13. Giselle
Giselle
It feels weird walking into my old house again after three weeks.
When I quickly moved into that hotel after I found out about the engagement, I told myself I’d never step foot in here again.
I decided I should definitely grab the rest of my things .
. . and I should spend some time with Caesar after avoiding him like the plague since the wedding.
“Hello?” I call out, and finally he replies.
“We’re in the living room!”
We?
I walk over to the living room and see my cousin sitting with my brother there, both with a drink like they’re having a good time.
“Leo?” I ask skeptically, and he smiles and walks over to give me a hug.
“Gigi, I’m happy to see you.” Leo stands from the couch and walks over to give me a hug. I was still a bit confused, but I hugged him back.
“What are you doing here?” I ask as we pull back from the hug.
“Well, Leo decided since I’m taking over, he wanted to get back into the family business,” Caesar says with a smile, and Leo laughs and puts a hand on his shoulder.
“Well, Uncle didn’t want my father or me around, but I never wanted to walk away from everything,” Leo says as he walks back over to his seat.
My dad didn’t want them around?
“But I thought that your dad was the one who didn’t want to be involved with the family anymore?” I ask, eyeing them both.
“Some sibling rivalry,” Leo says, waving his hand dismissively. “The details don’t matter, Gigi. I’m tired of all the old Heads in our lives telling us who to feud with.”
I turn to Caesar, and he looks so happy to have Leo here.
It isn’t that I don’t want Leo here, it just all seems so weird to me, and I don’t know why I’m getting this weird feeling.
“I wanted to come see you myself after the wedding to reconnect but I suspected your uh, husband wouldn’t have appreciated it,” Leo adds with a smirk.
“It doesn’t really matter what he appreciates, my family is my family,” I say as I go to join them on the couch.
Leo’s expression stays mischievous at my reply, and he sets his glass down.
“Caesar told me about how well you two know each other,” he adds.
I roll my eyes and get comfortable on the couch. “Yeah, really well.”
“Tell me you haven’t done anything drastic yet,” Caesar asks, seeing my expression.
“Well . . . ” I say and he sighs, and Leo laughs.
“What did you do now?”
“I may or may not have blown up his Mercedes,” I say shrugging, and Caesar almost spits out his drink.
“Dad would have killed you if he knew that,” he says as he wipes his mouth and I laugh.
“He must be easy on you if he let you do that,” Leo says.
I scoff. “Artem is an asshole, he knew he deserved it.”
“You two still haven’t gotten along after two weeks of marriage?”
I shake my head, and he nods as he takes another sip of his drink. I don’t know why but I feel like he’s analyzing every fucking word that I’m saying and it’s weirding me out.
“Well, I always kept my distance when I was younger from him too. Their whole family has always felt off to me.” I furrow my brows a bit at his words, wondering what he means by that. Before anyone can reply, his phone starts ringing.
“I’ll be back,” he says looking at Caesar as he nods.
“So, Leo huh?” I ask when we’re alone.
“Give him a chance, Gigi. I know he was a troublemaker when we were young but that was over ten years ago. He just wants us all to be close again like we used to be.”
“I’m not trying to be difficult, it’s just so random. The timing, I mean.”
He sighs and gets up to pour another drink for himself. “Don’t do that thing you do and put up a million walls. We were all inseparable as kids,” he says with a thoughtful smile.
He’s a sentimental sap, but I don’t want to be a bitch and crush his dreams of having everyone be rainbows and sunshine together again.
“I just don’t want you to get hurt again. Leo has always been a little complicated,” I warn.
“Well, I trust him. I really do, I’m not just saying that. I have to think of everyone in the family now, and I wouldn’t let him in if I didn’t.”
I sigh, but nod.
“Okay, okay, I trust you then I guess.” I stand and go over to him, putting my hand on his arm. “And I did want to come and say I didn’t mean to be so harsh with you. This has just been a super weird fucking month and I—”
“It’s fine, I get it. Like I said I’d never let you be with some tool who doesn’t know your value. Artem might be . . . Artem, but I don’t think I’d entrust my little sister to anyone else.”
I raise my brow, and almost laugh. “Now you trust Artem?”
“Any man who protects you from your own family is a good man. I don’t have to like him to see the way he’d kill for you.”
“He’d kill anyone anyway, he’s crazy. It wouldn’t be for me,” I say, trying to push down that feeling again and roll my eyes. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom.” He chuckles at my denial as I walk away.
God, I hate that I can’t escape thinking about Artem even when I’m as far as I can be from him. Kill for me? I can’t imagine how pissed he’d be if he was forced to kill someone because of me.
I turn down the hallway and I hear Leo talking on the phone. I was going to keep walking until I hear him say Artem’s name.
“You think Artem would be stupid enough to let that happen?”
His head turns, and I almost gasp, trying to hide again around the corner but there’s no way he didn’t see me.
“Gigi?”
I step out from the corner awkwardly, my hands behind my back. “Sorry I uh . . . ” I start to speak but the horrible feeling of my stomach dropping from all of this is keeping me from forming words.
“I was just talking to a friend,” he says casually as he walks over with a collected smile.
Do I trust Leo? He is family but something feels really wrong.
“Did I hear you say Artem?”
His expression falters for a second, and I furrow my brows. I knew it. Something is fucking off.
“My friend was wondering who your husband was since I mentioned you just got married, just friendly talk.”
I step forward, wanting to see if he’ll crack.
“Well, I’d rather you kept me out of your friendly talks, I don’t—”
“What are you guys doing?” Caesar’s voice suddenly comes from behind me, and I turn.
Leo puts his arm on my shoulder. “Gigi and I are just bickering like old times,” he says with a smile.
I roll my shoulder out of his grasp and scowl. “I think I’m gonna grab my stuff and go,” I say looking at Caesar. “Can you help me?”
I can sense the tension I created, but Caesar only nods as he follows me to my old room, leaving Leo in the hallway downstairs.
“So . . . what’s the problem now?”
I sigh and turn to face him. “I heard Leo say something about Artem on the phone and it was kind of weird.”
I expected Caesar to be concerned, but instead he burst out laughing.
“What’s funny?” I ask, crossing my arms.
“Leo can’t say his name? I mean—”
“Seriously? I know what I heard! He was asking if Artem would be stupid enough to . . . I don’t know, ‘let something happen.’”
Caesar walks over and puts his hand on my arm.
“Look, I’m sure you think it was something weird but it’s probably a misunderstanding. Plus I . . . don’t think they used to get along well anyway, so maybe he was venting. You sure you’re not just projecting some shit onto him because of everything that happened in the past?”
I’m annoyed by his accusation, but even more annoyed that it leads me to some self-doubt. I mean I have no idea what Leo said besides what little I heard, maybe it isn’t proof of anything at all besides my paranoia?
“Look, you are my priority here, okay? I would never bring Leo around if I doubted him. He’s a little much but I know he loves his family. I want you to trust me . . . or else I’m gonna feel like a fuck-up as the new Head if I don’t have my perfect sister’s approval,” he muses with a teasing smile.
I can’t help the smile spread on my face as I slap his arm. “I don’t know about Leo right now but I know you would never put the family in danger okay? Just promise me if you sense anything you follow your gut and don’t just blindly trust everyone.”
He nods, nudging my arm wanting to end the serious conversation. As usual for him.
“Where is Dad anyway?” I ask as I move to a new box.
“Well after the wedding he said he was going away for a while, maybe like a retirement vacation?”
I furrow my brows and look at him through my eyebrows as I’m bent over the box.
“Dad? On a vacation?”
He laughs and grabs some packing tape.
“I guess? He said not to expect him back for a while.”
My phone rings, and when I see Artem’s name flash on the screen I sigh.
“I’ll let you take that,” Caesar says with a soft smile, kissing my forehead as he leaves the room, which eases a lot of my nerves.
“Yes?” I groan into the phone.
“Why do you have the newest phone if you’re not even fucking using it?”
“I am using it, I’m just ignoring you. I told you I was busy today so what do you need so badly?”
“The driver told me there’s another car in the driveway and I want to know whose it is.”
“Oh, I thought you were the pakhan, don’t you have resources to find that out?”
I can hear his sigh, and I almost laugh imagining the look on his face.
Wait—fucking no. I will not smile imagining him.
“Tell me who the fuck is there before I come myself Giselle, I’ll only warn you once.”
“So what are the wrong answers? If I say I’m having an affair or if I say I’m plotting your murder, which is worse?”
“So help me God if you don’t fucking—”
“Leo is here, you grouch,” I huff before he loses it.
“Leo?”
“Yeah, apparently we’re all family again?” I say hesitantly as I raise my brows and grab some more things to put in a box.
“That guy is bad news,” he says coldly.
“Pot calling the kettle black?” I shoot back.
“Just keep your damn distance so I don’t have to intervene.”
Why does his disapproval of Leo make me want to prove him wrong so badly? It’s like when your dad forbids you to see someone, they just strengthen your resolve.
“You don’t trust me?”
“I trust you, not your family. Any of them.”
“Well I don’t trust yours either, so we’re even.”
“Goddammit Giselle, just stay out of fucking trouble.”
I stop what I’m doing, angrily holding the phone in front of me. “You’re the only trouble in my life. Caesar and trouble don’t really go in the same sentence. Plus, I do whatever I want, you’re not my boss.”
I hear him scoff and I clench my jaw, his voice coming out low and dangerous, “You just like to get under my skin, yeah?”
“It isn’t my fault you get upset easily, maybe you should learn how to handle your emotions.”
“You think this is about me being upset? I manage powerful men every fucking day, yet here I am losing my shit over my wife acting like a teenager,” he says and then pauses to take a breath. “Don’t make me come there and make a show out of your disobedience, solnishko.”
“You wouldn’t,” I seethe.
“Just fucking come back when you’re done. No stops along the way.”
I hang up and toss my phone on my bed. Asshole. He doesn’t even think I’m capable of keeping myself out of trouble? I’m not some little damsel he has to coddle and save constantly. I can make my own fucking decisions and form my own opinions.
I finish with the box I packed and take it back downstairs, where Leo and Caesar are talking and laughing.
“All done?” Caesar asks and I nod.
“Let’s do this again, Gigi. How about tomorrow night you come by my new lounge?”
“Lounge?” I ask, setting the heavy box down.
“Yeah, little business venture. Caesar is thinking of investing so he’s coming too, but either way it’s just to enjoy. Food and drinks galore,” he adds with a smile.
I think I might have judged too harshly.
It makes me feel lighter inside knowing Leo wants to reconnect.
I tend to think the worst and jump to conclusions and I never let anyone explain themselves .
. . so maybe this is an opportunity for me to learn to be more open? I take a deep breath, and smile.
“Alright, alright, I’m in.”
“Your husband is free to join as well,” he adds.
“I doubt it, but I’ll be there.”