26. A Heart's Betrayal

26. A Heart's Betrayal
I came here to destroy him, but now his name lingers in my heart like a secret prayer.

GABRIELLA

By the time we returned to our presidential suite that evening, both of us were drained. Alejandro flopped onto the couch with a rare, relaxed sigh.

“Netflix?” he offered, casually picking up the remote.

I perked up. “Only if we get ice cream too!”

He raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Ice cream? What are you, five?”

I gasped, dramatically offended. “Excuse me? There’s no age limit on joy, Alejandro. People who lose touch with their inner child are the real miserable ones.”

He chuckled under his breath, shaking his head. “Fine. Call room service, baby girl. Go reconnect with your inner toddler.”

I rolled my eyes and dialed for room service, ordering my favorite—Haagen-Dazs Chocolate Special. Five minutes later, the doorbell rang, and the heavenly tub was in my hands. We had settled on Lucifer Season 1 as our binge of the night.

I snuggled into the couch with my ice cream, savoring each decadent spoonful while the show played. Just as I was falling into a perfect moment of sweet indulgence, Alejandro leaned in with the stealth of a thief and scooped a spoonful straight from my tub. I shot him a look. He didn’t blink.

“Hey!” I protested.

He shrugged, eyes glued to the screen. “You looked like you needed help finishing it.”

He kept “helping” every few minutes, until eventually, more than half of my treat had vanished into
his mouth.

“Now who’s the baby?” I huffed, tossing my spoon into the empty container.

He didn’t reply, only smirked faintly, entirely absorbed in Lucifer’s charming antics.

Dinner time rolled around and we indulged ourselves again—fried shrimp, lobster curry, chicken soup, pepperoni pizza, and creamy white sauce pasta. It was a meal that would put most royal banquets to shame.

Once our bellies were full, we started winding down for the night. The memory of the previous morning’s awkward wake-up still lingered in my mind.

“Just so you know,” I began cautiously, “last night,
your leg crossed the pillow barrier we set up to separate our sleeping space. Please try not to do that again.”

He looked at me, confused. “I don’t recall doing that at all. You sure it wasn’t
you who wandered into enemy territory?”

I froze. A nervous laugh bubbled up. Does he remember? Or was he pretending? My mind spun.

We kept to the same arrangement as before and went to sleep. But morning brought yet another embarrassing surprise.

I opened my eyes to find myself sprawled across the bed, once again on
his side. Heart skipping, I bolted upright. But the bed beside me was empty.

I turned and saw Alejandro lounging on the couch, fully dressed, wearing a smug grin.

“What’s so funny?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.

“Nothing,” he said, standing up. “Just that I caught you red-handed. Again.”

“Caught me... how?” I asked, confused.

He ignored my question with a sly smile. “I have some local business to handle today. I’ll be gone for most of it.”

“Wait! Take me with you. I’ll be bored stiff alone in here,” I pleaded.

“No. Too risky.” His tone was final. Before I could argue, he was out the door.

Left with no choice, I freshened up, showered, and slipped into an oversized T-shirt. I picked up my Kindle and began reading
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. The philosophical undertones pulled me in immediately—it was poetic, haunting, and thought-provoking.

My literary trance was broken by the sharp ring of the doorbell. I hurried to answer it. A hotel attendant stood there with a small package and a note.

“There is a parcel for you, ma’am,” she said in a thick Italian accent, smiling politely.

I thanked her and closed the door, curiosity swirling inside me.

The note read:

Dear Gabriella,

Since you didn’t bring anything suitable for the party tonight, and all you packed was business attire, I’ve sent you a gown.

I’ll be waiting in the limousine at 7 PM.

Love, Alejandro

I opened the package and gasped. Inside lay a stunning white gown—elegant, ethereal, and impossibly beautiful. I couldn’t help but try it on immediately. As I stood before the mirror, I hardly recognized myself. The gown clung to my body in all the right places, the fabric soft as a whisper, the design a perfect balance of sophistication and allure.

I looked... breathtaking.

It was 2 PM by then, and my stomach reminded me I hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I ordered a quick lunch and lounged on the bed with Netflix. I stumbled upon a high school drama called Never Have I Ever. Though not my usual type of show, I got hooked surprisingly fast.

By the time I blinked through the final episode of Season 1, it was already 6 PM. Time to get ready.

I carefully applied light makeup—just enough to enhance my features—and slipped into the gown again. Paired with white heels, a silver clutch, and delicate matching jewelry, I looked like someone straight out of a dream.

At precisely 7 PM, the hotel phone rang to let me know the limousine was waiting. I descended the elevator with butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

The chauffeur opened the door, and there he was—Alejandro. Dressed sharply in a tailored tux, he looked like sin carved in marble. But when his eyes fell on me, his usually unreadable face softened into something rare—awe.

“You look... absolutely stunning,” he said, almost breathless.

I felt the heat rush to my cheeks. For once, Alejandro’s walls weren’t up. And in that single moment, I felt like the most beautiful woman in the world

We reached the Venue in about an hour; it was located at one of the most prestigious hotels in all of Rome. The attendant guided us to the floor where the party was on. The place was decorated beautifully with orchid flowers, fairy lights. The place had a vintage Renaissance look.

Alejandro was a regular in these circles so he started a session of small talk with people he was acquainted with through business deals over the years. I went to the bar counter and ordered myself a glass of champagne.

The ballroom glowed under the soft shimmer of crystal chandeliers. Golden lights cascaded across ivory walls, and the air was laced with the scent of blooming roses and aged wine. Waiters in crisp uniforms weaved through the crowd, balancing silver trays of hors d'oeuvres and champagne flutes. The guests, dressed to the nines, danced, drank, and socialized like characters straight out of a classic European fairytale.

I was sipping on a sparkling cocktail, letting my eyes wander through the elegant chaos, when I saw her—a girl gliding across the room like a dream.

She looked no older than sixteen, dressed in a delicate sky-blue gown that twirled slightly with every step. With her wavy brown hair cascading down her shoulders and a soft glow on her porcelain skin, she looked less like a party guest and more like a fairy who’d accidentally wandered in from another realm. There was something both innocent and mischievous about her, like a storybook sprite with a secret agenda.

As she came closer, I recognized her instantly—Aurora.

She reached the bar and, to my surprise, confidently ordered a glass of beer.

I blinked. “Wait, are you even old enough to drink?”

She flashed a playful grin and leaned toward me as if sharing a secret. “I’m sixteen. But I
love breaking rules.” Her voice was full of mischief. “Besides, this party is such a snooze-fest. I needed something to make it tolerable. Just please, don’t tell my brother. He already thinks I’m a handful.”

I smiled despite myself. There was something oddly refreshing about her rebellious spark—it was bold, unfiltered, and full of teenage charm.

Just then, I noticed her gaze shift—sharp and focused. Her entire demeanor changed. The playful glint in her eyes softened, and her posture straightened slightly, as if her heart had just skipped a beat. I followed her line of sight and saw him.

A young man stood a little away from the crowd, sipping quietly from a glass of something dark. He was dressed in a perfectly tailored tuxedo, the lines of his frame sharp against the soft lighting. His tousled brown hair fell over his forehead just so, and his features were classically handsome, almost cinematic. He looked... fragile in a way. Tired, maybe. As if his charming appearance was a mask stretched thin over something broken.

“He’s cute,” I said, watching Aurora carefully. “Do you know him?”

She hesitated just a moment, then nodded. “Yeah… that’s Giovanni. The guy behind all the chaos Alejandro is tangled up in. I’m helping him cope with his addiction.”

I blinked in surprise, unable to connect the image of the boy across the room with the one we’d discussed in the study.

“That’s Giovanni?” I asked softly, watching him more closely now. “Damn. The Romanos must have some divine ancestry—he’s seriously good-looking… even for a drug addict.”

Aurora giggled, then quickly composed herself. I turned back to see her trying—and failing—to hide the sparkle in her eyes.

“You like him, don’t you?” I teased gently.

She bit her lip and looked down, pretending to smooth the skirt of her dress. “We’re… just good friends.”

Her voice was soft, but the blush that crept up her neck betrayed her. I didn’t push further. Instead, I gave her a warm smile. She didn’t need to say more—her heart had already said it for her.

She tilted her head and looked at me curiously. “What about you? Any love interests?”

The question caught me completely off guard. It was innocent, but it struck something raw inside me.

And without warning, Alejandro’s name screamed in my mind. Loud. Clear. Immediate.

I blinked. My heart lurched. Why him?

The man I was supposed to distrust.

The man I had studied with the sole intention of bringing down. The criminal.

The target.

And yet, in the depths of my heart, his name didn’t come up as a threat—it rose like a whisper, a sigh, a longing I hadn’t even dared to acknowledge.

Aurora was watching me now, her expression curious.

“I—” I began, then stopped.

My mind scrambled for a different subject. Anything. “The decoration here is beautiful, isn’t it?” I said, too quickly, motioning to the cascading floral arrangements and the soft golden lights.

She raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile tugging at her lips, but she didn’t press. Smart girl.

The rest of the night passed in a blur of music and muted conversation. I tried to enjoy it, to stay in the moment, but my mind kept circling back. By 10 PM, Alejandro and I were ready to leave. We stepped into the waiting limousine, and the doors shut behind us with a soft click.

Silence filled the car, broken only by the quiet hum of the engine and the occasional city light streaming through the windows.

But my thoughts were far louder.

Aurora’s question kept replaying in my head.
Do you have any love interests? And the way Alejandro’s name had risen so effortlessly—like it had always been there, just waiting for permission to be acknowledged—shook me.

I stared out the window, the streets of Rome blurring into golden streaks.

How had this happened?

I came here with a mission. With purpose. With loyalty—to my cause, my identity, my reason for being. I was supposed to outwit him, gather intel, play the part. I was supposed to hate him.

But somewhere along the way… that resolve had started to crack.

Maybe it was the way he looked at me when no one else was watching. Maybe it was the rare softness in his voice, the flickers of honesty when he let his walls fall—even if just for a second. Or maybe it was how he never forced me to stay close, yet somehow I always found myself drifting into his orbit.

Tonight, when he looked at me in that gown, his compliment hadn’t just been polite. It had felt
real.
Like I had seen something in him—something unspoken, buried deep beneath years of war and silence.

And now, I couldn’t ignore it anymore.

I wasn’t supposed to love him. But against every warning in my head, I realized the truth.

I was falling for Alejandro.

And it terrified me.