Page 56 of The Fall of Sin (The Sins of Saint 2)

Alessia smiled yet rolled her eyes. “Men and their need to always discuss business. Even at a charity event.”

“That’s one sure thing I know about Saint, it’s always business.”

A waiter stepped up and offered us each a glass of champagne. I thanked him and turned back to Alessia. “You’re not from Italy?”

“What gave us away?”

“Your accent. Especially your husband’s. He’s American?”

Alessia nodded. “When we received Saint’s invitation to the gala, we decided to make a vacation out of it.”

“Make hay while the sun shines.”

She snickered. “Exactly. You know, it’s so nice to finally see Saint settle down. Although we were surprised to find out he had gotten married and hadn’t turned it into a lavish affair.” She waved around the room. “As we can all see, Saint loves his expensive gatherings.”

“Yeah. That he does.” I took a sip of champagne, and I wasn’t sure whether it was running into Anete or the reminder of a disastrous wedding night that had the champagne tasting bitter on my tongue.

I put the glass down on the table. “Do you perhaps know where the ladies’ room is? I need to powder my nose.”

“Of course. It’s through the door on the right of the stage where the orchestra is.”

“Thank you.”

I made my way through the crowd. I just needed a few minutes where there wasn’t someone trying to shake my hand or kiss my cheeks. A few moments to breathe.

“Milana.”

I stopped dead in my tracks at the sound of the familiar voice. “Raphael.” I turned to face him but was taken aback by his appearance. His hair was disheveled and dark circles framed his eyes.

He walked up and kissed my cheek, the potent smell of rich bourbon wafting from his breath. “You look radiant, sister.”

“Thank you. You look—”

“Like shit. I know.”

I wasn’t sure how to react to that. My only instinct was to play it down. “You shouldn’t work so hard, little brother. Everyone needs a vacation every now and then.”

“Oh, I had this unbelievable tropical vacation planned…until your husband ruined the biggest business deal of my life.” The hostility in his voice sent a chill down my spine, and my first instinct was to walk away—which I tried to do when Raphael grabbed my arm.

“Mila, wait.”

I glared down at where he touched me. “Let go of me.”

Immediately, he let go and stepped back. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just hard when you have all these future plans, then suddenly have it ripped from right under you.”

“Listen, Raphael, I get that you’re disappointed at not finalizing the deal with Mr. Russo. What I don’t understand is why it’s such a big deal. You still own shares in the company. You’re still banking from the business. It’s not like you lost everything.”

“I told you, I’m not a businessman.”

“Then improvise. When life gives you lemons, make goddamn lemonade.”

“Is that what life on the streets taught you?” The look in his eyes was cold, hard, cruel—a reflection of what he had just said.

“Fuck you, Raphael.”

I turned on my heel and walked in the other direction when he called after me. “Mom’s here.”

Just like that, the world around me came to a screeching halt. The sound of the orchestra’s music was gone along with the buzz of voices and the clinking of glasses.

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