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They had lied to each other. Six months later, the cracks started. Narrow tears in the fabric of their marriage eventually tore them apart at the seams.
Sometimes she wished she could forget how good their life used to be, but maybe the reminders were for the best. She needed those memories to remind her that she would never have the same type of happiness again. At least, not with Dante.
Her father had offered Dante a position at Buchanan & Buchanan when they married, but he insisted on working two jobs while juggling his real estate aspirations on the side.
“I don’t want a handout,” Dante said, sounding aggravated as he packed his lunch for a long workday. He had bought another property, and he and Sebastian were fixing it up themselves to save money.
“He’s not giving you a handout. He’s trying to be helpful,” Annabelle insisted.
Dante slammed a hand on the kitchen counter, and she jumped.
“He has done enough. This apartment, the furniture, everything. He has been very generous. I could never afford all of this on my own. The money I save, I can invest into another property. And then another.”
She swallowed the pain of disappointment. She wished he wasn’t so obsessed with properties and spreadsheets and toiling and laboring every single day. They were newlyweds, and she wanted to enjoy their married life more. Instead, he was gone most of the time.
“You’re working too hard.”
“No!” The sharpness in his tone surprised her. “I work hard, but not too hard. I do this because it will help me achieve my goals. Be patient, querida. You will see, the sacrifices will all be worth it.”
Padding into the bedroom, Annabelle walked to the window overlooking the illuminated tennis court. Beyond the court was a curtain of trees and a privacy fence separating their property from the next one.
Their property.
She shouldn’t think in those terms. This was Dante’s house.
She turned out the light and climbed into bed. Lying on the soft mattress, she stared up at the canopy, wondering if Dante was asleep yet.
Their marriage had nothing to do with love and happily ever after this time. She needed to focus on the prize, which was convincing her father to install her as the next CEO.
Nothing else mattered.
16
“Good morning,” Annabelle said as she walked into the dining room.
Dante was already there eating breakfast, an iPad beside his plate.
She hadn’t seen much of him this weekend. The day after their wedding, he went to play golf, as if he didn’t have a new wife. She didn’t know what she’d expected, but she hadn’t expected to be thoroughly ignored.
They ate dinner together and then went their separate ways afterward—Dante going to his home office to work, and Annabelle focused on reorganizing her clothes and other items. The next day, they met his family for breakfast. After the meal, she said goodbye and went to work, but Dante had taken the morning off and took them to the airport. Last night, he told her they had arrived safely in Venezuela.
“Good morning,” he murmured. He never looked up from the iPad.
She purposely bumped the table when she sat down, which got his attention. He looked up with a frown.
“Excuse me,” Annabelle said sweetly.
Dante dabbed his mouth with a cloth napkin. Resting his forearm on the edge of the table, he watched her with his dark, piercing gaze. “Did you sleep well last night?”
“I did. And the night before,” Annabelle replied.
“Good, I’m glad to hear you’re comfortable. I have to fly to Las Vegas today. I’ll be gone the rest of the week.”
What?The announcement startled her.We just got married!she wanted to scream. Instead, she nodded and smiled. “Great. I’ll have the place all to myself.”
“Try not to break anything,” he said dryly.
“I won’t do my best,” she said in a saccharine-filled voice.
