Wretched Love

“Excuse me?” I asked in a small voice.

“Oh, come on, Mom, we’re all adults here. And I can see how devastatingly in love you are. How happy you are.” Her face turned serious for a split second. “I love that. More than love that. I also understand that what comes with this kind of love is sex that travels through some decently thick walls. I’m not about to ask my mother to stop having that wonderful sex, but I’m going to draw some boundary lines.”

I gasped.

Swiss was full on laughing now.

“Stop,” I snapped at him. “This isn’t funny.”

Swiss’s eyes twinkled as he crossed the distance between us, bringing me in so he could kiss my head then tuck me into his chest. “Oh, Countess, I disagree. This is fuckin’ hilarious.”

I scowled at him. “You’re not actually okay with the idea of Violet moving into the clubhouse?” I asked in shock.

“Wouldn’t say I’m ‘okay’ with it,” he pondered. “But not hip on the alternative either.”

I figured the alternative was us not having sex at all, and to be honest, that was not something I was hip with either.

“On top of that, my brothers know the long and painful death that awaits them if they try anything.”

Violet laughed.

I did not because I knew he wasn’t joking.

“And it’ll only be for a few days, a week at most.”

I frowned up at him. “Violet doesn’t leave for school for another two weeks,” I reminded him. I looked at my daughter. “Right, honey? You haven’t decided to go early, have you?”

I tried to sound like I’d be totally okay with that, but I definitely failed. I was internally panicking at not only my daughter leaving early but not having her under the same roof as me for the remaining time I had with her. But the alternative…

Although I would’ve liked to think we could control ourselves—in the interest of my daughter, for goodness’ sakes—I knew that we couldn’t.

Violet’s shoulders dropped, her eyes softening at the edges. “No, Mom, I’m not leaving earlier. I love it here.”

Too caught up in the moment, I looked back up at Swiss. “Well, then do you know something I don’t?”

“I know that Violet’s room is gonna be at the other end of the house. Our new house.”

I stared at him. “Our new house?” I parotted.

He nodded, a seed of a smile on his face. “As much as I love this place, and I fuckin’ do, I think we need somethin’ a little bigger… somethin’ ours. Place with a kitchen you can spread out in.” He motioned to the small, orderly area I was using for prep.

Though I made it work and loved it more than the all-white kitchen with endless space in my last house, I would’ve liked some more room.

“There were a few last-minute details I had to hammer down, but this weekend is move-in day.” His eyes cut to Violet and they shared a look.

A knowing look. A look that I was not privy to, so my eyes darted between them accusingly.

“What was that about?” I demanded.

“Well, Swiss wanted to show me before he signed all the papers,” Violet shrugged with a smile. “He wanted to make sure you’d like it, and he wanted to make sure I liked it, since he wants it to be my home too.” They shared another look. This time it was not knowing. It was more intimate.

It was a look that made me want to burst into tears.

Violet blinked away the emotion in her eyes that I knew came from having a father who would not have asked her opinion on such things. A father who wouldn’t have cared whether his wife or daughter liked it, who’d have expected them to accept it.

“And I like it,” she exclaimed brightly. “Love it, in fact. And he’s right… There’s like an entire house between our bedrooms. Plenty of space and sound insulation.” She waggled her brows.

I wanted to sink into the ground.