Gianna being back was going to be a thorn in my flesh, and I didn't think I'd have the heart to take it if Dante decided to leave me for her.
He called her name last night, isn't that proof enough that he's going to leave you for her
I struggled to push the bad thoughts out of my head and focus on getting ready for Dante's cousin Adrianna's birthday dinner. I hadn't seen Dante since my eyes fluttered open in the early hours of dawn, he had slipped off secretly and headed straight to work – or Gianna's house.
No he wouldn't do that, Dante loves me and he wouldn't leave me.
Immediately, I took out the phone and I dialed Dante's number to find out when he would be coming back home so we could go for Adrianna's birthday together and the call picked on the second ring, a high pitched voice sounded in my ears and it took me a second to realize that it was Dante's secretary and not Gianna picking up his phone.
"I want to speak to Dante" I said into the receiver, my eyes staring ahead at the pink Hello Kitty clock in the dining section, it was my special clock that I had moved from my childhood bedroom to Dante's home and Dante had merely allowed me to hang it up in the dining room, he didn't want any pink staining the grey walls of our bedroom.
"Dante is quite – occupied right now" There was hesitation in her tone, a stall looming her now quiet sheltered voice.
"What? Tell him his wife is on the line"
She paused for a second before I could hear her breathy voice loud in my ears "Mr. D'angelo is unavailable but he asked me to specifically tell you he won't be able to make it home but he'll see you at the birthday dinner, Romano would pick you up"
"But – " I barely got my words out before she clicked the call shut and I was now staring angrily at the pink clock, it's usually vibrant quality now seeming dull in my eyes. I could feel it, deep down in my bones that Dante was hiding something from me.
I got dressed for the dinner, wearing a blue flowing dress that would conceal the weight I had put on recently. I let my usually tied up hair to fall delicately past my shoulders and kissing my tender waist, yes my hair was long and one of my favorite things to imagine was to let Dante wrap my hair around his hands when he embraced me from behind, my eyes rolling back with my hair.
I walked out of the mansion, poised like a Cheshire cat, my desperate attempt to look as sexy as possible for Dante, so that when he looks at me he would see no one else but me. But still, there was an annoying squeaky voice telling me that if Gianna was truly back, I would never be able to compete with her for Dante's feeling, but I decided to put it behind me and focus on the night. Dante loves me and besides he wouldn't want to defile papa against the alliance deal.
I put those annoying thoughts out of my head and walked into the party and the first person that latched unto me was my sister Vivianna, in a flowing blue dress that matched the party's theme. I had been too distracted with my own thoughts I forgot to notice how blue everyone looked. Vivianna had an interesting glint in her eyes, a look that meant she had gossip that was burning on her tongue and she wouldn't rest until she spilled it out.
"Guess who's back in town?" she said to me and a silent dread formed at the pit of my stomach. I shrugged not wanting to meet her eyes incase there was any spark of anxiety flashing there, I kept my eyes on the throng of people that chattered noisily among themselves.
"Aunt Angelina" she released and a breath of fresh air, a breath I didn't know I was holding escaped my glossed lips. "Word on the street is that her husband got killed in France, shot in the head by the opposition, and now she's back in Algreen Cove to scrap up whatever left over pieces she could find still crawling about in her husband's estate, word is everything has been seized by the government and she's poor now"
"Oh that's ugly" I chirped in, I was a delightful gossip but the only thing stopping me from gearing into my full potential was the crowd in my head. Where is my husband? I couldn't breathe, I needed him right by my side to stop the chaos that was brewing in my head.
"What would you if you thought your husband was cheating on you" the words flew out of my mouth even though I was hell bent on not saying anything to anyone – especially Vivianna which was because of the ghost like expression she was sporting on her face. Then she chuckled, and another chuckle before it morphed into a full blown laughter.
"You can't be serious Helena" she laughed again "There isn't a man in Algreen Cove not with the kind of reputation that Dante has and hasn't cheated on their wives. Papa cheated on mama countless times she bought a birkin bag for every time he came home with red lipstick smudged on his shirt, mama never wore red lipstick and those were the kind of girls papa went for – the red lipstick wearing skanks"
"Vivianna – " I whispered tiredly. She had the sharpest mouth in the family.
"I mean Dante probably has some flat belly whore wrapped around his torso" then she looked my stomach which had been producing a roundness that I couldn't control, I used to be a dancer, what happened to me?"
"As long as he doesn't file for divorce then there's nothing to worry about, you won't end up like Aunt Angelina on that note I should probably tell you that I saw Dante arrive like thirty minutes earlier with a strange girl on the hip, but I thought you were familiar with cheating husbands but apparently not and I should have started with that before droning you on about Aunt Angelina"
My eyes widened "You think!"
"Where?" I asked her and she pointed up towards the rest rooms and dressing rooms that were up the stairs in Dante's family house. Immediately, I scurried up the steps and rummaging carelessly through all the rooms and saving the best for last – Dante's childhood bedroom. I pushed it open and it gave way easily and only a cold daunting air echoed back at me. The lights were turned off and the stale smell of unused room hit my nose. I sighed, turning around to shut the door and that was when I hit a rock hard chest. I would have been clueless if not for the familiar scent wafting into my nose, and I looked up to find Dante staring hard at me.
"What are you doing?" his eyes were cold and his tone bore a harshness that surprised me. I lowered my eyes, concentrating them at his feet
"Looking for you" I managed, then he tipped my chin up to look at him. I could feel tension thickening in the air with the way his eyes drilled into mine, it wasn't a loving look whatsoever but I couldn't interpret it all the same.
"There's something I want to tell you" he said and I stayed quiet urging him to go on and the next words that spilled out of his mouth sent me into a spiral
"I want a divorce"