Page 43 of It Destroys Me
I was a bit overwhelmed by the way he greeted me, like I was his woman and not just someone he was sleeping with. I was so caught off guard that I didn’t even answer the question, lost in his gaze and the way he kept his hand on the small of my back.
Axel wore the biggest grin.
Scarlett came around the corner wearing an apron with flour stains on the front. “Good, you’re here.” She immediately enveloped me in a quick hug. “The dough is ready. We just need to prep all the ingredients.”
“Sounds great,” I said.
“Make sure you make extra,” Axel said. “I was just bragging about your pizza to Theo, and I’d like to prove I’m right.”
“You think I’d ever cook without making something for you?” Scarlett teased.
Axel smirked. “That’s my baby.”
“Come on.” Scarlett led me from the study. “We’ve got work to do.”
When we stepped out of the room, an older woman came down the stairs holding the child I’d heard crying earlier. She continued to wail in her arms, fists bunched together for battle. “I’m sorry, Scarlett. I can’t get her to stop crying. She won’t take the bottle. I’ve already changed her diaper?—”
“I know what she wants.” Axel came out of the study and took his daughter from her arms like he knew exactly what he was doing. He tucked her in the crook of a single arm then started to rock her from side to side. And like magic, she stopped crying. “There you go, little one.”
Scarlett smiled with her eyes, looking at her husband the same way she looked at her daughter. “You’re her favorite.”
“I’m not her favorite, baby. I think it’s because I’m warm.”
“I think it’s because you’re her father.”
I felt awkward standing there, watching this tender moment between them.
“I can take her,” she said. “Since Theo is here?—”
“Baby, I’ve got her. Now get that ass in the kitchen and get cooking.” He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before he carried their daughter into the study. He dropped back into the armchair he occupied before, his daughter already asleep in the crook of his arm.
Scarlett watched him for a second before she headed to the kitchen.
I walked beside her. “He’s a good dad.”
“Yeah, he is.” She stepped into the kitchen, the counter covered with different doughs. “He’s always been a natural. Me, not so much.”
“Really?” I asked in slight surprise.
“Axel has that…charisma. He makes everyone happy.” She washed her hands in the sink and patted them dry before she grabbed all the produce from the fridge and placed everything on the counter. Tomatoes, basil, artichokes, onions, olives, garlic, and eggplant. “The kids are attracted to it. I just don’t have…whatever that is.”
“I’m sure you’re a great mother, Scarlett.”
“Yeah, but he’ll be the favorite. It’s inevitable.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it too much.”
She turned on the faucet and began washing the produce. “Pat these dry, and we’ll slice ’em up. I’ll check on the sauce.” She turned to the stove and stirred the sauce she’d made from scratch then grated the cheese she’d picked up at the market.
I continued to slice all the veggies and dice the garlic. I didn’t have restaurant experience, but I felt like I was working in a real kitchen.
“What kind of pizza do you like?” Scarlett asked.
“I’ll eat anything, honestly. Margherita is always good.”
“Good choice. I’ll make a couple of each. I know Axel isn’t picky either. Do you know what Theo likes?”
“Um…I don’t know. I’ve never seen him eat pizza.”