Chapter 69
The sun was setting. The sky was turning into a giant painting of orange, pink, and purple. So aesthetic!
I looked out the kitchen window.
On the porch, the two husbands were sitting on the wooden steps.
Gabriel (My Dark Coffee Husband) and Elias (The Peppermint Gangster Husband).
They were talking.
Gabriel was leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. Elias was nodding.
Mwehehehehehe! Yes!
My heart fluttered. Look at them! They are bonding! Finally, Gabby has a friend!
Maybe they are talking about cars? Or taxes? Or how cute their wives are?
"I am glad they are getting along," I whispered to Sydney. "I was worried Elias would karate-chop him."
Sydney gave a nervous laugh. "I don't think they are... exchanging recipes, Ali. But they seem civil."
I smiled.
But then, I remembered something.
GASP.
The Board Meeting! The important Logistics Meeting in New York!
Gabriel missed it because of me. Because I begged him on my knees to turn the helicopter around.
Guilt washed over me like cold water. Huhu. I am a bad CEO wife! I made him lose money!
I gripped Sydney's hand.
"Syd," I said softly. "I... I have to go. Gabby has work. He missed his meeting for me."
Sydney looked at me. Her eyes were sad, but understanding.
"I know, Ali. You belong with him."
"I will come back!" I promised, squeezing her fingers. "I will visit! I will bring Primrose! We will have a picnic with Samuel!"
Sydney's face turned serious. She squeezed my hand back, hard.
"Ali, listen to me. Do not call. Do not text. Do not put this location on your GPS."
"Why?" I pouted.
"To avoid... instances," she said vaguely. "Just come when you can. But keep us a secret. Promise?"
I nodded vigorously. "Clause 4 of the Pinky Promise: Secrets kept!"
We hugged.
It was a long, tight hug. The kind where you try to memorize the smell of the other person. She smelled like milk and flowers.
"I love you, Syd," I sniffled.
"I love you too, Ali."
We pulled apart.
Sydney escorted me to the porch.
As soon as the screen door creaked open, Gabriel stood up.
Like, immediately.
He jumped up as if the stairs were made of lava!
He turned to face us. He fixed his jacket nervously. He smoothed his hair.
I squinted.
Is he... shaking?
His eyes were darting between me and Elias. He looked pale.
HUHUHU!
Why is my big, scary logistician husband nervous?!
I looked at Elias. Elias was just sitting there, calm as a cucumber.
Oh no!
Did Elias scare him?! Did Elias threaten him with gang signs?! Did Elias bully my poor Gabby?!
I pouted. Hmph! Sydney's husband is a meanie!
I walked down the steps and went straight to Gabriel. I grabbed his arm protectively.
"Gabby?" I whispered. "Are you okay? Did the Peppermint Man hurt your feelings?"
Gabriel gulped. He looked down at me with wide, terrified eyes.
"Aleesha," he breathed out. He looked like he was waiting for a bomb to explode. "You..."
"Let's go home," I said firmly. "We are going back to New York. You have work."
Gabriel froze.
His jaw dropped a little bit.
"Home?" he repeated. "With... me?"
"Duh!" I rolled my eyes. "You are my ride! And you are my husband! Where else would I go?"
Gabriel let out a breath he must have been holding for an hour. His shoulders slumped in relief.
He looked shocked. Like he expected me to stay here. Like he expected me to leave him because... because Elias bullied him?
No way! I stick by my man! Even if he is scared of ex-gangsters!
I turned to Elias. I gave him a stern look (to warn him not to bully Gabby again).
"Bye, Elias," I said.
"Goodbye, Aleesha," Elias nodded politely.
I hugged Sydney one last time. "Bye, Syd! Kiss Sammy for me!"
"Bye, Ali."
Gabriel gripped my hand. Tightly. Possessively.
He pulled me toward the clearing where the black helicopter was waiting.
We walked away from the white house. From the secret garden. From the ghost who came back to life.
We hopped into the luxurious leather seats.
The pilot started the engine. WHUP-WHUP-WHUP.
The helicopter lifted off.
I looked out the window.
The white house got smaller and smaller. Until it was just a speck in the sea of green trees. Then... it was gone.
The helicopter was quiet.
Only the hum of the blades.
I stared at the clouds. They looked gray now. The sunset was over.
The adrenaline was fading. And as the excitement washed away... a cold, hard thought settled in my brain.
I turned my head slowly.
Gabriel was looking straight ahead. He was holding my hand on his lap, his thumb rubbing my knuckles. But he wasn't looking at me.
"Gabby," I said. My voice was small in the big cabin.
"Yes?"
"Did you know?"
I asked it simply.
Gabriel went still. His thumb stopped rubbing my hand.
He didn't answer immediately. He looked at the pilot's back. He looked at the clouds.
"Gabby," I chased his gaze, leaning forward. "Look at me."
He slowly turned his head.
His eyes were dark. Unreadable. But deep down, I saw a flicker of... guilt?
"Did you know Sydney was alive?" I whispered. "Before today?"
I held my breath. Please say no. Please say you were surprised too.
Gabriel bit the inside of his cheek.
"Yes," he said.
One word. Three letters.
Yes.
My world stopped.
I felt numb. Like I had been dipped in ice water.
He knew.
He knew my cousin—my sister, my best friend, the person I cried for every single night—was alive.
He knew when I visited her empty grave. He knew when I buried the crochet heart yesterday. He knew when I told him I missed her.
And he said nothing.
He watched me cry. He handed me tissues. He bought me pink bags to cheer me up. But he never gave me the one thing I needed: the truth.
I pulled my hand away from his.
He flinched.
"You knew," I whispered, my voice breaking. "And you... you hid her?"
Gabriel looked down at his empty hand. Then he looked at me.
"What else are you hiding from me?" I asked. A tear escaped my eye. Then another. "What else is a lie, Gabriel?"
I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit his chest. But I was frozen. I just sat there, staring at the man I loved, feeling like I didn't know him at all.
Gabriel sighed. A heavy, tired sound.
"I did not hide her to hurt you, Aleesha," he said quietly. "I hid her to protect you."
"Protect me?!" I choked out. "From what?! From happiness?! From my family?!"
"From danger," he said firmly. "Elias... has a past. A dangerous past. If people knew Sydney was alive, they would come for her. And if you knew... you cannot lie, Aleesha. You are terrible at lying. Your face is an open book."
He reached for me, but stopped.
"If you knew, you would have visited. You would have left a digital trail. And the enemies would have found them. And they would have killed them."
I stared at him.
Logic. Again.
He was right. I am a blabbermouth! I am bad at secrets!
But still...
"I lived for two years thinking she was dead," I sobbed. "Two years, Gabby! That is 730 days of heartbreak! You let me hurt!"
"I took the burden of the truth so you could be safe," Gabriel said, his voice rough. "I would rather have you sad and safe, than happy and dead."
I wiped my face aggressively.
"Is that all?" I sniffled. "Is that the only secret? Or is there more?"
My mind went to the Unknown Number. To Natalia. To the files.
"Natalia said you are a bad man," I whispered. "She said you are cheating on me. She said you are dangerous."
I looked into his eyes.
"Are you cheating on me, Gabriel? Is Natalia your mistress? Is that why she hates me?"
Gabriel looked exhausted. He ran a hand through his perfect hair, messing it up.
"Aleesha," he groaned. "How many times? Natalia is a delusion. She is obsessed. There is no affair. There never was."
He reached out and grabbed my hand again. This time, he didn't let go when I tried to pull away.
"I am your husband," he said intensely. "We signed a contract. A marriage contract. And in my world... a contract is bond. Loyalty is everything."
He brought my hand to his lips.
"I have eyes only for you. I have a heart only for you. If I cheated, I would violate the terms of my own life."
"Contracts!" I wailed. "It's always contracts and logistics! What about trust?! Trust is the foundation of a relationship! I read that in a magazine!"
"I know," Gabriel whispered. "And I am asking you to trust me now. I hid the truth about Sydney to save her life. And yours."
I looked at him.
He looked sincere. He looked desperate for me to believe him.
And the thing is... I love him.
I love his grumpy face. I love his logic. I love how he catches me when I fall.
He lied to save Sydney. That is... kind of heroic? In a twisted way?
I am so weak for him!
"Okay," I whispered, my shoulders sagging. "Okay. I believe you."
But a tiny voice in my head whispered: What about the intestine picture? What about the hanging men?
I pushed the voice away. Haters. Just haters.
"But no more secrets, okay?" I sniffled.
Gabriel wiped my tears with his thumb. He leaned forward and rested his forehead against mine.
"No more secrets," he lied (probably).
He guided me to the long sofa in the helicopter.
"Sleep, mi amor," he murmured. "We have a long flight to New York."
I laid down. He covered me with his blazer. It smelled like him. Cedar and safety.
I closed my eyes. And despite the lies, I felt safe.
★
We were back.
The big, scary, isolated mansion in the middle of the woods.
But today, it didn't look scary. The sun was shining.
We were sitting on the daybed by the koi pond in the backyard. The fish were swimming lazily. Glub glub.
I was watching a big orange one named "Cheeto."
Gabriel was sitting next to me. He was watching me.
"Aleesha," he broke the silence.
I looked at him.
"You met Sydney," he said softly. "You saw she was alive. You saw she had a family."
"Yes," I nodded.
"Why..." he hesitated. He looked at the water. "Why did you come back with me? You could have stayed. You could have lived in the hidden house with your cousin."
I blinked.
Stay there? In the woods? Without Gabby?
I shook my head.
I reached out and intertwined my fingers with his.
I rested my head on his broad shoulder.
"Because," I said simply. "Sydney has a family. She has Elias. She has Samuel."
I looked up at his handsome profile.
"And I have a family too. You."
Gabriel went still. He turned his head to look at me. His eyes were wide, filled with a raw emotion I couldn't name.
"I can't leave my husband," I whispered. "I love you, Gabby. Even if you are a grumpy liar who hides my cousins."
Gabriel let out a shaky breath. He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close until there was no space between us.
I pulled back a little. I held up my pinky finger.
"You have to promise," I said seriously. "From now on. No. More. Secrets. Even the dangerous ones. We are a team! I can handle danger! I have an inhaler now!"
Gabriel looked at my pinky.
He hesitated. Just for a second.
Then, he hooked his large pinky around mine.
"I promise," he said.
We sealed it.
A Pinky Promise.