Chapter 18
Amber’s exit was swift, a blur of desperate emotions she could barely contain. Luca had tried to stop her, catching her hand just before she stepped out the door. "I’ll make it up to you, I swear!" His voice was urgent, pleading, the words clinging to the air like a lifeline. Once, long ago when they had still been married, she would have fallen for that promise. Back then, she believed in his ability to make things right. But now, those words only rang hollow.
Without even turning to look at him, she pulled her hand free. “Nico goes to bed at 8. Don’t keep him up late,” she muttered, her voice brittle, barely holding itself together. She didn’t care for his promises anymore, not after everything. She pushed through the door, feeling the weight of eyes on her—Guilia’s smug little smile, a cruel reminder of this morning’s confrontation, of who really held power in this house. Her victory was written all over her face.
Carlotta stood in the background, flushed red with either embarrassment or guilt, but Amber couldn’t care less. The woman was part of this, whether she admitted it or not. Amber wasn’t interested in peeling back her emotions to find out. Not tonight.
“I’ll call my driver,” Luca offered, his voice trailing behind her like a desperate whisper. But Amber’s blood was boiling, her anger threatening to bubble over. The last thing she wanted was his help. “No thanks. I can manage,” she shot back coldly, not even sparing him a glance.
But the truth, the bitter reality, was that she had nowhere to go. Where could she tell the driver to take her? She couldn’t wander aimlessly through the streets, couldn’t stand in front of her son and pretend everything was fine. Maybe… a hotel for the night. Yes, she could book a room. That seemed like the only escape, a place to break down and collect herself in the privacy she’d been denied here.
Just as she stepped outside, a small voice cut through the chaos in her mind. “Mummy, where are you going?” It was Nico, his face red and tear-streaked, his little voice trembling with the same fear and sadness she was fighting so hard to bury. His hiccups from earlier still hadn’t fully subsided, and Amber’s heart cracked wide open, splintering under the weight of her choices.
She turned back, swallowing her guilt. “I—I forgot my phone at the zoo, sweetheart. Mummy is just going to get it back. You have dinner and go to bed like a good boy, okay?” She forced a smile, but her voice betrayed her. It wavered, cracking under the pressure of leaving him behind.
Nico’s lower lip trembled violently, his little hands reaching out toward her in desperation. “Okay… but I come with you, Mummy. Please?” His eyes filled with fresh tears, his tiny arms outstretched, pleading to be held.
Amber’s heart shattered in her chest, the ache almost unbearable. But she couldn’t take him with her. She couldn’t whisk him away from this place, no matter how much she wanted to. She had to believe this was best for him in the long run. She had to, even if it felt like a lie.
Luca was there in an instant, his hands gently guiding Nico back. “Come on, Nico, let’s have dinner. You can tell Nonna all about the zoo, huh? How about that?” He tried to coax him away, but Nico’s eyes remained fixed on Amber, filled with betrayal and confusion.
Amber had to leave. She had to leave before she completely broke down. As she stepped out into the cold night air, the door closing behind her, tears blurred her vision, and she crumpled. She felt the weight of it all—the judgment, the pain, the helplessness—crush her.
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Inside, Nico’s heart was shattering too.
“Mummy, where is she? Why isn’t she back?” His voice was quiet now, no longer laced with the tantrum’s rage. Instead, it was trembling, fragile. He wasn’t kicking or screaming anymore. No, something worse had settled in—terror. Nico was sitting in the corner of the couch, his small frame pressed into the cushions, as though he could disappear into them. His tear-streaked face peered at everyone in the room, searching for answers that no one could give him.
Luc crouched beside him, his own heart twisted into knots. “Mummy will be back soon, piccolo. I promise,” he whispered, but the guilt weighed heavy on his words. He couldn’t fix this. He felt like the worst kind of monster, watching his son unravel because of decisions he hadn’t been strong enough to challenge.
“Sit still now, Nico. We have guests coming tonight, and you need to be a good boy,” Guilia’s voice cut through the tension, but her attempts to coax Nico only made him shrink further into the corner. His eyes darted between his grandmother and father, wild with fear.
“When will Mummy come back?” Nico’s voice broke, each word soaked in fresh tears.
Luc felt his own emotions choke him, threatening to spill over. He was on the verge of calling everything off—canceling the dinner, sending everyone home, just to get Amber back, to hold his son and tell him it would all be okay. But it was too late.
The doorbell rang, and with it came the arrival of the Forentino family. Luc’s heart sank. It was too late now. He forced himself to stand, to greet them, even though the pain in his chest felt unbearable. Carlotta was beaming as she welcomed her parents and siblings, but behind her happiness, Luc’s world was crumbling.
As the greetings continued, Luc couldn’t stop the single tear that escaped down his cheek. His son, the love of his life, was breaking—and he had let it happen. The weight of that realization crushed him.
“Come on, Nico,” he whispered, lifting his son into his arms and holding him close. “I’ll make it up to you, I promise.” But the promise felt as empty as the ones he’d given Amber years ago.
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