Chapter Fifteen

ARIA

Maximo didn’t come to my room in days. Four days to be exact. I tried to pretend like I didn’t care about it. I tried to pretend that his sudden absence, just after I heard him with another woman, didn’t bother me. But it did. Each time I heard someone at my bedroom door, the rate of my heartbeat doubled, hoping he was the one. I was always disappointed when I saw Maria with a tray of food and her usual emotionless face.

My heart clenched at the thought of how easy it was for him to replace me with another woman.

Did he even have to replace me? Was I ever relevant in his life?

Caterina Gallo. She was his lover, his woman. I tried to think of how he acted around her. Does he always threaten to kill her like he does with me? Or does he love her? Did she manage to weave her way into the dark depths of his heart?

The more I thought about it, the more my own heart cracked.

Why did I care this much? Why did my heart clench painfully whenever I thought of him?

Each day, I tried not to