A Price Above Rubies

Chapter Thirty Five

Hayal Papadapolous is born before her mother has a chance to bake a new cake. Her father, Leon, still has blobs of batter in his hair despite trying to clean himself up as best he can without leaving the room. He doesn't dare leave after Hilal grabs his arm and begs him to stay. 

He listened to the midwife when Acelya was born and she told him it was indecent for the husband to watch such a thing. Hilal wanted to punch the woman in the face but she'd been in too much pain to protest. She knows Leon regrets not being in the room for their first child's birth. Yildiz had been there but it had been Leon Hilal wanted. He remedied that with their son.  

Now, even though the remants of their fight are still in the tension in the room and the visible mess of food on both of them, Hilal is glad he's here with her. 

The fight was almost becoming funny as they got a good look at each other and she felt they were on the verge of perhaps making up but then her water had broken. 

After what happened with Yorgo, Leon had stormed out of the house and didn't return for dinner. She'd fed the children some cake for dessert and in a fury tossed out the rest. Leon didn't deserve any damn cake after he'd just stormed out without a word. 

Veronika urged her to make another one so that she and Leon didn't go to sleep mad at each other. She agreed just to make her mother in law feel better. The older woman had been through too much and Hilal felt she could at least concede a little so Veronika could go to sleep in peace. 

Besides, if she made another cake, she could throw it at Leon if he refused to apologize. 

Hilal had almost finished making the cake batter when she heard the key in the door. She stiffened for a moment, bracing herself for the confrontation.

"Hilal?" He called out. 

Hilal grit her teeth and tried to reign in her temper before answering. "In the kitchen," she replied curtly. She didn't look at him as she heard his footsteps make their way towards the kitchen. She stirred the bowl and kept her back to him. 

"Hilal, look-"

"The children already ate and are in bed. Your mother has gone to visit the twins for a few hours before bed. I'm making a cake because your mother said you deserve some even if you did storm out of here like Yorgo throwing a temper tantrum without a word to anyone," she said, her back still to him. 

"Like Yo-"

She heard his feet storm towards her and with a firm grip of her arm, Leon turned her around. "Our son was crying because he thought you were hurt because he thought he had to save you. Like you abandoned our children to save me."

Fury rose with in at the way he twisted what she had done. Without thinking she slapped him hard across the face. She covered her mouth. 

His head tilted back and anger lit his brown eyes so they were almost black. Her handprint was red against his skin.

"Does that solve it for you? Is your conscience absolved now?" Leon snapped at her. 

"My concience? You're saying I should feel guilty for saving my husband? Well I don't!" That wasn't altogether true. 

He squeezed his hands into fists at his sides. He would not hit her. Would. Not. But he needed to release the ball of rage rising in his stomach up into his throat somehow. He couldn't scream at her. The children were asleep and they had to have this out. It had been building for months. Leon didn't think. He grabbed the bowl of cake batter and dumped it on her head. 

She sucked in her breath and her blue eyes widened with fury and disbelief. 

"You don't? You don't give a shit about leaving our children orphans like Ali Kemal's twins!"