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“Yes,” I admit with a whisper. “Who told you?”
“Roch.” Outwardly, he appears calm, but tension emanates from him. “What kind of jobs did you do?”
I flick out my tongue to wet my dry lips. “Is this really necessary?”
“What jobs did you do, Sabella? It’s a small town. You have firsthand experience of how quickly news travels. I’m going to hear it whether I want to or not, but I prefer to hear it from you.”
I swallow. “Are you angry?”
His voice softens. “Only with myself.”
“What’s the point of knowing?”
“I need to know because it concerns you, and everything that concerns you is my business.”
Heaving another sigh, I say, “I walked Mrs. Paoli’s dog, and I cleaned Mr. Martin’s house. I also did a few grocery runs for Mrs. Filippi.”
“Dog walker, housemaid, and delivery woman,” he muses, not seeming pleased.
“Do you think those jobs are beneath me just because my surname is Russo now?”
“No,” he says, watching me with a level gaze. “Those jobs are beneath you because it’s my responsibility to take care of you.”
“I did what I had to do. For me, it was about survival. Going to the village kept me sane. Don’t you understand that?”
“I do,cara. The blame for what you were forced to do is on me.” His black eyes glitter. “However, you will never risk your life like that again. Walking down the mountain is fucking dangerous. I die a thousand times when I think what could’ve happened to you.”
“My friends in the village gave me an electric bike.”
Something like guilt passes over his features. “Did they now?”
“I left it by the river. I want you to bring it back.”
“From now on, I’ll drive you if you want to go to the village.”
“They went to great lengths to recondition it with a battery. I’m not going to thank them by letting it rust under a bush.”
“Fine.” He crosses his arms. “But you won’t go anywhere on that bike alone and never again down the valley. When I’m not here, a driver will take you to town. You’re never to go anywhere without your bodyguards.”
After the nightmare we all lived through, I’m not going to protest. I only have one condition. “No more stalking like with Roch in South Africa.”
“There’s a difference between stalking and protecting someone, but no. No one is going to stalk you. Wherever you go, an army will follow. So you better get used to it. And lastly, you’re never to beg someone else for money again. You have full access to my bank account and our money.” He takes a gold credit card from his pocket and puts it on the nightstand. “There’s enough for you never to have to work unless you want to.”
“Work?” My lips part. “Do you mean that?”
“First, you need to finish your studies. We have to talk about the logistics. The nearest university where you can complete your degree is in Marseille.”
Breathless, I repeat, “Do you mean that?”
“It’s always been the plan. It’s what I had in mind even when my mother was organizing our wedding. Then things happened.” He pauses. “Things I can’t change. But I want to do right by you. I want to give you everything you deserve, Sabella, even if I don’t deserve you.”
Tears well up in my eyes. I forgave him. I chose him. Yet moving on isn’t as easy as that. It’s going to take time. I want to give him a chance to prove himself to me, and for that I’ll need patience. We’ll both need patience.
“I want to leave everything that’s happened behind and start over with you,cara. I can’t build this family without you. I want to make a new family with you.” His features darken. “But before that can happen, there’s something I must do first.”
“What?” I ask, staring up at his face.
Despite the harshness of his expression that gives him that fallen angel look, his touch is gentle as he cups my cheek. It’s both reassuring and frightening. It’s as if he’s preparing me for bad news.
