My Angel

CHAPTER 37: FLOWERS

Alessio's pov~

I paced the length of my office, my mind
filled with Ayla. She was all I could think about the whole damn day. I couldn't get rid of her face. Her frail body as I held her in my arms, her blood surrounding us.

I had locked myself in the office so l
wouldn't be tempted to go to Ayla. She needed time, I told myself. But it was a struggle being away from her when all I wanted was to offer comfort.

I just wanted her to open up, yet she stayed stubborn.
When a knock sounded at the door, I
growled at the person to enter. The door
opened and I turned around to see Nikolay walking in.

"So?" I demanded when he closed the
door. "Did she say anything?"
Nikolay's face was blank, his eyebrows
drawn together as he regarded me
impassively. He shook his head at my question and then sighed.

When Ayla had closed down on me,
refusing to listen to a word I said, I thought that maybe she would connect with Nikolay if he told her what he'd been through. He was a man of few words. He loathed talking about what happened, but I knew he wouldn't refuse me.

As soon as I had laid my thought on the
table, Nikolay had nodded and left without saying anything.

I had hopes that maybe Ayla would open
up. If not to me or Maddie, maybe to Nikolay. But she clearly didn't.

"Nothing at all?" Taking a step back, I
leaned against the table and crossed my arms.across my chest.

"No, boss. I tried, but she isn't ready. I don't
think she'll be ready any time soon," Nikolay responded.I sensed a hint of understanding from his tone.  It took him years to finally overcome his
PTSD and even now, he was not fully
recovered.

"We just need to give her time," he
continued, his voice softening slightly. If there was someone who understood Ayla to the core, then it was Nikolay.
I swore under my breath, running my hand through my hair in frustration.

"We can't push her too hard."
I know that," I said, glaring at him.

"What are you going to do now?" he asked curiously.
And that was a question thatI didn't have
an answer for. I was lost at what to do or how to deal with Ayla. She was so fragile that I was scared of taking a step that would end up hurting her. Or worse, have her shutting down further.

"I don't know," I answered truthfully. He
grew silent at my response. The room was filled with tension and I turned my back to Nikolay, facing the large window that overlooked the back garden.

"But I will figure it out," I said with
conviction.

"Do you need me for anything else?"
Nikolay asked

Shaking my head, I dismissed him. "No.
You can leave."

I placed both of my hands on the table and leaned forward. "What am I going to do with you, Ayla?" I whispered, my eyes fixated on the window.

After a few minutes of staring into the
distance, I straightened up and shrugged on my suit jacket before leaving the room.

My plan was to go downstairs for dinner, but instead, as I got closer to the stairs, my steps faltered.
Looking to my right, I stared at the hallway that led to Ayla's room. It was tempting.

I spent the whole day away from her and now I was standing just a few steps away. But what if she didn't want to see me?

Feeling frustrated at the uncertainty, I
tightened my fingers into fists and took a step down the stairs, but then stopped.

"Fuck it!" I hissed before moving back and walking toward Ayla's room. Stopping in front of her door, I took a deep breath and released it quickly before knocking at the door.