I walked into the huge hotel room and closed the door behind me. According to Gabby, Maddox and Aspen were long asleep in their rooms. I nearly cursed her out for leaving them in the hotel room by themselves but then she told me that Kai had gotten back from the strip club early. That definitely wasn't expected. I thought she'd be out with her friends and my brothers until the crack of dawn but it seems I had got in later than she had.
The first thing I did was walk into the kids' room. They were fast asleep and breathing. Thankfully, Trystan didn't do some crazy experiment on them while I was gone. If my siblings were capable of killing Kai and I's old dog, Kanye, then they could mistakenly kill my children. It was a scary thought actually, a very scary one. I liked to think that they all matured since then though. Growing up, they never killed Matty so I guess they wouldn't f-ck up and kill Maddox and Aspen. One could only pray although.
Next, I walked into Kai and I's bedroom. I was surprised to see her awake. She was laying in the dark bedroom with nothing but the light and sound of the flat screen television. When she noticed me, she gave me a slight smile. I smiled back and went to lay in the bed with her. "You're here earlier than I thought," I told her as I snuggled into her. Peering over at the television screen, I saw that she was watching a cartoon. "I'm glad I didn't marry you because of your maturity."
She chuckled ran her fingers through my hair. "Maddox loves this show, and I've watched it so many times with him that I love it. Just like how you love answering all of Dora's questions with Aspen," my wife teased back.
I blushed and rolled my eyes at her. "I do not answer Dora's questions!"
"Yeah, whatever you say, angel," she told me before kissing my nose. "Did you have fun tonight with your girls?" I bit my lower lip as I remembered what had happened. Tessa and I got a bit too close and then I messed up by vocally comparing her and my ex sexually. "You okay?"
"Yeah, it's just...I guess we need to talk," I replied in a voice higher than usual. Before Tessa or anyone else told Kai, I might as well tell her myself. It'd save us from future drama. I'd rather for her to be mad at me now rather than later. My wife looked at me expectantly as I chewed on my bottom lip. How was I going to get this out? "I may or may not have said that Tessa was better than you at sex tonight." Kai began to open her mouth immediately with offense, but I continued. "But only because...I don't know, it was more emotional."
"Emotional?"
"Yes. You're better at the actual act but she's better at making me feel...," I stumbled over my words and lost my train of thought.
"Special," Kai finished solemnly. I nodded and swallowed hard. "So, how can we fix this?"
"You're not mad?"
"I'm a bit annoyed but that's all. Now, she's going to think she has something against me but we can make this work. I can make you feel special, just tell me what you want." Kai took my hand softly and she gave me a sweet smile.
I smiled back, happy that she took all of this so well. "Just less kink, at least sometimes. You know? I want to make love instead of just having sex."
"There's a difference," Kai asked with a chuckle.
"A huge difference. It's more intimate. We haven't made love since, since before Aspen was born," I responded seriously. She stared at me for a while as if she was trying to figure everything out. "Do you get what I'm saying?"
"I do," she said with a nod before kissing my forehead. "I know exactly what you want, Athena. I'm sorry for not noticing that you weren't happy earlier."
"No, I love our sex life, Kai. It just needs to be a bit more diverse. You've never left me unsatisfied, baby. Don't think that." I kissed her lips gently and she kissed mine back.
"Let's do something tomorrow. Just you and I. We can spend the whole day together and find someone to look after the kids. It'll be nice." A grin spread across my face as Kai looked at me hopefully. As if I would deny spending time with her.
"I'd love to."
-
"You ready," I asked Athena as I took her hand in mine. She looked from me and out towards the ice which was before us. We decided to go ice skating in an indoor rink. The thought seemed fun and entertaining until we actually put on the skates and watched a few people bust their asses. She bit her lower lip nervously, obviously having second thoughts about the choice of our activity. I was having second thoughts as well, but I wasn't going to let her know that. Technically, I wasn't scared. I just didn't feel like falling down and having to find a way back up.
"Come on. I won't let you fall," I told her boldly as I placed my hand on her chin. I turned her chin towards me so she was looking straight into my eyes. "I won't let you get hurt." Athena quickly shook her head and looked down at the skates that were on her feet. I sighed and pulled her into a comforting hug. It was kind of cute that she was a bit petrified to get on the ice, but it only made my nerves even worse. I pulled away from the hug. "We've been together for nearly a decade. You know I won't let you get hurt, angel. Just hold onto my hand."
Her hand gripped mine a bit tighter but she gave me a firm nod. I gave her a reassuring smile and took a shaky breath before I stepped onto the ice. My legs went a bit wobbly but I was able to withhold my balance. Athena came in behind me, holding my hand for dear life. "Don't let go, baby," she told me fearfully as she nearly fell to the ground already. We were gliding slowly across the ice.
"I got you, angel," I comforted her as I looked towards her. Experienced skaters raced past us as if ice skating was the easiest thing in the world. I barely even knew how to roller skate. Growing up as a kid, I was a bit sheltered by my grandmother until high school so friendly outings to the movies and roller-skating rinks were something I wasn't familiar with. Ice skating was definitely something I wasn't familiar with and obviously so wasn't Athena. She was depending on me to make sure we didn't fall and embarrass ourselves.
"Oh my God," Athena suddenly screamed. She let go of my hand and wrapped her arms around me from behind. A kid breezed by quickly and from how close he was, I guess he scared the f-ck out of Athena. When she grabbed me, I stumbled and fell down to the ice, which caused her to fall down as well. I landed on top of her and she screamed even louder. I grumbled in pain as I rolled off of my wife. We were way too f-cking old for this. "I won't let you fall," Athena mocked my words with a teasing grin as she sat up and rubbed her back.
We both began laughing at ourselves. We were the only two idiots that were literally on the ice, just sitting there and laughing at our own misfortune. "Okay, you have to help me get up," Athena said as she reached her arms out towards me as if she was a baby. I raised an eyebrow at her as I figured how the hell I was going to get up myself. A groan came from my lips as I tried to stand up, but I fell right back down. My wife laughed even harder as I laid flat down on the ice in humiliation.
I stared at the ceiling before covering my face with shame. How the hell did I fall back down!? I couldn't even get back on my f-cking feet! I'm sure everyone was getting a good laugh out of this. Athena certainly wasn't the only one enjoying this! Some booger-infested kid was getting a real chuckle out of me. "Are you okay, idiot," a small voice asked me and I felt a pressure on top of me. Hands met my wrists to move my hands from my face. Athena was sitting on top of me as if we weren't in a public place and giggling ferociously.
"It's not funny," I told her with a straight face, even though I knew it was. If it was Athena then I would be laughing just as hard. "You know it's really cold down here. For some reason, I wasn't expecting an ice rink to be cold," I grumbled as I sat up on my elbows. Athena just smiled at me lazily. "What?"
"Nothing. I'm just thinking about how the hell we're going to get back on non-icy land. Do you think they have some kind of rescue machine for old farts like us," she joked.
A chuckle came from my lips as I looked up at my beautiful wife. "You're the one who's thirty, angel. You robbed the cradle!" Athena pushed my shoulders and scoffed in offense. I chuckled even harder and she put her hands on her hips.
"You're barely a year younger than me," she pointed out. She was right. Soon I'd be thirty too, but it's not like I truly felt old. I still felt as if was in my early twenties.
"Don't be so offended, angel. You're one hot MILF and I love you." I shot her a wink and she rolled her eyes at me. Even though she tried to act like she was annoyed, she couldn't resist and gave me a peck on the lips. "I need more than that," I mumbled once she took her sweet lips off of mine.
"Help me get off this ice and you can get more," she told me before giving me a wink right back. I groaned and sat all the way up. Athena got off of me and once again it was my turn to try to get to my feet. This time, I took things more slowly. I managed to find my balance and stood up straight. I reached out to my wife's outreached arms and pulled her up. She held my hands tightly as she kept her balance.
She looked at me with thankful, deep blue eyes. "Now, where's my kiss, angel," I asked as I slowly released her hands. She almost panicked, but I placed my hands on her hips and pulled her close to me. "I still got you," I whispered to her with a bit of smirk. She smiled before leaning in and giving me another kiss on the lips. This time it wasn't some measly peck. Her arms wrapped around my neck as our lips moved together rhythmically.
"Get a room," I heard a kid yell as he skated past.
I pulled away from the kiss immediately and called after him, "Get your own business and mind it, motherf-cker!" Athena giggled and quickly covered my mouth.
"Are you crazy!? You know if someone said that to Maddox you would kill them," she said as she continued to giggle at me through her words.
"That was the same show off kid that made us fall," I exclaimed.
Athena shook her head and took my hands. "Just get me the f-ck off this ice and to the concession stand. I'm starving."
I managed to get Athena and I off of the ice without falling. The first thing we both did once we got off the ice was take our skates off. We returned them and found ourselves something to eat at the concession stand. "I'm never ice skating again," Athena said as she laughed little bit. I looked from my food and towards my wife. A smile spread across her face, and I smiled as well. It was so nice to see her so happy, especially with me. I'd do anything to keep that gorgeous smile on her face.
"Me either. So, tell me, angel, where do you want to go next? I think you should pick this time around. We can leave tomorrow and go anywhere you'd like."
Her smile grew a bit wider. "Really?"
"Yeah. Why not? So, where will it be, angel?"
"Chicago," Athena replied almost immediately. I laughed out loud as soon as I heard the answer. Obviously, my ears were deceiving me. No way Athena would want to go back to Chicago. She hated it. Most importantly, I'm sure the last thing she wanted was for me to go back and get caught back up in the cartel. "I miss Harper, Michaela, Kat and Jasmine. Plus, I'm sure it'll be unpleasant but I'd like to see my father. I know that it's dangerous with you being who you are and all, but wouldn't it be nice for the kids to sit down and meet their grandfather. They've never even saw him before. They can see Franco, too."
"Yeah, it'll be like one big, happy reunion except there's one thing Athena, when I go back, who's to say I won't get drawn back into the drug game," I asked Athena seriously. You would think I would have self control being a twenty-nine year old woman, but every time I stepped foot into Chicago I had to do something. I had to tell someone what to do. I had to make sure the members of my crew were safe and doing their daily tasks. It was like an addiction. It was hard enough letting go and passing over the torch of leadership over the phone but to actually be in Chicago and not have anything to do with the cartel was going to kill me.
"This trip is supposed to be for us. Us and our family. If you were able to put aside your title as a drug lord away for me, then I know you can go to Chicago. You can go to Chicago and not be tempted to hurt anyone or to handle drugs. I believe in you, Kai. You're changing. I can see that." I chewed on my bottom lip as I stared at Athena. She was right. I could do this. I could go to Chicago and live normally. I didn't have to negotiate any drug deals with fellow drug lords and I didn't have to kill people or rivals over disloyalty. I could just go and cherish my family and those that cared the most about me. Plus, we'd only be there for a couple of days. I could contain myself for that long.
"Chicago it is, angel. We'll get packed tonight and leave tomorrow."
-
Do you think Kai can stay out of trouble in Chicago?