The Mafia Bride

45.

I turned my phone. After our meeting with clients was a success, we were returning back to Andrew's. All of us were munching takeout food and singing to songs on the radio. I was reading yet another entry of Leo's figurative diary. I owe Nico big time for this. And the food that he and Gigi brought. When Em and I were in a meeting, the two of them went shopping and found some amazing food.

Anyway, I was in a great mood today because our meeting was so good. My clients, the Swedish princess Anna and the English Duke William, were extremely difficult to please, which wasn't a surprise. Emily was legit on the verge of a breakdown when my brilliant mind came up with the most amazing idea. Picture this, a wedding under the northern lights in Sweden. Anna was sold and William loved it too. It was unique, nature-friendly and totally upscale at the same time. We did have to change the dates considering the season. But, it wasn't that big of a deal since we hadn't booked anything in advance. With the dates postponed and no other projects to work on, Emily and I could finally catch the break we deserve.

"Do you want some fries?" Gigi asked.

I nodded and took one. She looked at me sheepishly. "Look I'm sorry for snapping at you." She said. "You were just trying to help and I shouldn't have done that. It's just that things have been so rough lately, I feel so alone and shitty. I'm not trying to justify my behaviour but I hope you know I didn't mean to be rude to you."

"It's okay, Gigi." I said. She was going through hell. "Anyone would snap if they were in your position."

"It's just that Andrew means a lot to me and I..." She trailed off. "I don't know what to do anymore."

"Why don't you speak to his parents? Try to convince them."

From the passenger's seat, Nico gasped, "Not a chance. Andrew's parents are like super uptight. His dad hates Gigi, he'd eat her alive. They totally hate anything illegal." He said.

"Yeah," Gigi said. "Last time it was intense."

"Why don't you take someone with you? To back you up." Emily suggested. "If I were in your place, I'd take my parents."

"Lol no!" Nico blurted. "Mama would start arguing. And let's keep Papa away. They might get intimidated to speak with Don Moretti."

"Then maybe your brothers," Emily said. "What about Leo? Or maybe even Alex, I mean he's your cousin and seems reliable. "

"Hey!" Nico blurted. "What about me, Em?"

Interesting. Very very interesting. So Nico was close enough to call her Em. This was a new development.

"Frankly speaking, you aren't that reliable," Gigi said.

"That's not true," Nico said, faking a pout. God, that boy is such a drama queen.

Gigi said, "At Christmas when one of our old and annoying aunts asked Nico when he was going to find a job, he replied, soon as she finds her baby daddy. Needless to say, she was not impressed."

Emily laughed. "That was savage."

"In my defence, the aunt was a total ass." He said, crossing his arms.

Suddenly, I had an idea. "Can I accompany you, Gigi?" I asked.

"Huh?' Gigi blurted, obviously surprised.

"I mean I'm not a gangster, I'm like a normal person so I know what they feel like and I understand their worries. I mean I fell for Leo despite knowing what he does. So, if I can explain why Leo and I work, maybe, they'd be willing to accept that Andrew and Gigi can work too." I said.

"Are you sure you'd do that?" Gigi asked.

"Of course."

Gigi pulled me in a bear hug. Aww, well I guess I could talk to a few parents. How tough could it be?

#

By the time we reached Andrew's, we were utterly exhausted. It was late, so I didn't even bother switching on the lights. I kept my bag over the chair because I'm lazy and I couldn't care less about my room's cleanliness. When I'm tired, I don't care about the mess as long as my bed is clean and I can flop face down. I dragged myself to my dressing table, swiped my makeup clean with a makeup remover. Ugh, skincare is something I cannot slack about. After that, I made my way to my wardrobe. Just as I opened the closet to grab my nightwear, I felt someone grip my shoulder.

Oh My God... I tried to scream but the intruder covered my mouth. I bite as hard as I could and shouted loudly.

The door of my room opened. Nico pushed the door open and Gigi followed him, switching on the lights.

"What the hell?" Gigi blurted.

I turned to see our intruder.

Leo. Seriously? He was wincing, still nursing his fingers.

"Thank you for ruining my surprise." He said, rolling his eyes.

"You stupid stupid creep." Nico sighed. "That is not how you surprise a woman."

Nico and Gigi blurted out laughing and so did I while Leo glared at all of us. 

#

A/N: 

Yay, so Leo is finally back after many updates. And, this story has 12K reads now along with ranking like #1 in we need diverse books tag. I'm so happy. I started this story because I wanted to write something lighthearted and breezy to take a break from all the serious writing I do in my novels. I did not expect such a tremendous response. Thank you so much, people. You guys are the best!