Chapter 161 YOU.
\~~~LUCIANO.
Maybe the day's stress had her needy, and craving connection after whatever hell her work had been. Or perhaps it was the flowers, the surprise homecoming. Either way, I wasn't complaining.
"What are you doing?" I chuckled, my hands settling on her hips as she moved closer.
She knelt gently beside me on the bed, her fingers trailing lightly over my stomach, sending a shiver through my bare skin. The touch was deliberate, and teasing. She leaned in to kiss me again, her lips parting slightly.
But it hit me harder this time, the wrongness. The kiss was dry, lacking that spark, and that wetness of desire I knew from Raina.
It was like kissing a stranger, all forms, but no fire. I couldn't explain it, but my body rebelled, tension coiling in my gut.
I shifted, turning her over in one smooth motion so she was beneath me, my face inches from hers. Our breaths mingled, and I searched her eyes, that nagging doubt screaming now.
"Talia, baby," I groaned, the name slipping out like a test, a probe into the darkness.
"Yes, baby?" she replied, too quick, and too eager.
The world tilted.
That name, my slip, but her response. It confirmed everything in a heartbeat. Rage exploded through me, hot and blinding. My hand shot to her neck, my fingers wrapping around the soft skin, tightening just enough to feel her pulse jump. "Talia," I growled, the word venomous, my weight pinning her down.
"W… what are you doing? It is me, Talia?" she gasped, her voice strained but defiant, eyes widening in confusion.
Ah, she doesn't know the full truth yet. With the switch, and the impersonation, she thought she was pulling one over, playing Raina to worm her way back in.
But I knew. The truth has been out, and we have found peace with it.
But now, Talia was back, slithering into our lives like the snake she was.
That was the least of my concerns now. My grip tightened fractionally, not enough to hurt, but enough to make my point.
"Where is my wife? Raina?" I demanded, my voice dipping low, dangerous, the kind that had made men beg for mercy.
A slow, chilling smile spread across her face. She didn't fight, and didn't claw at my hand. Instead, she spread her arms wide on the bed, surrendering to the hold, her eyes gleaming with twisted amusement.
"Hi, Luciano Rafael Moretti."
Fuck.
The words hung in the air like a noose, her voice dripping with mockery. My blood ran cold, then boiled over.
Talia, Raina's twin, had returned.
Eight months ago, she'd fled, leaving Raina to pick up the pieces.
And now this? Impersonating her own sister to infiltrate my own.
I released her neck abruptly, shoving her back to stand beside the bed, my chest heaving.
My mind raced, piecing it together. The unanswered text, the off kisses, and the pushy advances that weren't Raina's style.
Gabriel had said she arrived an hour ago, but it wasn't her.
Talia had switched places, probably ambushed Raina on her way to wherever.
Where was she now? Tied up? Hurt? The thought clawed at me, fury mixing with fear.
"You bitch," I snarled, grabbing her arm and yanking her up to face me. Her towel loosened, but she didn't resist, that smug smile still plastered on. Up close, the differences screamed.
They looked different’
The way she held herself, sharper, and colder. Raina's eyes were warm, trusting. Talia's were daggers, calculating. "What did you do to her? Where is Raina?"
She laughed, a low, bitter sound that echoed off the walls. "Oh, Luciano. Always so dramatic. Your precious Raina is... safe. For now. Let's just say she's taking a little timeout while I fix things."
Fix things? The words ignited something primal in me. This woman had poisoned our marriage from the start, by pretending to be Raina.
"You think you can just waltz in here and take her place? After everything?" My voice cracked with rage, fists clenched so tight my knuckles whitened.
Talia adjusted her towel , unfazed, circling me like a predator. "Why not? This was supposed to be mine. You were mine. Raina stole it all. The name, the life, and you. But I'm back now. You are mine.”
"You are delusional," I spat, grabbing my phone from the pocket of my pants still on the floor. My thumb hovered over Viktor's number. One call, and the house would swarm with guards, no questions, and then have her dragged out.
But she stepped closer, her hand brushing my arm mockingly. "Call them. See what happens to Raina then.”
“What?” My jaw clenched, the bouquet crushed under my foot, petals scattering like blood on the carpet.
Raina, my Raina, the woman who'd healed my scars, who had chosen me despite the darkness. I couldn't lose her.
Not to this imposter, this shadow of a sister.
"What do you want, Talia?" I demanded, forcing calm into my voice, though inside I was a storm. Buy time. Viktor would notice something off soon, he always did.
Her eyes lit with greed. "Everything. The empire. The power. You. Starting tonight."
I laughed bitterly, the sound hollow but the room felt smaller, and the walls closing in with the weight of fear.
Raina was out there, waiting for me to save her. And I would. No matter the cost.