Ten
YSABEL WASN'T SURPRISED to see the horde of reporters waiting outside Mammina's. #MasNez shippers had been up in arms since the public announcement of her upcoming marriage to Massimo, and local media had been more than eager to feed their need for gossip.
Massimo glanced at Ysabel, asking gruffly, "Are you sure you're up for this?"
"Yup."
She did look ready , he considered broodingly, but what if this was merely Ysabel not wanting to show her weakness?
Makeup might have miraculously concealed every scratch on her face, but memories of it were still viciously fresh in his mind. He also remembered how she had involuntarily flinched at his touch, and this had him feeling so fiercely protective Massimo found himself tightening his grip on Ysabel's hand as he helped her out of the car.
Click! Click! Click!
The reporters immediately swarmed close upon seeing them, taking photo after photo.
"How does it feel to steal your sister's boyfriend?"
Ysabel had already prepared herself for such a question, and more importantly, she knew it would be foolish of her to expect Massimo to come to her defense. But just as she opened her mouth to answer the press—-
"Ysabel and I dated when she was still in college. A whirlwind romance, if you will."
It was all Ysabel could do to keep her jaw from dropping. What was Massimo saying?
"But Ysabel isn't used to being in the limelight, and so only a few people knew about our relationship."
"And then you started dating her sister? Isn't that fucked up?"
"I didn't know they were related until Ynez introduced me to her family. When Ysabel and I were dating, a certain aspect of our relationship kept us quite busy—-"
Ysabel could feel her cheeks burning pink as a few reporters snickered at this.
"And so the topic of getting to know each other's families never came up."
"You really think we'd fall for that crap?"
A cold smile curved over Massimo's lips at the question. "And if you do not? What then? You really think all of you can still live in my city if so?"
There was one second of stark silence, and in the next second, it was as if the billionaire's words had unleashed a hurricane of fear, and this time, her jaw d ropped as everyone started mumbling about having something else to do.
It was like watching an infestation of roaches fleeing from their impending doom as everyone scuttled back into their cars and started their engines in a hurry. Car doors slammed shut, tires screeched against the pavement, and then... silence.
Just like that, only she and Massimo were left standing outside her step-aunt's restaurant, and it almost seemed as if Ysabel had dreamt the whole thing up.
"Are you alright?"
A dazed laugh escaped Ysabel at Massimo's courteous tone, the sound of which only made things feel even more surreal.
"What you did was... brutal ."
"But necessary," he answered dismissively. "It would not be in their best interests if they were so foolish again as to forget who owns this city."
"And me?" Ysabel dared to ask. "Are you going to say you own me as well?"
"Do I not?"
"Only if I own you as well." The words were out before Ysabel even realized what she was saying...but how could she take them back, with the way those same words had desire flaring in his gaze?
Another second passed, but just as he took a step towards her, the doors to Mammina's suddenly opened, and a beaming Carlita came rushing out.
"è stato incredible!"
Massimo stiffened as if coming to his senses, and Ysabel bit back a laugh as he glared at her like he was seriously suspecting her of casting a spell. Oh, amore mio. How long would it take him to realize that love was the only magic she needed to bewitch him?
A smile tugged her lips at the way Carlita was now planting big, fat kisses on both of Massimo's cheeks, and the way Massimo did not dare pull away at such an effusive show of affection was heartbreakingly adorable.
"We all heard what you said, bambino! What a grand romance you and Ysabel have! It is like a fairytale..."
Massimo allowed Ysabel's step-aunt to propel him inside while his fidanzata obediently followed behind them.
"Since Ysabel did not let you meet us five years ago, we must rectify that immediately, sì? "
Massimo could only nod even though a part of him was still in disbelief over the things he had said to the press. Where the hell had those words come from?
"So, I think you have already met Ysabel's mama and my brother Arnoldo?"
Massimo expected a change in the older couple's attitude towards him, but both only smiled and greeted him as if it were normal for a man to date one sister...before being engaged to another. Were they not angry with him about hurting Ynez?
It was a question he would seriously like an answer to... in time. But for now, there were more people for him to greet, since it was now apparent to him that Ysabel's famiglia also included the regulars of Mammina's.
A part of Massimo expected them to take advantage of their closeness to his fidanzata, the way Ynez's friends had not hesitated to ask favors upon realizing he was a billionaire. But with Ysabel's extended famiglia, it was the opposite, and even the same group of high school students he had "seen" the other day, pestering Ysabel with question after question about his relationship with Ynez, was looking at him...like he was the enemy.
They were all truly concerned for Ysabel, and although this could be considered proof that Ynez was telling the truth about her sister's ability to manipulate other people—-
Tra il dire e il fare c'è di mezzo il mare. Between saying and doing, there's the sea in between.
His mother of all people had spoken those words to him when he was seven, and her drunken state had made her unusually candid. In vino veritas. In wine, there is truth—- and so it was, with Sheila bluntly warning her own son at that time not to believe everything she said just because she was his mother.
It was a hard lesson to learn, but Massimo had taken her words to heart, and since then, he had only trusted the few people who were able to meet his standards. People like his own famiglia, and people like Ynez, who was the opposite of Sheila...on paper.
But then on the other side of the coin, there was Ysabel. She had a college degree that she did not put to use. Preferred to work in her step-aunt's diner with no seeming ambition of her own. Was eccentric to the point of taking a canoe to work. Had no friends except for the regulars in Mammina's, all of whom Massimo had originally expected to sing Ysabel praises while dissing her sister.
But none of them did, and when he questioned one-armed Ric bluntly about this, the older man looked at him in surprise, asking, "Why would we say anything bad about Ynez? We have not even met her."
"Are you saying she hasn't come here? Not once?"
"They say it is because of Arnoldo. That she never got over her father's death." One-armed Ric shrugged. "But that is all gossip, really. We do not ask, and they do not speak. Life goes on, sì?"
The conversation went no further since Ysabel had already returned to his side to let him know that she had cooked something for him.
"I was told this was your favorite..."
All eyes were on them as Ysabel took Massimo to one of the diner's corner booths, and she presented her masterpiece with a flourish. "Clam chowder for starters, and the entrée, a triple-layered Philly cheesesteak sandwich made of organically sourced wheat bread, vegan cheese, and plant-based meat. Oh, and double scoops of mashed potato on the side. Made from scratch—-" Her voice then lowered into a whisper as she revealed her secret. "—-using La Strega's very own recipe."
The whole diner burst into laughter at Massimo's visible surprise, and they laughed again when it was Ysabel's turn to gasp in surprise, with Massimo suddenly giving his fidanzata a little tug that had her tumbling into his lap.
"Let's put it to a test then," Massimo murmured.
"Of course." She tried to get to her feet, but he wouldn't let her leave his lap. She offered him a fork, but he only raised a brow.
"You are not going to feed me?"
"Only if you will feed me back."
"Of course."
Ysabel, having expected him to argue like he always did, was surprised at the swiftness of Massimo's concession, and she looked at him suspiciously. "You promise?"
"You have my word as a Marchetti." He then took the fork from her hand and replaced it with a soup spoon. "Since you're feeding me, we should do this properly..."
Ysabel rolled her eyes but took the soup spoon all the same. "Whatever..."
Massimo's expression turned veiled when he saw her give the spoonful of soup a little blow. Had she forgotten he was from one of America's wealthiest and toughest famiglie ? So why then was she acting like the mother he never had? Ynez had never displayed such care towards him—- porca miseria! Why did his brain keep making these pointless comparisons between the two sisters? Was it because Ysabel was more and more becoming like what he imagined Ynez could be?
"Here you go, Master." The word had already slipped out before she realized what she was saying, and her heart nearly stopped beating when she saw the way Massimo's gaze suddenly narrowed at her.
"Why did you call me that?"
Because it's what I heard the other girl call you.
And as much as she wanted to say the truth out loud, Ysabel couldn't muster the courage to do so. Today was one of the best days of her life, and she just didn't want to risk ruining it. If another lie would keep Massimo by her side, then so be it.
"Because you're bossy," Ysabel quipped instead, and her heart ached at the way he visibly relaxed. Was he finally starting to suspect the truth?
Massimo finally took a sip of her clam chowder, and she looked at him hopefully. "Well?"
"It's fine."
The dismissive tone had Ysabel bristling. Why was he being unnecessarily rude and hurtful? Would it kill him to—-
Oh!
A gasp escaped her when she finally noticed the amusement gleaming in his dark eyes.
"Jerk!"
Massimo sensed everyone's relief when they saw him merely chuckling as Ysabel hit him on the shoulder. Just a second earlier, he had also seen them holding their breath when they heard what his fidanzata had called him, and it had seemed they were ready to defend her from his wrath—-and die doing so, if that was what it boiled down to.
Could this still be another example of Ysabel's ability to manipulate people...or was it Ysabel being able to win them over simply because she was nice?
Ysabel insisted on taking her seat across from him as they each had a slice of her sandwich, and it tasted as good as it looked, too. He saw her take her phone out like Ynez usually did, take pictures of the food also like his ex-girlfriend habitually did, but after this—-
The phone went back into her bag, and Massimo could not help feeling bemused as he watched her take another huge bite of her sandwich. That was it?
Ysabel came back to their table later and saw the way Massimo frowned as she served him coffee. "Are you worried I'm planning to poison you for your wealth?" she asked teasingly.
He tugged her back into his lap before answering, "No."
"I don't believe you—-"
"Because you don't have to." Massimo had finally come to a decision. Ynez might have repeatedly warned him against falling for her sister's tricks, and he wanted to believe not everyone was like his mother, who had lied over and over about wanting to change but never did.
"All of mine is yours, Ysabel."
She was about to laugh when she realized he was being serious, and her smile faded. "Don't say that. I don't want it, and I'm willing to sign whatever's needed so that you won't ever have to worry about me being after your money."
"You are entitled—-"
"I really don't want it," she insisted.
"Why?"
She looked at him as if he had lost his mind. "Um, duh? To prove that I'm not the evil fiancée you think I am." All thanks to my own flesh and blood, Ysabel couldn't help thinking, but since she also knew better than to say those words out loud, she could only cup his face and look into his eyes in hopes that he would see the truth in her gaze.
"I want to earn your trust—-"
"You already have."
Her heart nearly stopped beating at how swiftly, how easily Massimo uttered the words, and her entire body started trembling. "Please don't lie—-" Her voice cracked as her eyes started stinging, and her head dropped to his chest.
"Please do not break my trust, Ysabel." His lips brushed over the top of her head as he spoke, and the rawness of his tone had her crying harder. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, knowing how much it cost Massimo to say such words.
"I won't," she promised him fiercely. "I promise I won't."
Whether he believed her or not, she didn't really know...since his phone suddenly started ringing, and Ysabel could tell who the caller was just by the way Massimo had stiffened.
Ynez.
And her heart started to ache, even though Massimo was absolutely gentle in the way he pulled her arms down.
"I'm sorry, Ysabel. It is your sister calling," he said heavily.
"I know."
"You understand I have to take this?"
"Of course." She was proud of the way her voice didn't even shake as she answered him, but she was not proud at all of the way her heart sank to her stomach when he walked back to their table minutes later, and she saw the grim look on his face.
" Mi dispiace, Ysabel. But I need to go to your sister and explain."
Non farai niente di stupido, she warned herself determinedly. You will not do anything stupid!
"She wants an explanation, and I owe it to her—-"
Ysabel knew it should be enough that he wasn't lying about it, but instead, she heard herself ask, "Can't you just text it?" As soon as the words fell past her lips, she knew right away it was a stupidly shallow thing to say, and she wasn't surprised at the way her question had Massimo's lips tightening in impatience.
"Do you truly think I am the kind of man who would explain these things over text?"
It hurt to sound him so scathing, especially when just earlier he had been so heartbreakingly tender. But what hurt even more was to realize how shamefully desperate she felt. She didn't want him to go to Ynez and have her sister further poison him against her.
"You must learn to trust me, Ysabel. It is over between me and your sister, but she also heard me lie—-"
"But it's not a lie," Ysabel blurted out. "Five years ago—-"
"Do not say another word," Massimo gritted out.
"Please just let me explain," she begged. "It was Halloween, and—-"
The entire diner fell silent, and Massimo bit back a curse at the way everyone was now looking at him like he had committed murder. It was true then, the way Ysabel could have everyone on her side, even though she was exactly the one to blame.
Ysabel mustered the courage to try one last time to have him hear her out. "I know you have every reason to doubt me, but I can prove it to you. My cousin—-"
"Your cousin, you say?"
Why was Massimo suddenly speaking to her in such a vicious tone?
"It wouldn't happen to be Julio, would it?" A humorless smile twisted over Massimo's lips at Ysabel's visible shock. "I spoke to your cousin years ago, and he warned me about you."
Ysabel couldn't help feeling as if her entire world had turned into a nightmare, and there was no way to escape its horrors. "I d-don't understand—-"
"You told him about reading Ynez's diary, and he warned me about how you may choose to twist the truth to your advantage."
She could only look at him, unable to believe what she was hearing. "You're l-lying. Julio would never—-"
"Just fucking stop!" Massimo saw her eyes well up with tears at the tone of his voice, and the sight tore him apart even though he knew he had not done anything wrong. "You promised you had changed, dammit."
"Massimo, please—-"
This, dammit.
This was the consequence of allowing himself to open up to a woman who had too many similar traits to his mother. But even though this realization should have led him to walk out, Massimo instead heard himself say, "Just admit it."
Her eyes widened.
"Admit that you lied. That you planned to lie. And all will be forgiven."
A part of her wanted to say no. To stand her ground and force him to realize the truth.
But when she thought about how she could risk losing him completely by doing so—-
I can't. I'm sorry, God, but I can't.
And so she heard herself choke out, "I'm sorry, Mas. The moment I heard you say you wanted to go to Ynez, I was terrified you'd realize you wanted her, not me. B-because how can you—-" It hurt so, so much to say the next words, but she knew she had to. "How can you want s-someone like me when you can have s-someone like Ynez—-"
His arms closed around her, and as Ysabel began to weep, she realized that she didn't know what she was crying for.
Was it because she was relieved Massimo had forgiven her...or was she crying because it felt as if she had just sold her own honor and integrity for love?