LILITH
I know I was the type to scare easily but the fear I was feeling now was real.
There was a man in Enzo's house.
He had just walked through the front door and was now taking off his suit jacket, not having spotted me.
Enzo was taking a call from work at the back of the house so I was all alone.
I would have screamed but then, if this person was coming through the front door, they were perhaps not dangerous.
That however didn't let me put my guard down. I warily stood in the living room, my only weapon being the remote in my hand.
Then the man turned around. The remote I was holding slipped and my lips parted upon seeing his face.
He looked like Lorenzo. Almost a seventy percent match, except for the light green color of his eyes and a scar mark on his right cheek.
He dropped the black brief-case he was carrying after seeing me standing across him in the room.
A short silence passed before he slowly walked over to me saying, "You must be her."
Her?
"You're the girl my brother fell in love with, right?" He asked again, putting on a small friendly smile.
"A-Alonzo?" I stammered under the man's scrutiny.
"You know me?" His smile grew as he spoke. "Then he must have mentioned me."
I nodded once before he stretched out his right hand. "It's nice to meet you Miss..."
"Lilith." I introduced myself, shaking hands with him.
Now that he was in front me, he did look a bit menacing but his face turned him into a new person when he smiled.
"I was just passing by, is my brother around?" He asked while looking at the spot Enzo and I had been cuddling all morning.
"He's taking a call outside," I pointed towards the side Enzo had gone to, only for him to appear with a frown on his face.
I assumed it was about his phone call since he smiled at me, his hand sliding down to my back as he pulled me to his side.
"Am I interrupting something?" Alonzo looked between the two of us and I tried to get away from Enzo.
He didn't let go, his left hand securing my waist in an almost possessive way while looking at his brother.
"I didn't know you were coming." Enzo replied, as he mumbled something about his house.
Alonzo looked confused for a second, as if his statement sounded ridiculous but he smiled.
"Then I need to start making appointments." I nudged Enzo's arm to get him out of their staring.
"I think we'll get acquainted next time, Miss Lilith." Alonzo briefly smiled at me and then turned to his brother.
They stared at each other without exchanging another word and it almost made me feel like I was standing in between them.
Lorenzo had mentioned that Alonzo usually traveled for hours to get here. Was sending him away really necessary?
I tugged Lorenzo's arm saying, "Alonzo must be tired, why don't you let him stay for lunch?"
Enzo looked at me in disbelief, his brother coughing at my suggestion.
I know he was doing this for my comfort but this was only going to hurt Alonzo more.
"Aren't you the best big brother?" I softly caressed his bicep, his eyes fluttering before he slowly nodded.
"Then I'll go start preparing?" I asked in enthusiasm, wanting to familiarize myself with his family.
"You're cooking for him?" The smile I wore dimmed when Enzo pulled my hand and looked at me like I'd betrayed him.
"Yeah..." I tried to read the emotion on his face as Alonzo chuckled behind us.
"Then I'm going to help you cook." He spoke with determination as he turned to Alonzo.
"We both know you can barely make tea let alone a full course meal." Alonzo didn't hide his amusement.
He was right there. Enzo didn't know how to cook. I had seen him struggle but the urge to defend him made me say,
"Enzo is usually helpful in chopping onions, washing vegetables and...tasting."
The two brothers looked at me with surprised eyes, Enzo leaning down to whisper, "That's my girl."
Then he turned to Alonzo in the most smug face as if to brag about me standing up for him.
I walked to the kitchen to get the ingredients ready, leaving the brothers to talk.
I didn't hear anything from them after a while so I tiptoed back to the living room to check whether everything was okay between them. They did seem tense at first.
"If you're this jealous over your own brother, I wonder how you handle the other men out there."
I heard Alonzo say in between chuckles. Lorenzo mumbled something I couldn't hear, making Alonzo laugh louder.
Then I guess they were okay.
I went back to kitchen while shaking my head as I wondered how easily Enzo got jealous.
Just like he wanted, Enzo helped me prepare everything and soon we were having lunch at the back garden where the air was fresh.
I listened to Enzo and Alonzo bicker about who was the most athletic. They were equally masculine but I silently supported Enzo.
Their interactions somehow reminded me of Orion. I had seen him just a month ago but I already missed him.
I knew it was going to take another two to three months before I could finally see him again.
"Enzo said you're a doctor," Alonzo pulled me out of my thoughts and I nodded at his statement.
"Do you perhaps work at the same hospital?" I nodded again and Alonzo patted his brother's back.
"An office romance we have here." Lorenzo and I exchanged a glance smiling.
No one knew of our relationship yet. Not even my sister whom I told almost every detail of my life.
This was our fourth day after all, and I didn't want to rush anything since we were still figuring each other out.
"Did things at work cool down? You seemed busy the other time I was here." Alonzo asked his brother.
"Yeah." Lorenzo replied curtly, making Alonzo turn to me with raised eyebrows.
"They're not stressing you too Miss Lilith, are they?" I shook my head, though not understanding who we were referring to.
The hospital staff? Co-workers?
"You might have to put up with their rules for the time you'll be there." From the way Alonzo looked at his brother, it seemed there was something more behind his words.
For the time you'll be there?
It was as if we were temporarily working at the hospital. Enzo didn't look up from his plate and it made me wonder if something was going on.
"I'll go feed the cat." Alonzo picked up our empty plates after we were done.
I shuffled to sit next to Enzo just as his brother disappeared into the house.
"You've been tense since Alonzo came, you're okay?" He looked up from the table and passed me a small smile.
"He interrupted us," I would have missed the small pout he wore had I not been leaning into him.
"But he's your brother." I nudged his arm to reason with him but he just shook his head, mumbling that he didn't care.
His shoulders were still stiff so I knew it wasn't just about Alonzo. Then there were those words he'd said.
I tried not to think much about that at the moment but my instincts were telling me it was not a simple matter.
Enzo's attention was still divided so I cupped his face to get him look at me. He only looked into my eyes for some seconds before looking away.
"Darling?" I traced his stubble with my palm and his head whipped to me in a flash.
He was smiling. He lifted me up so that I was seated on his lap sideways. I blushed at our contact, trying not to overthink.
"You were telling me something, love." I tried to avoid eye contact but he softly lifted my chin to him.
"Let me admire you," he whispered, not making the situation any better as I blushed further.
"I-I spoke with Clarissa on the phone yesterday." I began after composing myself.
"She invited me to her place. I didn't know what to say so I told her I'll ask you first."
Lorenzo stared at me without a word before a smile curved his lips.
"Did you want to go?" He asked while smiling, his eyes fleeting between my eyes and my lips.
"I do," I really did like them so to have her inviting me over made me excited.
"Then we'll go together." I smiled at his reply, even more relieved to have him agree with accompanying me there.
"Enzo?" I called his name to offer more details about the invite but he shook his distastefully.
"Not Enzo. Darling." He expectantly lifted his face, waiting for me to comply with his request.
"Darling?" I couldn't look him in the eye but I called him just like he wanted.
"Clarissa also said that she invited another friend of hers. Her friend's husband will be there too." I shared all the details I'd gotten.
"I know them, don't worry." Lorenzo assured and I smiled, feeling relieved that he was going to be there.
"Then I'll tell her we'll be coming together." I reached for my phone to inform Clarissa.
Lorenzo listened to our phone call while staring at me. He didn't say a word so I didn't mention him to her.
We made arrangements for Friday, a week from now, promising to keep in touch before ending the call.
"She's so friendly!" I gushed as I placed my phone on the table.
"Do you know how ethereal you look while smiling on my lap?" Enzo whispered hoarsely, his hands resting on my waist.
"So beautiful, my love. I can barely hold back from kissing you Venesse."
"Then don't." I whispered almost challengingly and a smirk formed on Lorenzo's face.
"You can't tell a man that and expect them not to pounce on you." He looked into my eyes, adding, "I'll try to be gentle."
And he was kissing me. It was slow at first, him being careful with me as he'd promised. I could feel his hands up and down my back.
Then we picked up our pace, his left hand rising to the back of my head to tug me closer to him.
I shifted in that process, a loud groan escaping him and I pulled away. He eyes were closed and his hands were clenched.
I didn't get what was wrong until I felt something hard shift on the back of my dress, mid thigh.
I wasn't clueless not to know what it was so I quickly jumped out of his lap with a mortified face.
I stood a few steps away from him, still embarrassed at what had happened.
"Lilith?" I didn't turn around to face him but I responded with a small yes.
"I'm so sorry about that." He shuffled behind me saying, "Can you look at me, please?"
I waited for some seconds before turning back to look at him. I couldn't help but glance at his lower body.
It was gone.
Enzo apologized again, still unable to meet my eyes. "I promise I'll behave from now on."
"It's okay," I assured him so that he'd stop apologizing for something natural.
We were awkwardly silent after that. I'd catch him looking at me but then he'd quickly look away.
Alonzo found us in that situation and he seemed to notice that we were behaving strangely.
"Did you argue or something?" I quickly shook my head and he turned to his brother, who barely gave him the attention.
"I was just about to leave," Alonzo looked between us as if to get an acknowledgement but when he didn't, he added,
"A new case got assigned to our team and I need to go supervise. I'll be out of town for a month or two." The last part was directed towards his brother.
"See you then," Enzo replied and I offered my goodbye, letting him have a safe journey.
We were again left in our silence before Enzo spoke. "I didn't mean to make you feel this way. I'm sorry."
He was still avoiding my eyes so I became bold enough to jump into his arms for a hug.
I wrapped my hands round his back as I lay my head on his chest. "You don't have to be that embarrassed."
"You have promised to behave after all, right?" I lifted my face to see him nodding vehemently.
"Then there's no more awkwardness." He nodded again, holding my gaze.
"Then I'll go wash the dishes." I had observed that he kept his kitchen clean, all the time.
"Together?" He suggested before I went back and I agreed.
Getting back to the house, everything was cleaned. All the dirty plates and pans had been washed.
Gary was sleeping in his small space, his feeding and drinking bowls were clean.
"Alonzo seems to have done everything." I smiled while looking at the space around us.
"We should have thanked him before he left. Everything is sparkling."
"He just wanted to praised," Enzo shrugged his shoulders, not acknowledging Alonzo's effort.
"You don't have to be jealous of your brother." I said jokingly but his face was unsmiling.
"I get jealous of any man who gets to look at you this close." He was two steps away, the normal distance you stood while talking to anyone.
Did that mean he was envious of all men I interacted with?
His phone rang before I could interpret that, an annoyed look on his face as he took it out.
That tense look I'd seen on him creeped up on his face, his jaw clenching upon seeing who was calling.
I couldn't help but peek at the caller id.
Director
Lorenzo picked up the call after much contemplation, his whole body tense.
I couldn't make out what they were saying other than the two yeses Enzo had offered.
Was this the hospital director? Why would he call Lorenzo? On a day when he wasn't working?
I watched Lorenzo's face grow tense as the call went on. I was curious about what they were saying but I didn't want to eavesdrop.
"I'll report any findings soon," his voice was slightly higher and it made me wonder if they were arguing.
But with the director?
"Okay, I'll do that." He said after a while and ended the call.
I didn't want to pry into his stuff but I couldn't ignore the troubled face he wore.
"Is something wrong?" He shook away his head, clenching his hands in tight fists.
"Was that the hospital director?" I asked again after a short silence. He looked even more tense after that question.
"Yeah. He was asking for a certain report." Enzo was facing the other way when he replied.
A report? What was it about? Why was this report being requested outside working hours?
I had so many questions in mind but I didn't open my mouth to inquire any of that.
Instead, I leaned into his back and wrapped my hands around him as I urged him to relax and think about work tomorrow.
Today was our day off and the rules stated that no one, irregardless of position, was to assign any task to a doctor on such a day unless it was an emergency.
"You are my biggest motivator, baby girl." Lorenzo turned around for a full hug, holding me tightly.
"Thank you," he whispered into my hair as I softly patted his broad back.
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