chapter 5

The mansion slowly changed after Danny left for his business trip. And for the first time since Mara arrived there, she stopped waking up afraid.

The change frightened her at first. Peace had never lasted long in her life. Yet day after day, the warmth around her remained.

Slowly and carefully, Mara allowed herself to settle into it.

Her mornings began with soft crying from the crib beside the bed. Then Kenny’s sleepy voice.

“I’ll carry him.”

“You barely slept.” Mara would whisper tiredly

Neither did you. Kenny never said the last part aloud, but Mara always heard it in the exhaustion behind his voice.

Then she would hear the mattress shift before his careful footsteps crossed the room.

Their son always calmed down faster in Kenny’s arms.

Sometimes Kenny would walk around the room quietly with the baby against his chest, humming under his breath while the early morning rain tapped softly against the windows.

Mara often stayed silent during those moments, listening to the tiny sleepy sounds from the baby and the low hum of Kenny’s voice.

Everything felt unreal, especially because Mara had spent most of her life feeling unwanted.

Especially after losing her sight. People either pitied her or ignored her completely.

But here…

Someone always reached for her. Especially Braine.

“You’re awake already?” Braine’s sleepy voice complained as she entered the room without knocking.

Mara smiled faintly from the bed.

“You said you were going shopping today.”

“I know,” Braine groaned dramatically. “But I can’t leave the house without seeing my nephew.”

“You’ve become obsessed with him.” Mara said happily.

Braine however concentrated on the baby in Kenny’s arms.

“Oh God,” she muttered. “There he goes again.” Braine said

“There who goes?” Mara asked.

“Kenny staring at you like you were some angel.”

Mara instantly flushed, her cheeks feeling red with embarrassment.

“I am not staring.” Kenny defended himself immediately.

“You absolutely are,” Braine replied lazily. “I think I came in at a bad time.”

Kenny ignored her.

Mara could feel his attention anyway.

 

“Oh, he’s awake.” Kenny said in a soft voice.

Braine immediately took the baby from him and played happily, staring at those bright   beautiful blue eyes that looked exactly like Maya’s..

The baby made a sleepy sound against her shoulder, his tiny fingers brushing  against Braine’s hair.

Mara heard Braine laugh quietly.

“No, sweetheart,” she murmured softly. “That hair is expensive.”

Kenny chuckled under his breath.

The baby suddenly became fussy. Immediately, Mara sat up straighter.

“What happened?”

“Nothing,” Braine said quickly. “I think he’s hungry.”

Mara reached her arms out instinctively.

The moment Braine placed the baby against her chest, the crying eased almost immediately.

Mara’s entire body softened. No matter how exhausted she felt, holding her son always calmed something deep inside her.

“There,” she whispered gently while rubbing his tiny back. “Mama’s here.”

Kenny sat beside her on the bed after a while. Close enough for his shoulder to brush hers lightly. Mara found herself leaning slightly toward the warmth before realizing it.

She felt Kenny’s breathing change faintly beside her and consciously tried to move away, but Kenny held her in place gently.

“Don’t move, let the baby feed,” Kenny’s magnetic voice made her shudder a little.

Braine quietly left the room with the sudden shift in the atmosphere.

 

A few seconds later, Mara heard the soft rustle of blankets before Kenny carefully lifted the baby from her arms.

“He went back to sleep,” Kenny whispered.

Kenny carefully settled the baby inside the crib before walking back toward the bed.

Mara sensed him stop very close to her, the warmth in the room deepening around them.

Mara felt Kenny too close to her, his arm brushing against hers, making her heartbeat quicken slightly.

She didn’t move away, neither did Kenny.

Outside, rain tapped softly against the windows while the mansion settled into silence around them

Mara could feel Kenny standing close beside the bed after laying the baby down.

The warmth of him pressed carefully against her senses, the faint scent of soap on his skin, the slow sound of his breathing, the rough brush of fabric when his arm shifted near hers.

Her heartbeat became uneven.

Weeks ago, she would have moved away immediately. Now she stayed still.

Then she felt his fingers touch hers carefully, almost cautiously, as though he expected her to pull away.

“Mara,” he asked quietly, “are you still afraid of me?”

The question caught her off guard.

Because the answer was no.

At least not in the same way anymore.

“I don’t know,” she whispered honestly.

For a moment Kenny said nothing. She only heard him exhale softly beside her.

“These weeks…” his voice lowered roughly, “they’ve been the first real thing I’ve had in a long time.”

Mara swallowed hard.

Because she understood exactly what he meant.

The baby shifted sleepily in the crib, letting out a tiny sound before settling again. Somehow, the quiet noise softened the air between them even more.

Kenny’s thumb moved slowly across her knuckles.

“I don’t want this peace to disappear when Danny comes back,” he admitted. “I want you to still look at me the same way after he returns.”

Mara’s chest tightened painfully.

Because Danny’s absence was the reason the house could finally breathe.

Slowly, uncertainly, she tightened her fingers around Kenny’s hand.

The reaction in him was immediate.

His breathing shook faintly, like that tiny gesture alone had undone him.

Then suddenly his arms were around her.

Mara stiffened softly as his body pressed carefully against hers for the first time in months.

Heat rushed across her skin instantly.

She could feel the tension in the way he held her back, like he was fighting himself every second.

“Mara,” he murmured near her ear, his voice strained, “tell me if you want me to stop.”

She should have stopped him, pulled away, but her desire overshadowed her in a split second.

Her fingers slowly rose to his face. She could feel the roughness of his overgrown beard brush against her fingertips. They were longer than before and certainly untidy.

Her fingers traced his jaw carefully. He felt thinner than she remembered, his cheek bone appeared more protruding than she remembered. It was as though these past months had hollowed him out.

Kenny leaned into her touch with a quiet breath that nearly broke her heart.

And suddenly Mara hated herself for missing him this much.

Her fingers tightened slightly against his face before she pulled him down gently and kissed him softly and intimately. A single tear had escaped her eyes. Damn, she had missed him, her body had longed so much for his touch, his skin raw against hers. She wanted him so badly, but something at the back of her mind screamed for her to stop, yet, she gave in to her yearning, and kissed him hungrily this time.

Mara could actually feel the shock move through him as he sat still letting her explore his mouth, letting himself melt at her assault.

When he kissed her back, it was slow at first, almost disbelieving. His hand trembled faintly against her waist while he kissed her like a man terrified, she would disappear again.

The kiss deepened carefully, warmth spreading through her chest so fast it frightened her.

Months of anger, confusion, loneliness and longing sat between them inside that single moment.

Mara broke the kiss first, breathing unevenly.

“Kenny…” her voice shook slightly. She had to take this chance before losing all her sanity to find her answers and so she sat facing Kenny, even tough she couldn’t see him, but his attention never left her, especially because of the heat that Mara could feel in his veins.

“Why did you let all this happen?”

Immediately, the warmth between them changed completely.

She felt Kenny go still against her before he exhaled heavily.

“I’ll fix it,” he said quietly. “I promise I will.” His response was short and abrupt, almost as though Mara had toughed his bottom line.

“That’s not the response I want Kenny.”

What followed was endless silence as Kenny pulled away.

Then finally,“Just give me a little more time.”

The words cut deeper than she expected.

Because if he truly trusted her… why was he still hiding things?

Mara felt foolish suddenly. Foolish for melting into him. Foolish for kissing him.

Foolish for almost believing the pain between them could disappear that easily.

That the little moment of passion could return the love and passion between them. She was totally wrong.

“Mara—”

She turned away before he could finish.

Pulling the blanket around herself, she faced the wall silently, shutting herself away from him before her emotions betrayed her further.

Behind her, the room remained painfully quiet.

Then came the sound of Kenny pacing once across the room.

Another long sigh.

After a while, she heard the bathroom door open and the shower begin running.

Mara closed her eyes tightly. The warmth he left behind on her skin now felt cruel and haunting.

Love without trust frightened her more than hatred ever had.

Much later, Kenny left the room quietly. The door clicked shut behind him.

Mara lay awake wondering what kind of secret existed between the twins… powerful enough to destroy all three of them, yet remain buried.