Family lunch
Valeria
At Amelia’s suggestion, I arrive early.
“That way, you’ll have us beside you,” she told me. “You’ll feel stronger when they get here.”
Stephen drops me off at eleven-thirty before pulling away again.
“Call me if there’s any problem.”
Amelia and Vadim welcome me into the sitting room in front of the lit fireplace.
I tell them about the Perezes. About Hugo, his parents, their generosity toward me.
“They became a second—”
The unmistakable roar of an engine cuts me off mid-sentence.
The Huracán.
All three of us rise to our feet. Amelia murmurs softly, eyes fixed toward the driveway,
“Bianca hates that car. Says it’s too loud. He refuses to sell it.”
She pauses.
“I think there are too many memories of you attached to it.”
The confession affects me more than I want to admit. He bought the car to celebrate our first major funding round. It was flashy, loud and completely impractical.
But it made him happy.
The engine dies. Car doors slam shut outside.
My palms turn damp.
Dante walks into the room first.
The second he sees me, he stops cold. His jaw tightens. Murder flashes across his face.
Bianca is the one who diffuses the tension. She steps around him, crosses the room, and kisses my cheek with a smile.
“Valeria, what a wonderful surprise. I’m so happy to see you.”
I smile back.
Andrea arrives a few minutes later. After the initial shock, he gives me a brief nod instead of embracing me.
“I’m glad you’re alive.”
I return the gesture without answering, unable to force out a single word.
Lunch unfolds in a strange, strained atmosphere despite everyone’s efforts.
Seated between Vadim and Andrea, I face the couple across the table.
Bianca talks constantly, jumping from one subject to another, filling every silence with the restless energy of someone afraid of what silence might reveal.
Amelia, Vadim, and Andrea respond politely, taking turns keeping the conversation alive and preserving the illusion of normalcy.
Dante barely unclenches his jaw the entire meal.
He answers in monosyllables. His eyes stay on his plate, the window, his parents—everywhere except me.
Throughout lunch, Bianca keeps playing with her engagement ring.
Then Dante’s gaze drifts toward my hands.
His expression darkens.
I removed my wedding band and engagement ring this morning. It took me a long time, standing in front of the mirror with both rings resting in my palm. Cold metal I’d worn for seven years.
I placed them inside a jewelry box and closed the lid.
He was the first one to remove his.
You can’t force someone to love you.
His face reveals nothing. Impossible to know what he’s thinking.
Then suddenly, Bianca changes the subject.
“I stopped by Dior this week for the final alterations on my wedding dress. Good thing the wedding’s soon, because I’ve put on a little weight.” She laughs lightly. “A little more and people might start thinking I’m pregnant.”
My fork slips from my fingers.
It hits the plate with a sharp clatter that echoes through the silence like a gunshot.
Every head turns toward me.
A fleeting smile flashes across Bianca’s face before disappearing instantly.
She just wants to destabilize me.
Nothing more.
“Is your migraine bothering you again?” Amelia asks gently, offering me a graceful escape.
“Yes,” I say quietly. “A little.”
I slip away to the greenhouse during coffee. The air inside the house feels impossible to breathe.
What the hell was I thinking, coming here?
The scent hits me before I can defend myself: cedarwood and citrus.
My body recognizes it before my mind does.
He’s there, right behind me.
The longing crashes over me like a wave, violent and familiar.
I want to lean back against him, close my eyes and pretend nothing has changed.
“What are you doing here?” he asks, his voice razor-sharp.
I slowly turn toward him.
“Admiring your parents’ new plants.”
“Stop treating me like an idiot. Why are you here?”
“Your parents invited me.”
He steps closer.
“I don’t know what you told them to make them forgive you so easily, but it won’t work on me.”
“Why are you so angry, Dante?” I ask softly. “Because they tried to understand… and you didn’t? Or because the truth scares you?”
His eyes lock onto mine.
“You seriously think you have an explanation that justifies what you did?”
“You really believe I would’ve abandoned you willingly?”
He moves even closer, almost touching me.
“Your reasons don’t matter to me anymore. You don’t belong here now. Don’t come back when we’re here.”
The word echoes.
We.
I’m no longer his priority. I’m the intruder.
And yet, despite his words, his nostrils flare slightly, and he immediately steps back again, forcing distance between us.
“I don’t take orders from you, Dante. If your parents invite me, I’ll come. Whether you like it or not.”
I walk out of the greenhouse without looking back.
After coffee, Andrea leaves first, followed shortly afterward by Dande and Bianca.
Amelia, Vadim, and I watch them from the front steps.
Dante opens Bianca’s car door for her.
That gesture I’ve known since the first day we met.
I used to love it.
He closes the door gently. Gives his parents a short nod. His gaze brushes over me without stopping.
“Do you think she’s pregnant?” Amelia asks anxiously.
“Dante hasn’t said anything to me about it,” Vadim replies. “Personally, I think she just wanted to hurt Valeria.”
I don’t participate in the conversation.
The Huracán passes through the gates and disappears from sight.
Watching them leave together.
Fuck.
That hurts.