Chapter 217 BONUS CHAPTER 2 (TALIA)

Chapter 217 BONUS CHAPTER 2 (TALIA)
How could I stay upset with him for long if he gave me a trip to Florida? I knew it wouldn’t be just any ordinary trip because Cielo was a fan of fancy things. And he was very insistent this time. I had a feeling he had something amazing planned for me.
“Okay. But your mom will be exhausted looking after two toddlers at once. I’ll ask my mom to help.”
“We can hire a nanny.”
“No. It’s too tight of a time to hire a nanny, and I won’t entrust my children to a stranger until I’m absolutely sure she’s safe around them.”
I held Celine possessively. My baby girl was fast asleep in my arms. Her lips were still on my nipple, sucking, even though her eyes were closed. I didn't try to remove my nipple from her, because she would wake up and cry loudly if I did. She always preferred sleeping with my nipple in her mouth.
"Whatever you want, honey. Your mother and my mother will make a great team looking after her grandchildren."
“She’ll be thrilled. A whole week with her grandkids and her best friend. My mom will scream with joy when I tell her.”
“I’m excited, too. It’s been a long time since we’ve spent intimate time together.”
“And whose fault is that?” I exclaimed skeptically.
I thought Cielo would be home more now that he'd retired from all his dirty business ventures, but he wasn't. He'd actually gotten busier, and he was almost never home on the weekends. He had overseas business trips almost every week. His private jet was often at another airport, rather than in the hangar. He'd come home in the middle of the night, crawl under my blanket, and fall asleep cuddling with me. The next day, he'd wake up before me, getting ready for work before the sun was fully up. Sometimes I wouldn't see him at all, only learning from Jeff or Marina that Cielo had been home for a few hours.
“You’re so busy that you forget about your family.”
“Never. You guys are the main reason I’ve been working so hard all this time. I want to give you a decent life.”
“We’ve had a decent life all this time. All we want is for you to be home for us.”
“I promise I’ll be home more often from now on. I hired some people specifically to handle my work. What’s been keeping me so busy lately is that I have to train them to be as effective as possible in my company.”
“And they passed that training? Wow. I’m proud of them. It must not have been easy, working under your strict supervision.”
“They don’t complain because it’s worth the salary they get.”
“And honestly, I don’t complain about being your wife either, because it’s worth all the assets I have now.”
I raised my eyebrows teasingly.
“I won’t complain about that either, baby. I’m glad you have them.”
“Really?”
“I was even planning on giving you a few more.”
My jaw dropped at that.
“You must be kidding. I can’t accept any more from you because what I have right now is already more than enough.”
“We’ll see.”
He nodded at the window before the door clicked open.
“We’re here. Aren’t you going to help Agnes?”
“Oh great. I’m glad she didn’t burn down her house in a panic about today’s luncheon.”
“I’m sure she won’t.”
Frans opened the door for me. He was still Cielo’s loyal personal driver. I used to be afraid of his scary face and cold demeanor, but over time I got used to it. Cielo said Frans was the best, and that it would be difficult to find a replacement if he resigned. But he said Frans would work for him for the rest of his life because it was part of his gratitude for saving him from death. Frans was a victim of human trafficking, whose organs were to be harvested for sale on the black market. Cielo told me that Frans was a sociopath, and that he would never marry.
Yeah, creepy.
Marrying Cielo made me realize that I was actually living among terrible things, I just never realized it.
The smell of baking pie greeted us as we stepped into Bruce’s mansion. Charless, Bruce's loyal butler, greeted us at the entrance. He took Celine's pink duffel bag from Cielo and led us into the living room.
“Agnes didn’t let you set foot in the kitchen today, did she?”
I laughed at Charless’s listless face. He, like Jeff, loved cooking and his kitchen. But ever since Bruce got engaged to Agnes and brought her to live with him, Charless’s beloved kitchen began to be taken over by Agnes.
“Ms. Agnes insists on cooking all her own meals. I’m not allowed to help at all.”
“I bet she’ll never let you set foot in the kitchen after she marries Bruce.”
Charles’s face paled. He looked like a man who was about to lose his job.
“Chill, Bruce would never fire you. You’re the best butler he’s ever had,” Cielo patted his shoulder gently.
“But what would I do if Ms. Agnes cooked her own meals and wouldn’t let me step into the kitchen?”
“Relax, Agnes will be busy with Bruce and her bakery, she won’t have time to be in the kitchen to cook.”
I'm sure of that because her cake shop went viral last month after an actress posted about it on social media and gave her tiramisu and devil cake perfect ratings. The post went viral, garnering millions of views. Since then, Agnes's cake shop has been packed with customers. They even lined up in front of her shop before it even opened. Agnes had to hire four new employees to help her handle the surge in customers.
I'm so proud of her. Agnes started the business from scratch, without Bruce's help. When she was desperate for a new job after retiring from her old one, she thought of opening a cake shop. That very day, she emptied her bank account, found a place with relatively cheap rent, and, abracadabra, she opened a cake shop. It seemed simple, but it took incredible courage. I wasn’t even sure I would have done it if I were Agnes.
"Hello, mama bear."
"Bruce."
That was his nickname for me, and he would never change it for anything else.
"How are you?"
"Great. At least, I'm trying to be great despite all the shit that's going on."
I hugged him and patted his shoulder gently. He didn't hug his brother. They just exchanged a small nod.
"Is there a problem?"
"Problems happen every day. Ask Cielo if you don't believe me."
"Are you having a problem?"
Cielo shook his head.
“You’d know if I had a problem, because you have such sharp instincts.”
“Yeah, you’re right. So far, I haven’t noticed anything strange.”
“I think it’s time you left those dirty businesses and moved on to something less risky.”
“Oh, my most beautiful niece. I’ve missed you so much.”
Bruce pretended not to hear Cielo’s words. He took Celine from my arms and brought her out to the backyard.
“Asshole,” Cielo muttered under his breath.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Three days ago, he came to me, whining about getting in trouble with one of his competitors. I told him I wouldn’t help him if he got into trouble with the underworld. Apparently, he’s sulking because I ignored him.”
“He worries me,” I sighed softly.
“Why won’t he quit the game?”
"The same reason I experienced three years ago. Leaving a job that's become a part of your life isn't easy at all. It involves a huge ego."
"But you managed to conquer that sky-high ego of yours. He certainly can too."
“He’s a fucking coward. Unlike me, who loves a challenge, Bruce likes to stay in his comfort zone. Working in that field for years has given him a steady work rhythm. No matter how dangerous the job is, it’s not dangerous for Bruce because he’s used to it.”
“So he prefers the dirty, dangerous business over the clean, less risky and dangerous one?”
“He just hasn’t tried it yet. I’m sure things will be different once he takes the plunge. It just takes time.”
“Oh, my favorite humans are here.”