STOLEN || 18+ (Monsters #3)

Bonus Chapter 3

. . .

Leyla

"So much homework!"

"She has to do one sheet," Giovanni whispered to me. "One sheet - I feel like she has inherited Fabiano's theatrics."

"I think you mean yours."

"So mean, are you not, Dr Valentino?" He took the book I was reading from my hands. "What are you reading?"

"Refreshing my mind on the Ottoman Empire," I said, taking the book back from him as I set my feet on the table in front of me, and then removed them before Angela could see. Feet on the table were not allowed, both Giovanni and I were struggling with this rule.

Fabinao was sitting on the ground with Angela helping her with her homework. She was sitting at her little table, her one elbow on it with her head on her palm as she listened to Fabinao explain. Her curly dark hair was up in two buns, away from her round, pale face and she was dressed in a red dress - she had inherited my love for the color red, my hair, and my tendency of getting overwhelmed by things. She needed to be close to at least one of us while she was doing homework, even when she knew what she was doing. Coloring and crafts she could do without anyone.

"Why do five-year-olds even need homework?" Giovanni asked.

"She is learning addition, Giovanni. That's kind of required." We watched as Fabinao held up four fingers and then two.

"How much is that?"

She glared at his hands and then held up seven fingers. Her bracelet dangled in the light of the sunroom. "Seven!"

"No."

"Eight?"

"No."

"Fifty-two!"

He paused. "Where did that come from?"

She giggled. "It's fifty-two!"

He smiled, kissing her hands which were still holding up seven. "It's not fifty-two, Angela."

"I don't like maths." She folded her arms against her chest, looking down at her worksheet. "I want color."

"After this," Fabinao said. "After this, we can color the whole afternoon. Let's just get this out of the way, yes?"

She kicked her feet but nodded. "So much color after this," she mumbled under her breath.

"So much, I promise."

. . .

"I did it," Armando said, handing me the worksheet. He blinked up at me with his big brown eyes. Mom's eyes. My eyes. "Can I go play now with Angela? And, can you send Luka, too?"

I nodded at him and he ran away, into the backyard, pulling Angela along the way. Both of them giggled.

I looked at the worksheet. He had done everything right. His handwriting was great, unlike Angela who used pencils like crayons. I found it adorable, her teacher wasn't a fan.

I kept the worksheet in his backpack in his room, looking at how tidy it was. He kept everything so clean that he reminded me of Fabiano. Angela was more like Giovanni.

And Luka...

I walked into his room after knocking to which he just said 'Yes, Mum.' I didn't bother asking how he knew it was me. He'd never tell.

I leaned against the door frame, watching as he used his pencil on his worksheet, his tongue poking out. His hair, brown like his dads, was almost about to cover his eyes, I mentally added a haircut for him in the to-do list for the weekend. "I'm hungry," he said quietly, looking up at me with his green eyes.