At five in the afternoon, they're almost done wrapping all the gifts. Angela and Gael organized each present inside the boxes, making sure they're not cramped. There were gifts for girls and boys and gifts for both genders, like teens or children's books and art supplies. And for easier access, she had the wrappers color-coded, so everyone who would come to help would know what to pick up from the boxes.

She had been in a good mood the whole afternoon, and seeing all the wrapped presents made her feel even more pleased—even though the gifts weren't for her.

"When are you visiting the orphanage?" Gael asked while they closed up the box with packing tape.

"Wednesday. The day after tomorrow."

"Okay. Is there anything else that you need to do?" He nodded at his men who had gotten so much better at wrapping. "They've learned a new skill today. I'm pretty sure they can do the same for the next job. It would be good for their resumes."

Angela laughed as she glanced at the men in her living room. The thought of them writing "Excellent wrapper" under skills in their resumes sounded so funny. She shook her head. "No… Nothing else really. Everything's all set. The caterer's ready, and the program's ready. We're good to go for Wednesday."

She looked at Gael and caught him staring at her. "You're really looking forward to this. You look excited."

She nodded, smiling as she looked around her, feeling accomplished. "I am very excited to tell them the good news. The school project has been delayed, and it's finally coming to fruition. You know, all of them are really eager to go to school and learn again. I can't imagine not having the privilege to study when the will is there. So I can't wait to surprise them tomorrow."

He took a step towards her, returning her smile with his own as he ran his thumb on her cheek. His eyes sparkle in admiration, making her heart flutter. "You've done a great job. I'm sure they'll be pleased with your surprise."

"Yeah. I can already imagine their faces. And I'll be dressing up as girl Santa!" Angela pointed at the red stocking hat on her head that's lined with a thick white faux fur and a white ball that's dangling at the tip.

"You can be Santa too if you want," she said and transferred the hat to him. The image of Gael as Sexy Santa plagued her head. He was wearing low hung red pants and an open red shirt with white fur lining. He had one hand in his pocket while the other held a gift, and his rippling abs and V-line were totally on display. Santa Gael smiled at her. She swallowed.

She must have looked like a perv, and he saw her expression because he laughed. "Were you just imagining something naughty, Angel?"

"No, I didn't!" She couldn't have denied it fast enough.

"Sure." Gael chuckled, touching the hat that was now on his head.

"Boss? You have a phone call." Rick appeared on the side, holding a phone in hand.

"Who is it?"

"It's Savannah. She's been trying to reach you, but your phone is off."

She glanced at the screen and saw the woman's name and the mute indicator.

Gael took his phone out to check, and sure enough, his battery died. "Batt's dead." He gave his phone to Rick and received the other phone. She assumed that Rick would have his phone charged.

But her focus was quickly drawn back towards the Caller ID in the phone that Gael was holding. A woman was calling him, and she even had Rick's phone number—Rick knew who she was, so she must be someone important. Angela couldn't help but ask, "Who's Savannah?"

"A friend," he answered as he glanced at the phone and then at Angela.

Okay. A female friend? 'You and I are 'friends', but you just kissed me like we aren't only friends. What about 'this' friend?' she blabbed in her head.

A knowing smirk ghosted his lips. She realized she was frowning at the phone just now, and she mentally slapped herself to get her shit together. Her brows relaxed just as he explained, "A friend who is a lawyer. We're working on a case—a family matter. I've been expecting her call. I need to take it. I won't be long."

"It's okay. I'll just be in my room. I also need to call a friend," she said as she headed towards her bedroom, her tone was light, and her face was expressionless.

What? Nina was a friend!

...

"Talk to me," Gael muttered as soon as he answered the call. He stood at the kitchen, leaning against the counter and looking over the living room where his men were.

"Well, hello to you too." Savannah's voice was laced with sarcasm.

He sighed. "Any updates?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. I've got all the papers ready. I can fly to New York anytime. We only need the money to get everything done. How soon can you prepare it?"

"How much do we need?"

"The cost of the two lands in the outskirts of Illinois is roughly about six hundred thousand dollars. There's also a club in Indiana that they're selling at five-fifty, located in a discrete neighborhood."

He rubbed his forehead as he contemplated his moves. That amount was nothing to the De Lucas, but the timing was the key. "Another club? We just bought one here in Esmea not too long ago. Giovanni luckily got out unscathed when fûcking Damien Park got a whiff."

"Yikes. We don't want any trouble. I hear that tycoon is ruthless despite his...gorgeousness. He's mostly silent, but one sly son of a bîtch—according to his opponents—you won't know until it hit you."

"Whatever. That's not a problem for now." Priorities first, Morellis. "Listen, Sav, I need you to check the club first—make sure it's not inflated or dead. I can wire the money anytime, though I'll run this by Giovanni in case he wants something first. But it's basically a done deal. We talked earlier today when he came by, but he should be back in New York this afternoon."

"Alright. He seems to be traveling a lot lately."

After Gael uttered a noncommittal response, Savannah exclaimed, "Oh, there's one more thing I need to tell you."

"What's that?"

"I found something interesting... The Morellis invested in fire insurance for a house in Michigan this year."

"A house?" He knitted his brows. "Don't you think that's their new drug factory?"

"Oh, Sweetheart. I don't think—I can feel it. It has to be. Why else would they need a house in Michigan when most of them are in Illinois? It's not like they're running a toy factory and have elves wrapping gifts for Christmas." She laughed heartily. "Can you imagine these mafiosos in elf costumes and Filippo as the Santa?"

Filippo was one of the Morellis' capos. And the Morellis ruled over those areas—for now.

Gael slowly removed the Santa hat from his head, and his eyes darted at his men who were almost done wrapping gifts—his elves. "Yeah... Hard to imagine."

"Anyway, so this house. Whether this is their new drug factory or not... If I'm right about this—"

"They'll want to claim insurance money," Gael punctuated Savannah's statement. He could already imagine it happening. She agreed with his suspicions. "How much could they possibly claim?"

Savannah hummed, and the sound of papers caught in the background. "I'll have to check… but two, three? Maybe four hundred?"

"Fûck. They're really desperate."

"I guess so. But this is good news for us, isn't it?"

Gael exhaled a sigh and nodded, even though she couldn't see him. "Right. Send me the address of that house. I'll make some calls and have someone keep an eye on it. Thanks, Savannah."

"Uh-huh. I worked hard today. You better send me a Christmas present."

"Sure." He laughed and ended the phone call.

…

After handing Rick back his phone, Gael looked around the place in search of Angela. He found her in her room just when she said goodbye to whoever she was speaking to. He knocked on the door. "Hey…"

"Hi." She smiled.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah."

There was something different about her expression, but he couldn't tell what it was. She just didn't seem chipper than she was a few minutes ago. Gael stalked towards the bed and sat next to her. "You finished your phone call?" she probed.

He nodded. Was she upset about Savannah? He couldn't tell, but the need to clarify was strong. "Nothing's going on between Savannah and me. We're just friends."

Angela opened her mouth as if she was a little taken aback. "I—"

The sound of the doorbell interrupted what she was about to say, and both their heads turned in the direction of the main door.

"Are you expecting someone?" asked Gael.

She shook her head, and the two of them headed towards the intercom panel in the foyer. Pressing the button, their brows knitted upon seeing a man on the screen holding a small pot of plant in his hands.

Thoroughly confused, Angela muttered, "Is that..."

"Giovanni," Gael murmured as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "What the hell is he doing here?"