Now when we had dinner together, we had true privacy. Sofia didn’t have to breastfeed during her meals so her food wouldn’t grow cold. And when we hit the sheets, we never had to be interrupted by a crying baby.
It was like a second honeymoon.
She sat across from me now on the terrace, wearing a long-sleeved sweater with her curled hair pinned back. She slowly ate her food and looked up at me from time to time, letting the silence linger because she didn’t feel the need to fill it with unnecessary conversation. She understood I was the strong and silent type and let me be.
She understood me better than anyone.
I set my fork down even though my food was only half eaten. “I want to ask you to marry me, but there’s something I have to tell you first.”
My statement was so unexpected that she jerked noticeably when she heard what I’d said. Her fork fell and clattered against the plate, making a loud tapping noise. Then she took a deep breath and rubbed her hand across her chest, disconcerted by the abrupt change in tone. “Okay…” She took another deep breath. “But there’s nothing you can say that would stop me from wanting to marry you, so there’s really no point in saying it at all.”
I appreciated her enthusiasm and commitment, but she’d made the wrong conclusion. I had no wrongs to confess, no secrets to expose. I just wanted her to know the truth about us, to understand the intensity we had experienced over these last few years. “You’re not going to believe what I’m about to tell you. I didn’t believe it myself until it became more blatantly obvious that it had to be true. But please trust me.”
She rested her elbows on the table and blinked a few times as she prepared.
“When I was twenty-one, I visited a gypsy in Marrakech who read me my fortune. I assumed it was silly and just a way to take my money. Her prophecy stated I would only love one woman, and she would never love me back.”
Sofia’s eyes narrowed.
“I thought it was bullshit. But then I met you eight years later. I felt things I’d never felt for anyone else, and then I stupidly asked you to marry me without thinking about what I was doing. You said no…and that’s when I got scared.”
Instead of objecting to everything I said, she continued to listen.
“When I found out you needed a husband, I realized the prophecy was true. The gypsy told me I would marry you. She told me we would have two sons. And she told me we were soul mates.”
Her eyes softened.
“That was why I married you…because I was supposed to. I was in love with you, and I couldn’t control it. I tried to move on, tried to forget you, but it was impossible. This curse was placed upon me because I killed my father. It was a punishment. So, we were living together as husband and wife, and I hoped you would somehow love me on your own…but you never did.”
She stayed quiet.
“I knew you would love me if you could. We’re soul mates, so in any other circumstances, it would be organic. So I went back to the gypsy and tried to break the curse. She told me my only chance was to make amends with my brother…or she could make me stop loving you altogether. I chose the first one.”
She released a gasp. “That was why you wanted me to meet your brother. That was why you were trying so hard to earn his forgiveness…”
I nodded. “And I loved you so much that I never wanted to stop, even if it would be easier to do so. The plan worked, and in a short amount of time, you felt the same way. You gave me that watch, and I knew I’d finally succeeded. I finally had what I wanted…and I was so fucking happy.”
Her eyes started to well up with tears.
“Then everything went to shit. Maddox ruined everything, and I lost you. It didn’t matter if I broke the curse, we were never going to be together. I couldn’t move on after our divorce, and I was so depressed I considered taking my own life.”
She closed her eyes, and two streams of tears fell down her face.
“But then you called me, and that changed my mind. I was still living with the torment, so I