Page 21 of Borrowed Bride

“I…” How do I respond to that? Marco is like a coin with two very different sides, and he’s flipping back and forth so quickly that I can barely process it. This side of him is the side that was with Emilia in the greenhouse, and it almost feels like I shouldn’t be seeing this kind of softness.

“Thank you,” I say after a moment, and I pat the back of his hand with mine. “Would you believe me if I said I was fine because it was a long time ago?”

“I tell myself that about my sister,” Marco says quietly. “Some things never ease with time.”

I understand him. It pains me, but I understand.

My stomach twists and a rush of heat washes over me from head to toe. Never in a million years did I expect to be having aheart-to-heart with this man, but when he looks at me, there’s a new warmth there that makes it worth it.

Marco stays with me. We talk long into the night about the past and the time he shared with Fawn, while I tell him a few truths and maybe tales about my time on the streets. He listens with careful intent and I grow so comfortable that when sleep comes and we fall into each other’s arms, I don’t question it.

But when morning comes, Marco is gone. I wake to a cold, empty bed and an absence of the warmth that was so comforting the night before.

As I sit up, my heart clenches painfully in my chest.

Why do I feel so oddly abandoned?

8

MARCO

“This is important,” Dante says as he adjusts his bowtie in the mirror. “I need you to understand this.”

Standing by the window, I stare out over the vast gardens of the Barrone estate and nod once. “I know.”

“Do you?” Dante turns, and I catch him glaring at me out of the corner of my eye. “Do you really understand? This past week or two you’ve been so infatuated with that woman.”

That woman.

Gianna.

My key to a plan and the most unexpected addition to my life. Just the thought of her sends a shiver curling down my spine. She makes me feel exposed. In her short time here, she’s already stumbled onto my sister and learned about the single greatest love of my life. She was never meant to be privy to any of that.

She’s learning. She’s seeing me in a light that was never supposed to be turned on.

Yet, as exposed as I feel, there’s an aura of excitement around the whole thing. Emilia hasn’t had a new friend in decades, and Ihaven’t been able to talk to anyone about her or Fawn. What are the chances Gianna will be that person?

Assuming she keeps her mouth shut. She knows a lot now. Enough to bring me to my knees and I don’t think she even realizes.

That woman.

She holds my attention and I’m drawn in, despite trying to hold myself back. I can’t get too close. If I do, I’ll be signing her death sentence if I haven’t already.

“That womanis your daughter-in-law,” I reply lazily, taking a slow drink of my scotch. “You should be happy.”

“Happy?” Dante scoffs sharply. “Are you blind, Marco? Do you not see what you’ve done?”

I drain my glass, watching the sun vanish beneath the horizon, and then I turn to my father. “I fixed our problem.”

“You made it worse!” Dante hisses and he approaches me quickly. “I have done my best to calm our relations with the other families but the Simones? They are furious.”

“Why?” I frown deeply. “They have no daughters for me to marry. Father, this archaic tradition does nothing but bind bad blood, and I for one don’t want to be bound to the fucking Simones.”

“You’d be lucky,” Dante snaps. My father studies me, his expression unreadable. There’s a hint of anger in the set of his mouth but disappointment lingers in his eyes.

“No, father. We would be terriblyunlucky. And I am trying to break that streak.”

“What is unlucky?” comes Gianna’s voice.

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