“Pacer, I want you to meet my cousin, Logan. Logan, Pacer,” she says with a proud smile.
I hold my hand out to shake Logan’s hand. The name doesn’t give anything away. She could be a boy or a girl.
She grips my hand tight as she talks. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
It’s a firm handshake, but still feminine. I’m fucking confused. Stop staring at her, him, it.
“It’s nice to finally meet Chelsea’s family.” I pull out my best smile.
Who gives a fuck what she is? She’s Chelsea’s cousin and they seem really close—more like sisters.
“Right, let’s go through and have a drink while we wait for the shit storm to settle out there.” I wave them through to the restaurant.
Chelsea shakes her head. “No. I don’t think they’re going to give up tonight. The story is still breaking, so they will want details until it’s no longer the news of the moment.”
Spoken like a true professional.
“So what do you suppose we do?” I’m intrigued to hear her idea, since she is so full of them today.
“Call up all the big guys you have, and they can act as a barricade when we leave. Haven’t you watched the Kardashians?” Her giggle at the end of the sentence makes me smile. I want to wipe the table next to us clear and spread her body across it. I don’t care who’s watching either.
***
Three hours after I made the first phone call to get some guys down here, the word had spread within the family that we were having an impromptu party at Zio’s restaurant to celebrate the good fortune of our family. Every person who has ever associated with the Legano family is here drinking and dancing, my ma and Lucia included. And why not celebrate? This is a new chapter for us now that Reed is behind bars, and I’m free of all charges. Only someone like Chelsea would be able to convince the city that I was innocent and Reed was the real crook … and have the law do all the dirty work for once.
I hate to think what’s waiting for us out side when we leave. There will be every journalist in the city waiting to get a sound grab or photo opportunity to write about. But right now, I don’t give a fuck about anything other than my family. We are here to celebrate, and celebrate we are. This is really Chelsea’s night. Everyone in the family has the same sentiment and all shower her with praise and alcohol. Chelsea and even Logan fit in so well with the family. I wonder what Chelsea’s old man is thinking about her efforts today? There are so many unanswered questions that Chelsea still needs to answer. How did she manage this?
Just as I get close to her, I manage to give her a kiss before a Bowie song starts off with a heavy guitar riff. I laugh when I realise the family must have my playlist on. There’s going to be an hour of Bowie coming up. Fuck it! Chelsea and Logan squeal like a couple of girls and Lucia jumps out of her seat too. The three of them jump around singing the words to the song as loudly as possible. They sing about not knowing if they’re a boy or a girl because they’re a rebel, rebel.
Nodding and smiling, I get the connection. Looking at her cousin, I see a Bowie similarity. From what I’ve learnt about Bowie so far, it seems he was a pretty androgynous character in his day. Chelsea’s cousin doesn’t look as if she fits into one gender or the other. Which is actually kind of hot, in a weird way. I have respect for her being whoever she wants to be.
Taking control of the music before I kill the night with Bowie, I scroll through the iPod to search for good old Italian mood-killing song—the type all the oldies listen to.
When the song finally finishes and I play the Italian shit, I look up and catch Chelsea. Her smile is blazing across her face. She looks so impressed that Bowie came on. Little does she know that I didn’t mean for it to come on, and I sure as shit don’t want to hear any more of it tonight. I need Chelsea, and I need some answers.
I slide my hands around her waist and pull her to me. “I really want to get you home,” I whisper in her ear.
“I thought you’d never ask.” Her eyes twinkle as she speaks.
Standing up on a chair, I clap my hands to get the attention of the thirty-odd people inside the restaurant. “Listen up …”
“Discorso!” Franco yells out.
“Speech!” someone else yells out from the back.
“Shut the fuck up, you drunken fools!” I snap back. “Listen. I want to thank everyone for coming here to celebrate with us. The Legano family is stronger than ever, and there is one person to thank for that.” I look down at Chelsea, standing beside me. She takes hold of my hand. “Everyone keeps telling me that this beautiful girl has been sent to me, and I’m beginning to believe that is so. I know my papa has sent you to me—he would have absolutely adored you, honeybee.” I see Ma from the corner of my eye, wiping her tears. I stop myself from getting choked up. “Chelsea, I don’t know how you’ve managed it, but you have pulled some kind of magic today, and I am now a free man. But there is a part of me that isn’t free; it’s well and truly a prisoner.” She frowns at my words. “My heart has been held captive by you since the day we met. I love you Chelsea Tanner. You have my heart for as long as I breathe.” I look around at the crowd, hanging on my every word. “Given the crazy media circus that is going to take over our lives now, I’ve decided that Chelsea and I are going to take Papa’s boat out for a while. I want us to see the world.” She’s frowning again. “We need some time away together, and there is no escaping this city. So Franco, you will be managing everything while we’re away … Now, I need to take my girl home to show her just how much I love her.” I give her a quick wink and she giggles. “Everyone head out to form a passageway for us to get to the car without the vultures getting too close. I don’t want any of you saying a word to them out there. Make no reaction and don’t let them get to you. Ma, Lucia and Logan, you stay here.”
“Bullshit!” Logan calls out from the back. “I’m not standing by to watch like some princess!”
Everyone laughs and Franco slaps Logan on the back encouragingly. I jump down from the chair and everyone breaks into applause.
“Hurry up and marry her!” I hear Franco yell out.
I’m sure that’s not the last time I’ll hear that. I take hold of Chelsea, and she clutches around my neck and we kiss. I kiss her to thank her for all that she’s done, and all that she’s going to do.
She pulls back and whispers, “And when were you going to ask me about the boat trip away?”
“Surprise.” I grin. “Come on, let’s go. I want to hear all about how you pulled this off, and I’ll tell you about our next adventure.”
The front door opens and the strobe of camera flashes hits us. I take Chelsea’s hand and wait to the side, away from the view of the cameras.
“Hey, tell us when you’re ready, Uncle Carlo,” I say as he passes.
After a few minutes of yelling, Uncle Carlo calls out to hurry up. We race towards the door. Chelsea tries to pull her hand out of mine, but I grip it tighter and pull her through the corridor that all the guys have made for us. The yelling gets louder and the corridor narrows as the cameras try to force their way past the guys. Franco yells at someone and I just pray he keeps his cool. This is worse than I’d expected. They all want a piece of us. I see a car door open ahead and squint to see whose car it is.
“Get in Logan’s car.” I hear Chelsea behind me.
I hope Logan knows how to drive fast—these guys are ruthless. The flashes are blinding. I pull Chelsea through to get into the car first and shove her in as I jump in and slam the door shut. Logan’s Mercedes throttles down the road at a lighting pace. She’s good.
Looking out of the back window, I see at least four sets of cars speeding after us.
“Jesus!” Chelsea says between breaths.
Nodding, I take in the craziness of the moment. “That was intense.”
“I can’t live like this.” Chelsea’s eyes seem sad. Is she having second thoughts about us?
I try to offer some comfort. “I can’t either, but it will die down eventually.”