An /It's been a while but HAPPY NEW YEAR hope 2026 is kind to all of you. Long chapter ahead but i hope you enjoy. Also shameless plug I've got a new book so check it out :)
The deck was wide and sun-bleached, the blue water endless beyond it, the kind of space that made Angelus feel younger, like he was five again and on vacation with his mother and sister. He sat slouched in a low lounger, sunglasses shielding his eyes, trying to look like he was at ease.
He never noticed how fast his mind moved when he was buried in responsibilities; he used work like a dam, a floodgate keeping everything contained. But here, in the calm, the quiet, with only the hush of the waves against the side of the yacht, he could hear everything. His thoughts, all at once. Loud. Demanding.
A pulse of frustration flickered through him. What kind of person gets more stressed on a fucking yacht in Sicily? They were a week into the break. He should've been able to turn it off by now.
He tried to anchor himself. Marlena's voice. her best friend Alyssa's laughter. Their shrieks carried from the other side of the deck, where they were stretched out on loungers, bronzed and bright, happy.
He focused on that... their noise, their aliveness.
Alyssa piped up suddenly, propping her chin on her hand as she looked over at him. "Okay, but where is your hot Spanish-Italian friend? All he's done this week is work."
Angelus let out a laugh, startled. "The 'hot Spanish-Italian' you're talking about could literally be your dad. Please don't make it weird."
Marlena grinned wider. "Well, Pedrito is a DILF, to be fair, if he were my TAi also would-"
"You also don't be weird," Angelus groaned, burying his face in his hands.
"Fine," Marlena added with mock seriousness, "where is he anyway?"
"He's probably on a call inside," Angelus said quickly. "He had a meeting, I think."
Alyssa arched a brow, amused. "Didn't you say he took his vacation early just to line it up with Angelo's?" she asked Marlena.
Marlena's laugh was knowing.
Angelus froze, just for a beat, before forcing a frown. "He took it early because he wanted two weeks off. Marlena's just... saying things."
"Right, right," Marlena said, dragging out the words. "Because it's completely normal for your friend to take an early vacation from his very important job, fly to Roma to pick me and Mama up, and bring us here... while you fly in with Marco, who's now, by the way, God knows where."
At the mention of Marco, Angelus glanced toward the edge of the deck where his friend was half-asleep in a hammock, headphones in, legs dangling like a kid's. Marco lifted a lazy hand in greeting, catching the tail end of the conversation. His wife was away on a girls' trip, so for the next week, he is their problem....at least he comes with a yacht.
"I don't know what you're doing, but stop," Angelus muttered, his voice tight. His chest prickled; the noise, the sun, the teasing, all of it scraped at the edges of his brain.
Then the sound of sliding doors filled the space, and Pedro appeared from them.
The sliding door opened, and he stepped out, all smiles and sun, in linen trousers and a pale shirt half-unbuttoned. He looked annoyingly effortless, his hair still damp, phone in hand.
"Meeting survived," he announced, his voice carrying easily over the deck. "And I come bearing good news, there is fresh cannoli inside."
Alyssa perked up instantly. Marco cracked one eye open and muttered something about lunch.
