LUCIAN
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"I want him dead by the end of December," I spoke into the phone in a harsh whisper, trying not to disturb Mia as she slept peacefully, occasionally moving. "If not before. This has gone on long enough and I don't want this to carry out into the New Year while we're trying to plan."
It was too early in the morning for anyone to be awake. I wanted to sleep but I couldn't with my thoughts going from the love of my life saying yes to marrying me despite the fact that we're currently on the run from a Mafia Don who has no clue where I am or what I'm doing.
"That's easier said than done, Lucian," Theo mumbled, followed by a yawn. "You know I'm already busting my ass enough to get all of the information in quickly but having him dead is something completely different. Maybe life on death row, yeah, but what are the chances of them actually killing the guy? It's a million to one, Lucian."
I ran a hand through my hair and sighed, only to jump when I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. I looked behind my shoulder and saw Mia giving me a tired smile, taking the phone from my hand. She put it to her ear. "Get some rest, Theo. You've already done so much more than we could ever ask of you. We'll see you at breakfast tomorrow."
With that, she hung up. I stared at her with pursed lips and Mia smiled, kissing my shoulder.
"Stop stressing yourself out, Luc," she murmured, kissing up the side of my neck. "We have this time away from all of the problems we had back in Seattle so let's use it to our advantage while we can."
I sighed, closing my eyes. Once I nodded my head, Mia's smile returned and she turned my head to peck my lips.
"Get some sleep," she whispered. "I don't want to be half-dead when I make breakfast tomorrow."
I frowned, opening my mouth to respond. She flopped back down before I could say anything and opened her arms, patiently waiting for me to join her.
"You've been waking up early almost every day, amore," I whispered once I laid with her. I ran my fingers through her hair. "Get some rest. I want you to be energized when we go out."
She nodded dismissively, probably ignoring everything I said, before kissing me one last time. Once she moved her head to my neck, I finally allowed sleep to take over and let my eyes close.
***
I cursed to myself as I flipped the egg, only for it to break and spill across the pan. I was getting frustrated at a bunch of fucking eggs, for fuck's sake. The only reason why I haven't given up and stormed off like a child was because I wanted to make something special for my Mia. She was always cooking for me so I wanted to show her that I could do the same for her.
"What are you doing?"
I jumped and turned around, finding Mia standing across from me in her silk robe. Her hair was in a messy bun and there was a tiny smile on her face.
"Well... I wanted to make breakfast in bed for you but I couldn't get the eggs right," I mumbled. "I guess I didn't realize how much time passed."
Mia chuckled quietly, walking towards me and resting her head on my shoulder, watching as I poked the stupid egg.
"Take your time with it," she told me, putting the egg on a plate and taking a bite with a fork. "You're rushing to flip it and that's why it keeps falling apart."
Mia grabbed another egg from the cart and cracked it open into the pan, then waited patiently.
"How'd you sleep?" I asked, moving her under my arm.
"Amazing," she murmured back with a grin. "Thank you for letting me sleep in. I didn't realize how much I needed it."
I smiled and pecked her lips, only feeling her pull away when she had to flip the egg. I watched her actions as she carefully lifted it with the spatula, then flipped it perfectly onto its other side.
"See?" Mia chuckled when she saw my wide-eyed stare. "Your turn."
I shook my head. "I've already ruined too many eggs."
"Just one more." She cracked the egg in the pan and it immediately began to sizzle. The spatula was put in my hands. "Come on."
I bit my lip gently, watching as its egg whites began to change colour again. I could hear Mia giggling as she watched me intensely stare at the egg, then she told me to flip it.
And... "You failed."
I frowned at the messy egg, feeling Mia kiss my cheek in reassurance. I sloshed the egg in the pan until it began scrambled, then added it to the plate. She turned off the stove for me, then grabbed a fork.
"We can try again another day," she assured me, taking a bite of egg. "It tastes good."
I huffed. "I wanted to make you the perfect breakfast."
Mia chuckled and turned my head. She got on her toes to peck my lips.
"You're so cute," she mumbled against my mouth. "I told you I wanted to make breakfast for everyone, Luc."
I looked away with a grunt. "Well, I wanted to make it for you for a change. Besides, you agreed to let me cook."
"I was also half asleep and didn't know what you were saying," she retorted with a grin. "Come on. The doctor said you need to be off your feet."
I groaned in protest as she guided me to the couch, then sat right on my lap. I stopped mid-groan, looking down at her hips, then back up into her golden eyes.
She raises an eyebrow.
I smirk.
"Don't you... Lucian..."
Mia's eyebrows pushed together when my hips rolled up, bumping against her core. She held my shoulders and breathed out slowly.
"There's eggs over there," she mumbled, her eyes closing when my hands slid around her waist.
I feel my lips curl into a devilish smirk.
"You've got the only eggs I want right now."
Amelia's mouth dropped and she stared at me.
And stared... and stared.
And then, bursted out into loud laughter.
"WHAT?" She gasped out through laughs, tilting her head back. My lips curled up and I watched her have a laughing fit, her small giggles only growing into louder laughter by the second.
"Are you done?" I chuckled, feeling her head fall into the crook of my neck as she giggled. "Stop laughing, it's absolutely adorable—it'll make me laugh."r
Mia smiled, chuckling quietly before running her hand through my hair. I grabbed her other hand, smiling from ear to ear when I saw the sparkle of her engagement ring against it. She saw me staring at it, pecking my lips with another chuckle.
"I can't help it when you say stuff like that," she giggled. "Go eat. All the scrambled eggs and bacon you made is more than enough to get us full."
"You're all I want to eat right now," I mumbled against the shell of her ear. She inhaled sharply and gasped when I gently swatted at her inner thigh. "I'm only behaving because I don't want you mad at me for moving."
Mia let out a breathless laugh and stood up, ordering me to sit back down when I moved to stand. I did so with a huff, watching as she shuffled into the kitchen and grabbed the two plates.
"I like babying you," she admitted as she sat back on my lap, putting my plate between us. "You never let me do it when I was in university."
I didn't respond, feeling my gut churn at the memory just before she put the fork to my mouth. I hesitantly opened it and chewed the giant batch of scrambled eggs, noticing Mia's frown slowly grow.
"What's wrong?" She asked, putting the fork down.
I sighed, resting my head back. "I just wish I was the man you deserved back then. I'm always going to feel horrible for how I was to you."
Mia pursed her lips and cupped my cheeks once I finished speaking, tilting my head back. She looked over my face and then leaned down, pressing her lips to mine. I returned her gentle kiss and cupped the back of her head, feeling her lips curve until she pulled away just as fast.
"You weren't the only one who did some pretty fucked up things during that part of our relationship," she murmured. "We tried to make something out of two confused people; it was just the wrong time for us to be something more than what we were. What matters now is that we've gotten a second chance and look where it's taken us?"
"To a safe house in Canada because I decided to start working under a cartel when my business first started growing?" I responded with a cheeky grin.
Mia rolled her eyes and smiled at me. "No. It's taken us to the house we're going to be staying together in for the rest of our lives and a wedding that we're getting ready to plan in the new year."
She pecked my lips and I smiled slowly. I'm not usually in my head about things but when it comes to everything that Mia and I went through when she was in university, I could think for hours about every mistake I made and what I could have done right. I know she's forgiven me but it doesn't mean I've forgiven myself just yet.
"Keep eating," she ordered, rising from my lap.
I whined. "But I liked you there."
"Too bad." She walked into the washroom. "I'm making some toast."
I huffed and listened, eating another forkful.
"Where is everyone today?" Mia asked after a few minutes, walking back in with some toast.
"In the guest house I told you about," I replied. "That's where they stay at night and when I request for them to."
"They don't sleep in this house?" She said, pursing her lips.
"Nope."
"So when I kept trying to keep myself quiet while we had sex upstairs—"
"I knew," I finished with a smirk. "I just couldn't get over how sexy your eyes look rolled back because you were trying to be quiet."
Mia's face flushed and she quickly looked away from me, trying to hide the stain of her cheeks. I released a chuckle and turned her head, pressing a kiss to her lips.
"You're the worst," she mumbled, angling her head more to deepen the kiss. I gripped her hair and tilted her head more to my angle, hearing her soft sigh.
Then the doors opened.
"God, can't you guys knock?" I gritted out as the men walked in. I groaned when Mia moved off of my lap. "Fucking cockblocks."
She chuckled with the guys and pecked my lips, taking the empty plates and walking into the kitchen. I sighed and closed my eyes, allowing myself to sink into the comfort of the couch.
"We know you told us not to come in here all day but we forgot to tell you that the restaurant confirmed everything," Ren said, an excited smile growing on his face. "You two deserve to get out for a bit. It'll be fun."
I glanced up at Mia and found her already staring at me. When I sent her a grin, her own small smile grew.
"And that was news all four of you had to deliver?" I asked, then recounted. "Theo still sleeping?"
Liam nodded. "He got three hours of sleep max in the last two days. He'll be up around 3."
I sighed and nodded my head, reopening my eyes and looking up when I felt someone scratch my scalp. She kissed my lips before moving my head back to its original position.
"We just wanted to see you guys before you left for the day," Ren said, somehow already right next to Mia.
"You don't even like me, you're just here for Amelia," I grumbled.
She shot me a glare and I huffed, sinking further into the couch.
"Alright, let's go," Xavier said. "They're obviously wanting privacy so get your own private lives and stay out of theirs."
Mia chuckled and waved them goodbye. As soon as they left, she spun around and cheekily smiled at me.
"What?" I chuckled out.
"Let's go back to bed," she said, pulling me up gently.
"Is that code for let's have sex?" I asked, hearing her laugh as she guided me up the stairs. That wasn't a no...
My eyes slowly slid down her figure to her ass and I couldn't help but smack it.
"Lucian!" Mia laughed, swatting my hand away. "No."
"Am I a dog?" I grumbled. "Don't scold me."
"Don't tell me what to do."
She walked down the small set of stairs that led to our bed, laying down. I had just walked into the bedroom when she began stripping out of her hoodie (which was really mine) and giant pyjama pants, settling on one of my shirts to wear to bed.
"You're wasting clothes," I noted, getting in bed with her.
"And? You don't do the laundry. Do you even know how to do laundry?"
"Yes, I know how to do laundry." I glared at her and she smirked. "You're mean."
"You love me," she replied, crawling to the edge of the bed and sitting on her knees. She pecked my lips. "Come on, Luc. I want to sleep."
I chuckled to myself and finally got in bed, moving to my side of the bed. After arranging her million pillows so I could actually feel the mattress, I laid down with a quiet sigh and pulled Mia right next to me.
"Just don't be mad when I wake you up to go," I mumbled.
"We can just sleep," she answered, hiding her face in my neck.
I chuckled quietly and rubbed her back, helping soothe her to sleep.
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WORD COUNT: 2379