has taught me that once you’re condemned to hell, there is no second trial and no pardon.” Sarcasm dripped from my voice. “When you get stuck with the devil, it's forever.”
“Olivia—”
“Just stay away from me, Broderick!” It hurt to say the words, but I had to make it clear that I could not let him keep risking his life for me. “Stay the hell away.”
I stormed past him and ran straight to my bedroom, devastated that I was forced to push away the one man who had ever treated me right and provided me with comfort when I needed it the most. Now, I was truly alone and defenseless in this war against Alessandro.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
The Present
When he said he had to return to business, Alessandro wasn't joking. It was close to midnight when I fell asleep in his bed, and he still didn't join me. Now that he was a step away from regaining his physical strength, the threat of his unwelcome advances became more real, but I refused to lay in bed and cower in fear. I was determined to stand my ground and hide my terror from him. If Alessandro sensed how much I truly feared him, he would walk all over me again, and I couldn’t let that happen. Somehow, I remained calm and collected, deciding there was nothing else for me to do but take it one day at a time. Comforted with that decision, I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.
“Olivia?” Alessandro's soft voice disrupted my dreams sometime in the night, but I pretended I didn't hear him.
“Cara?” he persisted softly.
“Hmm?” I had no choice but to react.
“Are you awake?”
Was he serious? “I am now,” I muttered in a groggy voice.
“How did you find out?” He sounded intrigued.
Adjusting to the soft light, my eyes slowly opened and a blurred image in front of me sharpened into Alessandro’s face. He stared at me with arched eyebrows, waiting for a reply to his vague question.
“What do you mean?” I asked in confusion.
“I mean who I am and what I do,” he explained, lying on his side and leaning on his elbow with his head propped up on his palm. “How did you find out?”
I glanced toward the digital clock on the nightstand and expelled a breath of frustration. “Alessandro...it's 3 AM in the morning.”
“Indulge me,” he whispered with an unabashed grin. “We're both awake anyway.”
I raised my eyebrows and blurted out, “I just figured it out, okay?”
“But how?”
I flung him a pleading look, but realized it wouldn’t deter him. “Has Lorenzo told you something?” I probed with caution.
“Why is that relevant?” He shrugged, and relented when I shot him an impatient glare. “No, he didn't tell me anything. We just talked about the business. So, how did you find out?”
He resembled an annoying parrot. I had no idea why he kept asking this question, but I had to think of something to tell him. “It was the little things,” I started and paused to think. “Lorenzo was the one who welcomed me to the family at our wedding, and then he laughed when I assumed he was your cousin.”
Alessandro couldn't suppress a chuckle.
“And then a few days later, you said that once I entered your world, I couldn't leave.”
He nodded. “And that was enough for you to figure it out?”
“Yes.”
“Smart girl,” he uttered a compliment, and brushed away a lock of hair from my face. “There is only one problem.”
“What problem?” I wondered, strange awareness building inside me.
“You told me you knew before the wedding,” he reminded me. “Was that a lie, cara?”
I shook my head, and we were back to square one.
“So, what happened before our wedding?” Alessandro demanded.
The hairs on my neck rose, and I had a sinking feeling in my stomach, but I fought to appear calm on the surface. He stared at me expectantly, his eyes burning a hole through mine. The words were at the tip of my tongue. I saw you kill a man… But every instinct in my body warned me that was the wrong thing to say.
“Olivia...” he urged, impatience ringing in his voice.
Think. Fast. “My boss told me,” I lied.
Alessandro’s brow wrinkled in puzzlement. “What did he say?”
“He said you were dangerous and that I should stay away.” It was what he should have told me because I was certain he knew very well who Alessandro Damiani was back in those days when he frequented his restaurant.