Part Thirty-Two
Nikolas’ steps
slowed as he stepped into the little kitchen of the cottage they shared. His fiancée Gia
sat at the table eating a bowl of cold cereal and milk. Ever since the
argument over Gia’s lack of inclusion in his family’s trip to Greece and
Stavros’ wedding, the young woman had religiously avoided being in the same
place with Nikolas at any time. They had even
begun sleeping in separate beds.
Gia looked up from
the style section of the morning paper and mumbled an indistinct
‘G’morning’. She pushed the open cereal box toward the empty bowl opposite her. It was, Nikolas
supposed, Gia’s way of extending the olive branch of peace.
“Does this mean
you’re not angry with me anymore?” Nikolas asked as he cautiously took a
seat.
“It means that you
stood up for me with that jerk of a brother of yours and I appreciate it, that’s
all.”
Nikolas tentatively
reached across the table and took her hand in his own. “I am sorry about
Andresj’s behavior,” he said. “I don’t know
what got into him. He is really not like that.” A skeptical look
was Gia’s only response.
“Really, he isn’t,”
Nikolas insisted. “’Dre has always looked up to me. I think I really
hurt him when I decided to cut all my ties to the Cassadine family.”
“Yeah, well,” Gia
firmly tugged her hand free, “if he loved you, he would support you.” She stood
abruptly and put some distance between them. “Can’t he see how
much happier you are now that the ‘Cassadine Prince’ thing is taken off your
shoulders?”
The young woman did
not miss the way Nikolas’ expression darkened at her words. “You are happier, aren’t you?”
“Of course I am,
Sparky.” The
words held just a hint of uncertainty. Nikolas chose not
to examine too closely just what his misgivings about disowning his family
meant. He
continued quickly. “I just don’t know if I am as free of the ‘Cassadine Prince thing’ as I
thought. My
father has made up his mind that I will return to my place among the
family.”
Gia was
outraged. “So? He can’t force you to do anything! You’re a
man! And
besides, you signed papers!”
The simplicity of
her beliefs made Nikolas realize how little Gia truly understood the man who was
his father. “Stavros does not care about papers and legalities, Gia! If he makes up
his mind to bring me back to the family, he will do whatever he has to in order
to make that happen! Whatever!”
“Then we’ll fight
him!”
“You just don’t get
it, do you?” Nikolas raised his voice in frustration. “If Stavros
begins some kind of campaign to take over my life, the first thing that he will
do is make sure you aren’t a part of it!”