Chapter 56: Chapter 56

Leo whooshed out a breath, his hand curling and uncurling around his sterling. Leo was in Paige's neighborhood. His Maybach S600 parked a little further down the street from Paige’s apartment.

The color of his car blended in with the night. His windows reflected off light from the street lamps and occasionally from passing vehicles.

"You can do this," Leo muttered to himself for the second time that evening. Pulling down the mirror in his car, he checked his tongue and then ran his hand across his hair. He was going to ask Paige out this evening, that was why he was so nervous.

He had fixed his appearance thrice since he arrived here.

Stepping out of his car, Leo inhaled deeply. Holding a bouquet of red tulips. Some younger girls who were hailing a taxi saw him. One of them pointed at his hand and then whispered to her friend. It was obvious they were gossiping about him, but Leo didn't care, as he walked purposefully towards Paige's apartment.

Raising the red tulips in his hand, he sniffed it, his mind in turmoil if Paige will like it. This wasn't usually what he goes for, but the woman at the flower shop said the tulips represented true love, which was how he liked to see his love for Paige.

Pure. Without stain. Deep—Ah, so deep.

Leo adjusted his collar, which suddenly seemed too tight around his neck. By now he was running through his lines in his head, phrasing how he would ask Paige out, his brows furrowing in concentration when suddenly he caught sight of a figure ahead of him.

The man, it was definitely a man. Judging by his height and physique was carrying a flower in his hand, and another package in his other hand. Leo smiled and wondered if he was also going to visit his girlfriend. Like he was doing. Paige wasn't his girlfriend yet, but Leo liked to think that way in his head. And also he hoped to rectify that today.

Strangely enough, seeing the stranger in an almost similar situation with him somehow reduced his anxiety, and his shoulders relaxed.

He did even start to enjoy the night breeze as it blew past him, ruffling his hair, and taking more of his tension away.

Sighing, Leo stuffed his hand into his pocket, and as he walked behind the stranger, half immersed in his thoughts of Paige, and what he expected the outcome of tonight to be.

However, as they walked quietly, Leo couldn't help but think something about the stranger was familiar.

It wasn’t until the man turned towards Paige’s apartment did he recognize him for who he was. Tesla guy. Leo tensed up. He did been thinking before that the man was interested in Paige. And here he was with a fucking flower in his hands. Then he remembered how he was thinking earlier, before he discovered the identity of the man that he was going to visit his girl. Which meant Paige.

Without thinking, and driven by jealousy, Leo hurried after him, and just as Finn was about to take the little steps that led to the apartment Leo caught his collar.

The man turned in surprise at being stopped so suddenly, but as soon as he saw Leo’s face, he frowned and said, "You?"

Leo released his collar. "I can see you remembered me."

The man turned properly and planted his hands on his waist. "Why won't I remember you. You are Paige's boss, aren't you? I have been wanting to meet you."

Though his words sounded nice. Leo could not overlook the distaste on his face. For a moment there his pleasantries had almost made him believe he had made a grave mistake that this man may not be interested In Paige as he originally thought.

However, Leo knew what he saw that day in the parking lot. There had been this hard look in his eyes when he had come to collect Paige that suggested Leo should stay away. And it was the same look he was giving him now. As if he was holding a grudge against him.

Fuck, and Leo knew, he didn't know him before their chanced meeting at the parking lot.

"Finn Walker, Rocket science professor at UCLA. The man thrust out his muscular hand for a handshake.

"Leonardo D'Angelo." Leo left it at that and took the man's hand in his own.

They were on the front steps of Paige's apartment. But they weren't shouting. If anything, their voice were low. Perhaps that was why no one from inside the house had noticed them.

The handshake was firm. Each of them surveying each other. Leo with narrowed eyes, while Finn tilted his head to observe Leo.

"You don't exactly look like a likable man. I don't see what's there to like."

Leo didn't understand that statement. It didn't seem like Finn was speaking to him right now. More like he was affirming something that was bothering him. However, Leo understood one thing from all that. He retracted his hand from the man's grasp. "I can see you don't like me." Leo had sensed this same dislike at their first meeting. Now he just confirmed it.

Finn threw his head back and laughed. "You have good eyes I will give that to you, and i have a good reason for not liking you."

"Which is?" Leo was starting to get irritated. The more time he spent with Finn, the more it seemed Finn was finding the pieces to his puzzle and fixing them. While Leo was left with nothing. He still wanted to know what Finn's relationship with Paige was.

The man laughed. "If you cannot tell by now, you are a fool."

This back and forth they were going. Leo's mouth tightened in irritation. "I can see you have me at a disadvantage."

"Believe that if you must."

"Do you dislike me because you see me as a threat? Are you in love with Paige? Is that it? Is that what this is?"

If it was any possible, Finn's eyes became sharper, and he looked down at the flowers in Leo's hand. "I wonder why you are here. Bosses don't bring flowers to their secretary by this time of the night."

He was looking at Leo with accusation.

"You are probably right. Whatever you are thinking," Leo saw the look on his face and smirked. "I'm in Love with her if you must know," Leo said next, deciding there was nothing to be gained by hoarding the truth.

"Does she know?"

The sudden question took Leo off guard.

"Does she know?" He said again with urgency, as if the answer was of great importance to him.

Leo looked around them. He could hear the faint sound of a television. Paige was probably watching a movie. Netflix? Maybe.

He inhaled deeply from his nostrils. Thinking the discussion was taking too long. Initially, he did come here to ask Paige out, which he hadn't done all because of who he ran into. The reservation he made. Leo turned to his wristwatch with a frown. Fuck, it was already 7:30 pm. His reservation was for 8:00 pm. And he was yet to ask Paige out. Talk about bad luck. Leo sighed. So engrossed was he in his thoughts, he did forget he was with someone until he heard.

"Are you here to make Paige your latest fling? Just like the women you fucked, while you asked her to book you a suite."

"What?" Leo's head whipped around suddenly, his mouth hanging open.

"She said that about me?" Not liking the sound of that, because he remembered all too clearly what Finn was talking about.

It was before he had fallen in love with Paige. When he was still grieving from his past mistakes and hiding under the umbrella of a playboy. And as such, he did sleep with several women. And on occasions had called Paige to book him a suite. How the hell did Finn know about that?

Thinking about that now brought fresh regrets to Leo's face. He hadn't considered Paige back then, so he didn't care what she thought. Unlike now.

For the first time in a long while, Leo truly considered what Paige must have thought of him. She has to know he had changed, right? He no longer picked girls up, and he had stopped going to that damned club.

"I can tell you are wondering how I knew."

Leo didn't answer him. In fact, he didn't even give Finn much thought, as he was lost in his thoughts until he said,

"You see, she and I are quite close. She tells me everything."

That's when it clicked, and Leo looked up with surprise etched all over his face. This guy had said his name was Finn. The same Finn Paige had said she missed while on call at his family's palazzo.

Holy cow. He was fucked. Just what was their relationship.

Finn grinned. Seeing the expression on Leo's face. "Does she know you are here? Because I hate to break it to you i'm the one she is expecting."

She is expecting him? Leo swallowed a lump in his throat. Was that why he was carrying that flower. And perhaps that package in his hand. What was inside? Was it food? Were they going to eat together?

Thinking about that, his mind gave him such a mental picture of Finn feeding Paige and looking at her so lovingly that he turned sick to the stomach.

Suddenly, he wasn't at all assured in himself, as a tiny bead of doubts leaked into his mind. And the nervousness that once assailed him initially at his car when he first arrived in Paige's neighborhood swamped him once again. The summary was that he became bitter and not so certain of anything again.

But it seemed. Finn wasn't done with him because he continued, as if his words weren't already cutting through him.

"And i think it's rude to interfere in other people's plans like this. See, she tells me things she will never tell you. She humors you only because you are her boss."

"Basta!" Then realizing Finn probably could not understand Italian translated it into English. "Enough!"

However, before he could say anything more, Finn turned and left him there. And by the time Leo realized what was happening, Finn was at the front door of the apartment ringing the bell.

Leo chased after him. He was just about to reach for Finn's jacket and drag him back when the door suddenly opened and Leo hid by the side of the house. He wasn't sure why he did that. But his first instinct had been to hide.

"Hello Finn, I didn't expect to see you here." Paige's voice broke into the quiet night.

Leo's eyes narrowed in suspicion at that line there. While at the same time, another part of him warmed at hearing Paige's sing-song voice.

Poking out his head, he watched them.

Finn hugged her, which got Leo gritting his teeth in frustration. But when she stiffened in Finn's arms, Leo relaxed. But then Finn whispered something in her ear and her shoulders slumped down and she hugged him back reluctantly.

Leo saw red. What did he tell her?

And then Finn was handing her the flowers.

"Oh you got me flowers," pulling her hair behind her ear. "They are so lovely thank you."

Simultaneously Leo glanced down at the tulip in his hand, and his heart sank to his stomach.

There were so many reasons he wasn't showing his face.

One—Paige would find it strange he was there.

Assuming he arrived as planned without Finn there, he would have gone ahead and asked her out like he wanted to. Like he had planned, but with Finn being there, he wasn't sure he would be able to say the words he did come there to say.

Two—He wasn't comfortable saying his feelings in the company of Finn, lest he be rejected.

But that doesn't mean he was giving up. He was only retreating—for now.