I wear his name like a scar.
Alessandro Rossi stole everything from me; my freedom, my future, the lie I told my father to keep him alive. He thinks I'm a tool to be used, a bride to be displayed, a Fraga to be broken. He thinks the ring on my finge...
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I opened my mouth. Alessandro opened his. We both started talking at the same time.
"It's a funny story actually—"
"It's complicated—"
We stopped. Stared at each other.
Geoffrey looked between us with his eyebrows climbing higher and a grin spreading across his face.
I set my glass down very carefully, never breaking eye contact with my husband. "Alessandro, why don't you tell it? I'd love to hear your version."
The look he shot me could've peeled paint off the walls. "I'm sure you'd tell it better, tesoro."
"Oh no. Please." I gestured at him with an open palm. "I insist."
"I wouldn't dream of stealing the spotlight."
Geoffrey laughed, completely oblivious to the silent knife fight happening across the table. "You two are adorable. It's good to see Alessandro finally settled. I was starting to think he'd be married to the job forever."
I smiled. Sweet as pie. "He's just full of surprises."
Alessandro's jaw tightened. "So is she."
"See?" Geoffrey gestured between us with his mug. "This is what I'm talking about. The banter. The chemistry. You can't fake that."
I took a very long sip of my water. If only he knew. If only he had any idea that the chemistry he was admiring was actually just two people trying very hard not to strangle each other in front of company.
But then I looked at Alessandro. I noted how his shoulders had gone rigid, how his fingers wrapped around his glass tightly. The barely concealed panic flickering behind his eyes.
Geoffrey mattered to him. That much was obvious. This wasn't just some old acquaintance he could brush off with a cold look and a clipped response. This was someone whose good opinion he actually cared about.
And Geoffrey was a genuinely good man. You could feel it radiating off him, this warmth that probably soothed even the hardest souls. He wasn't the type who'd take kindly to kidnapping, forced marriage, or anything in that neighborhood. If I told him the truth, it would shatter whatever bond they had. It would make Geoffrey see exactly who Alessandro really was underneath all that expensive tailoring and cold control.
The same way Alessandro had destroyed my relationship with my father and Miguel.
I'd be justified. I'd be vindicated. I had the power right here in my hands, ready to deploy.
But I couldn't do it.
I couldn't bring myself to shatter someone else's trust like that. It just wasn't in me to cause that kind of pain, even if the target deserved it. Even if Alessandro had it coming.
The awkwardness was getting suffocating. I needed to cut through it before Geoffrey noticed. "You know," I said, aiming for lightness, "life has a funny way of bringing people together. Sometimes in the strangest ways." I tried to laugh. It came out almost convincing. "But here we are."
