A Lifetime With You by Athrhteera

Alena

Matteo and I laid on the balcony as we stared up at the night sky. He had prepared a thick quilt for us to lay on along with a big blanket and pillows-we had done this a few times throughout our marriage, something we enjoyed doing because it helped clear our minds. Sometimes, our deep talks were out at the balcony just like this.

It was a hundred times better than laying in our bed and staring up at the ceiling.

I snuggled close to Matteo, loving the way he slowly rubbed my lower back. We were in a comfortable position and I couldn't help myself but be reminded of the good times we had before we lost ourselves. It was a nice feeling to recreate this moment.

He turned to look at me before he kissed my forehead, showing affection.

I smiled, "Thank you for tonight."

"For what?"

"For the delicious chicken rice."

"Anything to keep your tummy full, Alena."

We laid quietly for the next few minutes as we gazed up the clear sky, counting the stars. The weather was perfect tonight even though slightly windy but we had each other to warm up. Besides, we were wearing sweatshirts and sweatpants.

I was careful not to lay on my broken rib, afraid it was going to hurt and longer to heal.

"Matteo," I called out before glancing up at him.

"Mm?"

My husband had his eyes closed and I couldn't help but stared at him a bit longer. It had been awhile since I had the opportunity to be this close with him, amazed by his beauty. Despite the dark circles under his eyes and the slight frown in between his brows, he was the definition of true beauty.

Besides, I had caused those dark circles and the frown to appear

I took my time to admire his clear skin, thick and dark eyelashes, and pinkish plump lips. If I had asked the younger me, the one who got cheated on, I never thought I ended up being with Matteo Lerclerc.

Honestly, I never thought I was capable of finding and falling in love again after being cheated on. The trauma had left me crying for weeks, blaming myself for never being good enough but with Matteo, everything went smoothly. I felt perfect. "Are you happy with me?" I asked, slightly hesitating.

Matteo had always showed and convinced me about his true feelings. He never wanted me to doubt him because he knew how anxiety could kill but he never made me regret asking questions. He knew the mind could be a scary place and he -cleared it, every single time.

"I'm very happy with you. Why do you ask?" He responded.

I shook my head, "Just a thought."

"Is there something bothering you, baby?"

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"Nothing. I just want to know if you're happy with me," I replied.

3

We both pulled apart to get a better look at each other, knowing our eyes couldn't lie. For someone as tough looking as Matteo, the only way to find out the truth from him was through his eyes.

Men like Matteo, Alexei and even Papa were good liars. They had trained themselves to lie if they were in a certain situation but if we looked closely into their eyes, we could easily tell if they were telling the truth or not. I had learned this from Papa growing up because he had the softest gaze whenever he looked at me. Papa couldn't easily lie to his daughters, he loved us too much.

Whenever I dropped the bomb on Matteo, asking him random but deep questions, I always wanted to look into his eyes because that way, I'd be able to tell if he was being honest. As far as we had been together, not a single lie slipped his mouth.

"Alena... ever since you came into my life, I had been the happiest man alive." He said, caressing the side of my face with adoration.

My lips curved up into a smile as I let myself drown in his brown orbs.

"Do you ever wish things could be different between us?"

"I never thought about that. For all I know, I'm already content."

"You know... the thing with Marco-"

He cut me off before I could finish my sentence, "What happened with Marco is not your fault, baby. Our little angel was too good for this world. We both know that he's in a better place and one day, we'll be reunited again."

I frowned, "You believe in all of that?"

"Sometimes I do. It keeps me sane,"

"Why? Why do you need to hold onto your beliefs?"

"Because I know there's more than just this life and in every lifetime, I'd choose you."

I breathed out, "I just wish Marco was here with us."

"I do, too but let's not blame ourselves, okay? We still have each other. Another thing to be very grateful for," he replied before kissing my forehead again, leaving my cheeks to heat up at the feeling.

I had been with this man long enough but it felt as if we just met yesterday. As if we were two young lovers who couldn't stay away from each other even though that was far from the truth. We were two grown adults who found love again when we had given up the first time.

"Do you think we'd get another Marco?" The question slipped my mouth before I could stop myself; I didn't want to question it like that but I had always wondered if I could get pregnant again after what happened.

I was still scared of the possibility of losing my baby. It was a feeling I never wanted to experience ever again but I knew it was worth the risk, to try when we were ready.

"When the time is right, we'd have a mini us."

"They would be too adorable to resist."

"I can't agree more."

Matteo and I continued to talk about our future. The plans we made in the next few months, on where we wanted to travel- we decided on Iceland, somewhere peaceful and beautiful. Neither of us had the chance to travel to Iceland before and we 2/4

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thought it was going to be a great experience for the both of us.

I had gotten excited at the thought but I needed to focus on getting better first. The broken rib and the fractured arm were not a joke, they had been painful. I was still recovering from the bruises as well, they were going to take awhile to disappear. Luckily for me, I was still on maternity leave.

We snuggled close to each other as we fell asleep. Matteo had his arm wrapped around my waist while I took up most of his space but he never complained, he seemed to enjoy the warmth of my body. I, on the other hand, enjoyed the comfort of his touch. It was already an hour past midnight when we had fallen asleep.

So, when I woke up, I thought it was already morning. However, it was only four in the morning and Matteo was still sound asleep beside me; the soft snores were heard as he faced me. This must had been the first time he could sleep deeply. I appreciated my view, loving how at peace he looked.

I couldn't help myself but leaned forward, kissing his lips. The softness of his lips could always melt me even though we had kissed for a million times before. I couldn't get enough of him.

To my surprise, he kissed me back before slowly opening his eyes.

They were slightly red and teary but he blinked them a few times, trying to get a better look at me-he was probably deep in his sleep and I had bothered him. I felt a bit guilty but I didn't regret it at all. "What's wrong, baby?" He asked, his sleepy voice a bit husky.

"Nothing. I'm sorry I woke you,"

"Don't be."

Then, he closed his eyes again before pulling me close. I found it slightly entertaining because it took him less than five seconds to fall asleep again and I decided it was best for me to join him.

Matteo was like a baby whenever he slept. He cuddled to me like a child because he focused on his own comfort but I never complained either, I loved the physical touch. I always wanted him to be close to me even if we were just sleeping.

"I love you, Matteo." I muttered under my breath before slowly kissing his cheek, not wanting to wake him up the second. time.

As I closed my eyes with a smile plastered on my face, I felt him snuggled close before kissing my forehead. We stayed in the same position for the next few hours as slept. It was the best sleep of my life ever since what happened and I couldn't wait to experience it all again throughout our lifetime together.

As a married couple, I never had to worry about not having enough time together because even if we had a busy day, we were always going to return back to each other at night. We were always going to cuddle, kiss and make love.

I never had the chance to choose my own life as I grew up but I was glad I chose Matteo as my husband, my lifetime partner, If it weren't for him, I would never experience true love and happiness.

My eyes blinked a few times as the sun began to appear and I knew it was already morning. We weren't cuddled close anymore but when I turned, I saw Matteo still sleeping beside me.

I couldn't help but smile at the beautiful view, liking how he was the first thing I looked at when I woke up.

As I sat up straight, I began to stretch before turning to look at Matteo once more. My lips curved up into a cheeky smile as I ran my hand slowly down his pants, meeting the bulge in between his legs. It was my favourite part every morning because I knew his morning wood wasn't something I wanted to miss.

B

I sneaked my hands inside his pants, feeling his skin.

G

Matteo began to move in his sleep as he slowly opened his eyes, seeing me giving him a handjob. It was probably a funny

view for him because my other hand was in a cast and I couldn't move as much due to my ribs.

"Good morning," he said with a smile. "What are you doing in there?"

"Touching what belongs to me."

"You're a naughty girl, aren't you?"

"Just with you."

"I can tell."

"And you're already dripping," I smirked.