Nightswan

Chapter 34

Vasi dropped her laptop on the coffee table and massaged her forehead. She had been working on a research paper for what seemed like years but had yet to make any progress. It wasn't hard for her to pinpoint the reason: Alessio. Her thoughts were constantly returning to him and their last conversation before he'd left for London. He had been there for two days now and hadn't called once. A couple short texts to say his plane had landed safely, and he had made it to his hotel. Nothing more. Vasi didn't know how to feel about the lack of communication. Should she be upset he wasn't willing to fight for her, or would she have been even angrier at him for not giving her space? Relationships were complicated, and Vasilisa clearly wasn't skilled enough to handle them, period, much less a marriage.

Dash sneezed in his sleep, causing Vasi to pull out of her thoughts. She smiled as she watched the dog's feet twitch. He looked so peaceful, but she knew with the snap of her finger, she could awaken him. He'd kept her company, but no dog could replace Alessio's presence, especially not in the bed. She'd allowed Dash to sleep with her last night, and the German Shepherd had taken up more than his fair share of the bed, and he didn't hold her like Alessio did when she moved closer.

Her phone rang. She picked it up without looking at the caller ID.

"What are you up to?" Bryanna asked.

"Trying to write a paper and failing miserably." She flopped backward onto the couch with a sigh. "I don't remember literature reviews ever being so challenging."

"You sound sad...anything wrong?"

"I don't think you'd like my answer," Vasi said.

"You were hoping I was Alessio, weren't you?"

Vasi waited a beat before responding. "Maybe. I just thought he would've called by now to...I don't know, check in? Apologize?"

"Girl, you need to get out more. Your whole life can't revolve around your husband."

"It doesn't."

Bryanna snorted.

"Oh, gosh, it does, doesn't it?" Vasi ran her fingers through her hair. Ever since she'd married Alessio, she hadn't had a life outside of him. Classes, she took online. She saw Uncle Thaddeus and Aunt Lily on rare occasions, but that was it. Alessio had become her whole world, which could not be healthy. For either of them. He wanted her to find herself, didn't he? What better time to do that, to...experiment, as it were, than when he was out of town? He'd come back to her being confident in herself, and maybe then he'd trust her. That was what hurt most of all—that after a year of marriage, he didn't put his full faith in her. She thought she'd earned it, but apparently, Vasi was wrong.

"I'm going out dancing tonight with some of the other teachers at the studio. Why don't you come along to show off those moves? I have the perfect partner for you."

Vasi bit her lip. "I don't know."

"If you say you have to ask your husband for permission, I am coming over there right now to kidnap you."

Her thoughts again strayed to her last conversation with Alessio. How suspicious he was of Bryanna and how she couldn't be trusted. But then again, Alessio trusted no one, not even his own wife, so what merit could Vasi put in his suspicions. Bryanna was a friend—the only one Vasi truly had, and she wasn't going to let that relationship slip away. Not for anyone or anything.

"So, what do you say?"

"Count me in, but I don't really feel that I have anything to wear."

"Fantastic!" Bryanna's voice lightened significantly. "Don't you worry about the dress; I think I have just the thing for you. I'll pick you up after work, and we can be on our way."