Chapter 3

Andrea's phone suddenly rang, with the caller ID showing Arturo's name. He had always kept business and personal life strictly separate, rarely allowing Arturo to call him this late, yet their calls had grown increasingly frequent lately.

I suddenly got curious, so I reached for the phone and answered the call, only for Emilia's sweet, gentle voice to come through the other end. "Andrea!"

I went cold all over after hearing that. I finally realized what was happening. It turned out that every night Arturo hadn't called Andrea away, he had actually been with Emilia. It turned out that every time he rushed home at dawn, he had just gotten out of Emilia's bed.

He even dotingly patted the top of my head when I felt sorry for him and urged him to get some sleep, saying, "Amore, even when I'm exhausted, I'll always come home to spend time with you."

He had actually gone to such lengths to keep me in the dark.

Emilia called out a couple of times, sounding confused. She suddenly realized what was happening and fell silent.

It was a few seconds later when Arturo took the phone and greeted me respectfully. "It's Arturo speaking here, Donna Pietranera. Is Don Pietranera available?"

I spoke with difficulty, replying, "Andrea's in the shower right now. What's the matter, Arturo?"

Arturo sounded completely calm and natural. "It's nothing, really. I just picked up a fine bottle of wine from the auction and thought I'd call Don Pietranera over for a drink. If he's busy, we can do it another time."

"He's not busy, so I'll come over with him as soon as he's done taking his shower."

There was a prolonged, awkward silence on the other end of the line once I said that.

Arturo finally spoke up after a long while, stumbling over his words as he welcomed us to his villa.

Andrea stepped out through the steam in the bathroom, his tall figure appearing through the mist as water droplets dripped from his damp, tousled hair and ran down his straight nose. He was slightly stunned when I told him that Arturo had invited us over to his villa.

I looked at Andrea calmly and asked, "What's the matter? Is my presence unwelcome, Andrea?"

Andrea froze for a moment before rushing to pull me close, sweet-talking me softly. "What silly nonsense is that? I couldn't be happier to have you come with me, Carina!"

He even made a point of putting on the tie I'd given him before we left, saying that he wanted to show it off to Arturo.

I felt cold all over instead of feeling touched.

Upon arriving at Arturo's villa, we found a few Famiglia members drinking alongside their dates. Emilia was there too, sitting beside Arturo and casually exposing the hickeys all over her body.

Then, one of the Famiglia members laughed out loud and patted Arturo on the shoulder. "You sure are rough behind closed doors, Arturo!"

Arturo chuckled awkwardly, his gaze darting between Andrea and Emilia for a brief moment without denying it.

Andrea subtly looked away, his brow furrowing slightly.

I could tell that he was pissed, as the last time he missed out on a favorite collectible at an auction, he had worn the same expression, holding back his anger.

Emilia acted like she hadn't even noticed us. She raised her glass toward Arturo and leaned in to clink glasses with him.

Arturo's eyes flashed with a clear hint of panic.

Andrea's grip around my waist gradually tightened. He suddenly pulled me close and kissed me.

Did he just use me as a tool to get back at Emilia?