Elle finally peels her eyes away from Uri—rather reluctantly, I might add. “Hey, I’m not planning on sampling the goods or anything. Just window shopping, that's all.”
“Mhmm,” I smirk.
“What did you say before?”
I swallow. “The guy in the fancy car, the one you were just eyefucking shamelessly—he’s Uri. The guy I’ve, um, been with all this time.”
“WHAT?!”
“Quiet!” I hiss, hiding behind my menu as most of the restaurant turns in our direction. “Will you keep it down?”
“That is the man who abducted you and held you hostage this whole damn time?”
“First of all, that’s not exactly what happened. And second of all, shh!”
She turns back towards the window to take a second peek at Uri. Clearly aware that he’s under inspection, he raises his hand and gives Elle a small nod. It’s infuriatingly cool.
Elle gives him an unsteady wiggle of her fingers in return. “Well, he’s got style, I’ll give him that. Question: is he planning on coming in and joining us at some point?”
“No. Hell no. He wanted to give us some privacy while we catch up.”
“Thoughtful,” she remarks. “But why doesn’t he just drive away then? Go do something while we have lunch?”
“He just wants to make sure that I’m… safe.”
Elle’s frown disappears suddenly as her eyes go wide. “Wait. Is that why you wanted to sit by the window? So that he could see you at all times?”
Okay. This is going badly.
“Listen, Elle, things are complicated. He’s just worried about my safety.”
“Isn’t that the same sorry excuse he gave you before locking you up in his basement?”
Very badly.
“I told you the stakes the last time we spoke. We’re talking about the mafia, Elle. Bad guys are involved and Uri’s just worried about exposing me. That’s the only reason he’s sitting out there now. He’s just trying to protect me.”
“Honey, I don’t know if that’s actually true. Or…”
“Or…？”
“Or if you’re just getting love-drunk on the Kool-Aid he’s pouring down your throat.”
My heart is beating hard against my chest. I really don’t want her to hate Uri. Especially considering that “love-drunk” might not be so far from the truth.
“Elle,” I say, grabbing her hand, “I know this is a lot to take in. And I get that you’re worried for me. I am, too, to be honest. But not because of Uri.”
“He’s a beautiful man, Alyssa. In fact, he might be the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. But that doesn’t excuse his behavior.” She leans forward and dips her chin to give me her serious look. “He’s lurking out there waiting for you. He told you to sit by the window. He had you under lockdown for months. He limited your contact with your friends and family. He doesn’t sound protective so much as way too possessive.”
“I know what it looks like,” I protest weakly, “but that’s not how it actually is.”
“No? In what ways?”
“It’s been a rough few weeks and he’s worried about us.”
“‘Us’？ Who’s ‘us’？”
I take a deep breath and rip the Band-Aid off. “I’m pregnant, Elle,” I say with a shaky smile. “With twins.”
She gawks at me soundlessly for a few moments. Her mouth opens and closes a couple of times before she manages to get anything out. Ziva used to call it “going goldfish.”
“You’re not joking,” she breathes at last.
I smile weakly. “I wouldn’t joke about something like that. I’m entering my second trimester.”
“With twins?”
I nod. “Yeah. Twins. Identical twins.”
“I… I actually can’t believe it.”
“Trust me—I have trouble with it some days, too.”
Elle glances towards the window. “So… um, your sexy kidnapper out there… He’s worried that this bad dude mafia guy is going to come after you and the babies?”
I ignore the “sexy kidnapper” part, accurate though it may be. “That’s part of it. But last week, I had some pretty extreme bleeding and I thought I was gonna lose the babies. I’m okay now, but Uri… He’s been at my side pretty much nonstop since the hospital. He makes sure I eat well and drink well and get enough sleep.”