Jo

"So?" Mrs. Brown began, folding her hands in her lap, "progress?"

Lena and I sat in silence, both of our eyes locked on her.

She leaned forward on her desk. "Did you do your homework?"

"We went out, yes," Lena said, nodding.

"Did you learn something new about one another?"

"She doesn't like pistachios," I muttered, my voice muffled by my palm.

I earned the eyes of both of the women, Lena's a bit more soft than I'd seen them be lately.

"You were listening when I said that?"

I clenched my jaw. "Way to make me sound like a great husband."

"I meant that in a good way," she said, rubbing her temple with her pointer finger.

"Sounded to me like you weren't expecting me to be listening," I deadpanned, looking over at her.

"Okay," Mrs. Brown interfered, nodding, "that's good."

"It's nothing," I said, leaning forward, "we don't have a lot left to learn."

"Even something that small is progress, Josiah," she said, lifting an eyebrow as she jotted something down on her notepad.

"And Lena?" She asked, removing her glasses from her face.

"He hates the texture of cheesecake," she shrugged, resting her chin in her palm.

She smiled. "See?"

"No," we both said.

She stood up from her seat. "Well, I do. And I think my approval is worth something."

Lena bit down on her bottom lip, quickly sneaking a glance before looking away again.

"Intimacy," Mrs. Brown brought up, looking back at us from her window. "Did that go anywhere last night?"

Lena shook her head. "No, dinner didn't really end well. We barely wanted to look at each other."

Mrs. Brown nodded, and I could tell she was most definitely sizing us up. A small smile tugged at her lips as she shook her head. "I can't quite put my finger on you two."

She walked back over to us, sitting on the edge of her desk. "Josiah, you're up."

I looked up at her, my chin still resting in my palm.

"Where were you most in love?"

I answered almost immediately, it didn't even require thinking. "Italy."

"I think you're thinking lust, Mr. King," she corrected, "love."

I nodded, sitting upright. "Italy."

She looked over at Lena for approval. Lena bit down on her bottom lip, looking down. "I've always had to have more than just a physical connection to have sex with someone. So, yeah. I was definitely in love on that trip."

Mrs. Brown nodded, her bottom lip jutted out. "I see."

She stood up, pacing around her office, leaving Lena and I wondering what was coming next.

"I wouldn't recommend this if I wasn't fully aware of your financial situation," she said, "but I want you to go to Italy."

I wasn't shocked, or taken aback. I simply tilted my head over. "Okay."

I could see a smile tugging at Lena's glossy lips, but she quickly hid it.

"Act like normal people," she said, "blend in with the crowd, the tourists. Stay at a hotel. It's easy to distance yourselves from one another on your three story yacht. But in a hotel room, you constantly have to be together."

I nodded, leaning forward on my thighs. "Okay."

"I have a challenge, though."

Lena was all ears, nodding.

"I know I can't ask you two to not have sex. You're married, I understand that."

I leaned back in my seat, simply because I knew where this was going.

"But no sex," she said, shrugging.

Lena's eyebrows lifted, and her expression was beyond her control.

"Even if it's biting at you," she said, "if you want to just rip each other's clothes off and go at it, don't. Give yourselves time to fall back in love, not in lust."

I thought my answer through very carefully, chewing on my bottom lip.

"Can you guys do that for me?" She asked, her eyes locked on me.

Before giving it a second thought, I nodded. "Yeah."

~*~

Fred

"Ugh, and I have to wait to tell them?"

"Yes," Alexis said, bracing her hands on my shoulders.

"Why?" I asked, pressing a kiss to her fingers.

"Because," she said, looking down at me, "I don't want to get everyone's hopes up again."

I clenched my jaw, nodding. "Yeah, I guess that slipped."

She stood in front of the mirror, examining her outfit she'd put a lot of time and effort into.

"Do I look okay?"

"You look beautiful," I said, pressing a kiss to her forehead as soon as I stood up.

She turned to the side, shaking her head. "I'm having twins. Why am I not showing?"

"It's still very early," I muttered, wrapping my arms around her from behind, palming her stomach.

"Fred, it's already 8:30," she said, looking back at me.

I dropped my head into the crook of her neck. "I meant it's early for you to be showing."

She tilted her head over. "Y-yeah, I knew that."

I chuckled and pressed a kiss to her cheek, giving her backside a slap. "So this is a friend from college?"

"Right," she said, ruffling her fingers through her hair.

"And he does what?" I asked, walking into the bathroom.

"Well, he actually plans weddings, too," she said, "just on a much larger scale."

I braced my palms on the counter, watching as she walked by. I grinned and lifted an eyebrow, shaking my head. "I'm a lucky man, Parker."

I pressed a kiss to her temple and she grabbed the band of my sweatpants, lifting an eyebrow. "That's King to you."

"I'll never forget it," I muttered, my words muffled by the kiss I pressed to her lips.

She smiled as I pulled away, her eyes still closed. I knew that meant she needed another kiss, so I pressed a quick one to her lips. "Baby blue or-"

"Always baby blue, Freddy," she said, leaning into her mirror, "you know this."

"Why baby blue?" I asked, stepping out of my sweatpants.

"Woah," she said, looking away from her mirror, "let me go get my dollar bills."

"Funny," I said, grinning as I threw my underwear at her.

She looked down at her phone, chewing on her bottom lip. "I have to go. Have a good day, okay?"

She pressed a chaste kiss to my lips, slapping my backside. "Still got the best ass in Chicago."

I chuckled, turning on the shower. I stepped inside and stood under the shower head, letting it drench me. I knitted my brows together, quickly stepping out of the shower and running through the bedroom.

"Hey, Parker!"

"It's King to you!" Alexis yelled, making me run out of the bedroom and to the balcony overlooking the foyer.

"I love you," I said, my eyebrows in a furrow as I folded my arms over my chest.

She snapped a picture of me in my naked glory, grinning. "Yeah, I love you, too."

"Make sure to hide that," I said, blowing her a kiss.

She giggled. "I'll be sure to."

"Love you!" I yelled, running back into the bedroom.

~*~

Lena

Amanda smiled as soon as she saw me. "Hey, Lena."

"Hey," I greeted, smiling a soft smile, "just dropping food off."

She nodded. "I think he's on a call right now, but his door's open."

I walked over to Josiah's office, peeking in. He was pacing around his office, one hand holding his phone up to his ear, the other resting on his hip.

There was no doubt I'd married a very powerful man, even if we weren't doing well currently.

He caught a glimpse of me and gave me a double take when he saw me, holding his pointer finger up. I walked into his office and closed the door behind me, taking a seat on his couch.

"Well, my wife and I are actually coming to Italy soon. I'm not sure exactly where yet, but if we're in the city, I'll drop in and we can meet for dinner."

I bit down on my bottom lip and placed the bag of food on the couch next to me, resting my head in my hand.

"Sounds good," he said, "alright, talk to you soon."

He placed his phone on his desk, bracing his palms on the surface. "Hi."

"So this is now a business opportunity-"

"Don't," he said, shaking his head.

He leaned up, leaning his head back. "Sorry."

I chewed on my bottom lip, raking my hands through my hair. "I know you said you were going to be late. I brought you food."

He looked over at me. "Thank you."

I nodded, standing up. I placed the bag on his desk and he looked down at me, his jaw taut.

I wrapped an arm around his neck. It was undeniably uncomfortable, but I had to cause some discomfort to grow.

"Thank you for being there," I said, shaking my head, "at therapy today."

He nodded, gently placing his hand in the curve of my back. His entire body was tense against mine, and I could tell he, too, was uncomfortable, but trying.

He pressed a kiss to my temple. "Don't wait up on me."

I pulled away from him, backing up. "I-um, do I need to pack?"

He looked over at me, waiting on me to explain further.

"For Italy," I said, biting down on my bottom lip.

He nodded. "Yeah. We're leaving tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" I asked, obviously shocked.

He rested his hands on his hips. "I already booked plane tickets and the hotel."

I nodded, wide eyes. "O-okay."

"She said be normal people," he said, opening the bag, "I figured that meant no jet."

I nodded, scratching my neck. "Well, I'm going to get home so I can pack and go to bed."

He nodded, chewing on the inside of his lip. "I'll see you when we wake up."

I walked out of his office, meeting Fred in the hallway. "Hi."

"Hey," he greeted, "how are you?"

I nodded, smiling. "I'm good."

He folded his arms over his chest. "You're sure?"

I bit down on my lip. "Listen, he wouldn't ever tell you himself, but Jo and I are going through a really rough patch."

He nodded. "Yeah, I gathered."

"Our therapist said that we need to take a vacation," I said, "a-are you-"

"Lena," he said, "I can hold it down. I'd rather have this and the weight of the world crumbling down on me than to watch him live without you again."

He patted my shoulder, walking away with a smile. "Take all the time you need."

~*~

hii babes

how is everyone? i hope you're all happy and healthy <3

soo, how did we feel about this chapter? yes, Fred and Alexis will get more time, do not fret!

also, are we kind of seeing progress w jo and lena? 🤨 and who else is so ready for their trip to italy because i know i am (bc i know what happens hehe)

also, ive got more aesthetics! a lot of people reached out on Instagram when i asked and made me beautiful aesthetics!

how gorg are these? 🥰 made by @antheiiax so make sure to go follow her and send her love! 💕

also- please don't stop donating and signing petitions pertaining to BLM! 💕 please send links if you have any with more petitions to sign for anything!

i love u guys so much <3

xo,
jay