I can’t help but smile in return. “That does sound really wonderful. Theo and I have plans. We know what we want, but we just haven’t had the time to sit down and set a date. Work and family keeps getting in the way. We wanted to get married when he reconciled with his brother, but then Marcus went off and eloped, and Theo’s parents were devastated. So, we thought we should wait until everyone had settled down, and now that they have, we have a tour coming up. So, I don’t know. Maybe we can get married in about twelve months’ time? As long as nothing else gets in the way in the meantime.” I glance back over at him where he stands, ready to reach out and take a tray of cooked meat from the side of the barbeque where Gary has been cooking with Elliot. “Looks like lunch is almost ready,” I say, purposefully changing the subject.
“I guess we’d better get these kids dry and fed,” Paige says, uncrossing her legs before she stands and places her glass on the low table top.
I stand with everyone else, even though I don’t have a child to corral, and follow them down the steps to the grass. Elliot is already turning off the hose, and the kids are complaining that they just want five more minutes.
Moving over to Theo, I wait for a moment while he places the tray of meat in the middle of the large outdoor dining table. Then I slide my arms around his waist for a quick hug. He kisses me on the top of my head. “Having a good time?” he asks me quietly.
I glance over at the happy families as they try to contain their children’s excitement. Despite the chaos, not one of them looks even slightly unhappy.
I give him a slight shrug. “I am. I just feel like we’re behind the eight ball when we come here sometimes. They’re always asking when we’re getting married. But once we are, they’ll all be asking when we’re having kids I suppose.”
He slides his arm around my shoulders. “We can’t live our lives to other people’s timetables, gorgeous. But, in saying that, we can get married whenever you want, you know?”
“It takes time to plan, Theo. Time we don’t really have right now.”
He moves to hook his finger under my chin to tilt my head up so I meet his eyes. “I love you. I want to marry you, and I am happy to wait until we can have the kind of wedding you’ve dreamed about. I’m also happy running off and marrying you tomorrow if that’s what you want. I just want you to feel happy. That’s my goal. Happy wife, happy life. That’s what my father’s always said.” He winks, dipping his head as he presses a soft kiss to the end of my nose.
My mouth curves into a smile as I tighten my grip around his waist. “You wouldn’t be happy running off and eloping, Theo. If we do that, what was the point of waiting for you to work things out with Marcus?”
He presses his lips together. “That was before he ran off and got married without thinking about any of us. I love my brother. But he’s not the best at considering anyone else’s feelings. I’ve got to stop worrying about people who aren’t you. You’re the one who’s most important to me. You’re the one who will always be my family.”
I rise up on my toes and press my lips to his, just as Elliot and Paige walk over with their two kids in tow. “Whoa, get a room you two,” Elliot jokes, picking up his son and swinging him easily up onto a chair.
I glance at Elliot and smile, then turn back to Theo and whisper, “We’ll talk about this later.”
He nods, pressing a kiss to my forehead before we break apart and help the others to unwrap all the salad bowls before we sit down to enjoy lunch with our friends, while thoughts of our wedding still plague my mind.
Originally, Theo and I put our wedding plans off because he and his younger brother, Marcus, weren’t talking to each other after a bit of a love triangle ensued between the three of us.
When I chose Theo over him, Marcus lost his shit on stage, left the band and embarrassed the lot of us. Our band, Matiari, survived with Theo as our new lead singer, but Marcus became a mega star when his outburst went viral.
After a couple of years travelling the globe, Marcus finally returned home and met a girl who managed to break him of his man-whore ways. He ended up marrying her in secret on an island somewhere.
The news really upset Theo. He acted like it wasn’t that big of a deal toward Marcus. But privately, it really hurt his feelings. We’d waited all that time for our own wedding just so Marcus could be there, and then Marcus finally comes back to the family, and the first thing he does is run off and get married without us. It was a bit of a kick in the guts to Theo. Once again, he was the only brother who gave a shit, even though he constantly questioned why he did.
So, in the end, the brother who never wanted to settle down is married, leaving Theo and I, who wanted to get married all along, still waiting. I suppose if we suddenly felt a desperate need to marry, we’d set a date and everyone else could go to hell. Besides work, touring, and limited funds, there really isn’t anything in our way. I guess we’ve just been happy the way we are. We’re together and that’s what’s most important right now.
The wedding will happen when the time is right. I just don’t know when that time will be.
Two
When we get home from Gary and Stephanie’s, it’s only four in the afternoon. Most of the time, we don’t have free weekends like this. But leading up to our tour, most of our weekends are free, instead of being booked out with local gigs. Theo takes the time to head into the studio to work on a song he’s been trying to piece together lately.
Like a lot of artists, when a song hits him, he struggles to stop working until he’s finished it. So it was a big thing for me to get him out of the house, and to the barbeque today.
I know he wants to get some work done, but he’s been working tirelessly of late. And since we have the night to ourselves, I think tonight is the perfect night for him to relax. We can work on the song together tomorrow. Tonight should be about us.
Giving him a good half hour to himself, I enter the bedroom to prepare for my distraction. Then I quietly enter the studio.
“Theo,” I coo, standing in front of him as he pauses his guitar playing to scribble something down.
“Huh?” he asks distractedly, with his brow creased as his uses his pencil to scratch out some notes.
“Theo,” I repeat, keeping my voice soft as I wait for him to look up.
He finishes scribbling out his thought then looks up at me with only half his attention.
“Oh, wow,” he says, doing a double take as the pencil falls from between his fingers. Quickly, he sets his guitar to the side, his eyes travelling up the length of my body as I stand before him in nothing but my matching purple lace bra and panties and a pair of black stilettos. I’ve got his whole attention now.
“It’s time to take a break, my love,” I tell him seductively, stepping toward him before I kneel between his legs. Reaching out, I run my fingers over the firm peaks and valleys of his chest until I reach the waist of his jeans. “You need a night off. Sit back and relax.”
He grins, meeting my eyes as I reach out to undo the buckle of his belt, slowly popping the button fly of his jeans, one at a time. Reaching in, I return his grin as I feel his cock, hard and ready for me. I free it from his boxers and run my hand down his smooth shaft as he inhales deeply.
Running my tongue gently around his tip, I continue to move my hand around his length, loving the soft moan that rumbles from within his chest as I slowly take him into my mouth.
Working him with my hand, and my mouth and tongue, I hum gently as my own arousal zings between my legs. Reaching down, I slide my hand into my panties and find my hard nub, knowing that Theo is watching me. He loves to see me pleasure myself.
As I moan around his cock, touching him, touching myself, Theo’s hands thread into my hair, guiding my rhythm as we both move toward our climax.
“Dio mio!” a voice that doesn’t belong, calls out in shock.
I freeze, my eyes going wide as I realise there’s someone in the room. And not just anyone–an Italian-speaking someone. T
heo’s mother. Fuck!
All at once, I remove my hands and pull my head back, releasing Theo’s cock as I turn toward the voice in horror.
“Fuck!” Theo calls out at the same time, his orgasm shooting out of him, hitting me in the face.
“Oh god!” I cry, stumbling backward as I try to wipe at my face and grab for something—anything—to cover myself up.
Frantically, I wipe my hands on an unused piece of paper before grabbing for the only thing in reach and holding it in front of me. That thing is Theo’s guitar.
I’m dying. I’m dying inside. What the hell is she doing here?
“Oh god!” Theo yells, quickly tucking himself back inside his jeans as he stands and gathers me behind him to hide my state of undress. “Mum! What the hell?” he yells at his mother who is madly crossing herself and mumbling something incomprehensible.
Still holding the guitar against my body, I bury my face into Theo’s back, wishing I could just melt into him and never return. I am so embarrassed that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at his mother again.
Three
They converse for a while in Italian, and I once again kick myself for never taking the time to learn more of it. I can’t understand a thing they’re saying. Normally, she speaks in heavily accented English, so it’s never been an issue unless she’s upset and slips into her native tongue. But from their tone, I can gather that neither of them is saying anything nice.
Suddenly, Theo pulls his shirt off and hands it to me, his voice rising to a booming yell as his mother’s rises to a shrill pitch. I set the guitar to the side and drop his soft white shirt over my head. It comes down to my thighs so at least I’m slightly decent.
Oh god, why won’t she just leave?
Their yelling escalates and Theo steps away from me. The absence of his reassuring warmth against me, leaving me bereft. Wrapping my arms around myself protectively, I watch them yell. I can see his mother, poking him in the chest and yelling in his face as she gestures dramatically. Theo is doing his best to stay calm, but he is just as emotional as she is.
Her head shakes and her aging neck wobbles. Each time she glances at me she says the word ‘puttana’ which seems to make Theo even angrier.
I can’t take it anymore. Their voices seem to rise and fill every bit of space in the garage studio until it feels as though my head is vibrating.
“Enough!” I scream, causing them both to stop mid rant and turn their attention to me. “Enough,” I repeat, my voice soft but stern this time. I look between them, shake my head and quickly leave the room before I bust into tears in front of them.
“Nomes!” Theo calls, as I race through the door that joins the studio to the house.
I don’t stop until I’m in the bathroom and have locked the door and turned the shower on to drown out the sound of the world.
Dropping my clothing and shoes on the floor, I step under the steady stream of water and let it blast over my head like some sort of shield against what just happened. Holy shit, I could just curl up and die.
Four
“Nomes,” Theo calls over the sound of the shower as he knocks on the bathroom door. “Come out, babe. She’s gone.”
Holding my hands in front of me, I look at my wrinkled fingertips and let out a deep sigh before I shut off the water. I’ve been in here for at least twenty minutes and the water is on the verge of turning cold.
“Open the door, Naomi. Let me in,” Theo says softly through the door.
Reaching for a towel, I wrap it around myself for warmth and flick the lock on the back of the door, stepping back as Theo opens it and meets my eyes with his sympathetic gaze.
“Come here,” he murmurs, reaching out and gathering me into his arms. I curl into him, resting my head against his chest as I wish that we could go back in time at least one hour, so I could make sure the bloody front door was locked before I went and seduced my fiancé.
“How bad is it?” I ask, knowing his mother’s penchant for dramatic flair.
“She’ll get over it. She always does,” he assures me.
“I won’t get over it. I’m so embarrassed, Theo. I just want to crawl under a rock and stay there. How am I ever going to sit across a dinner table from her again?”
His chest starts bouncing as a chuckle erupts from within.
“It’s not funny, Theo!”
“Babe. My mother just saw me come in your face. It’s pretty fucking funny.”
I cover my face with my hands. “Oh god! Don’t remind me!” I moan.
His arms tighten around me. “Hey, it serves her right for walking into our house uninvited.”
“Note to self–always lock the front door…So, I guess she knows I’m living here now?”
“Yep,” he confirms gravely.
“Bloody hell,” I moan, running my hand over the top of my head in agitation. “What the hell was she doing here? She never drops in unannounced.”
“I have no idea. We were too busy yelling at each other to find out why she really was here. But don’t worry. It’ll all blow over.”
“Yeah, but when? Remember what happened when Marcus and Lisa eloped? She lost her shit and wore black for months! All that muttering and crossing herself around them—what is she going to do after witnessing that?”
This reaction may seem a little ridiculous. After all, Theo and I are adults. We’re engaged, and we’ve been touring the country, and the world, with our band for a few years now. And, we’ve been living together for most of those years. It’s just that Theo’s mother doesn’t know that part. Up until today, she still thought we were living separately.
Here’s the thing. Theo comes from a very religious Italian family. His mother, especially, is very big on tradition and would have an absolute fit if she had realised we were living together before we were married. As far as she is concerned, her boys are ‘good catholic boys’ and they should marry ‘good catholic girls’.
The catholic girl part was the one thing I had right. Although I’m not practising, I am at least christened and went through all of my communion and what not when I was young. But, the ‘good’ part… well, that was already debatable. But now, I’ve completely lost any sort of respect I had in Mrs Bailey’s eyes.
Mrs Bailey. That’s right, I still call her ‘Mrs Bailey’ as if I’m a child coming over to her house to play after school. But what can I say? The woman makes me nervous as hell. When she’s upset, she mutters things in Italian that sound like curses and when her sons disappoint her… words can’t even describe what it’s like when that happens. Drama—she just radiates so much drama!
From what I’ve been told, when Theo went through his Goth phase, she saw him once and lost her shit, claiming that he was breaking her heart because he was courting the devil. She made his life so difficult, that from then on he hid it from her so as not to upset her, but still be the person he wanted to be.
It’s hard to know what will set her off though. When Theo’s younger brother, Marcus, made himself an Internet sensation by ruining our band’s Melbourne gig a few years ago, she barely bats an eyelid. Then, while he took off and toured the world for a couple of years without making any contact with a single one of us, once again, she was fine. “He just so busy,” she’d say in her thick accent. It used to infuriate me because I just knew that if Theo had done that, both Mr and Mrs Bailey would be shaking their heads in disappointment and claiming that he didn’t care about them anymore.
But I guess that’s the difference with the Bailey brothers—Theo was always the dependable one and Marcus was always the one with stars in his eyes. They expected more from Theo than they ever did from Marcus.
The only time she ever reacted badly towards Marcus was when he married a girl they had never met. Mrs Bailey wore black for months, and kept crossing herself all the time like there was some sort of demon in the room. It was ridiculous. But I still don’t think she blamed Marcus. Her negativity seemed to be aimed more toward his wife, Lisa. I
don’t think Marcus can ever do wrong in her eyes.
So, you see, her walking in on Theo and I being…sexual… and finding out that we’re living together before we’ve married, is probably going to give her a heart attack or something. And, it will be primarily blamed on me.
I guess because she still sees Marcus as the baby in the family, she overlooks a lot of his faults. But with Theo, she seems to have very high expectations. Perhaps because he’s the oldest and therefore is expected to be more mature and level-headed. As a result, Theo feels as though he’s a bit of a disappointment. But at the grassroot of it all, it’s always the women in their life who lead her boys astray. My sister-in-law, Lisa, has gone through a multitude of drama at the hands of this woman. And from what I can gather, she isn’t going to be happy until one of us gives her our first-born child as some sort of sacrifice to the gods of overbearing mother-in-laws everywhere.
For a while, she was OK with Marcus and Lisa’s marriage (once she had gone through her mourning period after they eloped, that is.) But then, Marcus and Lisa made it very clear that they weren’t ready to start a family, and that has got her nose severely out of joint again. She just can’t understand the point of marriage unless there are children.
Which brings us back to the fact that Theo and I still aren’t married. Not only are our friends on our backs about when it’s going to happen, but Mrs Bailey is permanently on our case about it – perhaps that’s another reason we haven’t done it yet. Perhaps in some silly way, we are rebelling against her like we’re still teenagers…
I pull away from Theo’s embrace with a dramatic sigh and move to our bedroom to get dressed. He follows behind me, trying to assure me that it isn’t as bad as I think it is until his phone rings.
Beautiful Boxset: Beautiful Series, books 1-4 Page 143
