I swallowed hard in an attempt to stop the nausea, but failed. The spasms in my stomach took over and I dashed for the bathroom, praying to make it in time. The second I hunched over the toilet, I started throwing up. Still kneeling on the floor, I spied Alessandro in the doorway and met his dark gaze. He stared at me intently.
“It doesn't look like you're fine to me, Olivia,” he remarked, and withdrew his phone from his pocket. “I’ll call a doctor.”
“No,” I said decisively. “I told you I had been under a lot of stress lately. I think I ate too fast.”
It was a ridiculous excuse, but it was all I could think of at the moment. I had to protect my secret. I couldn't let him find out.
“As you wish,” he said quietly, and tucked the device back into his pocket.
The Alessandro I knew would never listen to my wishes in a million years. If he wanted the presence of a doctor, he would call him no matter how much I protested. And that wasn't just an assumption. There was an occasion when he’d proved it.
I stood up and straightened my wrinkled pajamas. “I'm going to go lie down in my room.”
He waved his hand toward the bed behind him. “You can lie down here.”
Not if my body decided to betray me and vomit again. “I prefer to go upstairs...”
“Why?”
“I just do, okay?” I strode past him and he caught my arm.
“I can't let you climb the stairs in the condition you’re in.”
I let out an exaggerated sigh in the hopes it would set his mind at ease. “I'll be fine. Don't worry.”
“Cara...” he murmured with a note of pleading.
“Alessandro, please...” I raised my voice, losing my composure.
He flinched, releasing my arm as his shoulders drooped. Not sure if it was just my hormones playing up, but he seemed almost...hurt. “Fine. If you want to go, I won't force you to stay.”
That baffled vulnerable expression on his face penetrated my defenses, and I almost found myself relenting again.
“Thank you,” I said, and stormed out of the room before I lost my resolve.
On my way down the hallway, I passed by Henry who glared at me with a cunning look. But it was just a facade. From the nervous twitch of his lip, he was alerted and worried now that he knew I was aware of his wrongdoings. In Alessandro's world, betrayal resulted in an often not-so-clean death. Both Henry and I knew his life depended on my silence, just as mine depended on his. There was no need for us to exchange any words. As we glanced at each other for a split second, there was a clear silent understanding between us. Keep your mouth shut in order to survive. Besides—at this moment—the mean butler was the least of my problems. I had much bigger issues to worry about.
The moment I set foot in my room, I brushed my teeth to wash the sour taste of vomit out of my mouth before slumping onto my bed. Tension stiffened my neck. My eyes drifted closed as I massaged the knots at my nape and exhaled. Now to figure out how to get myself out of this mess. Time was ticking away. If I didn't come up with a solution fast, Alessandro would find out, and that might result in grave consequences. I couldn't let that happen. More than ever, I had a responsibility to prevent him from hurting me because I had much more to worry about than just my own well-being.
But no matter how hard I tried hatching a plan that would set me free before Alessandro realized what I had done, every single option I considered was out of the question. With the ongoing investigation of his accident, I couldn't run because that would turn me into an instant suspect. On the other hand, getting arrested would be a much better outcome than facing Alessandro's wrath should my attempt to flee him fail like it had so many times in the past. The only other thing I could try was ask him for a divorce now that he claimed he couldn't remember our marriage and hope he would accept, but—given his fragile condition—I couldn't turn my back on him. Not with the world watching. Besides, men like Alessandro married for life and divorce wasn’t an option. He had made it clear on multiple occasions he