Bad Habits

Chapter Forty

I laughed and reached out to ruffle his already messy hair.

"Of course, I am, buddy." Nico released me so he could look up at me with his signature, toothy grin.

"Are you staying?" Matteo muttered hesitantly.

I nodded, "Yes, I am boys. I'm going to be staying with you guys for as long as I can, okay?"

Nico looked down at his feet, "What about Mom?"

"She's going to be okay, boys. She'll be back soon, she just needs..." Aurora was smiling softly at me when I looked up, saying, "...rest."

The twins both let out sighs at the same time.

The tension in the air was thick, so I put on a big smile and said, "So, who wants pancakes?"

++++

The boys had quickly gotten dressed before running back out of their room to come help out with breakfast.

I had decided on making blueberry pancakes for them since it was their favourite... and possibly because Aurora had never tried them before.

When she told me that, I swear I turned as white as a ghost. She had laughed at my shocked expression, and popped a blueberry into her mouth nonchalantly.

"Are you serious, Aurora?" I asked her, the shock radiating through my entire body.

She hoisted herself up onto the kitchen island with a small smile on her face. I slowly made my way over to her just as she said, "I'm serious, baby. I've never tried them before... but I'm still excited!"

I put my hands around her waist and gently slid her closer to me. Her legs instinctively spread apart, but I ignored the movement and stepped in between them.

Her hands found my hair, and her lips found my forehead.

I was overcome with so much emotion... "I'm sorry, sweetheart."

"For what?" She asked sweetly, running her fingers into my hair.

"For not being here."

"You're here now, that's all that matters to me, and the boys."

"It's just that—"

She hushed me softly, "Nope, no more sad talk Enzo. You are here, and that's all we need right now."

I smiled, ducking my head low.

What did I ever do to deserve her?

She grasped my chin with her one hand and hastily pulled my head up. She smashed her lips onto mine and buried her fingers in my hair again.

My fingers dug into her waist when her tongue slid against mine.

Her hands left my hair and wrapped around my neck—

We were interrupted by two loud groans from behind us.

Aurora's motherly instincts kicked in once again. She laughed as she shoved me off her and jumped off the counter.

"You guys are always kissing." Nico whined.

Matteo rolled his eyes. "They like each other, Nico."

"Yeah, well, you don't always have to be kissing."

"Don't you like Ivy? Wouldn't you want to kiss her all the time?" Matteo smirked when he saw Nico's cheeks turn bright pink.

"I told you I don't like her!" He trotted away from a giggling Matteo.

I clicked my tongue, "Nico likes someone at school?"

Aurora gasped and spun around to gently hit my chest.