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31
Carm
Ipress warm on my oven and pop the pizza I ordered for Bella inside, then I loosen my tie and unbutton my top button so I can breathe. Right now I feel as if one of my brothers has me in a chokehold.
Do I really love her?
No.
I definitely shouldn’t tell her I love her. Right? Then she’ll be able to use it against me.
It’s been a couple months that I’ve been in daily contact with her. You have to be with someone for, like, a year before love comes into the equation, don’t you? Then there’s Enzo and Annie. They fell fast. Hell, even all my cousins. From what Mauro told me, when he was in town, Luca went from hating to loving his new fiancée.
My doorman calls up, and I don’t have to answer to know that Bella has arrived. I already told him she’d be coming.
“She’s on her way up, Mr. Mancini.”
“Thanks,” I say, walking to the front door and unlocking it.
I remain in the doorway to wait for her to get off the elevator, like I always do. Surely, she has to see that this is out of my control. That I can’t decide what Greg Throttle does. Up until that meeting, I thought I’d win the contract fair and square after the allotted time.
The elevator dings and she files out, wearing a navy skirt that’s tight all the way to above her knees and a tank blouse that’s tucked in to show off her incredible figure.
“Hey,” I say.
“Hi.” Her eyes are rimmed red and there’s still wetness pooled in her gorgeous greens.
My hand rises to cup her cheek, but she slides past me into my condo. She stands by my entryway table without putting down her purse or taking off her shoes.
“I got you a pizza,” I say, stepping into the kitchen.
She doesn’t follow.
“I need to ask you a question,” she says, her voice quivering.
On the phone, she sounded mad, but not like it would be the end of us. I’ve been so wrapped up in my own dissection of my feelings for her that I didn’t consider that this could break us up.
How do we break up when we were never really together? At least not formally.
“Come and eat.” I take the pizza out of the oven. “I hope you like goat cheese. Enzo swears by it.”
“I’m not hungry.”
I glance over my shoulder. She’s still in the same spot, so I drop what I’m doing and walk over to her. Grabbing her purse strap, I try to lower it down her shoulder, but she stops me, her hand cold.
“I’m sorry about Greg. If I could change it, I would. I was actually thinking of some ideas where maybe we could—”
“Did you sleep with Margo Gregory?”
Air leaves my lungs in a rush.
Her eyes lock on mine. She wants to see my reaction, to judge if I’m lying or not. Bella does it often. I always thought it was a trust thing.
“Why would you ask me that?”
“It’s an easy question, Carm. Did you, or didn’t you?” A tear slips down her cheek because whatever happened in the time between that phone call and now, she’s decided she already knows the answer.
“What happened? I thought this was about Greg. Why are you bringing up Margo?”
