I could almost feel his hesitation.
“Out?” he repeated. “Miss Loretta, the driver is already off duty for the night unless Mr. Rafael —”
At the mention of Rafael’s name, something inside me tightened again.
“I do not need Rafael’s permission to leave the house,” I said, my voice sharpening despite myself. “Please arrange another driver. I need to go to a club.”
“A club?”
The disbelief in his voice was impossible to miss.
“Yes.”
“You wish to go to a club?”
“I do.”
“But... why?”
My fingers tightened around my handbag.
Because I was tired of feeling unwanted.
Because I was tired of sitting in that house pretending his indifference didn’t affect me.
Because if Rafael could spend every day pretending we weren’t married, then perhaps I could spend one night pretending it didn’t hurt.
“I need that atmosphere,” I said quietly. “The music. The noise. The people. It’s been years since I’ve stepped inside a club, and tonight... I need something different. Please arrange a driver, Ramiro.”
“I’ll drive you myself.”
The response came so quickly that I almost thought I had imagined it.
“Why?”
A short silence followed.
“Because every instinct I possess is telling me this is a terrible idea,” he admitted. “And because if anything happened to you after I put you in a car alone, Rafael would probably bury me somewhere nobody would ever find me.”
I heard him move first—boots against gravel, then the soft mechanical click of a car door being unlocked.
The sound carried clearly through the night air.
I followed the direction of his steps.
My hand reached out instinctively, sliding along the side of the vehicle.
I traced it until my fingers found the handle, gripping it for a second longer than necessary before pulling it open.
I lowered myself into the passenger seat.
I placed my hand on the armrest, orienting myself through touch alone, feeling the space rather than seeing it.
Ramiro settled into the driver’s seat a moment later. The door closed with a firm, contained sound.
Then the engine started.
A low, steady purr that vibrated through the car like a restrained heartbeat.
