There’s really no point hiding it anymore. Not after Alessandro practically announced it to the room.
So I sigh and tell them everything.
The fake invitation.
Sneaking out.
The masked party.
Daniela’s mouth drops open halfway through.
“A sex party?” she whisper-screeches. “Are you insane?”
“Yes,” I deadpan. “We’ve established that already.”
Camilla looks like she might faint.
I keep going anyway.
I tell them about seeing Alessandro there.
About overhearing him discuss the Kuznetsovs and his plans to secure power before Luca could challenge him.
About trying to escape.
About falling into him.
I tell them how he figured out I didn’t belong there.
How he locked me in that room.
How he exposed me today on purpose.
Camilla’s expression slowly crumbles into horror.
“And you still agreed to marry him for me?” she whispers.
I shrug like it’s nothing.
“It’s better this way.”
“No, it’s not.” Her eyes fill with tears again. “Sienna, you didn’t have to do that.”
Didn’t I?
I look away from her.
“If Domenico hadn’t happened,” I say quietly, “I would’ve already been married into the Gallo family anyway.”
Silence settles heavily around us.
Because we all remember the original arrangement before Alessandro inherited the position after his brother died.
Before everything went to hell.
I stare down at my hands as memories rise whether I want them to or not. I remember being anxious and terrified. Being told I’d marry Matteo Gallo, Alessandro’s older brother, like it was already decided by God himself.
I remember sneaking around with Domenico afterward because for once in my life, someone looked at me like a person instead of a bargaining chip.
