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Gedeon strolls into my office and drops down on the windowsill just behind my desk, a lit cigarette dangling from his mouth. “Where’s Nina Bean?”
“On a walk with Polina.” I pluck the cigarette from his mouth and flick it out the window. “But she’ll be back soon. Keep your smoke out of my house.”
He sighs. “Is this even your house anymore? You showed Laila the new place, right? When are you all moving?”
Gedeon was a huge help in finding the house, actually. Which is why he’s almost as invested in Laila’s reaction as I was.
It’s also why he’s going to be as disappointed as I am in her response.
After the initial shock wore off, Laila hasn’t breathed another word about the entire subject. I’m starting to wonder if the whole walkthrough wasn’t something I dreamed up.
“I have no clue,” I admit. “I think she liked it.”
“Youthinkshe liked the house you almost sold your firstborn child to purchase for her?”
“If I’d sold our firstborn, Laila would’ve hated the house. And me.”
Ged dips his chin. “You know what I mean. That greedy old bastard who owned the place raked you over the fucking coals, and you let him all because you were sure the house would be a slam dunk.”
“I know,” I grit out. “It was.”
“Good, good.” Gedeon sketches his finger in the air like he’s working out a complicated math problem. “It took millions of dollars to get this far, so maybe, by the time you auction off your organs on the black market and crack whatever the hell Bitcoin is, she might even want to be in the same room as you.”
“Speaking of being in the same room, I’ll shove you out that window if you don’t shut your mouth.”
Gedeon grins, but I don’t miss the way he steps away from the window, suddenly preferring to lean against a solid wall.
I drag a hand through my hair. “I’m trying to give her time. Space. That’s all she’s asked for from me. The house was a gesture of goodwill. Making demands about how she reacts to it is going to look like I’ve attached strings. It’ll push her away.”
“Look at you,” Gedeon whistles, “all evolved and patient. I never thought I’d see the day.”
I never thought I’d see it, either. But Laila hasn’t given me much choice. It’s either be patient or lose her, and only one of those is an option.
“Has she mentioned anything to you?” I ask, trying to sound way more casual than I feel. “About the house or… me?”
“Please,” Gedeon snorts. “We may be friends, but she knows I’m in your pocket. She stopped sharing things with me months ago. About the time you made me her prison guard in exile.”
“Can we stop referring to it as prison and exile?” I growl. “I sent her there to make sure she was?—”
“You did it to keep her safe,” he interrupts, circling his hand through the air like he’d love to fast forward through this conversation. “I’ve heard it all before. I know. You love her.”
He says it easily. Like there’s not a doubt in his mind.
The only doubts in mine come from a lifetime of being warned against it. I was taught that falling in love with a woman would be the end of me.
Every so often, I have to stop and wonder if my asshole of a grandfather wasn’t right.
“How long do we have before you have to go pick Laila up from class?”
He checks his watch. “Half an hour, give or take.”
“Then you might as well make good use of your time.” I jab a finger at the chair across from my desk. “Fill me in.”
“You talking about Charles?” he asks, sinking into the chair, one ankle crossed over the other knee. “Because there isn’t much to fill in. He’s disappeared.”
I lean in, suddenly tense. “What does that mean?”
If Charles is off the map, it means the irritating little gopher is going to pop back up again. The bastard just doesn’t know when to die.
