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Disbelief roused from its slumber, joining its cousins shock and frustration.
“Yes, we did. Igave you back my ring.You took it. I moved out.”Sort of.I needed to get the rest of my belongings once I had a chance to breathe. “In my world, that means we broke up. And that’s not even touching all the…the complications between you and my father.”
The difference between this Dante and the one who’d watched me walk away four days ago was so stark, I was convinced an alien imposter had hijacked his body.
“Yes, well, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” A swallow worked its way down his throat. All remnants of his playful mask disappeared, revealing nerves I never thought he possessed. “I fucked up, Vivian. I said a lot of things I shouldn’t have, and I’m trying to make it right.”
The words vibrated through the air and somehow reached my chest before they did my ears.
By the time my brain processed them, my heart was already twisted and in shambles.
He couldn’t do this. Not now, not here, when I’djuststarted functioning properly after the havoc earlier this week.
“It doesn’t matter.” I willed the words past my tongue. “Like you said, it was just business.”
Anguish darkened the edges of Dante’s eyes. “Mia cara…”
My throat constricted.
The rest of the ball fell away, disintegrating like crumpled pieces of paper thrown into the fire of Dante’s presence.
Mia cara.
He was the only person who could utter that phrase so softly and achingly, like it was a beautiful substitute for another set of words we were too afraid to say.
I blinked away the emotion in my eyes. “I left four days ago, Dante. You were happy to let me walk away then. Do you expect me to believe you did a one-eighty in such a short period of time?”
“No. I don’t expect you to believe anything I say, but I hope you do,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry you found out the truth the way you did. I should’ve told you earlier, but the truth is…” His throat flexed with another hard swallow. “I wasn’t ready to let you go. I pulled back after Paris and told myself I was easing you into the truth when in reality, I wanted the best of both worlds. To keep you and to fool myself into thinking I wouldn’t.”
“Ihated your father, Vivian. I still do. And I hated the idea of him winning in any way, including…” Dante’s grip tightened around mine. “Including if I stayed with you the way I wanted. It wasn’t my finest reasoning or proudest moment, but it’s the truth. Yes, I was forced into the engagement, but everything that happened afterward? Our dates, our talks, our trip to Paris…no one forced me to do those things. They were real. And I was stupid enough to think I could get over them or you when…”
His voice dropped, turning raw. “You’ve been gone less than a week and I already feel like I’ve spent an eternity in hell.”
The breath fled my lungs. Oxygen solidified into something sweet and honeyed that dripped into my stomach, filling it with warmth.
A choked sob entered the mix before I swallowed it.
There was no one near us. Everyone gave Dante a wide berth, and the majority of guests had returned to their conversations instead of staring at us.
Still, I couldn’t afford any break in composure. One crack was all it would take for me to shatter completely.
“But nothing’s changed,” I said, my voice thick. “You still hate my father, and he still wins if we marry.”
I didn’t mention the disowning or company troubles yet. Those were whole other cans of worms.
“You’re wrong,” Dante said. “Somethinghaschanged. I thought I could live without you. That my vengeance meant more than my feelings for you. It took only a few days—hell, a few hours—to realize I can’t, and it doesn’t. I didn’t want to distract you while you were preparing for the ball, which is why I haven’t reached out earlier. But…” His throat worked with another swallow. “I love you, Vivian. More than I could ever hate your father. And more than I ever thought I was capable of.”
My heart soared; my stomach plunged into a wild free fall. The contradiction defied the laws of physics, but nothing about our relationship had ever adhered to rules.
I love you, Vivian.
The words echoed in my head and spilled into my chest, where they met their counterparts for the first time.
I love you, too. Even after what you did. Even if I shouldn’t. I love you more than I could ever hate you.
The only difference was, I couldn’t bring myself to voice them yet.
“You and me,” Dante said. His eyes held mine. “For real this time. We can make it work. That is…if you want to.”
