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Lorenzo gave Mama a strained smile. “I just left him. He’s in good spirits, still convinced he’ll be out by the end of the day. I was just about to go make a few calls for him. He says that the mayor and the governor both, ah, owe him a favor. He expects the charges will all be dropped.”
“Oh, that would be wonderful, Enzo.”
Enzo’s eyes flickered, making Sabina wonder what he was thinking. Five years ago, four even, she would have known. Now…he might as well be a stranger.
He cleared his throat. “In the meantime, you should come to my office this afternoon. We need to discuss the placement of certain assets. The Treasury will try to freeze all they can in preparation for a full investigation, but Manny assures me you have access to some beyond their reach that would cover bail and court expenses, if it comes to that.”
“Of course.” Rolling her shoulders back, Mama looked more like Mama should. “We are not unprepared, Enzo. Manny has seen to that.”
Lorenzo nodded. “I knew he would have. Shall I show you to him?”
“Just point me in the right direction.” She patted his arm and smiled. “You can keep Sabina company while I visit with him—I’m sure he’d rather she not see him behind bars.”
Sabina’s mouth fell open. “But you said—”
Lorenzo looked as panicked as she felt. “I really don’t have time to—”
“I won’t be but twenty minutes.” Mama didn’t wait for any more argument. She turned in the direction Lorenzo had come from and headed away at full steam.
Sabina’s shoulders slumped. “You don’t have to stay with me,” she said softly, setting her sights on the space beyond his shoulder. “Our men are right outside. I’ll be fine.”
Lorenzo sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “If I do that, your mother will probably just drag you to my office later and come up with another way of leaving us together.”
How had they come to this? What had happened to Enzo and Bean, the inseparable duo? The two who could spend hours gazing up at the stars, talking about everything and nothing? The friends who knew each other’s thoughts before they could speak them? How had they been reduced to dreading each other’s company, wishing they could avoid it?
That was worth mourning, if Sabina could ever get through the death-throes of the deeper relationship that they obviously never should have attempted. Forcing a swallow past the lump in her throat, she tried to summon a bit of Mama’s forthrightness. “So, we might as well get it over with.” Willing her hands not to shake, she tugged off her left glove and reached for the diamond on her ring finger. “I guess you want this back.”
“Sabina.” Frustration laced his voice. “I don’t want to do this now, certainly not here. I don’t want—I just—I can’t think about this yet, all right? I need to concentrate on your father.”
Sabina. The word stung like a ruler to her knuckles. He never called her Sabina. He had called her nothing but Bean in all her memory, and the change somehow terrified her. As if he had finally admitted she wasn’t the girl he had once loved. Bean was gone, buried with Serafina. Unneeded at home. Unwanted by him.
Who was Sabina, though? Who was she supposed to be in the wake of Bean?
“What happened to us?” he asked softly. His gaze probed her face and seemed to see into her mind, like he used to do so easily. “We used to know each other. We used to be friends. Now, it’s as if you’re a total stranger, Sabina. I don’t know who I’ve spent so many years loving, but obviously you don’t love me back. Why didn’t you just tell me you didn’t want to marry me? Why go behind my back?”
Spent so many years loving? She pressed her lips together against the words that wanted to tumble free. As a child, yes, she would grant it. As an adolescent, even. But lately? He didn’t love her. He didn’t really want to marry her. He just couldn’t bring himself to say it.
Lorenzo shook his head. His eyes flashed and then extinguished. “Never mind. I know your parents well enough to guess the answer. Mama Rosa said you’d marry me, so you obeyed, like always. Did you ever even want to?”
She couldn’t bear to see his expression so empty and reached for his hand before she could think better of it. “Enzo, no. Please listen. I’ve always loved you. You’ve been one of my dearest friends all my life. I never intended to hurt you. I never meant for this to happen.”
“Well, it has.” He tugged his fingers free, like he always did. Usually, it felt like an apology. Today, it felt like a slap. “And now you have to figure out what you want. I frankly don’t know if I can work through this or not, and I don’t intend to waste my time trying if you still love him.”
“How could I love him?” Venom rose up, so sharp it astonished her. “He betrayed—”
The arch of his brows silenced her.
She wasn’t the only one who had been betrayed.
