"Have I ever told you how beautiful your eyes are?" Val asked, gazing into Noelle's eyes. She smiled, giddily.
"No?"
"Then, I'm saying it now. Your eyes are stunning, Elle" he whispered.
She blushed hard.
"Your eyes are beautiful too, Val" she said, brushing his hair out of his eyes. "But, yours are more beautiful" he winked.
"I'm not having an argument with you" she pouted.
He laughed.
"Well, we've been dating for months but I feel like I've known you far more than that. I- I just.... I don't deserve you, you know. With everything that-"
His voice was shaky with emotion, her heart ached for him. She stroked the scarred side of his face. "No, don't say that. You deserve even more than me, Val. You're a great guy. You have a big heart and you're so sweet. I couldn't have asked for anything less. You're perfect" she said, caressing his face. Tears filled his eyes and a tear rolled down his left cheek. "Don't cry" she whispered, her throat clogging up with emotions.
"I just- everytime I look into the mirror....it all reminds me of who I was. I don't want to be that person anymore but sometimes it just hurts" he said.
"Oh, Val. I want you to know that you're better than who you were. Don't let your past hurt you. I'm right here for you. Always" she whispered, her thumb brushing beneath his eyes to wipe away the tears.
He smiled, his eyes still shimmering with tears.
Val used to be so closed off about his feelings but here he was, pouring out his heart. Noelle admired his strength.
"We'll always make it out of the dark tunnels" she whispered. He pulled her closer to him. "I don't know what I would have done without you. You gave me hope when I was shattered. I tried to push you away but you wouldn't budge. You're so stubborn but I like that about you. Thank you for not turning your back on me when I asked you to" he sniffed. He cupped the sides of her face and kissed her.
"I love you" he said and her heart began to beat faster.
"You don't have to say it back" he rasped, giving her his blinding smile.
"I have known for a while now. I have fallen for you truly, madly and deeply"
Tears filled her eyes as she gazed into his eyes. He was her everything, her anchor, her love.
She loved him.
She knew without a doubt.
"I love you too, V" she breathed, pressing a kiss to his jaw. His eyes widened.
"And I mean it" she said, wrapping his arms around him.
"You're so stunning" he whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
....
"Dre! Put me down!" Ellie squealed, bursting into laughter as he laid her on the bed.
"I didn't want to" he said.
"You were literally carrying four people!" She said, frowning playfully. He sat down at the edge of the bed, massaging her toes.
She moaned, relaxing into her pillow. "You do know how to make a woman go crazy" she said, digging into her favorite dessert that he'd brought her.
He chuckled, gazing at her.
"You're my woman and you're my responsibility" he shrugged.
"What are we going to name the babies?" She asked.
"Well, what do you want to name them?" He asked.
"Um- I'll like our baby girl's name to be Geraldine" she said .
"Are you being serious right now?" He laughed.
"Of course not, okay what about Trisha?"
"Urgh- no.."
"What about Hermione"
"Seriously? From Harry Potter? Are you kidding me? Okay, what about Gabrielle?" Dre asked and her eyes lighted up.
"Yeah. I like it. Gabrielle. Yeah, I like it. Our boys..... What about Giovanni?" She asked.
"I like it" he agreed.
"Gerald?" She said and he laughed.
"Nope, just kidding" she chuckled.
"What about Jullian?"
"I like it. I can almost imagining myself yelling 'Juan! Get your little ass over here!" She said. He grinned, entwining their fingers slowly. Ellie faced him, her lips meeting his
"You're perfect for me"she whispered.
She relaxed in his arms, closing her eyes.
This was bliss.
....
"Congratulations, Tasha" Ellise said, embracing the bride as much as her protruding stomach could allow.
She grinned, kissing her cheek.
"Thank you. You look beautiful, El. Pregnancy suits you" she said and Ellise laughed.
"Why, thank you" she beamed.
Tasha smiled.
"Thanks for coming to the wedding even though it might've been a little inconvenient for you" she said, referring to Ellise's huge stomach.
"It's nothing, Tasha. We are sister-in-laws now, remember?"
"Yeah"
Xanthis and Tasha had just been joined together in holy matrimony. The sight of Tasha all flustered and overly joyous reminded Ellise of how excited she'd been on her wedding day.
She let her gaze rest upon her gorgeous husband who was all smiles as he spoke to Xanthis.
The atmosphere was really nice. Ellise walked around the garden, inhaling the scents of the roses.
"I see you're enjoying yourself" a familiar voice said from behind her and she froze.
Slowly, she turned to face him. It was the devil himself, 'Zack Thompson'.
She took measured steps backwards. Just the sight of him, head held high, posture rigid, psychopathic smirk on his face...It gave her the creeps.
"What are you doing here?" She said, keeping her voice firm.
"I was invited" he grinned.
"What?"
"What?" He mocked, a smirk still plastered on his face.
"Are you surprised? I know someone who is a close acquaintance of the Monteros" he said and Ellise narrowed her eyes.
"Then, what do you want with me?" She spat.
"Let's see, I've come to see my favourite woman" he said.
Her stomach churned with disgust.
"I am not yours. I am someone else's woman, you psycho"
He clenched his jaw, his eyes turning cold.
"I just came here to pass a warning. If you want your child to still have a father, you have to come to me or you'll never see Alexandre again" he said.
"I'm not falling for your stupid stunts anymore. You can threaten me all you want. I'm never going to be yours"
"I see that you've gained confidence. I'm going to give you till tomorrow to make a choice. If you change your mind, meet me at the basement. You know where" he said.
"Forget it, Zack. I'm not changing my mind" Ellise said.
"I don't pardon anyone who takes what belongs to me. You owe me your life. You should know what awaits your husband. I'll see you soon, my love" he said.
Ellise turned to see Dre approaching but when she turned back to look at Zack, he was gone.
"Are you okay?" Dre asked, giving her a kiss when he got to her. She leaned into his embrace, closing her eyes.
She pressed a kiss to his chest, right where his heart was. "Zack was here" she whispered and he stiffened.
"He was here? Did he hurt you?" He said, jaw clenched as he looked her over.
"No, relax. He didn't. He threatened me, though. He tried to blackmail me" she said.
Dre placed a hand on her huge stomach, protectively.
"What did he say?" He asked.
"He told me to come to him if I needed my husband to be alive. He threatened to kill you. He asked me to meet him at the basement but I refused. Dre, I'm sick of him thinking he can fool me again. I'm sick of the psychopaths that despise my happiness" she sighed.
Dre rubbed her back, soothingly.
"Come on, sweetheart. Let's go home" he said and she nodded tiredly. He suddenly swept her off her feet, carrying her in his muscular arms.
"Dre!" She yelped.
He chuckled, carrying her towards the parking lot.
"Put me down, Dre! I can walk" she grumbled.
"No, my queen. You're obviously exhausted" he said, smiling.
She grinned as he placed her in the car, beside the driver seat. He got into the car and turned on the ignition. Slowly, he eased out of the parking lot.
He looked very calm but since she knew him well enough to be able to tell that a storm was raging inside of him. She bit her lower lip, placing a hand on his thigh.
"It's okay to be worried but don't get stressed" Ellise said.
"I'm trying not to get stressed over it but just the fact that Zack had been there with you, is making me really upset. What if he'd hurt you and the babies? What would I have done?" He said, shaking his head.
"But he didn't do anything. I'm fine, our babies are fine" Ellise said.
He was tensed up. She could tell by the way his grip on the steering wheel, tightened. His knuckles had turned white.
"Come on, daddy. Stop being worried. Me, Jullian and Gabrielle don't like seeing you so worried" Ellise squeaked and Dre laughed.