Chapter 219

“What do you want to eat?” Christian asked. “I’ll make you anything you want, even those unhealthy burgers you like.”

One week had passed since the funeral, and for the first time in a while, we sat down at the kitchen table like a normal family. No strange visitors, no maids, just the three of us.

Christian had been extremely busy while I took all the time I could to spend time with Siena. I understood Christian was doing all of this to stop his uncle, so we could at least live a semi-normal life, so as strange as it seemed, I did not interfere.

“I’m actually craving pizza,” I suggested. Siena slammed her tiny hands on the floor and babbled.

Christian picked her up from the floor and attacked her with kisses. Seeing the way he looked at Siena warmth my heart.

“How about I make you a pizza, and Siena can eat one of her disgusting potato jars,” Christian suggested. “Don’t be like that. I don’t want you to hurt her feelings.” I told him. “And we can just order—“

“No.” Christian shook his head. “I like taking care of you, and I love spending time with you.”

I covered my flushed cheeks and shot him a smile. “You’re being extra nice this week, and I don’t know how to feel about that.”

“Well.” Christian laughed. “You might as well get used to it because this is the way it's going to be from now on.”

Hours had passed, and after our time in the kitchen, which was filled with laughter, we sat at the dining table. “So, how did I do?” Christian smiled as he wiped the cheese from my lips.

“You did a great job. You always do.” I praised him. I leaned in to kiss him, but before I could—

Siena, who was seated on my lap, forced her hand on his lips. “I don’t think she likes sharing.” I pouted.

Christian took her from my lap and lifted her in the air. “You should eat. I’ll play with her.” He offered.

I placed my hand on his arm and shook my head. Something was off, and I could feel it.

“What’s wrong?” I asked nervously. No matter how I looked at it, Christian being extra kind remained a weird concept. Was he cheating on me again?

“Oh, so I can’t play with my daughter anymore?” Christian laughed. Seeing the look on his face made me feel guilty. “You can, but you’re making me nervous.”

Christian took a breath, and for the first time in a while, there was a real expression behind his face.

He seemed stressed, bothered, and tired.

“Serena, I don’t want to do this….” Christian began.

I felt my palms get sweaty as I prepared myself for the worst. Please, don’t let it be true.

“I need you to stay with your parents, just until we’ve sorted this thing with my uncle.”

Christian’s words weren’t supposed to make me feel happy, but I could finally breathe. Was that really all?

“I want you and Siena to be safe, and being with your parents is the safest at the moment.”

Christian continued. “We’ll be making a move any time from now, and I don’t want anything to happen to you. I want you to be with the people we trust, and I trust your parents—“

“I understand!” I cut him off. If there was one thing I had learned, it was not to question him unless necessary. It would spare us a lot of arguments.

“Do you, really?” Christian spoke, surprised.

“I do, and I will stand behind you—no matter what.”

Christian shot me a grateful smile and held my hand. “That day…when I heard the explosion, and I couldn’t find you or Siena by my side…it scared me.”

“I know,” I whispered. I squeezed his hand and pulled him closer. “I don’t want to cause you any stress, so if this is what you want…it’s okay.”

Johnny’s words about being prepared to lose Christian were the wake-up call I needed. I couldn’t let anything happen to him, and I couldn’t stress him out. The safest thing for everyone was for me to work along.

Even though Siena and I were his family, we weren’t the only ones. He had a lot of people to protect.

“And I know we haven’t had the best experiences with being apart from each other.” Christian continued. My mind went to Gina, who had almost been the downfall of everything we built.

“But I need you to trust me, and I need you to know that I would never ever repeat the same mistake." Christian looked into my eyes. “Everything I’m doing is for you, and I don’t want anyone else but you.”

“I know, and I trust you.”

There was a moment of silence before Christian and I could not hold back our laughter. “I’m sorry.”

Christian chuckled. “It’s just…I never thought we could do this.”

“Do what?”

“Communicate,” Christian spoke, relieved. “But it feels good.” He spoke as he moved his hand to the ring around my finger. “And after all of this is finished, I’m going to give you the big wedding you want.”

“Who told you I want a big wedding?” I frowned. Christian shrugged. “In that case, do you want a small wedding?”

“No?” I spoke, embarrassed. It seemed as if my personality had also changed. The old Serena would’ve been fine with a courthouse wedding, but she had unfortunately faded away. How could I stay true to myself, if I had to fit in?

“Hey, it’s okay to want something for yourself.” Christian smiled. “And after all of this is finished, I also think you should continue that thing you were doing with Dario.”

Dario? The last thing I wanted was to bother him even more, and the last thing he needed was me.

He had Christian and his family—and that was more than enough. “I don’t think Dario wants anything to do with me.”

Christian cleared his throat and looked elsewhere. “I think I might’ve had something to do with that.”

“W-what?”

“There’s something else I have to tell you.” Christian sighed. “I might’ve told him to keep his distance from you.”

The voice in my head told me to yell at him, but deep down, I understood where he was coming from. I told Christian I had feelings for his cousin. What else was he supposed to do?

“You did what?” I asked calmly.

“I felt intimidated, jealous, and forced him to take his distance from you,” Christian admitted.

“Whatever happened is on me, so blame me.”

“Christian…”

“When you told me you had feelings for him, I freaked, I didn’t know what to do with myself—and I made a mistake,” Christian explained. I was too busy with my own feelings and had not once thought about his.

“I’m sorry.” Christian apologized. I could tell he was embarrassed, while there was no need to be.

“I accept your apology,” I spoke. “And I’m sorry for the things I said about Dario. I’m not in love with him. I love you.”

For a split second, a smile had appeared on Christian’s lips. “He was just there when I wasn’t.” He defended my actions. “It’s okay. You don’t have to lie about it.”

I wished I could tell him it wasn’t like that, but I couldn’t. We both weren’t there for each other, and that was all because our relationship started out as forced. We had pushed ourselves to love each other for Siena’s sake, but a lot had changed.

“Christian, can you promise me one thing?”

Christian looked at me. “Anything.” He nodded. I knew my following request would be hard to take in, but I had to do it. “I know how much you love the family business and how hard you’re fighting for Siena, but if things get too dangerous, I need you to promise me to let it go,” I spoke my mind.

Even though I was the one who was hungry to get back Siena’s stolen cash, I couldn’t give two shits anymore. All I wanted was for him to be safe and for him to get back to us in one piece.

“What?” Christian furrowed his brow. “I’m doing this for Siena—“

“I know, but when it comes down to it...let it go.” I took a breath. I had no idea what was about to come, but by the looks of it, it would not be pretty. Whatever Christian was doing seemed to be a top-secret, which was already dangerous enough.

“I think Siena having her dad is way more important than her leading a family business…I need you to keep that in mind.”

I observed the look in Christian’s eyes and could tell he disagreed. “I will.” He forced a smile on his lips. “And I will never let anything happen to me, at least not until I can see my daughter grow.”

If I had the power, I would’ve taped him to that chair so he could not move a muscle—but it was not possible. Christian had his responsibilities, so the only thing I could do was stand behind him, even if that meant going to my parents.

“With that being said, I agree—we should not have any more children anytime soon.” Christian laughed. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

Thank god.

“Me neither.” I agreed. “Siena’s first birthday is not even close, and with all this stuff going on with your uncle…it’s just really unrealistic right now.”

“Right.”

“So when am I leaving?” I changed the subject. Christian scratched his neck as he desperately avoided my gaze. “Hello, when am I leaving?”

“Tomorrow.”