Chapter 2

The next day, as Marco was changing my dressing for me, I was in so much pain that I couldn't stop myself from grabbing onto him.

Marco immediately stopped.

"Take it slow," he said. "Lean on me."

He supported my waist and let me lean against his chest, waiting until the wave of pain passed before continuing to remove my old dressing.

Once the dressing was changed, he buttoned up my pajamas and kissed me on the forehead.

"I'll come with you to your follow-up appointment today." He handed me a glass of warm water, holding it to my lips. "You just have to focus on recovering."

When I went downstairs, I saw that Bruno's dog bed and bowl were gone. Bruno was also locked outside in the backyard. When he saw me through the glass door, he immediately jumped to his feet and wagged his tail.

I went to open the door for him.

"Don't let him in," Lucia said from the dining table without even looking up. "That old dog sheds everywhere he goes. Claudia is coming to pick Sofia up, and I won't have dog hair all over their dresses."

Bruno lightly pressed his nose against the glass door, staring at me and waiting for me to open the door for him.

"Bruno must sleep in the house at night," I said.

Lucia finally set down her mug.

"Nobody in this family likes that old dog except you," she said, scowling at me. "There's no need for the entire family to make adjustments just for your sake."

Marco draped a coat over my shoulders. "We'll talk about it later. Let's get to the hospital first."

The doorbell rang just then, and Claudia arrived at the doorstep with a small bouquet of flowers and Sofia's new dress in her arms.

"Erina, what happened that night was just a misunderstanding. I came here today to apologize in person."

I didn't take the flowers from her. I just said, "I'm going to the hospital."

Claudia grabbed my hand and looked at me with reddened eyes. "We've been friends for more than a decade. Don't you trust me?"

I looked down and saw the sapphire bracelet on her wrist. It was the exact bracelet I'd fallen in love with in Milawa last month, but Marco told me that he was a little strapped for cash and advised me against buying it.

"Nice bracelet."

She lowered her eyes and replied in a gentle voice, "Marco gave it to me. He said it suited me."

Marco removed his arm from around my waist. "Erina," he said, "Claudia's already here to apologize to you. What more do you want from her?"

Lucia took the flowers from Claudia and said, "Exactly. Claudia came here first thing in the morning to apologize, and this is how you treat her?"

Sofia ran down the stairs just then. When she saw the new dress in Claudia's hands, she threw herself at Claudia and hugged her.

"Yes! This is the dress! Thank you, Claudia!"

Claudia helped Sofia smooth out her dress and smiled. "Put it on, princess. Let's go take some beautiful photos today."

She then turned to Marco and lowered her voice. "The VIPs for the grand opening are almost arriving, but the venue is still not ready yet. Can you help me go over and take a look?"

Then, she turned to look at me and added, "Never mind. You should just take Erina to the hospital. I'll figure something out."

Marco immediately grabbed his car keys and looked at me. "You can go for the follow-up yourself first. I'll come over once I've sorted this out."

"You said you'd come with me."

He straightened my collar and said, "Claudia's event is more urgent than your appointment. Just be more understanding for once, Erina."

Sofia changed into her new dress and ran back out, holding Marco's hand in one and Claudia's in the other.

"Come on, Daddy! Let's go!"

The three of them walked right past me and out the door.

I leaned against the doorframe, and slowly, through the pain, I crouched down. Not one of them looked back at me. They looked like a happy family of three, and I was just a robot in charge of bringing home the bacon and taking care of them.