Chapter 18 Chapter 18
Scarlett’s POV
I looked at the money on the floor. Looked back at him. My expression didn't change.
I bent down. Picked up the bill. Straightened. Completed the transaction. Handed him his change.
"Your drink will be ready in a few minutes," I said. My voice was perfectly pleasant. "Next customer, please."
Nico stared at me. His smirk faded. He looked confused. Like he couldn't figure out why his attempts to humiliate me weren't working.
The truth? I'd killed men for a living. I'd been tortured. I'd survived things that would break most people.
Did he really think dropping money on the floor would affect me? Please.
I made his drink exactly to his specifications. Even drew a perfect caramel heart on top. Handed it to him with a smile.
Nico took it. But he didn't leave.
He stood there. Staring at me. Getting angrier by the second.
"What is wrong with you?" he finally exploded. His voice was loud enough that other customers turned to look. "What is your problem, Scarlett? You're a Romano. You're supposed to be family. You could be living in luxury. But instead you're here taking shit from customers? What the hell is wrong with you?"
I kept smiling. That distant smile. "I'm sorry, sir. I don't know what you're talking about. Do you need anything else with your order?"
"Stop calling me sir! I'm your brother!"
"I don't know you."
Nico froze. "What?"
I looked him straight in the eyes. Let my smile turn cold. "I said I don't know you. My parents died in a car accident six months ago. I'm an orphan. I don't have any siblings."
His mouth fell open. He stared at me like I'd lost my mind. "Are you serious right now? Did you hit your head or something? Are you having some kind of breakdown?"
"Is there anything else I can help you with today?"
"Scarlett. This isn't funny."
"My name is on my name tag if you've forgotten it. Is there anything else?"
Nico's face went through several different emotions. Shock. Confusion. Anger. Rage.
He reached across the counter and grabbed my wrist. His grip was tight. Painful.
"Listen to me very carefully," he hissed. "You need to stop this bullshit right now. You're coming home with me. This is your last chance. The Romano family doesn't need you. But if you come back now, we'll forget about all of this."
I looked down at his hand on my wrist. Then back up at his face.
I twisted my arm. Used a basic self-defense move. His grip broke instantly. He stumbled back.
I was still smiling. But my voice had changed. Gone cold. "I don't need the Romano family either. Tell your family to stop bothering me. I'm not coming back. Not now. Not ever."
"You ungrateful little bitch," Nico snarled. "You think you're too good for us? You think you can just walk away?"
"I don't think I'm too good for you. I think I'm done being treated like garbage."
"Treated like garbage? We took you in! We gave you a home! We gave you everything!" Nico's face was purple now. I could see a vein throbbing in his forehead.
Mike came out from the back. He looked between us with concern. "Is everything okay here?"
"Everything's fine," I said pleasantly. "This customer was just leaving."
"I'm not going anywhere," Nico said. "Not without you."
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave," Mike said. His voice was firm. "You're disturbing my employee and my other customers."
Nico ignored him. His eyes were locked on mine. "You're acting like I'm some kind of stranger. Like we're not family. But we both know the truth, Scarlett. You've been desperate to be part of this family since the day you came back. You've been following Zelda around like a lost puppy. Begging for scraps of attention. And now you're pretending you don't care?"
Each word was designed to hurt. To remind me of how pathetic I'd been when I first returned to the Romano house.
He was right. I had been desperate. I had wanted their acceptance. Their love.
I'd wanted a family so badly I'd been willing to accept any treatment just to belong.
That girl was gone.
"The difference between then and now," I said quietly, "is that I've stopped hoping you'll ever see me as family. I've accepted the truth. I'm nothing to you. And you're nothing to me."
Nico's jaw clenched. "You're coming with me right now. Mom wants you home."
"I don't have a mother."
"Scarlett. I'm not playing around. You're coming home. Now."
He reached for my wrist again.
This time I stepped back. Out of reach. "Don't touch me."
"Sir, I'm calling the police," Mike said. He pulled out his phone.
"Do you want to know why I'm here?" Nico said. His voice got louder. More desperate. "Do you want to know why I drove all the way to this shithole to find you?"
"I don't care."
"Mrs. Santoro is coming to our house this afternoon! The wedding preparations are happening! You need to be there!"
I froze.
Mrs. Santoro. Why would she be visiting the Romano house?
Unless they were still planning that wedding. The one where I was supposed to marry the paralyzed Adrian Santoro. The one I'd refused.
"Why would Mrs. Santoro coming to your house have anything to do with me?" I asked slowly.
"Because you're the one who's supposed to marry Adrian! You're the eldest Romano daughter! This arrangement was always meant for you!"
There it was. The truth.
They wanted me to come back. They wanted me to play the obedient daughter. They wanted me to sacrifice myself for their alliance with the Santoro family.
All so Zelda wouldn't have to marry a man in a wheelchair.
I felt something cold settle in my chest. "Is that why you're here? You want to drag me back so I can marry that paralyzed man? So Zelda doesn't have to?"
"Zelda doesn't deserve this! She's innocent! She shouldn't have to marry a cripple because you got yourself knocked up!"
"Then let the marriage arrangement fall through."
"We can't! Do you know how much money is riding on this alliance? Do you know what will happen to our family if we back out now?"
"Not my problem."
Nico grabbed my shoulders. Shook me. "If you don't come back, Zelda will have to marry him! Is that what you want? You want your sister to suffer?"