Protection Orders
Christopher
When she left, the cabin went radio silent. I stared off at the wall, replaying everything through my head, trying to figure out where I went wrong. I didn’t stay away, but I couldn’t. Now, her brother was dead and her father wanted to burn me alive in a chemical tank or murder me in the most torturous of ways. Maybe he’d make it quick and fast, as long as I was gone. Nothing else mattered.
I heard yelling, which interrupted my thoughts. I tried to comprehend what was being said, but they were too far away.
I sighed as I heard the door open then shut, and waited.
She appeared in the doorway and walked in, kneeling down in front of me. She looked at me with concerned eyes. “Do you want to talk about what happened?”
I sighed. “I’d rather not.” She had enough to deal with. I couldn’t place my burdens on her.
“Christopher, don’t hold back on my account. I can handle it.” She spoke in a stern voice and I knew she meant business.
I hesitated for a moment. “Our parents have a lot in common, but your father is a lot more persistent to prove his point.” I paused and thought about telling her that her father tried to offer me a large sum of money to stay away from her; but she already had enough heartbreak caused by her own flesh and blood. I had to protect her, and not telling her was the only way I knew how.
She covered her mouth with her hand as tears welled in her eyes. “I’m so sorry that you were caught up in this.”
Setting the ice pack aside, I cupped her cheeks, gently wiping her tears away with the pad of my thumb. “Your tears aren’t worth his spiteful ways, Lor.”
She locked her eyes in on mine and I leaned down and pressed my lips to her forehead. Dainty fingers caressed the skin against my scruffy cheeks.
“I won’t let him come between us, Christopher.” She stood up from a kneeling position and gently sat in my lap, pushing her fingers up through my hair at the side of my head. I wrapped her in my arms and laid my head against hers. “I couldn’t stay at my house a moment longer. I had to find you. I came here first.”
“None of it matters now, okay? We’re here and together. That’s all that matters.” She spoke above a whisper against my ear.
“Actually, I have one question.”
She pulled away to look me in the eyes. “What is it?”
“Your tattoo, some of your family members have one in the same spot. I feel like it’s a significant symbol that means something.”
She sighed. “It is significant. Every Castillo family member has a choice to make. They either want in on the family business, or they want to go in a different direction,”
“You mean, the yachting business?”
She shook her head. “Not exactly. My father is the leader of an Italian Syndicate.”
I furrowed my brows, it hadn’t made a lick of sense until now. The boating business, the rich family, the fancy black tie events that took place year round, the Black Diamond Club, the location of the club being on the water? I was dating the mob boss’s daughter. “Syndicate? Is that another word for mafia or mob?”
She nodded slowly. “Yeah.” She spoke barely above a whisper. “If you feel the need to walk away, I would understand completely.”
I ignored her statement for the time being. “Can I see your arms?” I asked after a moment.
She inhaled a deep breath and showed me. “The tattoo was a symbol of me fleeing; but in order to complete the ritual to not join the family business, my father burnt the fleeing birds into my other arm with a black iron stencil. That’s how we’re identified.”
I wasn’t sure how to react. I was horrified for her. I couldn’t imagine agreeing to go through something like that; but I lived through the syndicate’s wrath, I could only imagine what else went on in the Black Diamond Club. One thing was for sure. I now understood Lorelai’s warning about staying away from that place.
“What are you thinking about, Chris?”
He shook his head. “I would never walk away from you, not in a million years.”
She laid her head against mine where it wouldn’t hurt too much. Her warm breath tickled the hairs inside of my ear. Silence filled the space between us as we allowed each other’s presence to sink in. I couldn’t have been more grateful to be back here with her. She didn’t have to speak words to let me know she felt the same way.
Pulling away, she stared into my eyes for another long pause. Perhaps she was trying to identify me through my cut up face. “Chris?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m pregnant,” she whispered.
My lips fell open as I turned to look up at her. “Y-you’re pregnant?”
She smiled. “Yeah. We weren’t all that careful.” Her tone was nonchalant which caused a smile to curve up on my lips.
She was right, we weren’t. “So, we’re going to be parents?”
“That is correct, Captain.”
I stayed silent for a moment before I did my best to look at her and flash my best smile at her. “We’re going to be parents?” I sounded spaced out, which made her giggle.
“Yes! Christopher, snap out of the fake stoner act and tell me how you feel.”
I chuckled softly. “A baby…a little human child? A little bit of you and a little bit of me? Hmm…” I waggled my eyebrows at her.
“Yes, stop goofing around and tell me how you feel!”
I chuckled and flashed her a smile. “Baby girl, I think it’s great. I love you and I know us. We will make it work no matter what.”
Her hand moved under my chin and rose my head, her lips pressing into mine. I returned the kiss and smiled after I broke it. “How are you feeling about it?”
“Well, I’m not sure. I’m afraid of what happens if or when my parents find out. Neither of my parents would approve, and my father acts out on zero remorse, Christopher.”
She was afraid for me, and showed it well. “Then we can’t let them know. We’ll live here on Cakes and Pies, use Planned Parenthood for all of its glory, and in the meantime, I’ll continue working with my dad. We’ll just have to keep our relationship and our little bean a secret until we turn eighteen. We can make it work.”
She looked at me with that same loving look, and smiled from ear to ear. “How are you staying so calm through all of this? You have every right to hate me and want nothing to do with me; and yet, you’re sitting here with an ice pack on your eye looking at me like Blackbeard the Pirate telling me everything is going to be okay.”
I laughed softly. “I love you, Lorelai. No one on this Earth could keep me away from you.”
Her soft hands cupped my cheeks where the cuts ended and her lips pressed against mine in a deep passionate kiss. I did not hesitate to return her kiss, regardless of the fact that we still hadn’t touched on one other important piece of information that probably had her heart shattered.
“I love you too, Christopher.” Her facial expressions softened as I placed both of my hands around her waist and brushed my thumbs against her stomach.
She smiled down at me and embraced my neck with gentle ease. Even under the circumstances of only having one good eye to look at her, I saw the loving expression; and in that moment, I realized I not only loved this young woman. I was head over heels in love with her. I could feel it in the silence, the depth and passion of our love was mutual.
Her words sunk in with our new reality at bay. She smiled down at me and embraced my neck with gentle ease. Inching in closer, I gently attacked her lips with my own in a wistful kiss. Lorelai Castillo placed me under her love spell and I had no qualms admitting it.
She returned the kiss, cupping my cheeks where it wouldn’t hurt. Heavy breaths surrounded us as the moment of passion drove us deep.
Breaking the breathy kiss, she whispered. “As much as I would love to stay in this cocoon with you. It’s not safe for us to stay docked here, Chris.” She spoke above a whisper.
I stayed silent taking in this realization.
“I have a safe spot where no one would find us.”
I leaned in and pecked her lips softly. “Then, we should go.”
***
Later that night, we docked at the Golden Gate Yacht Club. Lorelai turned on the generator to heat the cabin, and I watched as she crawled into bed before I laid behind her. We watched out the window, taking in the lights on the Golden Gate Bridge.
The night grew cold and I attempted to warm her up with my body heat and the thin quilt. “You should sleep.” I spoke above a whisper.
“I couldn’t even if I wanted to.” She turned to lay on her back and looked up at me.
I propped myself up on an elbow and circled my hand over her hip and stomach.
“What about for our little bean?”
She smiled up at me. “There’s too much on my mind.”
I stayed silent for a moment. ”Well, I’m here.”
“It’s everything. My dad trying to make you a victim under his rule of thumb was unforgivable. I’ll always love my family, but I can’t stand back and watch them act selfishly on their pedestals anymore.” She paused. “That’s why Armani is dead, and why you were hurt. The Syndicate has hurt me for the last time, Chris.” She choked her words out in a soft sob. A sharp pain shot through my chest as my heart shattered for her.
We only had each other and I would be damned if I let her down. “Do you have a plan?”
She nodded. “I’ve filed for emancipation. My parents won’t dare to fight it. I know too much. There’s an account with my name on it at the bank. I’ll have access to it once I turn eighteen, hopefully sooner if I play my cards right.”
I pressed my lips to her forehead taking in her words. Lorelai Castillo was the strongest young woman I ever had the pleasure to meet. She was my partner in crime, my hero, the absolute love of my life. She was giving up her family so we could be together and, more importantly, so we could start our own family.
Pulling away, I laid my forehead against hers. “I’ll do my best to support you however you need me to.”
She looked me directly in the eyes, a smile tugging at her lips. “I appreciate that, love.” She snuggled against my chest and I pulled her close as she entangled her legs between mine.
We were finally warm when a loud popping noise came from behind.
“What was that?” I asked.
“The heater kicked off, it’s an energy saver my father set up. It’s designed to rise up to a certain temperature. I think he did it on purpose, so I couldn’t run away and survive the cold nights.”
Except she did run away. We ran together. I would now be responsible for taking care of the essentials for her and our little one to be. Even though her father wanted to disintegrate me in the bay and fought with all of his might to push me away, he did not win. Lorelai saved me and we came out stronger on the other side with or without support.
As long as we had each other, I knew we would be okay.