*Leo*
etings were the worst part of my day, I thought boredly as I sat at the round table for the shareholders of the real estate company. It was just a ploy, a way to keep our hands clean if anything went over but this company has beco a massive headache in the past few months.
Even Elio had considered ditching it before he’d stepped down.
Now I’m even more convinced we should just blow it up ourselves. With explosives. And maybe fireworks?
Make it a nice date night with Bianca, smores over the ashes of the forr company. Sounds nice to . I smirked at my thoughts, barely paying attention as the stumbling intern presented his poorly designed PowerPoint, fumbling over his words every other sentence.
My eyes dulled as I propped my head up on my fist, barely able to keep them open as I listened to the eting go on and on. I was just about ready to either keel over for a nap or get to my feet and start throwing staplers at people when I felt a buzzing in my hand.
I frowned, glancing discreetly below the table as I turned on my phone. At first, I hoped it was Bianca, sending another text ssage. Maybe we could compare which is more boring. Her politics class or my real estate eting.
But it wasn’t Bianca.
My smile dropped as I saw it was from Tian, one of Bianca’s bodyguards. They usually didn’t send reports throughout the day, only if Bianca went anywhere or was around anyone suspicious. I didn’t stick them to her side to monitor her, just to make sure she stayed safe.
My gaze darkened as I read the text once and then again but it was the sa thing over and over.
Bianca went to a won’s health clinic?
Why the fuck would she go there? She had a doctor who as far as I knew, she liked very much and wasn’t too far from the compound. Why drive an extra twenty minutes to a place with less care and more work attached to it? It didn’t make any sense.
Then another thought occurred to .
Wasn’t she supposed to be in class? The realization was like ice lting down my back.
I slamd my hands against the eting table, the chair screeching out behind as I stood up. The room fell in complete silence, all of the shareholders staring at nervously while the intern looked ready to pee his pants.
But all I could think about was Bianca. Who’d lied to to go to a clinic for who knows what and didn’t tell anybody the details.
“eting is over!” I declared, glaring at each and every person before I stord out of the office, clutching my phone tightly in my hand. I had to get to the bottom of this.
Worry and fear were the primary driving forces behind my speed as I hurried out of the building and to my car. The frustration of her hiding it was only secondary though I couldn’t say I wasn’t annoyed she had straight-up lied to .
Though considering how many tis I’d lied to her in the past, maybe this was karma. It’s hypocritical I know but I’d only ever lied to her to protect her. To keep her safe.
What am I supposed to do if sothing’s wrong and she won’t tell about it? If she’s in danger or hurt, how am I supposed to protect her when she won’t talk to ?
If she had at least gone to her regular doctor, I knew them and they knew . We’ve long since bought them out and they took care of all our guys so it would be easy to get her record if I needed to.
As soon as I was in the car and buckled, the engine blared to life. I threw my phone into the passenger seat as I sped off. I don’t even know the speed limit here as I race through the crowded and shitty LA traffic.
I try to keep calm and tell myself that I don’t know the whole story yet. She could be completely fine, not a hair hard on her beautiful head but I just can’t convince myself of that.
The way she’s been acting recently, overly emotional, our fights, and her attempts to tell sothing that she never finished. I always felt like she was holding sothing back. Could it be that she’s sick? That she’s dying?
I grip the steering wheel tightly, setting my jaw as I race ho at speeds I know aren’t legal. I nearly overturn the car as I make almost a ninety-degree angle into the compound. Her car is missing from its spot and though part of wants to rush out to find her right away, I knew it would be better to wait for her here.
I grab my phone and storm into the compound. Restless, unable to calm down, I pace the hallway anxiously, trying to figure out what to say, and how to go about this without starting another fight.
Mostly, I’m terrified that sothing has happened to her.
As I loudly paced the hallway, my stomach filled with knots from the anxiety, my whole body tensed as I finally heard the sound of a car in the driveway.
Okay, don’t freak out, talk calmly, I told myself over and over, crossing my arms over my chest as I leaned against the wall and faced the door. At that mont, it opened up, revealing a tired and downtrodden Bianca as she slipped inside.
She stiffened, her gaze slowly drifting upwards to et mine and I hoped in this tense mont of silence that she would say sothing, anything. I’d accept any kind of excuse if she would just talk to but the guilt on her face had my heart tied up in knots.
Everything I’d been feeling since finding out she’d lied to and gone behind my back cumulated in a torrential storm, my anger and frustration bleeding over my worry like markers through paper.
“You lied to . Why?” The words bit out harsher than I ant but I couldn’t stop myself, trembling with everything I was feeling. It all burst out of uncontrollably.
I thought we were better. I thought we were done with the secrets.
I guess I was wrong.
Bianca avoided my eyes, glancing at the wall as she quietly said, “I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Well, I’m worried!” I snapped, “I’m angry that you would lie to but I’ve been worried sick about you from the mont I heard you lied to .”
Bianca’s mouth twisted into a frown and she glanced back at with a hint of resentnt in her eyes.
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have people spying on ,” She argued back, frustrated, “You don’t even trust to leave the house and you expect to tell you everywhere I go! That’s not fair, Leo!”
I reeled back as she glared at , her hands clenched at her sides. I knew the guards bothered her but not to this extent.
“It’s not about trust, it’s about keeping you safe,” I said back, trying to calm down but Bianca scoffed, crossing her arms.
“You know what? Just forget it!” She stord past , fully walking away as she stomped up the stairs to our bedroom.
I stared at her in disbelief. She purposefully lied to and she dares to turn this around on ?
“Bianca!” I chased after her furiously, not wanting to let this go until I knew what she was hiding from . But as I called her na, she didn’t stop or look back and I had just made it to her when she slipped into the bedroom and slamd the door in my face.
I heard the lock click into place as I tried the door handle. If I wasn’t already angry, I definitely would be now.
“What the fuck are you doing, Bianca?” I banged on the door, “This is my room too! Let in!”
“No!” Her muffled voice ca from the other side and I swear to God, I’d never known her to be this stubborn and childish as right now. What was going on with her?
I clenched my teeth together, knowing I couldn’t just leave it like this and before I could talk myself out of it, I headed to the next room and climbed out the window.
Even three stories off the ground couldn’t scare as I shuffled my way over to the balcony of our room, dropping onto the solid ground easily. I stepped into the room, folding my arms over my chest as Bianca whirled around to face with wide eyes.
She was halfway through dressing, her arms still stuck in her shirt and her bra peeking out underneath.
“I’m changing! Get out,” She hissed then frowned, glancing at the balcony. “How did you even–”
“I’m the leader of the Mafia, you think a door is going to stop ?” I said arrogantly, even though, yes a mont ago, a door did stop in my tracks. “Plus, I’ve already seen everything so there’s no need to hide.”
“Leo!” Bianca turned red, scolding .
She quickly folded her shirt back on, wrapping her arm around her waist and I could see through my anger for a mont, the vulnerable expression she had. I softened, stepping forward with my hand raised and she stepped back just as much, clearly drawing a line between us.
“Bianca, please,” I begged her, hurt she’d shut out like this, “Just talk to . Tell what’s going on.”
She hesitated, her eyes wavering as she glanced at but ultimately she stared down at the floor.
“It was just a checkup,” she mumbled the lie easily like she’d been preparing for it.
“Do you really expect to believe that?” I said incredulously. “You’ve never even gone to this clinic before and even went out of your way to avoid your regular doctor! What the hell is going on, Bianca? Please, just–”
I moved forward to reach out to her, but I stopped as I saw tears run down her face, her whole body folding in on itself as she silently broke down into tears before .
I swallowed, feeling uncomfortable and helpless. I dropped my hand to my side, finally giving up. I couldn’t cross this divide if Bianca didn’t want to. And the longer I stayed here to interrogate her, the more upset she beca.
So I stepped back.
“Sorry,” I said quietly, not looking at her expression even when I saw her raise her head. The taste of frustration and disappointnt was bitter on my tongue as I stepped around Bianca. I unlocked the door, opening it up as I stepped out.
“Talk to when you’re ready,” I said quietly then I shut the door behind .
The silence that followed was louder than anything I’d ever heard before but all I could do was grit my teeth and walk away.
Even if it felt like the woman I loved was slipping away from .
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