Page 104 of His Two Hidden Masks

“Bella, I don’t think you should make any decisions today.”

I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. “I don’t have time to wait. I may not understand why my parents did what they did, but I know that allowing the Street family to betray my family does not feel right to me either. I have to stop the vote.”

“Like have a second wedding,” Leo said, managing a laugh.

“Right, a second wedding.”

“Did anyone every tell you that you are masterful at burying the fucking lead, Bella?” Leo squeezed my hand. “How do you not start with this revelation about Sara, darling?”

“I don’t know. It’s awkward. How do you say, I believe my sister killed herself and she was in love with my ex-fiancé, who by the way, I need to marry again.”

“Well, when you say it that way, it does sound ridiculous,” Leo said. We both laughed so hard, tears poured down our cheeks until we were calm again.

“Why did Sara kill herself? Oh, my God, Bella,” Leo said.

“I don’t know. Roberto thinks she had an argument with my father. She called him, saying she wanted to die, and when he got to Venice, she was gone.”

“Holy shit, Bella.” Leo shook his head inhaling through his teeth. “You know this is incredibly fucked up.”

“My parents didn’t know about Sara and Roberto. He said they met in secret.”

“Really? You think two teenagers are that good at keeping secrets?”

“I believe him. I found a necklace in Bella’s room with their initials, the one she wore in her birthday portrait.”

“Oh. My. God,” Leo said, shaking his head. “That sad painting in the lobby?”

“Uh, huh,” I said. “That is the one.”

“Don’t you think it’s weird he wanted to marry you the first time?”

“Of course, it’s weird,” I said. “I think he was trying to recapture something. He was happy with our family, and then Sara was gone.”

“That is a pretty big omission.”

“I always knew something wasn’t right between us. I’m not happy about any of this, but knowing the truth helps. I was right. Things were not okay.”

“That is an understatement,” Leo said. “So, your plan is to marry Roberto this time. But you aren’t really marrying him. It’s just for the vote.”

“Once we get married, our combined voting power will create a majority and we can block the acquisition. My father adjusted his succession plan when we got engaged, and he hasn’t changed it back. James Street won’t expect it.”

Leo looked up at the cafe canopy overhead, a half-smile on his face. “Do you remember when we used to talk about finding our true loves?”

“Yes,” I said, taking a sip of my Aperol Spritz.

“And for years I told you that I loved Anna Da Vada.”

“Until you finally confessed to me that you loved her brother, Dom,” I said.

“And you pretended to be surprised, which was so sweet of you, because we both knew that you already knew. You could tell, because I lit up when Dom paid attention to me. You knew that the idea of him made me happier than anything I’d ever imagined, and you wanted me to be happy.”

“I did,” I said, “and I still do.”

“I know you think you are doing the right thing, but I have seen the way you look at Dylan Street,” Leo said. “You light up. You literally glow, and I don’t want to see that beautiful light go out ever again.

“If you marry Roberto, for whatever reason, you are going to lose Dylan. I know you said he lied, but he was in a very difficult position.”

“I’ve already lost him.”

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