Santi's Downfall

Chapter 16: The Impasse

Each blockage is a blockage. Each impasse is an impasse. You have to find a solution; there is no recipe that fits each one of them.

Roberto Azevedo

Haven Pierce's POV

"Buongiorno, Haven!"

I stood frozen in my place when I heard the cheerful voice of Nico who was already sitting on their favorite breakfast table near the pool area enjoying his breakfast with his cousin. I averted my gaze in their direction as I couldn't help but remember last night...

Last night. I instinctively touched my lips recalling the unexpected kiss Santi gave me after my outing with Noah. I still didn't understand why he did that because, after the passionate kiss he showed me, he just marched out without saying a word.

"Come on, please join us for breakfast." Nico invited happily, completely unaware of the tension between me and his cousin who remained silent until now.

I shook my head regretfully, clutching the yoga mat under my arm. "Thank you but I am good. I want to do some yoga in the lawn area since the weather is so nice."

"You don't have an outing with your friend today?" The consigliere asked pleasantly. Something about his tone made me look in his direction sharply. I threw an accusing look at the man who was sitting next to him but the devil merely raised an eyebrow while looking back at me.

"I am not sure," I replied nonchalantly. "Because he has an interview via video conference for the internship he applied for this morning."

"I see." Nico nodded with a bright smile on his face. I think there was something off about this guy because he was extra jolly and friendly this morning. "Then, why don't you join us for breakfast before your workout? It's been a while since we have breakfast like this."

I was about to turn down his offer because the last thing I wanted was to sit next to his evil cousin but I didn't have the heart to reject his friendly offer. Sometimes I hate when my conscience gets the better of me. With great reluctance on my part, I forced my legs to sit on the table and have breakfast with them.

Nico didn't waste his time placing food on my plate. I slid my gaze from Nico and then to his cousin. Did he tell him about our incident last night? Was that the reason why his cousin was extra friendly today?

As I started digging into my food I couldn't help but throw a dagger look at the Don who remained silent until now. How could he ignore me like this when I was supposed to be the one who had the right to be mad because of his unexplainable behavior last night?

"What?" He asked innocently while looking at me as if he didn't steal a kiss from me. He was unbelievable.

"Aren't you going to say something to me?" I queried, giving him a challenging look. I think the least he could do was apologize for his behavior the night before.

He sat back in his chair while staring at me with an amused expression on his face. "About what exactly?"

My lips parted in disbelief. "Yesterday evening," I reminded him with an acid look I threw in his direction. "Aren't you going to apologize for your unsolicited actions yesterday? I think you owe me an apology, Mr. Marchesi."

His upper lips twitched with a smile while his eyes held a devilish glint in their depth. "Nope. I don't think so. I don't think I need to apologize for the thing I did not regret doing."

I stared at him in disbelief while Nico cleared his throat to get our attention. "Uh, I'm still here and I am curious what you two are you talking about? Care to share what happened to satisfy my curiosity."