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I shake my head. “No, Gavino. It wasn’t like that. You told me about Sonia—”
“Don’t you say her fucking name,” he says, eyes widening in fury, and takes a step closer. He’s snarling at me, feral, rage-filled. I back up, breathing fast, tears spilling down my face.
How can I make him understand? How can I make him see that this was never meant to be a betrayal? That I wanted to tell him, but I was too scared? He’ll never understand, no matter how hard I try.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper and hug myself tight.
Gavino lets out a low grunt and looks at Romano. “Get out.”
Romano turns and exits. The door clicks shut, leaving me alone with this monster.
I don’t know what he’s going to do to me.
I stare at Gavino. Only hours before, he held me in his arms and made me come and whispered beautiful things in my ear. He told me how much he wanted me, how much he loved being with me, and how he wanted to keep me.
And now I see it was all founded on lies.
Lies of my own design.
“You’re Malcolm’s daughter,” he says slowly, staring at my face, and shakes his head. “God, I should’ve seen it sooner. Why else would you hate him? Why else would your mother think he owes her something?”
“She kept waiting for that child support but it never came,” I say softly, feeling like such a pathetic fool. “She met with dozens of lawyers and they all said she had an airtight case, but Malcolm managed to weasel his way out over and over, and each new loss was like a new dagger in her chest. We lost so much money pursuing him in court. She withered away until the day she died, always believing Malcolm would eventually come through. But he never did.”
Gavino breathes deeply, staring at me with cool, detached eyes. I don’t even know this man right now. The Gavino I fell for is fiery and passionate and funny, but this creature is cold-blooded and detached, like my pain doesn’t matter to him at all.
And why would it?
I’m a traitor and a liar, and I know what he does to traitors and liars.
“You’re just like her,” he says and his right hand grips the back of the couch, his fingers digging in deep, his knuckles turning white. “You should’ve told me from the start. At least then I would’ve understood. I might not have trusted you so soon, but still. You’re Malcolm’s daughter and you have every reason to hate that fucking prick. But you didn’t tell me, and that says so much more than anything else.”
“Gavino—”
“No, don’t.” His jaw tightens, working, but he doesn’t move. “Don’t tell me you didn’t mean it or you didn’t want to hurt me.”
“I was scared. You told me about—her—and I just—” I’m stuttering, barely able to get the words out. More tears roll down my face.
“You just what? You knew you were playing the same game and were terrified you’d get caught? Here you are, princess. You’re fucking caught. So now what?”
I sob once and shake my head. “I’m sorry. I’m not like Sonia. I was never on my father’s side, never wanted—”
Gavino storms forward. I take two steps backwards and run into the wall as he stands inches in front of me, seething like a wild bull. He glares at me with his teeth tight and his lips pulled back, his hands in fists, and for the first time, I’m truly afraid of him. I’m truly terrified.
He could beat me to death right now and nobody would stop him. Not here, deep in his family’s home.
My blood will get scrubbed from the carpets and he’ll dig my grave himself.
“I know I said you can have some secrets, but this was too big. This is too fucking much.” He looks like he wants to punch me in the throat or kiss me. I can’t tell which. Beneath that rage, beneath that white-cold anger, there’s a simmering undercurrent of the man that fucked me the night before. The man that kissed me, held me. The man that made me feel alive. “I want you gone. I want you out of this house and out of this city. Leave Phoenix and never come back. If anyone in my family hears you’re in town, I’ll come and find you myself, and I will kill you. Do you understand?”
“Gavino,” I croak, but he’s already walking away. He heads to the door and opens it.
“Romano will drive you to your apartment. You’ll have a day to get your affairs in order. Goodbye, Jeanie.” He stares at me, face dead again. The anger’s gone and so is the hurt.
Tears roll down my face as I walk past him. I’m crying and it’s pathetic, but I can’t stop myself. Romano’s stone-faced when I join him, and when I look back over my shoulder, Gavino closes the door in my face.
It isn’t just losing my chance at getting revenge for my mother. It isn’t just losing the burgeoning feelings that were blossoming and growing between us.
It’s losing my future. It’s losing the person I used to be.
Jeanie’s dead. Long live Jolene.
I say nothing as I walk along, trailing after Romano, crying the whole way, wondering how I can come back from this.
