“Thank you for your kind concern, Aunt Maria, but the changes are not big. I’m not wasting money, but continuing my mother’s legacy of experimenting with new styles. Please remember that what I do with my money is my concern. I don’t inquire after your spending habits. I hope that you can give me the same respect.”
“Fuck her!” Kairo roared in his ear so that he nearly winced. “I’m ready to shoot her.”
“Isidore, you’re family,” Maria continued, her tone becoming so condescending the corner of Isidore’s eye had begun to twitch. “I’m just looking out for what is best for you and your sister. It is what your mother would have wanted. I don’t think that man truly cares about you.”
“You spoke to him for less than two minutes. How could you possibly know that?”
“It took me only two minutes to see that he’s a gold digger and nothing more. He is only interested in what you can buy him.” She sighed heavily and plopped her fists on her lumpy hips wrapped in a black skirt that was simply too tight. “You are nearly thirty years old and the heir to your father’s businesses. You need to be more responsible and make better decisions.”
“Isidore—incoming. Charlie is gonna add pressure,” Kairo said tightly in his ear. It sounded like he was ready to march in there himself and tell his aunt off.
“Aunt Maria, I—”
The brisk knock on the door saved him from needing to make up more false and patient words. He was officially out of them.
Charlie opened the door before he could answer and poked his head inside. “There you are! Sorry to interrupt, but Soren is fighting with Ed again and I can’t calm him down. Can you come talk some sense into your fiancé?”
“Fiancé!” Maria gasped.
“I’m sorry, Aunt Maria. I need to handle this.” Isidore quickly ducked out the door with Charlie, dodging her latest issue.
As Isidore stepped into the hall, Charlie clapped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “You are doing great. Just great. You are following the script perfectly.”
“Am I good enough to be a spy?” Isidore inquired with a smirk.
“I think you could be with a little more training.”
Isidore stopped dead in the middle of the hall. “Are you being serious or just nice?” Isidore asked.
“Charlie isn’t nice just to be nice,” Will immediately interjected.
“I’m serious. You keep calm, level-headed even when provoked, improvise well on your feet, and you stick to the plan far better than Soren ever did,” Charlie replied.
“Fuck you, Charlie,” Soren whispered in a creepy singsong voice.
“We are going to have a long talk about you recruiting my boyfriend and what kind of danger you’re allowed to put him in,” Kairo added, sounding very pissed. “But get moving. You’ve got two aunts hurrying toward the music room with Maria. She sent a text the moment you left. Apparently, she’s called in reinforcements.”
Isidore couldn’t bring himself to care about his gossipy aunts getting worked up and spreading fake news. Kairo had not only claimed him as his boyfriend—while not new, it was still exciting to hear—he’d become all sweetly protective of his well-being. Also, not new but so wonderful to hear.
What’s more, Charlie said he had potential as a spy. Maybe with enough training, he could be of use to the team and he could help them on jobs here and there. Sure, he was facing endless family problems, but his world felt brighter and more hopeful.
With Charlie at his side, he ducked into the office. It was the only room open that had a second exit since it connected to the patio and the rest of the party. Anyone trying to escape that way had to go through a ton of people and cameras.
When they were alone in the room, Charlie leaned on the closed door and flashed him a crooked grin.
“K, how many people are left on the list to feel out?” Charlie inquired.
“I had four, but it looks like Aunt Maria is going to handle them for us. The two aunts just arrived in the music room, and the last two are hurrying in their direction. They all look like they’re on the verge of inciting a riot.”
Isidore rolled his eyes. He was not surprised in the slightest. His relatives were never happy and for the first time in his twenty-nine years, he’d finally done something worthy of getting them worked up.
“Have we marked anyone off the list at least?” Isidore asked. He leaned against the edge of his desk and crossed his right ankle over his left.
“Most, actually,” Kairo admitted, sounding surprised. “All of your cousins have been crossed off. None of them seemed shocked to see you or Athena. No strange phone calls, texts, or comments.”
That was good at least.
“I’m still skeptical of a few business partners and several aunts and uncles.”