Page 40 of Forbidden Lord
She drove off the lot and headed home.
She parked in the front and one of the staff took the red Ferrari away—she assumed to a parking garage.
As she entered the house cold air hit her skin. She was alone in the lobby but she knew immediately that Matteo had heard what had happened.
She rushed up the stairs and hoped he would listen to her side of the story. As she flung open the bedroom door, Matteo wasn’t there.
Her heart nearly stopped when she saw the closet was only half-full and most of his suits were gone.
Adrenaline rocketed through her.
With so many rooms, it would take days to find him, if he was even here.
She headed into the hall and called out, “Matteo.”
A light flickered at the far end of the hall, the same sitting room the secretary had left Patrice in. She walked down the length of it, a shiver in her spine. She pushed open the door and hoped her husband was here.
However, she met the brown eyes of Charles. This was clearly the room where guests suspected of trouble were brought. She gripped the knob hard as Charles walked over to her and said, “He left you. He doesn’t love you.”
Did he not take a hint when she’d driven off? She’d pushed him away. How in the world had he beaten her home? Every muscle in her body tensed and she pointed toward the door. “You never should have kissed me, Charles. I don’t love you. I don’t care about you at all anymore. You need to leave me alone, get out of my home, and never come here again.”
“You’re lying.” He stepped toward her.
Her vision began to see only red. If he touched her at all, she’d find a way to stab him, forget being a lady. She glanced around the room, spotting the dull knives meant to slice pastries. He was bigger but she’d rather plummet out the glass window than ever be near Charles. She held his gaze and threw the door open to the hall. “I never lie. Goodbye.”
She stepped out and right into Matteo’s arms. Four of his servants escorted Charles from the mansion. “We need to change the locks and ensure he never gets in here.” She couldn’t catch her breath. “And I will ensure Simone knows Charles is not welcomed on the grounds.”
Matteo pivoted on his heels without saying a word and headed farther down the hall. Her body turned cold. She chased after him and he entered a powder blue guest bedroom where staff hung his clothes.
Her heart beat in her throat. She said to the household staff, “Everyone please give us a moment.”
He nodded at them like he gave his permission and headed onto the balcony without a word. She waited for the staff to leave and then followed him outside. The afternoon sun was setting. She couldn’t see its beauty. “Matteo, why did you pack all your things?”
He stared out at the vast green grounds of his estate. Water fountains in his ponds shot liquid in the air. She wished he’d turn toward her as he said, “Stefano called. I understood your heart very clearly today.”
So he knew Charles had kissed her. Her stomach knotted. “What are you talking about?”
He turned toward her, and the intensity of his gaze sent a shockwave through her, though he was at least two feet away as he held the railing on the balcony. “You are still in love with Charles.”
Every cell in her body was alert and she wished she’d stopped that kiss before it happened. “That’s not true.”
Matteo turned his attention toward the horizon again as he said, “You kissed him back. I saw the video.”
“What video?” Her heart clenched.
“Stephano had his phone.”
“I need you to trust me, Matteo.” She joined him and their elbows brushed as she peered out at the horizon next to him. “I… I realized in that kiss how wrong he was for me and how right you are.”
He glanced at her profile and she met his stare. Time must have stopped in that moment as he asked, “Do you love me?”
A twisted knot in her stomach reminded her that if she said the wrong thing, she’d ruin everything. She let out a long sigh and asked, as she hoped to delay this discussion, “Are you in love with me?”
He shrugged and his cheeks were slightly red as he said, “I might be. It’s probably part of why I’m jealous when my wife chooses another man.”
Choose? No. All Charles had done was prove how wrong he was for her and how right her life with Matteo was. She caressed his arm as she said, “I haven’t.”
He turned and removed his arm from her touch as he shook his head. “But you don’t love me.”
