Chapter 364: Silence
Aria’s POV
By the time Olivia and I finished clearing the dishes, laughter was already echoing from the living room.
I peeked in and stopped at the sight: Kael, the cold, terrifying man, sitting on the floor in a ridiculous pink hoodie, clutching a Switch controller like it was a weapon. Kaleb was beside him, knees tucked up, shrieking with laughter as his kart sped past Kael’s on the screen.
"Unfair," Kael muttered, his voice low, annoyed in that clipped way he got when he was losing.
"You just suck!" Kaleb laughed, bouncing on the carpet. "That’s three in a row!"
I had to slap a hand over my mouth to keep from laughing. Kael... my Kael, who had reduced powerful men twice his age to stammering was getting demolished by an eight-year-old in Mario Kart.
They were both so locked in they didn’t notice me come in until Olivia appeared behind me, wiping her hands on a towel.
She paused to look at me, then Kael and then back at me. Her lips curved into a knowing smile.
"Shut the fuck up." I muttered.
"Whaaa-" She replied with an exaggerated mock offense. "I didn’t even say a word yet." She continued, nudging slightly at me while winking.
"Ugh."
"I’ll let you two be alone." She said, like she was offering help.
"Kaleb," she called next firmly, "time for brushing teeth and bed."
Kaleb’s face immediately crumpled into a scowl. "No! We’re playing."
"You’ve played enough," Olivia said, her tone warning.
Kaleb puffed up, ready to argue, but Kael shifted, setting down the controller. "Hey," he said, his voice softer now, the edge smoothed out.
Kaleb looked up at him immediately. "If you don’t sleep now, you won’t have energy to beat me tomorrow. And I can’t lose to someone who’s half-asleep. Doesn’t sound fair, does it?"
Kaleb blinked. Then grinned, wide and smug. "You’re gonna lose anyway."
But he scrambled up and let Olivia steer him toward the bathroom without another word.
I stared at Kael, who leaned back against the couch, expression unreadable, controller abandoned. That same ache hit me in the chest. He didn’t even realize how much power he had... how quickly he could bend walls down when he wanted to.
"Come on," I said quietly, holding out my hand.
He took it without hesitation.
I led him across the sitting room, past the toys still scattered on the floor, past the sound of Olivia corralling Kaleb into brushing. Into my room, which still carried the warmth of his shower and the faint vanilla of my soap.
It was my turn to wash up and change while Kael sat waiting.
By the time we sank down on my bed, the apartment had gone hushed, save for the soft thumps of Olivia putting the kids to bed. The city noise hummed outside my window, but in here it was just us.
I curled against him, my hand resting over the ridiculous pink hoodie stretched across his chest.
The silence between us didn’t feel heavy. It felt... safe.
The room felt smaller at night. Softer. Shadows pooling in the corners, the faint hum of traffic filtering through the window. Kael leaned back against the headboard, his arm draped around me, his thumb tracing small, absentminded circles against my shoulder.
I tilted my head, studying the hard lines of his face. Even softened by exhaustion, there was tension in his jaw, a heaviness behind his eyes that hadn’t eased since I saw him in the car.
"You’re quiet," I whispered.
His lips twitched, almost into a smile. "I’m always quiet."
I nudged him lightly. "More than usual. What happened today?"
For a moment, I thought he wouldn’t answer. Then his chest rose and fell beneath me with a long, careful sigh. "I saw my father."
I stilled. "How is he?"
His eyes were half-lidded, fixed on the ceiling. "Alive. Too alive, if you ask me. The doctors said... something about complications. But he looked like a king holding court." His voice was flat, cold, but I heard the edge beneath. "If I thought seeing him frail would make me feel anything good, I was wrong."
I threaded my fingers with his. "You don’t have to tell me everything," I murmured. "Just... don’t keep it locked up inside you, okay?"
His gaze finally dropped to mine. There was no mockery in it, no mask. Just weariness. And maybe—just maybe—relief.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead, lingering there.
I smiled against him, trying to lighten the air. "You know, if you leave, I’m sure Kaleb won’t stop asking of you."
Kael’s brow arched. "Well he didn’t stop staring at me so..."
I laughed softly. "He thinks you’re... something. Earlier he told Olivia he’s not sure if he likes you yet. Said you’re too tall."
That earned me the faintest chuckle from him, low and reluctant. "Too tall?"
"Mm-hmm. But then you convinced him to brush his teeth, so I’m sure now you’re a a cool guy to him. Just don’t lose to him tomorrow, or you’ll be a villain again."
Kael shook his head, the sound of his laugh vibrating under my cheek. And just like that, the heaviness shifted, replaced by something warmer, easier.
I tilted my face up toward him, catching the way his eyes softened in the dim light, the faint curl of his mouth. My breath hitched, and suddenly the air between us changed—thicker, charged.
His hand slid from my shoulder to the small of my back, pulling me closer. Our noses brushed, our lips barely apart, and when he kissed me, it was quiet but hungry. Careful, because the whole apartment was asleep... but desperate, because it had been a day too long without her.
The kiss deepened, heat sparking low in my stomach. My fingers curled into the ridiculous hoodie he wore, tugging him down as his other hand wandered over my hip, squeezing gently. He groaned into my mouth, the sound muffled, swallowed between us.
"We have to be quiet," I whispered breathlessly against his lips.
"I know," he murmured, already kissing down my jaw, his stubble scraping lightly over my skin. His hand slid beneath my shirt, fingertips grazing my ribs, my waist, leaving fire in their wake.
My body arched into his touch, my gasp stifled in his shoulder as his mouth found mine again. Every movement was restrained, deliberate... because he had to be. Because we couldn’t make a sound.
The silence of the house pressed around us, amplifying everything, the rustle of sheets, the sharpness of each exhale, the tiny, bitten-back sounds neither of us could hold.
And in the dim light of my messy little room, wrapped in the absurdity of a Hello Kitty hoodie, Kael Roman unraveled me slowly, quietly, until the rest of the world didn’t matter.