Page 108 of Because I Need You
The door opened behind us and shut right away. I looked up as my sister kept squeezing me and crying into my shirt. Loren looked like he was either about to walk right back out or kill me. Either was a real option. I could see it in his face.
“What is happening?” he asked slowly.
“Gio got me my own ballet theater.” Cat pushed away from me and wiped her face, holding up the deed. “My very own theater. It’s our wedding present.”
“You already gave us money.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you remember the exact amount.”
“I actually do.” His lip twitched. He looked back to my sister as he walked over to her. “Your own theater. Holy shit, Cat.” Then he looked at me, glaring. “I’m never going to top this gift, you fucking asshole.”
At that, I laughed. “Well, that’s my cue. I have to be at the club tonight.”
“Again?” Catalina asked, sighing heavily. “Can’t you just take a break?”
“Nope.”
“You know, I was talking to Isabel when you got here.” My sister glanced up at me, shifting in her feet, as if I was going to attack her for saying Isabel’s name aloud or something. It hurt to hear it, but it was something I needed to learn to cope with, especially being that my sisters had formed a friendship with her, and it wasn’t something I’d take away from any of them. It hurt, though. It fucking hurt.
“I figured,” I said, finally.
“She asked about you.”
I swallowed, looking away. “Don’t tell me. That was the deal. You stay friends, but you don’t give me details. I don’t want to hear it.”
“Hm.” Cat shook her head.
“You really look like you could sleep for two months, G,” Loren said, changing the subject.
“I feel like it, too.” I gave my sister a kiss on the head and patted his shoulder. “No rest for the wicked and all that.”
“Even the wicked die, G.” He raised an eyebrow. “You should rest.”
“I will.” I walked out. “Someday.”
49
ISABEL
He’d sent me a massage chair.
I’d once told him the only chair I wanted was a cozy massage chair, and the bastard actually sent me one. That was as much of a sign I got from him that he was still alive and thinking about me. Of course, I’d spoken to Cat and Emma. We’d even grabbed drinks a few times, like we did a couple of hours ago, and now I was back in my apartment, sitting in the massage chair. I’d given Gio enough time. I’d given myself enough time. Every day, I woke up and asked myself if I was where I needed to be, and I answered yes. Then, I asked myself if I was happy, and the answer was also yes. Then, I asked myself what would make me happiest, and the answer was always Giovanni. There was no way around it anymore. I couldn’t continue to pretend that this wasn’t what I knew it was. I was in love with him, and I wasn’t going to fall out of love with him any time soon, if ever. So, tonight, I’d grabbed Luke and Noah, and their girlfriends, and we headed to The Devil’s Lair.
Was it a good idea? Probably not.
Was I going to do it anyway? Hell yeah.
At the very least, I knew we’d get inside, which was all I needed. Luke and Noah went off to the bar, making me promise I’d text to let them know how it went. They already knew the drill, though. If they didn’t see me back here within the hour, it had gone well enough. They were fine with it, since they knew Petra was involved and I wouldn’t get physically hurt in here. I shot Petra a text to let her know I was here. She’d already warned me that Gio was in one of his bad moods, but she said that every night when I checked in, so that wasn’t a surprise. When I reached the second floor, I bypassed the VIP, waving at the new bouncer working there, and headed to the door. Petra walked out as I was getting there, shaking her head. She was wearing dress pants and a nice blouse, no longer in a cast.
“I need a drink,” she said, dropping a kiss on my cheek. “Good fucking luck in there.”
I walked in and shut the first set of doors behind me, then practiced breathing as I reached the doors to his office. I opened them slowly and let myself in. He had both arms on the desk, his head resting between them, the way my students do when they fall asleep in class.
“Really, P? If it’s not an emergency, don’t fucking bother me. I don’t have time for this.”
“You can’t even make time for your wife?”
His head snapped up. Those dark eyes met mine and I immediately felt faint. He stared at me, just stared. Not seeing him as long as I’d gone without him, and seeing him now, felt like a blow to the chest. Adrenalin propelled me to move forward. I walked over to the desk, standing on the other side as he shifted in his seat and looked up at my face, still staring as if he wasn’t entirely sure he was seeing things or if this was real. I’d been the one to finally show up here and I felt the same. It all felt like a dream I’d played out in my head a million times and now that I was here, I needed to do something, say something.
