Smiling back, I gave her a hug. “Good morning,” I said as I stepped out of her warm embrace. I helped them in the kitchen, trying not to think about that morning.
“I’ll message the others to set the table,” Maddie muttered as she took out her phone. She was still typing the message when I saw Viktor walking into the kitchen, his face hard and cold.
“Boss wants his breakfast in his office,” he said briskly before leaving. We didn’t even have a chance to reply.
Was Alessio going to eat alone? I thought back to our earlier encounter, his fury as he told me to leave the room, and the flash of pain I saw in his eyes before he shut me out.
I felt someone nudge me, snapping out of my thoughts. Maddie stared at me in confusion.
“What’s wrong? You’ve been quiet this morning,” she asked, leaning her elbows on the counter as she waited for an answer.
I shrugged.
Maddie leaned forward. “Is it about Alessio?”
I chuckled. “You are a mind reader, Maddie.”
Her eyes twinkled and she winked. “I know. So, what happened?”
“Well, last night, I went to the piano room and Alessio caught me there. But when I was about to leave, he let me play—”
“What?” she squealed. “You played the piano? Alessio let you play the piano?” Her mouth hung open in shock.
I nodded.
“Wait. You played the piano in front of Alessio?”
Before I could answer, she continued, “Ayla, this is big! He never lets anyone play the piano. It’s forbidden. It’s his mother’s, and since her death, nobody was allowed to play it.”
The news took my breath away and I stared at her in shock.
If that’s why he was angry at me, why did he let me play in the first place?
I bit down on my lips in frustration. Alessio was a confusing man.
“Mom! Did you hear that? Alessio let Ayla play the piano!” Maddie exclaimed loudly next to my ear. Wincing, I took a step away.
“Yes. I heard,” Lena replied, her voice soft. I turned toward her and saw that she was smiling at me, her eyes shining merrily.
Turning back to Maddie, I continued, “But it didn’t end well. He ordered me to leave afterwards. He was really angry. And this morning too.”
“This morning?”
“I went back to check on him to make sure he cleaned his wounds. But he didn’t. So, I cleaned them for him. He was nice about it, but then got angry again,” I muttered.
“Wait. You cleaned his wounds and he got angry at you?” Maddie bristled slightly. When I nodded, she placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot on the ground in annoyance. “God, he is so damn annoying. What exactly did he say?”
At her question, I grew somber. “I kind of told him that we all need comforting sometimes and he shouldn’t have to deal with it alone. But he got really angry and told me to stay in my limits. And he yelled at me to leave.”
“What. An. Ungrateful. Bastard,” Maddie growled.
“Maddie! Watch your language,” Lena scolded.
“I’m serious, Mom. How dare he? Ayla helped him, and this is how he treats her?”
“We all know how he is. Alessio doesn’t like the attention. Or comfort. He doesn’t do well with emotions.” Lena placed a comforting hand on my back.
“I know,” I whispered.
Maddie still looked angry. “Maybe you should have just left his hands bloody so they would get infected. He sure as hell deserves it. Asshole.”
“Maddie! Enough!” Lena reprimanded her loudly.
“Fine!” She crossed her arms against her chest. Lena gave her a glare, but it didn’t look threatening at all. I didn’t think she could ever look angry, even she tried hard.
After giving Maddie another serious look, she turned to me and palmed my cheek. “Don’t take Alessio too seriously. He is like that to everyone. Give him some time,” she said softly, before smiling and then walking out of the kitchen.
As soon as Lena was out of sight, Maddie started swearing. “That little fucker. He is lucky I wasn’t there. I would have sucker punched him for talking like that to you. Asshole. Jerk.”
She kept going, moving around the kitchen almost furiously. She slammed a plate full of breakfast on a tray and then made a glass of protein while I stood there watching her rage. When Maddie was done, she pushed the tray in my hand.
“Go give that him,” she ordered.
Was she crazy? Why would she send me back to the lion’s den?
“What? No.” I pushed the tray back.
“Nuh-uh, girl. You are going up there and giving him his breakfast. And you are going to act like nothing happened.”
When I didn’t move, she sighed and her shoulders dropped. “Considering how long I have known him, I’m pretty sure he is feeling guilty right now. So you are going to go up there and make him feel guiltier and shitty about himself. Yeah?”
“Maddie—”
“Trust me. He will probably even apologize. But you are going to act nonchalant and walk away. Understood? Make. Him. Feel. Guilty,” she huffed.
I tried to shake my head but she was already talking over me. “Ayla, you are too sweet for your own good. Which makes it much worse. You didn’t deserve how he treated you. So, humor me, okay? Please.”
“No,” I snapped.
Maddie threw her hands in the air in frustration.
“Maddie, I don’t want to hurt him. He is angry and doesn’t want to see me,” I replied.
“And that’s where you are wrong. Alessio wants to see you. He let you play the piano, for God’s sake. It means something. It means a lot. He is just frustrated at himself and that’s why he took it out on you,” Maddie explained in a rush. “I know him, Ayla. Just do as I tell you and everything will be good.”
“But—”
Maddie shook her head. “No. You are getting late. Go give Alessio his breakfast.” When I didn’t move, she gently pushed me toward the door. “Go. And good luck! You can do this.”
As I slowly walked out of the kitchen, I heard Maddie call out behind me, “I’ll be waiting here for you.”
“Okay,” I muttered, my voice trembling.
I passed by Nikolay and Viktor as I made my way upstairs. The tiny hairs on the back of my neck prickled as I felt their stares on my back, but I kept my gaze down, purposely avoiding them.
With each step I took toward Alessio’s office, my heart hammered almost painfully in my chest. My hands grew cold and a trickle of sweat ran down my neck and between my shoulder blades.
Stopping in front of the door, I took a deep breath and then brought my hand up. As soon as my fist knocked against the door, Alessio’s voice came through.
“Come in.”
I walked inside to find him facing away from me. He was only wearing his black shirt and black slacks. I cleared my throat and he quickly turned around, his eyes widening at the sight of me.
I sighed in relief when I noticed he had showered. He was wearing a clean dress shirt, and his hair appeared wet. His face was cleaned from the blood too.
I also noticed that he was struggling to wrap his bandages again.
“I brought your breakfast,” I said, surprisingly without stuttering. He stared at me silently, his face impassive, and then he nodded toward the coffee table.