimi and I still hadn’t made the decision to tell him yet, so every opportunity that has come up these last two weeks has been bit off my tongue. I’ve almost admitted it a few times. I had to make up a few quick stories of different women too a couple of times. But still, I think he doesn’t suspect anything.
Half of my head still can’t understand why these weeks have been hard. We’re just a couple at the moment, but then… Lindsey never felt like this. I guess I never truly loved her. This? This is different. Hiding it is painful.
Carlos eventually rolls back out half an hour later, and he’s got his mail with him, clutched in his hand and opened. He flops down on the couch. He takes out the letter and reads it. He’s not happy about it. He throws it next to him, and starts watching me play.
“Want a game?” I ask.
He takes up a controller from the table and we start playing, but even I can see he doesn’t want to with how lazy he’s being on the court. He’s letting me walk all over him and I can see he’s stewing anyway.
“You good?” He doesn’t say anything. “Luca, got you shoveling extra?”
He just grunts and nods for us to keep playing. I know when Carlos is pissed, but most times he’ll talk about it. Something must be really bugging him. My fears of the Russians have come back. Or even worse, he’s found out about us without us telling him.
I take us back to the main screen, pick to play an exhibition match, and we start selecting teams. He picks Cleveland, and I pick Miami.
“Figures,” Carlos mumbles.
“Huh?”
“You picking Miami after I picked Cleveland,” Carlos says. But he’s not joking, he means it.
“What the fuck does that mean?” I say, sitting up. I’m too tired for crap like this now.
“You tell me.”
“No, you fucking tell me,” I say. “What’s up?”
“Your boy LeBron is what’s up. Betrayed the Cavaliers when he went to the Heat.”
Now I don’t know what he’s on about. “What?”