Taivon: Book Three of the Cantrell Brothers Series

Chapter Thirty

Checking her phone for what was probably the hundredth time, Alix breathed out another sigh. He hadn't called again, and he should be here by now. She fixed her eyes on the door, no longer listening to the soft drone of the TV and waited for Taivon.

He'd sounded terrible on the phone, like he'd just gotten done doing something awful. There'd been so much hurt in his voice, so much frustration and disappointment, like he was giving up on something. She'd seen him cry before. It'd been tough, that was for sure.

She hated seeing him hurt like this. Hated knowing that there some things she couldn't help him with it, but she could be there for him. So there she sat, with Chief sleeping next to her, and her laptop on the coffee table, all thoughts of writing another chapter gone.

There was a knock at her door, but before she could answer, it was opened. A cold breeze blew in. Alix tucked the blanket more securely around her legs; Taivon walked in a second later. His head was down, and he didn't look at her as he closed the door, only staring at his boots, his hands shaking.

“Alix?” he whispered.

“I'm here, Taiv.”

He raised his head then and looked at her. Pain. Hurt. Betrayal. Disappointment. Just a flat, dead look that made Alix's heart clench. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed, still just staring at her with eyes that held so much emotion and so much hurt that Alix could feel what he was feeling.

“Alix?”

“Come here.” She patted her lap.

Taivon didn't say anything. With long, heavy steps, he walked over to where she sat on the couch. His eyes scanned over her before he laid down on the couch, calves hanging off the end, and put his head in her lap. A deep sigh escaped him, warm air blowing through the thin blanket.

Alix cupped the back of his neck. Heat radiated off him, and she could feel the dampness of his skin. She ran one hand through his thick, curly locks before burhsing them away from his forehead. With his head turned to the side, she couldn't see all of his face, but she could tell that his eyes were closed.

“What happened?” Alix knew it sounded like she was babying him, but she didn't care. Sometimes, people just had to be held. So she let herself hold him and continued running her fingers through his hair. “Bad day at work?”

He nodded and curled up closer to her, the hair of his beard rasping against the blanket and the ridges of his shoulders pressing into her side. No words came from his mouth, but Alix knew not to ask again. He'd tell her when he wanted to tell her. No sooner.

She didn't know how long they stayed there, with his head in her lap and some show on Comedy Central in front of them, but it didn't matter. Each breath he took, she felt. He stayed still as a statue, but Alix felt his heart beat going at a slower pace.

Then, after about two episodes of South Park, light snores could be heard. She'd only ever heard that one other time. Their night on the lake, where they'd barely gotten any sleep. Which meant that he must be truly exhausted right now.

The sweat in his hair began to cool with every loud breath he took. She traced patterns in the thick strands, sometimes going lower. Her fingers followed the contours of his face and her palms rasped against the hair of his beard.

He occasionaly murmured something in his sleep. A few times, his bent legs twitched on the couch, but other than that and the snoring, he was peaceful as he slept. The thing that made her smile the most was that Chief slept on the other side of her lap. It was the closest he and Taivon had ever been to one another, without Chief hissing.