Chapter 146: Family Group Chat

She was just sliding Lexie’s phone back across the island when footsteps sounded behind them.

Dorian walked into the kitchen. "Okay, that’s enough! What’s going on?" he demanded.

"Nothing." Naomi looked up at him, genuinely confused by how concerned he seemed.

Lexie picked up her phone. "I’ll see you. I have to get to the hospital." She tapped something on her phone.

A second later, Dorian’s phone vibrated in his pocket.

His brows pulled together as he fished it out.

Naomi looked between them.

Whatever strange sibling language these two communicated in, she clearly hadn’t been given the dictionary yet.

Lexie turned back to her. "See you around."

Naomi gave a small wave. "Yeah. See you."

Lexie walked out with the same composed, almost military posture she had arrived with.

Naomi waited until she was gone before turning back toward Dorian. He was already unlocking his phone. She saw the smile cross Dorian’s face as he looked up from his phone, but Lexie was already gone.

"What did she say?" he asked.

Naomi shrugged, still trying to understand the strange little interview she had just survived. "Nothing. She said she saw the speech from last night and came to see me. I don’t get it."

"On her behalf, welcome to the family."

Naomi frowned. "What?" She walked around the island toward him.

Dorian turned his screen so she could see it. "She added you to the Heathcliffe message group."

"Oooookay." She still didn’t understand why Dorian looked so amused.

It was a family group chat. People added relatives to family group chats every day.

Dorian slipped one hand into his pocket. "Give it a minute. You’ll figure it out."

She noticed movement on the screen. "Oh, Ginny’s typing..."

Dorian gave a knowing nod. "Hang in there..." He was still holding the phone up when the message appeared.

GH: Noooooooooooo fucking waaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy. Lexie added number 4 in the house!!!!!!!! Herself!

Naomi burst out laughing.

Dorian looked unbearably satisfied. "Told ya."

Another message immediately appeared.

Dad: Language Ginny!

GH: Sorry Dad.

Naomi laughed harder.

Even adulthood, marriage and access to obscene amounts of money did not protect Ginny from being corrected by her father.

Another message popped up.

DM: What?!

Mum: Welcome to the family, Naomi.

Warmth moved through Naomi’s chest. It was such a small thing. Ridiculously small, really. A message group.

A few words on a screen. The casualness of it got to her. In Heathcliffe language, Lexie adding Naomi herself was in its own a full emotional speech.

Naomi kept giggling as she took Dorian’s phone from his hand.

His brows immediately pulled together. "What... what are you doing?"

"Responding like normal people do."

Dorian looked genuinely alarmed by the concept. "Where is your phone?"

"It died. I’m charging it." Naomi’s thumbs were already moving across his screen.

Dorian leaned closer. "I don’t do messages."

Naomi glanced up at him. "I know."

That was precisely what made this better.

Dorian tried to look over her shoulder. "What are you writing?"

"Relax."

"I don’t like that word when you say it."

Naomi ignored him. He watched her type with growing suspicion. She finished, looked over the sentence once and smiled then pressed send.

The message appeared in the family chat.

DH:I’m loving the excitement.

Almost immediately, the family knew there was no way Dorian typed that.

Naomi quickly typed another message into the family group before anyone could start questioning Dorian’s sudden personality transplant.

DH:Naomi here. My phone died, so I’m using Dorian’s.

That made considerably more sense.

Dorian watched her finish typing, then held out his hand. "Can I go?"

"Oh, one minute!" Naomi handed his phone back, rounded the kitchen island and picked up the insulated lunch bag she had packed earlier. "Here."

"What’s that?"

"Lunch."

Dorian frowned. "For who?"

"For you."

His eyes dropped to the bag again. "I’m supposed to hold that in my hand as I walk through the office?"

"Yeah." She shrugged. "What’s wrong with that?" she opened the bag slightly, as though showing him the contents might somehow make the concept less horrifying. "I made pepperoni pizza toast. I threw some berries in there too."

"Naomi, I’m not going to preschool."

"Oh, stop being a child." Naomi shoved the bag into his chest. "You’re married. You’re allowed to bring your own lunch."

"I have been married three times before you, and never have I ever—"

"Did you marry a chef?" Naomi planted one hand on her hip. "What kind of chef would I be if my husband starves to death?"

"I’m not starving..."

Naomi pointed toward the bag. "Eat the lunch. Go. You’re late."

Before he could argue again, she took the strap of the lunch bag, stretched it over his head and left it hanging diagonally across his chest.

Naomi stepped back to admire her work.

There he stood in an expensive suit, polished shoes, expensive watch and a lunch bag strapped across him like a schoolboy going on a field trip.

His face was priceless. "Naomi..."

She started pushing him toward the door. "Go."

"Take this off me."

"No."

"Naomi. I can buy lunch."

"And yet you probably won’t."

Dorian turned his head to glare at her while she continued shoving him forward. "Woman."

"Keep moving." Naomi gave him one final push toward the door before waving him away. "Come on, go hustle for mama."

"You’re mad. You’re absolutely mad," Dorian pointed out.

Naomi shrugged playfully. "I know."

Dorian shook his head and started toward the stairs, still carrying the lunch bag she had practically forced onto him. He made it two steps then turned around, like he had forgotten something. He crossed the distance between them and scooped her into his arms.

She laughed in surprise. "Dorian—"

His mouth covered hers.

When he finally pulled back, he kept her close.

"I’ll see you tonight."

Naomi smiled. "I’ll be a bit late. Since I skipped work yesterday, I have to catch up."

he nodded, kissed her again.

A quick kiss before he finally let her go and hurried down the stairs.

Naomi stayed where she was, watching his broad frame disappear.

The lunch bag swung slightly at his side.

She smiled realising she was happy.

Truly happy.

And suddenly, Naomi wished she had added that adverb when Lexie asked her earlier. Not just happy.

Truly.

It felt strange admitting it even to herself. Somewhere along the line, this marriage had stopped feeling like a temporary escape and started feeling dangerously close to a life.

Naomi walked downstairs toward the living room just as she heard the garage door closing.

A moment later, Dorian’s Mercedes roared to life.

She listened as the engine faded into the distance.

Then she looked toward her phone. It should have charged enough by now.

Naomi unplugged it and pressed the power button.

The screen came alive.

She waited for it to load.

And everything that happened after that felt like she had suddenly stepped into a movie.

*****

Richard was finally home from the hospital.

The moment the children left for school, he turned on Diana.

"You told her to stay away?!"