Chapter 36 Anna
Ipull into Gabriel's driveway, my heart pounding as I spot his car.
He's home.
This is it—the moment of truth.
You can do this, Anna.
You have to do this.
I step out of the car, my legs shaking with nerves, but I force myself to put one foot in front of the other.
Will he understand?
Or will this be the end of everything?
Once inside, I make my way to his office and pause outside the door, my hand hovering over the handle.
This is it, I think to myself. No turning back now.
Taking one final deep breath, I knock softly and push open the door.
Gabriel's sitting at his desk, phone pressed to his ear. His eyes meet mine, and he smiles.
"Look, I've gotta go. I'll call you back," he says into the phone, his gaze never leaving mine.
"Bella," Gabriel says, rising from his chair. "I wasn't expecting you back so soon."
I shut the door and stare at him, frozen.
"Is everything alright?" he asks, concern creeping into his voice as he moves around the desk toward me.
"We need to talk," I say, my voice cracking.
"What's wrong?"
I look to the ground and open my mouth to speak, but the words refuse to leave.
How do I even begin to explain?
Gabriel reaches for me, his strong hands gripping my upper arms. The touch that usually comforts me now only intensifies my anxiety.
"Sofia. What is it?"
I look up into his beautiful green eyes—those eyes that have looked at me with such passion, such possession.
Will they soon look at me with hatred?
"I... I..." The words don't come out, so I clear my throat and try again. "I haven't been entirely honest with you, Gabriel."
His grip on my arms tightens slightly. "What do you mean?" he asks in a low, deep tone.
Here we go.
"My name isn't Sofia. It's Anna. Anna Bennett."
Gabriel clenches his jaw but doesn't say anything.
"I'm, oh shit, umm, okay," I say and shake my hands to release some of my anxiety.
"I'm an FBI agent sent undercover to infiltrate the Bonventi family."
Gabriel's hands grip me tightly to the point it starts to hurt before he releases me and takes a step back, his face a mask of shock and disbelief.
"What the fuck are you saying?" he growls, his voice deep and dangerous.
I wrap my arms around myself, a habit I have when I'm scared or nervous. "I was partnered with Bill—the man who I was with at the party when we first met. The Irishman who died at that meeting when you took me. We were undercover to gather intel, and—"
Gabriel's eyes darken with fury, and his face contorts with rage. It's something I've never seen before from him. In an instant, he's on me, his massive frame towering over me as he backs me against the wall. My heart pounds so hard I think it might burst from my chest.
"You fucking..." he roars as he brings his arm back and makes a fist.
Shit, he's going to hit me.
I close my eyes as his fist slams into the wall mere inches from my head. The impact is so forceful I feel the vibration through my entire body.
"Gabriel, please, let me explain—"
"Explain?" he snarls. "Explain how you've been lying to me this entire time? How you've been playing me like a fucking fool to destroy me? My family. What I've done for you..."
Before I can respond, Gabriel whips out his gun. For a moment, it feels like time slows, and I feel this may be the end of my story.
The first shot I don't even hear, but it brings me back, and the three more shots that follow are deafening. I jump to the side, and a small scream leaves my lips as Gabriel shoots into the ground.
"Is this what you wanted?" he yells, waving the gun around. "To get close enough to take me down? Huh? Fucking answer me."
Tears stream down my face as I shake my head frantically. "No, Gabriel, it's not like that. Please, just listen to me—"
"Listen to you?" he scoffs, his voice dripping with contempt. "Why the fuck should I listen to anything you have to say? Every word out of your mouth has been a lie!"
He turns away from me, breathing heavily with frustration, before whirling back around, his eyes showcasing his feelings of betrayal.
"Was any of this real?" he demands, motioning back and forth between him and me. "Or were you just using me to get the information you needed?"
"No!" I cry out, my heart breaking at the pain in his eyes. "Gabriel, please. It started out as a mission, yes, but things changed. I changed."
He laughs bitterly as his hand tightens around his gun. "Oh, really? And I'm supposed to believe that?"
I take a slow, hesitant step toward him, my hands outstretched. "It's the truth. I never meant for any of this to happen. I was never meant to be here or with you; it was the Irish we were after. And..." I say and wipe the tears from my face, "I sure as hell never meant to fall in love with you."
The words hang in the air between us, and for a moment, Gabriel seems stunned into silence.
"Love?" he finally yells. "You don't know the meaning of the word. Everything about you is a lie. Even your fucking name!"
He's right, but as long as I'm still breathing, I must try to make him see how I feel—to know everything. I'm desperate for him to understand.
"My name might be different, but my feelings for you are real. I love you, Gabriel. I love you so much it scares me," I say through tears.
Gabriel's jaw clenches. "How am I supposed to believe anything you say? You've been trying to take me and my family down since I met you."
"No, no! I haven't told them anything about you. I couldn't."
He stares at me, his expression a mixture of disbelief and anger. "Why?" he demands.
"Because somewhere along the way, I fell for you. The real you. Not the mobster, not the hitman, but the man who loves books and takes care of his sister. The man who makes me feel safe and cherished."
Gabriel's eyes search my face, looking for any sign of deception. I stare at him, willing him to see the truth in my eyes—that I am not lying.
"I know I've hurt you," I continue, my voice shaking. "And I'm so, so sorry for that. But please believe me when I say that what I'm telling you right now is real. It's the most real thing I've ever felt in my life."
"FUCK," Gabriel screams as he paces the office, breathing heavily. "What am I supposed to do now? I can't let an FBI agent destroy me or bring down the Bonventis. I'm sorry," he says and takes a deep breath. "I just can't."
I stand there, my breaths coming fast and shallow. The faint scent of gunpowder fills my nose. The gun in his hand suddenly seems more threatening than ever.
He turns to look at me, and something in the way he does frightens me. In this moment, I wish I hadn't left my purse in the car.
"Gabriel, please—" I say, but he cuts me off with a harsh laugh.
I place my right hand on my stomach and stretch out my left hand.
"Wait. Stop, there's more," I say, but he doesn't stop. He reaches out and grips my left hand tightly.
"I think I've heard enough—"
"I'm pregnant," I say as tears roll down my face. "I'm pregnant with your child."
"What did you say?"
"I'm pregnant," I repeat and pull my left hand away as he loosens his grip. I place it over my right hand instinctively, protecting my stomach. "I just found out today."
Gabriel takes a step back, his gun lowering to his side as he stares at me in disbelief.
His eyes flicker between my face and my stomach as he processes what I just told him.
"Are you sure?" he asks, his voice low and deep.
I nod again and wipe the tears from my face. "I took a test."
Gabriel turns away from me, bracing himself against his desk. I can see the tension in his shoulders relax, and it's as if he went limp.
"A baby," he says, more to himself than to me. "My baby."
"I know this changes things," I say softly. "I know you have every right to hate me for lying to you. But this child is innocent in all of this. It's a part of both of us—maybe our best parts."
Gabriel turns back to me, his eyes dropping to my stomach. I see a flash of something tender in his gaze. Then, as quickly as it appeared, it's gone, replaced by a storm of conflicting emotions.
"How do I know this isn't just another lie?" he demands, but the edge has gone out of his voice.
"Because I love you," I say simply, my voice breaking. "And I love this baby. I would never use our child as a bargaining chip, Gabriel. Never."
He lets out a sigh.
"Fuck," he mutters under his breath. "Is this why you came clean? Because you're pregnant?"
I nod, feeling tears prick at the corners of my eyes. "Yes. I couldn't keep lying to you. Not about this. Not about our baby."
His eyes soften, and he puts his gun away. The fact that it's no longer visible helps me relax. I don't know what he's thinking or what he's going to do, but at least I've told him everything.
After a few seconds of silence, which feel like an eternity, he straightens up and looks at me.
"I don't know what to do with this," he admits, his voice low and rough. "I'm still... I'm still so fucking angry, Sof... Anna. An FBI agent? Enzo will have me killed."
"We can figure something out," I say, my tone hopeful.
He shakes his head. "I don't think there are any options. I need to leave."
I watch Gabriel turn away, and my heart pounds in my chest. I can't let him walk away, not now.
"Gabriel, please," I plead, taking a step toward him. "Don't go. We can figure this out together."
For a moment, I think he might lash out again. Instead, he takes a deep breath. "You have no idea what you've done, do you? If Enzo finds out—"
"Then we don't let him find out," I say, desperation creeping into my voice. "We can leave, Gabriel. Start over somewhere else. Just you, me, and the baby."
He laughs, but there's no humor in it. "You think it's that simple? That we can just walk away from all of this?"
"It can be. We can make it that simple."
Gabriel shakes his head and walks past me, and out of instinct, I turn and grab his arm. "Gabriel, please."
He stops and jerks his arm away. "Get your fucking hands off me."
He walks out and slams the door.
I sink to the floor, my legs no longer able to support me. The sound of the door slamming breaks something inside me. Tears stream down my face as I cry harder than I ever have in my life. As I gasp for air, I wrap my arms around my stomach, cradling the life growing within me.
"What have I done?" I whisper to the empty room. "What have I done?"