A House
1011 Words
Everything seemed pretty intense for Cecil.
Gabriel Russo had given her the impression that he was from a basic family, but his surname carried some weight, and if she was being honest, the demeanor of the Russo family in front of her screamed of royalty and wealth.
Cecil ate her dinner in silence and anxiety.
Elizabeth Russo's beam of smiles could not be over-emphasized.
She stared at her grandson and his newlywed wife, and the joy on her face knew no bounds.
Cecil saved her at a dire time in her life, and she knew that a lady who could go as far as Cecil went to save the life of a stranger, would make an excellent wife, and why would that sort of excellent wife not be the one for her son?
''Cecil, my dear. Gabriel is a good boy. I bet you will not have anything to worry about with him. He will take care of you, you can count on that,' Elizabeth Russo said. She was the most excited person in the room.
Cecil flashed a nervous smile.
Already, she was suspecting what kind of man Gabriel Russo was. The gown that she was wearing, could his family not see that it was an expensive piece that she had on?
When were they going to ask their son how he could afford to buy her that sort of expensive dress?
''Your gown looks good on you,’’ Jackson Russo promptly said, as if he could read Cecil’s mind.
Cecil was taken aback.
''Gabriel, you bought her a nice gift, how were you so astute about it?’’ Jackson Russo asked.
''Too much for her. Why can’t you buy a regular dress, son?’’ Mrs. Russo, Gabriel’s mother said.
She was the only person on the table who was not happy with the marriage.
Jackson Russo looked at his wife with disapproval, and without saying anything, but she knew what his stern look meant.
''It’s his wedding. What else would he do? He can afford to spend a little money on his wedding day. Weddings happen only once in a lifetime if it is done properly,’’ Jackson Russo said with a sneer to his wife.
Gabriel Russo, sensing that his overzealous mother was about to reveal their identity by mistake, quickly stepped in and changed the topic of discussion.
''We have to try and get Cecil a job. I don’t think she has any at the moment,’’ he said.
Jackson Russo looked at his son, wondering why he had to announce such an easy thing to do.
Cecil could easily work for the Russo company. That was the least of their problems.
''I can manage. I’m fine with the little stipend I usually receive from my sister,’’ Cecil quickly replied.
She thought that Gabriel had done too much for her already. The set of clothes he bought for her, even though they were replicas according to Gabriel. They still cost a lot of money for a family that was not all that well-to-do.
Jackson Russo huffed dramatically.
Was she insulting the Russo family? Did she not know who they were, or did she live under a rock?
He looked at Gabriel Russo with subtle wariness and shook his head secretly.
Gabriel Russo didn’t say anything to refute Cecil’s claim to be able to manage with her stipend. He let her be.
Besides, his parents were being overtly dramatic at the moment and he was very crucial about Cecil not finding out that he was the notorious Gabriel Russo of the Russo family and Russo Group.
''We have to go back now. Thanks. Grandma, I will see you again soon,’’ Gabriel Russo said and got up.
His dominant figure towered above Cecil like a shadow in the dark, and she melted under the imposing aura of her new husband.
Cecil hurriedly got up too, forcing herself not to tremble in the presence of such powerful men around her.
''Gabriel, dear. Take care of yourself, and watch what you eat,’’ Mrs. Russo, Gabriel Russo’s mother, said to him with worry in her heart.
When Gabriel was younger, he had liked a certain regular girl who made him eat things from the slum. Gabriel spent three days in the hospital as a result of food poisoning.
A blue-blooded young man, those local foods from the ghetto and the average class were not for him.
His mother, Mrs. Russo was afraid that Cecil, being a girl from an unpopular family, would give her son such snacks and food to eat and make him sick.
Gabriel understood what his mother was talking about, and he nodded without saying anything.
He kissed his grandmother goodbye and then led Cecil out of the restaurant.
Cecil was just so glad to be out of there. It was too much for her, as everyone around her had an imposing aura.
Gabriel Russo held Cecil and walked with giant strides across the parking lot, to where his regular salon car was parked.
Cecil found it difficult to keep up with his gigantic strides and was occasionally found hopping a step or two in an urgent movement to keep up with him.
The ride back home was quiet, with Gabriel Russo saying little or nothing to Cecil.
''What can you do best? Any skill of yours?’’ Gabriel Russo asked.
He could easily give Cecil a position in the Russo Group, but part of the deal he had with his grandmother was that Cecil would not find out his identity before they got married, and for a long time after they were married.
In Nighten, Gabriel Russo could get any woman he wanted as all of them drooled after him. It was shocking to Gabriel Russo when he found out that Cecil didn’t know who he was, and didn’t throw herself at him like other women in Nighten. All she wanted was
for their contract to be fulfilled, and of course, even though Gabriel Russo was not aware, she was in desperate need of a house, and
his house was just fine for her.
- Writer
