Page 26 of Vincenzo's Promise
“And what side would that be?” He rested against the seat, looked over at me, and smiled. He looked so much younger when he smiled. A piece of hair hung against his forehead and I pushed it back, causing his smile to widen. “I didn’t know I had multiple sides.”
This was the Vincenzo that was dangerous for my heart. The way he looked at me, like we were lovers instead of what we truly were, had me wishing for things that might never be. Despite the smile on my face, my heart ached at the thought. There was so much I could give him if he’d let me. There was so much he could give me in return if he believed he was worth it. If he’d open himself up to the possibility, we could be more than just a business arrangement.
I understood his reluctance. My own doubts about this relationship and could we ever love each other assaulted me daily because of the circumstances surrounding the marriage. Yet, over the past few months of him revealing pieces of himself little by little, my thoughts and desires about what we could share morphed, and I believed his had as well.
“Yes, you do,” I said. “My father is the same way. I know you can be callous when the need arises. That’s one side and the one you’re most comfortable showing to the world.”
“And you’re fine with that side?”
I didn’t think anyone would be fine with their significant other living the life Vincenzo led, and I would be lying if I said I was. However, my feelings didn’t matter. It was the life he was born into. A life I wasn’t but would soon be a part of. I couldn’t change that about him. For men like Vincenzo, it was ingrained in their DNA; it was the foundation of who they were.
“I’m not naïve to what you do, Zo. Of course, it goes against everything I’ve pledged for my life. I’m a doctor who saves lives, and sometimes you take them. It’s not that I’m fine with it. I just know it comes with this life.”
He nodded. “And you can live with that?”
“It’s notifI can live with it. It’s who you are. So, the real question is, do I have any choice?”
“And what’s another side of me youthinkyou see?” he asked, ignoring my question, which was all the answer I needed.
No, I don’t have a choice. He is who he is.
“I don’t think. I know. Another side is when you interact with your cousin the way you do. I can tell you both love one another.”
“Angelo is the closest thing I have to a brother. He pushes my buttons all the time, as you saw, but I can trust him above anyone else. Is there another side of me I need to know about?” he asked, genuinely interested in what I saw in him.
I thought twice about telling him about how he interacted with me—how he looked at me. It might cause him to pull away, but I would give him the option of whether he wanted to hear it or not.
“There is, but I’m not sure it’s one you want to hear.”
“No, please tell me.”
He laid his hand on top of mine, intertwining our fingers, his thumb gently caressing my skin. I wasn’t sure he realized he was even doing it. It was the trivial things, like intertwining our hands or brushing a kiss against my forehead, that made me want more with him. For not only me, but for him, too. He craved my touch just as much as I craved his.
“I want to start this thing between us off right. I want you to be able to tell me whatever you’re thinking even if you believe I may not want to hear it, Bella. So, please finish.”
“Well, sometimes you look at me like I mean more to you than I’m supposed to or what you’re ready to admit to yourself.”
His brows pulled together, but I continued, despite his obvious protest to my statement.
“You do things like brush a kiss against my forehead, wrap an arm around my shoulder and pull me close to your body, or intertwine our fingers.”
I looked down at our clasped hands, and he followed my gaze. When he saw our joined hands, his eyes widened before he pulled his hand away like he’d touched fire.
There were other things he’d done, but I’d keep those to myself.
He silently gazed at me for a little while before turning his attention back towards the front of the plane. He didn’t respond to my comment, and that was fine with me. I didn’t need him to say anything or even admit what I said was the truth, at least not until he was ready to admit it to himself. But he needed to realize that whenever we got into conversations about where this relationship was heading, he tried to convince himself it wasn’t heading in the direction that it truly was.
Lips pressed together in a slight grimace, all traces of the relaxed Vincenzo left, and serious Vincenzo was back.
I’d just wanted him to know his interactions with me were changing. They weren’t of someone who solely wanted me to be his wife of convenience, not even someone he just wanted to sleep with. Over the past few months of just talking and sharing our lives with one another, things had shifted between us...or maybe it was me hoping things were changing. But if itwasn’tmy mind and heart wishing things were different, I wanted him to be prepared and be all in, not get scared and push me away because he thought he couldn’t give me the love I desired or deserved.
The ding of the plane’s seatbelt light indicating we could unbuckle our seat belts brought Vincenzo out of his thoughts. He looked at me and smiled, all traces of deep thought and concern erased from his face. I noted how quickly he covered up his true feelings. A true chameleon, just like my father. He portrayed whatever façade he liked me to see, but I’d learn the real Vincenzo in time.
“Come, let me show you around so you can freshen up if you like or take a nap before dinner.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me up from the luxurious leather seat of the private plane. “It’s going to be awhile before we reach our destination.”
“You still haven’t told me where that is.”
“And I’m not going to. It’s a surprise.”
