CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

 

Jules

 

A COUPLE OF DAYS later, it’s Thanksgiving and we’re all at Luca’s parents’ house. I’ve ignored Theo as much as I can without coming across as rude to the rest of the family. I’d mentally prepared myself to see him again, but it hasn’t been easy avoiding his presence. Not when I constantly feel the pure malice radiating off him or the disturbing heat of his desire. It makes me sick to my stomach.

I wish I could just pretend he isn’t here, but I refuse to be impolite in front of the rest of the family that I’m learning to care for. I’ve only had a couple of opportunities to be around Helen and Wyatt, but from the beginning they’ve accepted and welcomed me into their family without question. And Ella, she’s become a friend. Vicki is still an unknown, as I’ve only seen her a couple of times and she’s always quiet. Her eyes were watchful as we were introduced, her arm possessively wrapped around Ella’s waist. I know her wariness stems from her love of Ella and her family, but I hope over time she’ll come to like me.

Aria. My heart expands every time I think of the sweet little girl. She reminds me so much of my baby sister. I ache with the misery of not having Teresa in my life, but Aria makes that ache not so pronounced. She’s only been in my life a short period of time, and I’ve only barely gotten to know her, but I’ve already started to love her as if she were my own. I’ve missed her so much over the last few days.

And Luca. My eyes sweep across the yard to find him standing with his dad. He has his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes are on me as his dad talks to him. I never would have thought it was possible for me to care for someone who has caused me so much pain in the past. I’m glad I don’t remember what happened all those years ago. On one hand, I’m terrified that if I do remember, it’ll spoil what I feel for Luca. On the other, I wonder if it would even make a difference. I don’t want to take the chance.

Luca has either stayed by my side or had his eyes on me since we arrived. With the weather being so beautiful today, Helen wanted us all to eat outside on the patio set Wyatt bought her a couple of months ago. Luca and I have both acted very platonic, not wanting his family to think anything is going on between us. Even so, I know his parents and Ella know something is going on. Luca hasn’t really been secretive about his animosity toward Theo, even though he hasn’t outright said anything. I’m not the only one Theo has been shooting daggers at with his eyes. Anytime Luca is near me, he alternates the hateful looks between Luca and me. The worried gazes from Helen and Wyatt aren’t lost on me, but I’m grateful they haven’t said anything. Yet.

A small tug on my hand has me clearing my mind and looking down into a set of beautiful blue eyes.

“Hey, Aria.” I smile at her.

Her eyes are somber, too somber for her a girl her age, and it hurts my heart.

“How come you don’t live with me and Daddy anymore?”

I’ve been waiting on this question and have tried to prepare for it, but I’m not.

I squat down so I’m on her level, keeping her small palm in my hand, and try my best to explain my reasoning in a way she’ll understand.

“I loved living with you, but your dad and I….” I take a moment to find the right words. “It’s just best for your dad and me not to live together.”

Her brows pinch together into a frown and indents form in her chin as she thinks over my answer.

“Is it because he hurt you?” I hold in my shock at her wobbly question, but she’s not done. She steps closer to me, her eyes pooling with tears. “I saw Daddy that night. I saw him hurting you. Why did he do that to you, Jules?”

My nose burns and my throat bobs as I fight back a quiet sob. This precious little girl should have never witnessed anything so vile, and it makes me physically sick and immensely angry that she did. I thought she hadn’t seen what her dad was doing, because she never asked me about it, but apparently, I was wrong. Silently, I condemn Theo.

When her chin quivers, it crushes my soul, and I pull her against my chest. Her tiny arms wrap around my neck and she hugs me just as tight as I hug her. My eyes lift and are caught by Luca’s worried ones. When he looks like he’s going to come over, I subtly shake my head, letting him know it’s okay. The last thing that needs to happen right now is for him to know that Aria saw what Theo did. I have no doubt Luca will lose his mind and go after Theo, and Aria certainly doesn’t need to see that. Her innocent eyes have seen enough.

I pull back and wipe away Aria’s tears. Cupping both of her cheeks, I make sure her eyes are on mine.

“I’m okay, sweetie. There are times when things happen that make people do things they normally wouldn’t do. It doesn’t make them a bad person, though.” I refuse to damage Theo’s character even more in Aria’s eyes. “I know he’s sorry for hurting me.”

Her lips purse out into a scowl, but luckily the tears have stopped. “I didn’t like him doing that to you.”

“I know you didn’t and you shouldn’t have seen that. I promise he won’t do it again.”

“Because you’re not coming back?”

Her question sends a shard of pain through me, because I can see the hopeful expression in her eyes that says she wishes I would.

“No, baby,” I say gently. “I’m not coming back. But even if I did, I know he wouldn’t do it again.” When her expression turns sad again, I can’t help but add, “I’ve been staying with your uncle Luca. Maybe you can come spend the night sometime.”

Her eyes light up, but then dim after a moment. “Daddy won’t let me,” she says sadly. “He says I can’t stay with Uncle Luca anymore.”

That raises my anger again. He’s forbidding her visits to Luca because he’s mad at him and me. Luca loves Aria to pieces, and Aria loves him the same. His punishing Luca is also affecting his daughter.

“We’ll see what happens,” I tell her.

She nods dolefully. “Okay. Daddy hasn’t been very nice lately, so he’s been letting me stay with Gamma and Pa a lot.”

My throat closes, but I somehow force out the words. “Has… has he hurt you?”

Her eyes drop, and her words are mumbled so low I almost don’t hear them. “No. He just says mean things sometimes.”

My heart rate settles fractionally. Although verbal abuse is enough, I’m relieved he hasn’t hurt her physically. Theo wouldn’t have to worry about Luca coming after him, I would have myself. I’m meek and quiet most of the time, but the thought of Theo harming Aria sends rage rushing through my veins.

“Remember when I said people do things they normally wouldn’t?” At her nod, I continue. “Sometimes those things upset people so much they are mean to the ones they care about. For some people, that’s the only way they know how to get rid of the ugly feelings inside them. But it doesn’t mean they don’t love the ones they hurt. I know your daddy doesn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

I can tell she doesn’t fully believe my words from the way she’s biting her lip, and it makes me wonder exactly what he’s said to her. This is something else I’ll be talking to Luca about. I don’t like knowing Aria’s living in a place that makes her feel so uncomfortable, but I’m not really sure what can be done. Maybe he can talk to his parents about having them to talk to Theo. Ill feelings aside, he needs to know how much he’s hurting his daughter.

I look down at Aria’s hands that are clasped together in front of her. Something warm invades my chest at seeing her colored nails. They match my own. Our toes match as well. Seeing some of the color has chipped away and wanting to bring a smile back to her face, I take her hand in mine.

“I see you need a touch-up. I’ve got the polish in my purse. Want to go paint our nails again while we wait on the turkey to finish cooking?”

Just as I had hoped, Aria’s lips form the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen. “Yes!” she exclaims excitedly.

I stand and look over at Luca. His eyes are still on us, but the worry has faded as he sees the smile on both Aria’s and my faces. His lips tip up into the half smile I like to see on him. I motion my head toward the house to let him know Aria and I are going inside. His eyes dart around the yard, and I follow them until they settle on Theo, who’s sitting in a pair of lawn chairs with Helen. When Luca’s eyes come back to me, he lifts his chin.

I lead Aria into the house as she babbles away about the movie she and her Pa went to see a couple of days ago. After grabbing the fingernail polish from my purse, we both sit at the kitchen table. She does my nails first, and it’s so cute because she sticks her tongue out the side of her mouth in concentration, just as she does when she draws. I don’t mind the smears she leaves behind on my cuticles. She laughs as I dramatically shake my hands in the air to dry them. I do hers next, and I laugh at her when she does the same.

“I’ve missed you so much, Jules,” she says after I put the polish away.

I pull her into my arms. “I’ve missed you so much too, Aria.” I step away and gaze down at her. “I promise we’ll get to spend more time together.”

It’s a promise I plan to keep, somehow or another.

“I’ve got to go potty. You go on back outside, and I’ll be there in a minute.”

She skips away, and I’m glad her mood is lighter than it was earlier. She deserves to be happy all the time.

I go to the bathroom, but not for the reason I gave Aria. I need a moment alone to gather my emotions. Seeing Aria, spending time with her, and finding out she saw what Theo had almost done to me has frayed my nerves. I pray to God she doesn’t know exactly what Theo was doing. Revulsion has my stomach clenching at that thought.

I splash cold water onto my face to bring back color into my pale cheeks. My eyes are a little red, but hopefully no one will notice. To mentally prepare myself to go back outside, I pull in several deep breaths before grabbing the door handle. As soon as I pull open the door, I’m forcefully shoved back inside, and it’s slammed shut again. My back hits the sink and a sharp pain radiates up my spine. Fear skitters through me when Theo pins me with his hate-filled glare. His back is against the door, and I can practically see the rage pulsing from his bunched-up muscles.

“Wh-what are you doing, Theo?” I try to put as much strength into my tone as possible, but it still comes out shaky.

“Has he fucked you yet?” he hisses through clenched teeth.

My eyes widen. “What? No!”

Fear seeps into my bones when he leaves the door and stalks my way. I try to press myself closer to the sink, but I’m already as far against it as I can be. My eyes dart around the room, looking for something to use as a weapon, but there’s nothing. And the room is too small for me to slip by him. I’m stuck with no way of getting out. I lean back until my head hits the mirror.

“You’re a fucking liar,” he seethes. He doesn’t stop until he’s standing right in front of me. “I can fucking smell him on you.”

He grips my hair and yanks my head forward. His face goes to my throat where he sniffs along the skin. I press my hands against his stomach and try to push him away, but he doesn’t budge.

“Theo, please. Let me go,” I beg, my voice hoarse.

He pulls his face away and the look in his eyes is feral. It makes my fear skyrocket. Something is seriously wrong with him.

“Let you go?” he asks. The laugh he releases sounds demented. He leans his face closer to mine and spit flies from his mouth and lands on my lips when he snarls, “I’ll never fucking let you go. You’ve always been mine, Jules. Not fucking his.”

I try to turn my head away, but he holds me in place by my hair. His hold is so tight it feels like he’s ripping the strands out. When I start to struggle against him and dig my nails into his sides as I continuously try to push him away, a frightening growl leaves his lips.

I open my mouth to scream, but then I’m shocked momentarily silent when he quickly turns me around to face the mirror. My pelvis hits the sink when Theo shoves his hips into mine. I cry out at the pain in my hip bone. I lock my eyes with his in the mirror, and I see his intent. Before I can scream for help, pain explodes in my head when he slams my forehead against the mirror. My vision goes blurry and I’m dazed, but I feel warmth trickle down my face.

“Theo….” My voice is weak, and I trail off when another wave of dizziness hits me. I try to hold myself up by putting my hands on the sink, but they’re wrenched behind me.

“You’ll learn soon enough who you belong to,” he growls. “Now I have to fuck his stench off you,” he finishes on a mutter.

My leggings and panties are ripped down my hips to my knees. Some of my strength comes back, and I try to yank my hands away from him, but his grip is too tight. I jerk and pull and struggle until another wave of dizziness hits me, and my vision blurs.

Looking ahead through the hazy fog, I notice the glass in the mirror is shattered, but I still manage to see Theo in the broken shards. He looks deranged as he works to unbutton his pants using only one hand.

My head pounds and tears leak from my eyes, mixing with the blood still running down my face. Fingers probe at my opening, then pain shoots through me when he shoves one inside.

“Oh, God, Theo. You have to stop. Please, don’t do this.”

“Fuck you, bitch. I tried giving you time, but you were so fucking against having anything to do with me. It’s time I do what I should have done from the beginning.”

When I feel his dick poking at my core, I cry. I cry so hard that I know my soul is fracturing into tiny little pieces that’ll be impossible to put back together. I cry until my heart splitters and starts weeping, bleeding out just like the blood that’s steadily flowing from my face and into the white porcelain of the sink.