This past week has been like nothing I could have ever imagined. On the one hand, it has been extremely domesticated, because with Maria unwell, I have been looking after the house and my boys and I love it. The cooking, spending time with Leo, looking after Dante’s needs, it has come to me very naturally, my caretaking role one I feel I was made for. On the other hand, the amount of pleasure I have given and received is more than I ever thought I would have in my lifetime. My cheeks heat as I think about lying naked on Dante’s office desk just a night or two ago, and how much I love his hands on my body, and how I am enjoying everything he is teaching me. It has been so amazing, I keep forgetting that I am on a timeline, until times like this when I feel more tired than usual and my body aches more than it should.

As the house fills with aromas of basil, there is movement at the door, and I am surprised to hear Dante home already as he only left an hour or so ago. Turning the stove off, I wipe my hands on the towel and walk to the other side of the kitchen to where Leo is, as we both turn and smile, evidence of our combined joy at seeing Dante back earlier than we expected.

But it isn’t Dante. It is a woman who staggers into the house looking disheveled. She has two burly men following her, and my heart rate immediately rises.

“Ahhh, can I help you?” I ask her, nerves evident in my tone as my eyes flick between her and the two men, wondering who they are and why they are here. I’m not sure if she is someone who works with Dante’s team, or perhaps someone from Sebastian’s wing. My head jerks back to little Leo when I hear his Lego spaceship fall onto the floor, smashing into tiny pieces, which skit across in every direction, and I hear him gasp. Looking down at him, I notice his eyes are as big as saucers as he looks at the woman, his breathing speeds up, and his hand grabs onto mine as tight as a vice before he slides off the kitchen stool and stands so close to me that we could be conjoined.

“Leo?” I ask gently, sensing the fear in his body. Now I am even more concerned.

“LEO!” The woman shouts, and both Leo and I jump. My head flicks back in her direction, my eyes wide in surprise. As I stare back at her, trying to work out what is going on, she looks between the both of us, seeming agitated. Leo continues to shuffle closer to me, and I instinctively put my arm around him and tuck him into my side.