bad idea

Chapter 55

Kai's Pov

Ariana had left almost two days ago for New York. She was taking care of some things with some friends, so she wouldn't be back until morning. Originally, I was planning on coming with her but I wanted her to finally have some time to realize and not have to worry about me or anything else, especially considering Victoria and I had made up.

Besides, when the house was empty, Hazel and I had more room to build a bigger pillow fort. Since Victoria had gone as well and John was working, I offered to watch my niece these past few days. We were planning on heading to the park but Joan called just as I was getting Hazel out of the bath.

Hazel was a pretty good baby so she didn't mind the car ride there. I figured we'd still have time to hit the park and maybe get ice cream even though she only had 2 1/2 teeth so far.

Joan opened the door seconds after I had rung the bell, which was unusual for me, considering she was always doing something and it usually took her a long time to stop.

"Oh my god, hi!" Joan smiled, waving at Hazel as she sat strapped to my chest because of the baby carrier. Hazel attempted to wave back but she gave up and started blowing raspberries. "She's adorable Kai, who is this? And you... you look amazing, how are you?"

"Thank you, Ms. Grande, and this is my niece Hazel." I smiled, glancing down at the baby.

"Joan. She looks just like Victoria." Joan chuckled, before letting us in. "I'm sorry for calling out of the blue, but it was urgent."

"It's okay, we were in the neighborhood anyway."
I explained as Joan and I went to sit on the couches.

Joan studied me for a few seconds, which was out of the ordinary too, but I let it go, seeing as we hadn't seen each other in a while and things have changed.
"I trust that this stays between us..."

"Yes, Joan but Ariana and I don't keep things from each other so I have to respect that too."

"Kai, you have to trust me when I say this'll only hurt her more than it'll do good."

"Then I don't want to know, I can't keep that secret from her."

"Please." The older woman begged, with a sigh following after. I was honestly confused at what was going on, was it worth knowing something that would hurt Ari? Or was it worth finding out when it happened and dealing with it then?

"Fine."

"Nonna's not doing so well Kai, she's on her last stretch and while I haven't told Ariana since I know she's struggling after the Frankie thing, it's coming to an end." She explained. "That isn't even the worst part. Because Frankie is gone, Nonna is widowed, and I'm divorced, we could lose everything. The shareholder of the Grande business has a strict rule that they must be married in case of financial hardships. None of us are, and with the upcoming annual trip, deals are about to be secured and I'm sure you know what that means for us if we can't secure one, especially if someone isn't married. If this isn't followed through, we're forced to split our business between our partnerships."

"So what are you saying?"

"I need you to marry my daughter."

"Joan, I—"

"-whatever you're gonna say, please think it over. Would it really be so bad considering you're already dating?"

Hazel and I didn't get back home until around 9 pm, after finishing up with the park and getting dinner. She was relatively sleepy and climbed into my bed herself while I was getting myself ready for bed. I tucked in the 1-year-old, before deciding to head into the shower too.