Bound To You

Chapter 15

Juan

The low hum of voices, clinks of glass, and yellow diffused light were all starting to blend together when Hugo finally got to his point. I'd known he had an ulterior motive the second he asked me to drinks, but I went along with it anyway. Curiosity kills the cat, they say.

Well, I was about to die in the next two minutes.

"So how's marriage?" he grinned around the rim of his glass, leaning forward. I rolled my eyes, aware of just how much the four drinks of bourbon were starting to hack away at my inhibitions - but this was Hugo. Nothing he hadn't seen already.

"'S alright. Why?" I frowned at him over my own glass. Where was he going with this? We'd agreed before the wedding that we weren't going to talk about it, that it was just a phase that would sort itself out once everything had calmed down and we gained control over law enforcement once again.

"Rather, I should rephrase: is it an actual marriage?" his eyebrows flicked upwards, saying the quiet part out loud: did you consummate?

"No, and I don't see how it's any of your business," there was no room for doubt in my tone - this discussion was over. I didn't see any point in discussing it any further.

Especially when he was going to places I really didn't want to explore - had been running from, in fact, for weeks.

The bastard just grinned, relaxing back into the chair, one arm hanging off the backrest. "Only asked because you haven't been with another woman since you got married - despite being given express permission."

"I might be a son of the mafia, but even I have some sense of humanity."

"Uh-huh. Because humanity is what this is."

"Yes. It. Is." I took a deep breath, wishing I could break his perfectly straight teeth and shove them down his throat.

"Alright, alright. I won't push it further," he held his hands up, palms out. "I'm just asking because it's unlike you...and I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing."

"Oh and you're suddenly the relationship expert?"

We both snorted. Hugo was as detached as could be - calling him a relationship expert was like calling an economic depression the best time of our lives.

"No, but I don't think I've ever seen you happier," he muttered. There was an odd warmth in his eyes I'd never seen before, which was a shocking but welcome addition. Then he said something that wiped out the welcome altogether.

"You should pursue her."

My expression flattened. "No."

"Juan-"

"No."

"Liste- listen. Just hear me out. I know what you're thinking, I've grown up with you. But just hear me out. I think she might be it for you," he pressed on before I could interrupt him, "I've never seen you as...alive as you are now, she's the only one we've met till now that can handle the life we live, and definitely the only one that can handle it better than you can. And if you following her around and waiting on her hand and foot were not indication enough - you laugh louder after you've been with her."

He nodded at my blink. "I was just as surprised as you are. But it's noticeable enough that even I can't ignore it, man. You look happier, your family looks happier, the staff lights up every time she's around - I've noticed it every time I've come over for a meeting - I'm just saying, I think this is worth pursuing. I'm not the mushy kind," we snorted again, "you know me, so I wouldn't be saying all this unless it was literally unavoidable. But I think this one's worth it, man."