The Kings IV II

42

Fred

"Hey."

I turned around, smiling when my eyes met Alexis. "Hey."

"Early riser," she said, smiling a sweet smile as she walked over to me.

She held out a cup of coffee, her eyes meeting the contractor I was speaking with. "H-hi. I'm sorry, I didn't know you were here, or I would've brought you a cup."

The contractor chuckled, shaking his head. "It's no problem at all. You must be..?"

She stuck out her free hand, smiling. "Alexis. I'm Fred's wife."

My stomach flipped, making me look down at her. It had been far too long since I'd heard that statement from her.

"Right," he said, "I'm William. I'll be helping you guys build your dream cabin."

"I can't wait," Alexis excitedly said.

I cleared my throat, looking back to William. "U-uh, he's got some blueprints for us."

"Right," Alexis said, "yeah, let's look over them. It's still a secret, right? The kids don't know?"

I shook my head, looking down at her.

"I'll give you guys these, and you can call me whenever you have a more solid idea of what you're wanting. I have another meeting with another client, but I'll in touch."

"Of course, thank you," I said, shaking his hand.

"It was nice meeting you," he said, shaking Alexis's hand delicately.

"Likewise," she said, and we watched as he walked away.

She stepped in front of me, holding her coffee close to her. "I can't wait."

I just watched her, unable to really speak. I was still taken aback by her referring to herself as my wife again.

She looked back at me soon enough, a concerned look on her face. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," I softly said, "y-yeah, I'm good. Thank you for the coffee."

She nodded, taking a sip of hers. "So, we're doing, like, all of the painting and stuff, right?"

"You said you were my wife," I said, unable to take my eyes off of her.

She looked over at me, her lips slightly parting before she darted her tongue out to lick them. She always did that when she was contemplating what exactly to say.

"Was that okay with you?" She asked.

"It made my entire fucking life," I chuckled, looking over at her, "not even just my day."

She smiled, biting down on her lip. "Well, that's what I am, right?"

I nodded, placing my coffee down on the table that William had set up. I grabbed her hand and pulled her close to me, my eyes locked on hers.

"Let's put our rings back on," I said, looking down at her.

She looked up at me, raking her hands through my hair.

"Please," I whispered, "I miss you. Sell the apartment. Move back in. Please."

She wrapped her arms around my shoulders, pressing kisses to my cheek. "It's all I've been thinking about lately."

"So do it," I said.

She smiled. "Are you sure you're ready to have to put up with me full-time again?"