Dreams

They didn’t look at each other as they made their way to the exit, diners turned, whispers fluttering like moths around a candle.

The flicker of tension between them had been impossible to ignore, two people locked in combat, cloaked in civility but armed with words sharp enough to draw blood.

Outside, the night air wrapped around. Camilla’s shoulders like a balm, cool and brisk after the suffocating heat of their duel.

She hugged her clutch to her chest and inhaled, determined to put distance between herself and Luciano.

The valet opened the driver’s door with a small bow, but Luciano didn’t move. Instead, he looked at her again, as though calculating.

“Get in, I’ll take you home.”

Camilla gave a short, incredulous laugh. “You? Drive me home? That’s generous of you, but thanks.”

“I’m not in the habit of abandoning women in the middle of the city at midnight, even stubborn ones.”

The bite in his words clashed with the odd civility in his tone, it threw her off balance. For a heartbeat, she considered walking away, flagging down a cab just to spite him.

But the night was deepening, and she hated the thought of standing alone in the dark, fending off catcalls from passing strangers.

With a reluctant exhale, she muttered, “Fine, but don’t mistake this for gratitude.”

Luciano smirked faintly, like a man who had already won the argument, then slid into the driver’s seat.

Camilla circled to the passenger side, every step stiff with defiance, before slipping into the leather interior.

The car smelled faintly of sand wood and leather, expensive, and intoxicating.

For a long moment, silence reigned. The city lights streaked past the windshield, neon and gold, reflections dancing across Luciano’s face. His eyes were fixed ahead, unyielding, and his hands rested with easy confidence on the steering wheel.

Camille tried to focus on the passing scenery, but her gaze betrayed her. Against her will, it lingered on the sharp cut of his jaw, the way his high cheekbones cast perfect shadows, his lips soft and pink beneath the faint brush of a mustache.

His arms seemed strong as he shifted gears.

Her stomach fluttered before she could stop it. Heat crept her neck, flooding her cheeks with warmth she hadn’t felt in years.

Rosy pink, she realized with mortification, she was actually blushing.

She tore her gaze away, staring hard at the road ahead. Stop it, she told herself. However, from the corner of his eye, Luciano caught her, a ghost of a smile tugged at his lips.

”You do know it’s not polite to stare at people, right?”

Camilla snapped back to herself, blinking rapidly. Her hand tightened around her clutch.

“I wasn’t staring.”

“You were,” he said smoothly, his tone infuriatingly certain.

“I wasn’t,” she forced her voice to steady, though she knew the color in her cheeks betrayed her.

One dark brow arched. “If denial helps you sleep at night.”

She turned her face toward the window, hoping the blur of city lights would mask her flustered. “You’re insufferable.”

“And yet,” he said, a trace of amusement in his voice,

“Here you are, in my car.”

Camilla shot him a sharp look. “Don’t flatter yourself, I simply didn’t feel like hailing a cab at midnight. Consider this convenience, nothing more.”

He chuckled low, the sound rich, like velvet draped over steel.

“Convenience, I’ll remember that.”

The car slipped through the streets, the hum of the engine filling the silence that followed. Camilla tried to steady her breathing, but the closeness of him was unnerving.

She hated herself got noticing the small things, the way the dashboard glow painted his profile, how the faintest crease appeared between his brows when he concentrated, how calm and commanding he seemed behind the wheel.

She folded her arms, pressing herself against the leather sea, anything to put space between them.

Finally she muttered, “This was a mistake, of all people to fix my marriage with, it just had to be you. Does it mean that there are no men in New York City? It still baffles me.”

Luciano finally breaking the silence, knowing fully well that was what she wanted.

“Tell me something, Camilla. Do you always fight this hard with strangers, or is it just me you can’t stand?”

She glanced at him, “You think too highly of yourself.”

When the Maserati finally slowed in front of her apartment, Luciano shifted into park. He didn’t look at her immediately.

Instead, he drummed his fingers lightly against the wheel, as though weighing his words.

Camilla unbuckled her seatbelt, eager to escape the suffocating tension.

“Thank you for the ride,” she said curtly.

“Polite at last,” he murmured.

She shot him a glare. “Don’t ruin it.” She retorted, getting down from the car. And just like that, everything returned to its normal position.

Marriage, the world tasted sour.

She pushed herself off the door and kicked off her heels, the relief of bare feet against the cool floor grounding her only slightly.

She crossed to the window, pulling back the curtain to stare at the city glowing below.

Somewhere out there, other women her age were laughing over cocktails, falling in love, chasing dreams without chains.

And she was bartered off like an asset, her future inked in contracts she had never signed.

She hugged her arms around herself, her mind drifting back to a time when marriage meant something else entirely.

She could still see herself as a little girl in her mother’s room, sunlight spilling through lace curtains, dust motes dancing in the air like secret blessings.

She had raided her mother’s wardrobe more times than she could count, tugging the heavy white gown from its box and draping it over her small frame.

The fabric had pooled at her feet like a waterfall, swallowing her whole, but she hadn’t cared, she swallowed hard, pushing away from the window.

The apartment around her felt suddenly too small, the walls pressing in, she paced across the living room, her bare feet silent on the rug, her hands restless at her sides.

Camilla stopped pacing, lowering herself onto the couch with a weary sigh. She pressed her palms to her eyes, trying to smother the ache swelling in her chest.