21. Isabella
ISABELLA
The private jet cabin feels cold again. I sit rigidly, watching Alessandro speak with his security detail at the front of the cabin.
My husband of barely two days. The man who just hours ago was making me scream his name in the most exquisite pleasure I’ve ever experienced.
The man who then accused me of conspiring against him.
Last night, I'd foolishly hoped this arrangement could become something real. Maybe not a fairytale, but something with trust, respect, and affection.
I twist my new wedding ring. It’s supposed to be a symbol of love. Instead, it’s a chain binding me to a man who will never trust me.
What did my father do? Why now?
I blow out a breath knowing why my father would strike now. Alessandro was right. He was out of the country. It was the perfect time to strike. Still, something seems off about it.
Alessandro finishes his conversation and takes the seat across from me. He watches me, not with lust but in suspicion.
"You should try to sleep," he says. "It's a long flight."
"I'm not tired."
His jaw tightens. "Isabella—"
"Will you ever trust me?" The question bursts from me. "Or will you always be waiting for me to betray you?"
He studies me with an unreadable expression. "Trust is earned in our world."
"And how am I supposed to earn it when you think my family is guilty?"
“Your family is guilty. You, on the other hand, that remains to be seen, but I’m trying to give you the benefit of the doubt.”
“Right, so you can fuck me again, I bet.” I shock myself with the words.
“I’m sorry if last night was so unpleasant—”
“Don’t.” I turn away, looking out the window at the endless blue sky. “All I asked from you is respect. Don’t twist my words. Don’t manipulate me.”
“You think I was manipulating you—”
“Weren’t you? And you won, like you knew you would.
I’m not an idiot, Alessandro, but I know I’m young and lack experience in the world.
You took advantage of that. You know I’d like to have a marriage more like your siblings and you used it against me.
Just like my father apparently used me against you.
” God, I want to scream. “I wish you'd left me behind in Capri. Freed me from this life. But of course, you won’t. You’ll use me against my father right back. ”
I snap my mouth shut, wondering why I’m bothering to speak my feelings and truth. Alessandro won’t care.
He doesn’t say anything, but what could he say? That I’m right? I already know that.
A moment later, he rises from his seat and goes to the table where he begins to work. Right. I know all about this as well. Business first. Always. Wives and children? They’re distractions.
I sigh and settle into the flight, preparing myself for the return to the real world filled with loneliness and powerlessness.
The plane touches down. After hours of silence with Alessandro buried in documents, me pretending to read or napping, we're finally back in New York.
Alessandro's phone begins ringing before we even taxi to a stop. He answers immediately, his voice shifting into a cold, commanding tone.
"I'll be there in thirty." He ends the call without a goodbye. To me, he offers only, "Car's waiting. I need to handle this."
"And me?" I ask, hating how small I feel.
"My driver will take you to the house." He doesn't meet my eyes as he gathers his things and heads to the door of the plane.
He exits without looking back, striding down the steps of the plane toward a waiting black SUV flanked by two hulking security men. I watch from the window as they drive away, leaving me with my assigned escort and feelings of abandonment.
The ride to Alessandro's estate passes in a blur. When we arrive, a housekeeper greets me, showing me inside what is now my home.
"Your things are in the primary suite, Mrs. Dante.”
Mrs. Dante. I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to that. “I thought I was to live in a wing—”
“Don Dante made new arrangements.” She gives me a knowing smile. “It seems the honeymoon went well?”
When did he make new arrangements? Perhaps in Capri before Adriano’s call. For a moment, I consider asking to go back to the prior arrangement, but I’m sure his staff wouldn’t go against whatever he told them.
“Don Dante asked that I give you a tour and introduce you to the staff. The house is well run, but of course, you’re now the mistress of the house, so if there are things you’d like to change, Don Dante has told us to make the arrangements.”
“I have no need to make changes to a well-run household.”
I follow her through room after room. A grand foyer with marble floors, a formal dining room that could seat a small army, a library with floor-to-ceiling shelves.
Everything is tasteful, and yet, utterly impersonal.
I wonder if it’s a requirement of the Mafia.
Cold, impersonal homes designed only to give impressions of wealth.
"Will Don Dante be returning soon?" I ask when the tour ends.
"He didn't say, Ma'am. Would you like something to eat?"
I shake my head. "No, thank you. I'd like to rest."
Alone in the primary suite, I find my luggage neatly unpacked, clothes hanging in a walk-in closet bigger than my childhood bedroom.
I sit on the bed, remembering how different things felt this morning in Capri. I move to the window, looking out over the back gardens. The house is quiet except for the occasional footstep of staff moving through the corridors.
Is this to be my life now? Sitting alone until my husband comes home? Will he always be looking at me like I’m a traitor?
I return to the bed, curling up in it, still in my travel clothes. Will this place ever feel like home?
I wake with a start, disoriented. I sit up, realizing I’m still in my travel clothes. Looking at the bed, I can tell I’m the only one who slept in it. Did Alessandro decide he couldn’t bear to be next to me and slept elsewhere? Had he even come home?
I shower and dress into fresh clothes. I might as well get settled. This is my new home, and I’m determined to make myself a part of it.
The house seems even larger than it was yesterday. It’s a maze of corridors and rooms. I wander aimlessly, feeling like an intruder.
Turning a corner, I nearly collide with someone.
“Oh, I’m sorry—”
“Isabella. Welcome home.” Eva wraps her arms around me in a warm hug.
“Eva. Hello.”
“Such a shame you had to cut your trip short. I was just taking Mirabella to the garden." Eva gestures to the little girl half-hidden behind her legs. "Would you like to join us?"
I glance down at the child, who has some of Eva’s features, but I see Dante DNA in her as well. "I'd love to."
We walk together to the courtyard garden, and Eva makes small talk. It makes me wonder if she knows Alessandro’s suspicion of me.
“We’re fairy hunting today,” Eva says as we reach a lovely butterfly garden.
“Fairies?”
“I’m a fairy,” Mirabella says. “My daddy made me a fairy bedroom.”
“That sounds lovely. I wish I could be a fairy.” Then I could fly away and live wherever the fae live happily ever after.
Mirabella picks a bright yellow flower from the garden. "For you.” She offers the flower to me.
The simple gesture warms my heart. "Thank you. It's beautiful."
Mirabella beams, then skips ahead to examine a butterfly on a nearby bush.
“She’s adorable. And so sweet.” I sniff the flower.
“She is. Hard to believe people like me and Adriano could make such adorable sweetness.” She laughs. “Adriano especially can be ruthless, but with her, he’s putty.”
There’s something sweet about thinking of a hard man who lives a brutal life being softened by a child. I wonder if Alessandro would be like this with his children. But then I remember he doesn’t want children.
“He’s that way around you too,” I say, remembering the times I’ve seen them together.
Her smile is lovely. “Yes, well, we’ve been lucky.”
I look down at my flower, feeling jealous.
“You’re lucky too.”
I scoff. “I’m not.” I realize what I’m implying about Alessandro, and I reconsider whether I should be so forthcoming about how cold he is. After all, Eva is married to Adriano, Alessandro’s second in command. No doubt, she’ll tell him everything I say.
I course correct. “It’s not the same for us.”
“It could be. I’ve seen how Alessandro looks at you.”
“Lust, maybe, but… ”
“Well, it starts out like that with men. But Alessandro has never looked at a woman, much less like he looks at you. At first, they’re annoyed by the draw of a woman. Then they’re baffled by it. And eventually, they recognize and accept that they’re in love.”
I shake my head. “I don’t think that’s what’s going on with him.” I shrug. “Honestly, I don't know where I stand with him."
“He doesn’t know either, yet. But he will.”
“I doubt it. I mean, sometimes, he’s sweet. Sometimes, I think he sees me, maybe even likes me, but then like Jeckell and Hyde, he becomes cold. He looks at me with distrust. Like I’m a threat.” Once again, I worry I’m saying too much. Then again, it’s not anything I haven’t told Alessandro.
Eva nods. "The Dante men aren't exactly known for their emotional transparency."
"That's putting it mildly."
She laughs softly. "When I first met Adriano, I thought he was terrifying. And then he was a romance hero come to life.” She looks down.
“I betrayed that. I didn’t want to, but I didn’t see any choice.
And when he came into my life again, there were some hot and cold moments from both of us.
But we’ve come through it. This is new to Alessandro. He needs time.”
"How can I get close to someone who's constantly waiting for me to betray him?"
"Alessandro carries the weight of the entire family on his shoulders.” Eva pats my hand. “His father was a difficult man. Alessandro internalized a lot of what his father told him, including that vulnerability is a weakness, and for some reason, love makes them vulnerable. So does trust.”
A wave of despair settles on me as I imagine my life with Alessandro being filled with nothing but distrust and loneliness. I won’t even have children to occupy my time and fill my heart. "So, what hope is there for us?"
Eva turns to face me.. "The thing about Alessandro, about all the Dantes, really, is that their loyalty, once earned, is absolute. They'll burn the world to protect what's theirs."
Her words stir up memories of Capri when he said, “Mine.” When I felt possessed, not in an ownership way, but treasured. But then it was gone.
"And how does one become 'theirs'?"
"By proving your own loyalty. By choosing them, even when it's hard." She smiles sadly. "Trust me, I know how difficult that path can be."
I sense there's more to her story, but before I can ask, Mirabella runs back, hands cupped around something.
"Look, look!” She opens her hands to reveal a ladybug crawling across her palm.
As we admire her discovery, I think about Eva's words. About how I felt in Alessandro’s arms. It wasn’t just passion, but belonging.
Maybe I can build something true here. Maybe I can prove myself worthy of being one of Alessandro's people.
I begin to feel a sense of purpose. If Alessandro Dante's trust must be earned, then I'll earn it. If his heart is guarded, I'll find a way through it. I'll become someone he can't help but believe in, can’t help but love.