Chapter 34 Daniel
DANIEL
“Mr. Renieri, thank you so much for meeting me,” I said, sending my hand forward.
The small man did the same. “The pleasure is all mine.” His eyes studied me in detail, and I noticed he had a rare case of heterochromia. “Although if I knew you were this handsome, I would have made time for this meeting a lot sooner.”
“I’ll take it as a compliment.”
“Please do.” He winked before letting go of my hand and turning to walk back to his vacated chair. “But if you could, Mr.—”
“Williams. Daniel Williams.”
He thanked me with a smile as he sat down. “So, Mr. Williams. If you could tell me what this meeting is about? I mean, as far as I’m aware, my legal team is all set.”
I unfastened the top button of my suit before taking my seat in the chair across from him, the dark mahogany table separating us. Usually, I’d be the one behind the desk, but today, I made the exception.
“Surprisingly, I’m not here on a legal matter, but on a rather personal one.”
He gave me one skeptical brow. “How intriguing.”
Brushing away his flirtation with a polite smile, I placed the paper folder I’d brought with me over my lap. “I heard you are in search of a new model, and I’d like to offer someone I know.”
“And why would I need you to do that?” he asked while playing with a pen he grabbed from his desk. “I mean, with all due respect, bello, until today, I didn’t even know who you were.”
Sometimes God sends people to humble us, and today, his messenger came in the form of a five-foot-four Italian man. Although coming here well prepared, I wasn’t thrown off by Vito’s legitimate doubts.
“While I won’t pretend to know much about fashion, I do know a good deal when I see one, and even more so the value of something priceless.” Pulling a photo out of the folder, I handed it to Vito.
With pursed lips and two fingers resting against his temple, he studied Elliot’s image in detail.
“I’m sure you’ve seen him before or, at the very least, heard of him.”
Vito nodded, although he didn’t seem much interested, given the tight line his lips were set in.
“His career might be short but shouldn’t be judged casually. In fact, Elliot has already managed to achieve more in one year than other models do in a lifetime.”
Placing the photo down, Vito’s eyes locked with mine. “If he’s doing so well, why are you here?”
Because I need him to be close to me. And not just for myself, but for Elliot, too.
For the past few weeks, something had been bothering him.
He might not have said anything, because he wasn’t one to complain, but I heard it in his voice whenever we spoke on the phone—the faint fear that accompanied each of his words, like a frightened boy sticking to his mother.
Being so far away, there was little I could do to help, let alone protect him when needed.
Therefore, I assumed signing a contract with Renieri would make Elliot’s work, at the very least, less global.
And the fact that I knew he, too, wanted this position was how I found myself here today.
“Because for some reason, your company has already rejected him twice, which, in my humble opinion, is a bad investment on your account,” I answered his question.
“Santo cielo. You lawyers and your sneaky way with words…” He tapped the desk, the sound slightly annoying. “Forgive me for being straightforward, but what does this have to do with you?”
Fair enough.
“Before becoming a model, Elliot used to work for me and my wife.” I cleared my throat. “Ex-wife.”
Vito’s eyes darted to mine, a knowing look on his face. “And I presume he’s the reason for the divorce?”
“Elliot and I have a professional relationship,” I was quick to clarify.
“I see.”
A short silence spread between us when Vito’s eyes darted down to the photo on his desk.
“You know, typically, when scouting models, it is common to come with a professional shot and not—” He picked it up.”—a picture you took yourself.” His eyes moved to me as he handed me back the photo.
“I think you’re mistaken—”
“The Amalfi Coast is quite the place for lovers, don’t you agree?”
Caught red-handed and surprised by his directness, I took the photo from him. He was spot-on, as I was the one who’d taken it. On a whim, Elliot and I had bought a camera in the airport’s gift shop, which we later used on the coast to take images that would hopefully last forever.
My stomach flipped, yet the unease I felt wasn’t because Vito had learned my deepest secret, but because I was worried it would shade Elliot’s name.
“To be clear, I came here on my own behalf,” I said.
“And here I thought he sent his rich boyfriend to settle things for him.”
I placed the photo back on the desk yet kept my hand on it.
“I know it looks bad—”
“To say the least.”
I did my best not to frown at his interruption. “—but Elliot doesn’t even know I’m here. In fact, I’d probably be scolded if he found out, as he’s the type to do everything on his own.”
Crossing his arms, Vito leaned back in his chair. “So why are you here?”
Lifting my hand up, I looked down at the photo, focusing on Elliot’s eyes, which the camera truly didn’t do justice to.
“Because my life changed the first time I looked into his sapphire eyes, and I know the same would happen to you or anyone else once you meet him, because Elliot is simply that exquisite.” Looking up from the photo to meet Vito’s stare, I offered him a polite smile.
“He has more to offer than the eye can see, and I thought the very least I could do was come here and tell you that. But as it turns out, it seems I’ve overstepped. ”
Knowing this meeting was over, I slid the photo back inside the folder and got up.
“Please don’t let my insolence rub off on Elliot, as he’s innocent in the matter.” Once I’d said everything I had to say, I was ready to show myself out when he snapped his fingers.
“We have met before, haven’t we?” His eyes focused on my surprised expression. “You’re that homophobic asshole’s son, the one who didn’t want to do business with me.”
Forcing my lips into a thin line, I nodded. “I am.”
“How unfortunate.”
“I apologize for my father’s behavior.”
Vito kept staring at me without saying a word, and I could only imagine the foul thoughts running through his head following our meeting. Surely, I hadn’t made a great impression, and I’d be lucky if today didn’t have any further implications.
It turned out that the impression I left wasn’t that bad after all, because in the week following my meeting with Vito, Elliot called to tell me Renieri had requested to see him again.
Fast-forward to today, and I was making my way back home, eager to hear from him how said meeting went.
Before leaving my office, I asked Sherry if I had any messages, hoping Elliot had called to give me an update.
Unfortunately, there were none. He also didn’t bother to text me, nor did he call my cell phone.
With nerves fueling my gut, I increased my pace, impatient to get home.
But upon reaching our condo, I found it empty.
“Elliot?” I called, my voice echoing through the hollow space. When there was no response, I went to check if there were any messages left on the voicemail. I decided to call him when my phone rang first. Quickly picking it up, I hoped it would be Elliot, but to my surprise, it was—
“Catherine?” I scowled at hearing my baby sister’s voice. A scowl that turned into a full-on frown after she started talking.
“Aren’t you going to say something?” my sister asked as she tagged along behind me.
By now, two hours after her surprise phone call, the sun had already fully set. And yet, there was still no word from Elliot. Before coming here, I’d left him a note saying I’d be home late, hoping he’d see it when he returned.
“What is there to say?” I grunted, not bothering to look at her.
“I don’t know, maybe how funny it could have been if I were sent to jail—”
“You think being arrested for theft is funny?” I turned to glare at her when she rolled her blue eyes.
“Chillax, okay?”
“Chill-what?” My brows narrowed, and she sighed.
“Fuck, you’re old.” She rolled her eyes again. “I’m saying it’s not a big deal, got it? Half my friends have been caught shoplifting before. It’s, like, totally a thing.”
“And yet, here we are, after I bailed you out and had to talk you out of this mess.”
Flipping her dark brown hair over her shoulder, she blew out some air. “Oh, please, all you did was toss some money at some people. It’s what our family is known for.” She snorted. “At least, unlike Andrew, I wasn’t caught smoking weed on campus like a total loser.”
My face scrunched up upon hearing about my brother’s achievements. Ignoring Catherine’s irritating voice and even worse attitude, I asked, “When did that happen?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know, a month, maybe two months ago? But, like, don’t worry about it. Dad paid off his school, so it’s all good now.”
“For God’s sake, are you two keen on causing trouble?”
“Sorry we’re not as perfect as you are, Dani.”
“Stop speaking nonsense.”
“Nonsense? It’s the truth, and you know it. You’re Dad and Mom’s perfect boy, while we… we’re just the black stain they can’t get rid of.”
Her words made me stop walking, and I watched as she pulled a pack of cigarettes from her purse. Truthfully, I didn’t even know she smoked. Watching her poison herself with that crap the same way Elliot did annoyed me, and the muscle in my jaw tensed before I sighed.
“Why did you even steal to begin with? You have enough money to buy whatever you want.”
Tapping the tip of the cigarette, she looked down as the ash fell to the pavement.
“For the thrill, I dunno.” She stomped over it with her heel.
“Sometimes it’s fun breaking the rules… but what would you know, right?
” She glanced up at me, her eyes locked with mine as she took another drag.
“Like seriously, when have you ever done something wrong?”
Keeping quiet, I thought about my own fair amount of secrets and wrongdoings. Catherine probably assumed my silence meant she was right, and she snorted before once again muttering how incredibly “old” I was.
“Anyway, what’s up with you? Haven’t heard a word from you since you suddenly filed for divorce.” Blowing out thick smoke, she gave me a raised brow. “Like, what the hell happened? One minute, you’re all happy, then it’s totally over.”
“We had issues that were irreconcilable, and so we decided to part ways respectfully.”
She snorted. “Bullshit.” She leaned closer to me, and I grimaced at the reek of her cigarette. “She totally cheated on you, didn’t she?”
“Of course not,” I hissed and pulled away from the smoke.
Catherine’s eyes widened before she tossed the cigarette to the ground. “Oh fuck, did you?”
“I’m not having this conversation with you.”
She laughed. “Yeah, there’s no way you cheated. You’re too boring for that. Too fucking righteous.”
Irritated, I scowled at her. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“That you’re an arrogant bastard, Dani. Like, you don’t even give a shit about me or Andrew. But whatever. You’re just like Mom and Dad.”
I might not have been the most caring brother, but I was never unfair or unkind, and the way she represented me sounded as if I’d alienated her her entire life. Our parents might have, but little did Catherine know that it was a much better option than getting their so-called love.
My phone ringing saved me from acknowledging her whims, and pulling it out of my pocket, I saw it was Elliot.
“Excuse me for a minute,” I told my sister before walking far enough away to take the call.
“Elliot?”
“I read your note. Is your sister okay?”
Hearing French after my sister’s unimpressive vocabulary was refreshing.
“As fine as a spoiled child like her can be.” No matter how she wanted to put it, Catherine still had it all, and instead of doing something with her life, she chose to waste her time complaining about how unfortunate she was.
“You’re harsh,” Elliot said.
“Hardly.” I sighed. “It’s impossible to imagine you’re so close in age… I mean, she’s absolutely immature, while you?” With my eyes closed, I thought of all the times he’d educated me about life. “It’s truly unimaginable.”
“Age is nothing, mon amour.”
Him calling me his love was enough to make me smile for the first time that day, and I finally remembered—
“How did the meeting go?”
“I’ll tell you when you get home.”
Home.
I’d shared a house with my wife and kid for many years, and while I loved them both, that place never felt like a home. Something was always lacking, and at last, it was there.
He was there.
Holding the phone closer with a pathetic smile on my face, I tried to contain my joy. “I can’t wait.”
“Hurry up, then.”
Now eager to get back to Elliot, I hung up the call and turned to face Catherine.
“Who was that, your new girlfriend?” she sneered.
Ignoring her, I’d already dialed my driver’s number. “I’ll call John to come and pick you up.”
“What? Why?” she pouted while the phone rang. “I thought you’d take me to eat or something. I’m totally in the mood for sushi.”
John quickly picked up, and as I spoke to him, Catherine went on whining about what an asshole I was for not taking her for sushi, as if I hadn’t just wasted an entire afternoon because of her poor choices.
And after I hung up, she had the audacity to say I was cruel and unkind and, per usual, judgmental.
I might have been, to some extent. But she well deserved it.
Despite being eager to go home, I waited with her until John arrived.
“Try not to cause trouble for a change, okay?” I told her after John stepped out and opened the door for her.
Yet before she climbed in, she stopped and looked at me.
“You know he’s angry with you, right?”
She’s talking about Father.
“Totally pissed about the whole divorce thing that came out of nowhere.” She pursed her lips. “For once, you caused a real drama, Dani. Mom says you made a huge mistake. She even called Claudia, asking her to give you another chance—”
“Good night, Catherine,” I cut in, uninterested in what she had to say.
Her face twisted, and she pressed her lips together, obviously annoyed that her emotional manipulations didn’t work this time. If she had a bit of self-awareness, she would have seen how alike she was to our parents, whom she so deeply resented.
At last, she got inside the car, and I gave her the honor of closing the door behind her. After thanking John, the two drove away, finally setting me free to go back home.