Chapter 374 - The Mask Has Slipped Off
Standing on the threshold of the apartment's front door, Nina hugged Angela for a long time, and then her eyes strayed towards Gael. She warned, "If you hurt her, I'll poke your eyeballs out with pretty grey irises and put them on a stick. Then I'll bring them to Times Square, and starting then, your eyeballs are the only balls that will drop every new year's eve."
"Nina!" Angela leaned back and stared wide-eyed at her best friend for threatening Gael with Giovanni and their guards around. The latter gave Nina warning glares.
However, Gael wasn't bothered by the threat. He gazed at Angela, who looked apologetic on behalf of her best friend, and without taking his eyes off her, he declared, "If I hurt her so bad that she wouldn't want me anymore, I'll take my eyes out myself. I'd rather not see the world without her in it."
The air went still, and Angela's heart skipped a beat, hearing those words with all these people around them. Gael didn't hesitate to declare for everyone to hear. If his guards were surprised, they didn't show it—though they straightened up and looked straight ahead. Giovanni, who was leaning against the wall, glanced at Gael for a tad too long without punching a remark about how he found his nephew cheesy or something relevant. If anything, Giovanni looked like he believed and even realized something but didn't voice it out.
Nina cleared her throat which broke the thick air. "You...you'd be a great writer if you tried."
A handsome smile grazed Gael's lips as he pushed his hands into his pockets. "I'll leave the writing to her."
Taking a deep breath, Angela faced her best friend again and squeezed her arms. "I want to send you off…"
"No need. It's just the airport, Anj. And it will be traffic. I'll call you before boarding and when I land. Okay?"
"I won't drive you then, Morelli." Giovanni lifted a corner of his lips into a smirk.
Nina rolled her eyes at him. "Of course, you won't. And I don't want you to. Bye, Gio."
"Don't miss me too much." He winked.
Angela glanced between the two, wondering if they would really move on like they usually do after today. They seemed to agree that they'd go back to how they were before last night—strangers.
After Nina thanked Gael for his generosity once again and then hugging Angela tighter than necessary, she left with a few of Gael's guards and headed to the elevator.
One day with her best friend wasn't enough, Angela thought. But she was still content that she had so much fun with Nina and thankful that Gael made that all possible. She exchanged looks with him as they headed back inside the apartment, wishing he'd tell her more about what he just openly said earlier, but the moment was gone.
The T.V. was on with the local news, and Giovanni plopped on the couch in front of it, pouring himself a drink of scotch. It was still eleven in the morning. Why was he drinking already? "I'll just catch up on the news, and I'll be in your office."
So they were working again today? Angela wondered. She faced Gael and whispered, "Can I talk to you?" Gael led her to the bedroom and closed the door behind them. He already had a feeling about what she wanted to talk about.
"Did you know Gio stayed the night?" she asked, her eyes looking serious as she stared at him.
He paused, trying to find a careful way to answer her. "By the time I realized he hadn't left after putting her to bed, they already started." And he wasn't going to stop them mid-sex.
After changing Angela's clothes and tucking her in bed, he went out to check on Giovanni and found the door to the guest room was left ajar. Gael heard grunts and moans just as the movements came into view through the gap—Giovanni was pounding into Nina as he bent her over the desk. Gael was wary about the two just as much as Angela. Could he have stormed inside and broke the two apart? He could, but he didn't. So he closed the door and went straight to his office to finish some emails.
He didn't tell Angela what he saw, though. He was still trying to get that image off his head.
"So you knew he was here, but you still let me go to the guest room?" she probed.
Gael clenched his jaw and sucked in a breath as he closed his eyes. The thought of Angela walking in and seeing his uncle's…Fuck. He didn't even want to think about it. The image burned in his head, and he was a second away from breaking Giovanni's face for flashing his girlfriend. It didn't matter if it wasn't intentional. And he knew his uncle enough to see that he was smug about it.
When he opened them again, he sighed. "I didn't think he would stay the night. He usually doesn't. Gio's not the snuggling type—he'd fuck and go. So I didn't bother to check this morning. One, for the reason I just told you. And two, he could have left, and I wasn't going to open the room where your best friend was sleeping."
Angela's bottom lip curled inward, and she chewed on it, mulling over what he just said before letting out a small sigh.
"Is this going to be a problem?" Gael asked as he stepped into her space and pulled her to him.
She shook her head. "Nina won't be… I think. She didn't look like she expected more from him. Just make sure Gio doesn't do anything stupid. I don't want my best friend to get hurt."
He understood why she was concerned. Setting the De Luca-Morelli war aside, Giovanni wasn't the man for Nina. The latter deserved someone who'd treat her more than just a fuck. "I don't mean to offend, babe… Nina may be a catch, but Gio doesn't date. So after today, it's less likely that the two will get together again."
Angela narrowed her eyes at Gael. "But you were like him too. You said so yourself."
And now he was head over heels for her.
"Remember what I told you the first time you met my uncle in your apartment?" He tilted his head as he watched her think. "He's all smiles and whatnot, but that's just a mask. Trust me when I tell you he's not going after Nina. And he never will for other women."
Angela clutched Gael's shirt as curiosity sat in the pit of her stomach. "Who hurt him?"
A glass shattered outside, and their heads whipped towards the direction of the sound. She gasped. "What was that?"
Gael dashed to the door and stopped, watching Giovanni fuming as he paced in the living room and shaking in rage. "What the hell's going on?"
The guards burst through the door with their guns already out, and they're about ready to start shooting threats.
Without taking his eyes off the T.V, Giovanni kicked the heavy coffee table forward. It slid away, and the decorations on top fell over, but the table remained upright. "She can't fucking do this to me!" He shoved his hand through his hair and pulled on it. Angela had never seen Giovanni so angry that her heart raced at a dangerous pace. He looked the complete opposite of how he usually was around them.
Gael walked towards the other and placed his hands on his shoulders to stop him. "Tell me what the fuck is wrong. Or do I have to punch it out of you before you break all my stuff?"
Giovanni met Gael's gaze, his eyes a mixture of emotions that were so hard to distinguish—though most of it was rage. "Lia's fucking fiancé became a part-owner of Kline Morgan Holdings. He now owns 49% of the shares after Kline sold it to retire. They're moving here to New York. To my fucking territory!"
Angela watched the scene before her, unsure how to take the situation. She tried to catch what the news was talking about but it had already moved on to another one before she could even catch anything. Why was this affecting him so much?
"Fuck," was all Gael could utter as he lowered his arms. He looked like he was in shock too. Just what was going on?
"I'm gonna find her." Giovanni grabbed his suit jacket and headed out the door in a matter of seconds.
Gael was about to chase after him when he remembered Angela, and he jogged back to her side. "You stay here. I'll make sure he's okay."
Confused, she held his arm tightly. "Who's Lia?"
His lips flattened as if he didn't want to say anything. And he didn't as it wasn't his secret to tell. "I can't tell you everything right now. But she's the reason why Gio's the way he is."
"What?" The crease between her brows furrowed deeper.
Leaning in, Gael kissed Angela on the lips and told her, "I have to leave before I lose him." And with that, he strode out of the apartment while barking orders at his men.