Aella

XLVI

It's been a few weeks since Giulia showed up in our house and made a scene. I talked to Papa after Aella and I were finished in bed, and he took care of her. I don't know what exactly happened to her, but she's either a maid somewhere, or she's dead. Either way, she will never disrespect Aella, me, or the family again. 

In about an hour, Aella and I leave for our first vacation together. The trip is two weeks long, which makes Aella a little uneasy, being away from work for so long, but I reassured her everything would be okay, and that she needs a break from everything in that house. She's been so stressed lately that she just needs a few days away from work. It's also Christmas Eve, so we wanted to spend our first Christmas alone.

I finish packing my bags and my carry on. The flight is about four hours, but I get bored easily. The bag also has all of my activities for sitting by the private pool we have at our villa in the Canary Islands. Aella's gift is also wrapped very carefully into a scarf so she would never have any clue what it is. 

"Are you ready, Beautiful?" Aella finishes getting herself ready in the bathroom. She has tan pants on, white slip on sneakers, and a white shirt with its sleeves rolled to her elbows. I take in her beauty for second as she walks over to me. 

"I'm so ready."

Aella stops in front of me and wraps her arm around my waist, pulling me into her. I stare up into her deep brown eyes. They always sparkle, even when there's no direct light on her. She moves just slightly to look down at my dress. It's a navy blue maxi dress with a flowy skirt with watercolor pink and gray flowers on it. The neckline cuts down to my sternum, giving Aella plenty to look at. 

"You are tantalizing, My Darling. I'll have to take care of all of this later."

Aella bends down to place a kiss on my cheek. She then lets go of me and goes for the handle on both of our bags that lay on the bed. She picks them both up as if they weigh nothing. "Just grab our bags, Darling. We have a plane to catch."

Aella makes her way out of our room. I grab her backpack and my shoulder bag, sling hers over my shoulder, then walk out of our room, closing the door behind me. 

Outside in the driveway, our car to take us to the airport sits idle, the trunk already open for our bags. Aella places them in side by side, slamming the trunk shut. She goes over to door and opens in for me. "After you, My Love."

I plop down into the car, and she shuts it after I sit down and adjust my dress under me. "Good morning Miss", the driver greets me as Aella walks around to the other side to get in. I greet him back as Aella takes a seat next to me. 

As we take off down the road towards Rome, Aella's hand grips my thigh. She knows I get nervous being in a car now. I've only left the house twice in a car since the accident, and I've very much had to focus on other things, so I just stare down at my dress and trace the flowers with my eyes. 

It doesn't take very long to get to the airport. The driver drives onto the tarmac, right where I first met Aella a couple months ago. 

The plane sits there with the stairs waiting for our arrival. Two guards stand at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for us to board first, as they'll be going with us to Tenerife. 

The three of us get out of the car. Aella walks around to meet me on my side as the driver grabs our bags from the trunk. Her and I both have our own bags slung over our shoulders. She grabs my hand and we walk together to the stairs up to the cabin of the plane. 

This plane is a little different than the plane I flew in to get here. It's just a little bigger, and the passenger area is more private than the other. A door separates the galley and cockpit from the lounge room and the small bedroom at the back, giving Aella and I our privacy from the plane's crew. 

The flight attendant greets us at the top of the stairs with her thick Italian accent. I go into the guest cabin and drop my bag on the little meeting table. Aella does the same with hers. 

I choose to sit in a white leather chair with one facing it next to the windows. Aella sits across from me.

"Good morning, ladies." The Pilot comes to see us. He stands next to us, hands clasped behind his back, smiling down at us. Aella reaches out her hand, and they firmly shake hands. "It's great to see you both again. We will take off in just a few moments, it will be a very easy, short flight. Stella will be right through there if either of you need anything, just give her a ring."

"Thank you", Aella and I both smile at him. He goes back through the door, shutting it tight behind him, leaving Aella and I to our privacy. 

The engines roar to life on the wings of the plane, and we taxi for a few minutes. "Prepare cabin for takeoff", the pilot says over the intercom. Aella and I both buckle our seatbelts and sit back in our seats. 

I watch out the window as we speed down the runway. When we take off, most of the city is in view, and it's absolutely beautiful. Everything glistens under the winter sun, even though today was not a cold day. 

The city grows tiny as we fly in the opposite direction of the main part of Italy, over the Mediterranean. When it finally disappears, I turn my gaze to Aella, who's already staring back at me. 

"Can I help you?" I joke. 

She seems to shake herself out of a trance, and a smile appears. "No, Darling. I just love looking at you. I love knowing you're all mine."

I blush at her words. "Cuore Mio", I try my hand at an Italian pet name. "I am so happy you are mine."

Aella's smile grows a bit larger as she unbuckles her belt and takes a small step in front of me. She bends down, holding herself up on the arms of my chair. Her lips are just an inch or so from mine, and we stare deep into each other's eyes. 

Aella leaves a very small kiss on my lips. 

"I can't wait to make you my wife."