Page 181 of Divine Obsession

Maria's hands moved with a cool precision as she sliced through ablack Amexwith a pair of heavy-duty scissors. Each cut was deliberate, the sound of the blades snipping through the plastic like a loud punctuation mark.

I picked up the card she just cut in four, putting the pieces together like a puzzle to read the owner’s name.

Z R DIABLO

I slowly turned my head back to her.

I couldn’t help but stare. I’d seen her do a lot of things, but never something this…Unapologetically bold.

She didn’t need to do this – Zach had never used the card as leverage. He hadn’t manipulated her with money. In fact, from what Maria had told me before their fight, he’d been a great boyfriend. The kind that would’ve done anything to make her happy. I couldn’t possibly imagine what he’d done to hurt her. He’d been so down bad for her since the beginning, all of this felt…Wrong.

“What are you doing?” I finally managed to ask, still trying to process.

Maria didn’t even look up as she snipped through another card. “Cutting him loose.” Her voice was low, but steady. “I don’t need him.”

“Where’d you even get this?” I asked, still trying to wrap my mind around the scene unfolding in front of me.

“He added me as an authorized user.” She glanced at the card for a second. “Fuck him. And his money.”

My heart twisted a little. The sum of his wealth was nothing compared to whatever she was feeling now – whatever had pushed her to this point.

I was quiet for a moment, understanding she wasn’t cutting through cards anymore – but a lot more than that. And I had to admire her for it.

I tilted my head, glancing up at her with a soft smile. “I guess you don’t need it, right?”

Maria finally met my eyes, her expression somber. “No. I don’t.”

Maria might not have been a billionaire, but from the amount she made while being a government agent, to working for the Cosa Nostra, she didn’t even need to work another day in her life.

I wasn’t actually sure why she even worked atRenatobefore–

The jewelry box snapped shut as Maria slid it into a padded envelope.

“What are you doing with that?” I asked, eyeing her movements.

“Mailing the earrings back to him.”

“Okay…” I said softly with a nod, before walking away and letting her handle it in her own way, regardless of knowing this would not work with Zach.

The next day, two gifts arrived instead.

A couple of days later, there was a knock at the door.

Maria and I looked at each other on the couch, both confused as to who it could be since we hadn’t ordered take-out.

Then my eyes rounded with understanding and I jumped up.

“Donotanswer him, Natalia.”

“Just give me a second. He’s trying to say sorry.”

“I swear to God, if you open that door–”

“Too late!” I swung the front door open, only to be greeted by the doorman. “Oh, hi, Charles. Can I help you?”

I heard Maria’s relieved sigh, followed by a mumbledthank God.

“Miss Moretti.” He gulped. “I know we’re not supposed to let non-residents into the building but–”

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