AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“One week from Saturday. I’ll have the wedding planner get in touch with you too.”
My stomach is turning somersaults, and if I have to hear too much more, I’m going to vomit all over the luxurious comforter.
“When you get back to the house, call Isabel and calm her down. After what happened, I’m sure she’s beside herself. I can’t have her skittish. She could create problems. You might want to let her know that there is a guard stationed at the house around the clock. They’ll ensure her safety and that of her daughter.”
I grab Antonio’s wrist. “Are they in danger?”
“We left a guard on the ground as a precaution when you came back to Porto. Isabel and Valentina are not in any danger that I’m aware of.” He studies me carefully. “Do you have any reason to believe they’re in danger?”
I shake my head, but I’m not entirely sure. “No. Nothing aside from the usual danger that comes from living in an impoverished city.”
“The guard should ease your mind.”
“What should I tell her about us?”
“Tell her that you’ve decided to honor your father’s wishes, and you’re going to marry me.”
She’s never going to believe that.
“You can also tell her that you’ll be in regular contact, including video chats, and that we’ll be visiting Fall River as part of our wedding trip.”
I stare at him, searching for some sign that he’s taunting me. But there’s nothing, and a sense of excitement starts to bubble up inside me. “Do you mean it? The contact, and the trip? Because they’ll be so disappointed if we don’t go.”
“What about you? Won’t you be disappointed?”
I nod. “Heartbroken. But I can take it. Isabel’s fragile, and Valentina is a child. We don’t make promises to her we can’t keep.”
“Princesa, unless you’ve pushed me to the brink of insanity, I never say things I don’t mean.”
He inches closer, and for a moment I feel like he might kiss me, but he pulls back. “I have a meeting. It’s been days since you’ve had any food. Make sure you eat breakfast before you leave.”
“Will I see you tonight?” I ask.
“I’ll be out of the country until the end of the week, on foundation business. You can call Cristiano if there’s a problem. I’m running a day behind schedule, and I’ll be difficult to reach.”
When he shuts the door behind him, a wave of disappointment breaks over me. Not a heart-wrenching surge, but a ripple. Still, it takes me by surprise.
As I get out of bed and into the shower, I don’t think about Antonio. I don’t think about how much I wanted him to kiss me. And I don’t fret about the wedding. It’s merely a vehicle to get me back to Valentina and Isabel. Not forever, but for a few days.
I’ll take it.
57
Daniela
“Bom dia,” I say to the older woman bustling around Antonio’s kitchen in a colorful bib apron, with her hair coiled into a tight bun. I’d recognize her anywhere. Not as the Huntsmans’ cook, but from Santa Ana’s, where she sings like an angel on Christmas Eve.
“Look at you,” she cries. “So beautiful, like your mother.”
I want to leap into her arms, but I squeeze her hand instead. “Every Christmas I think about you, Alma, singing in the church. You were my favorite part of Midnight Mass.”
She laughs, but her eyes are wet. It seems more like sadness than nostalgia.
“What’s wrong?” I ask gently.
“Were you the woman whose screams were heard coming from the caves?”
Public betrayal. Public punishment.The words are tattooed on my brain, and I knew my screams were heard by God knows who, but the reality still stings. I draw a large breath and nod. My head is so heavy it barely moves.
