Chapter 1

Gianna's POV

The air in my hospital room was thick and suffocating. A sheen of sweat clung to my skin underneath the thin hospital gown I was wearing, and I couldn't help but let out a small groan.

This heat was unbearable, why? The nurse had turned to the air conditioning again.

I knew it wasn't a mistake. She did it on purpose. Every single day, she found new ways to remind me of my helplessness, and her methods were usually worse than the last.

Leaving the water just out of reach. Bringing me cold meals, laughing under her breath when I struggled to do small tasks for myself. The list was too long to count.

But I wasn't as helpless as they all thought.

My fingers fisted around the edges of the bedsheet as I turned towards the window. My eyes caught sight of the bright light streaming in. It was so bright I could actually see in it.

I could also make out the soft outline of the chair just next to the bed, and even the IV stand whirring in the corner.

In the past two days, I was slowly beginning to regain my eyesight, but no one had noticed.

No, scratch that. No one had cared to notice.

A lump formed in my throat, but I forced myself to swallow it down.

I'd lost my eyesight while trying to save Enzo two years ago, and it had been hard trying to adjust.

My body still wasn't used to seeing again, so it was only normal that I would hesitate before reaching for the air conditioning panel. The buttons were small and were just next to my fingertips, but as I stretched forward, they grazed something else.

Not something else, someone.

The sound of a muffled gasp reached my eyes, followed by the soft rustling of fabric.

I took that as my cue to blink and I did. The moment I opened my eyes though, I regretted it immediately.

Oh God no.

My stomach twisted at what I saw. Behind the thin and almost non-existent fabric of the hospital curtain, Lena, my nurse, was pressed up against none other than Enzo.

His hands trailed her hips, his fingers digging into the fabric of her red dress, the same one he'd given to me as a gift. Around her neck, a silver necklace sat, and the moment I recognized it, I bit back a gasp of my own.

It wasn't just any necklace. It was mine.

The same one my mother had given to me.

My stomach churned immediately, and I struggled to breathe, but apparently, this was far from over.

Like that wasn't enough, I watched Enzo lean in. His lips hovered around her ear, and his voice dropped to a whisper.

It was too low for me to hear, but the perfect volume to get Lena to smile. A wide grin I could see.

Lena smirked, before turning to me again.

“Did you need something, Gianna?” She tilted her head in my direction, her voice sweet but dripping with irritation.

I wanted to speak, but no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't. I couldn't move either.

The past two years came back in a rush, and I fought the urge to burst into tears.

“Are you sure?” I'd asked him that night, my voice trembling.

“You saved my life, Gianna.” Enzo had taken my hands in his, before pressing a kiss to each one. “My father asked me to take care of you. Forever.”

“I, you don't…”

“And I want to.” He cut me off, his voice sweet and tone genuine. “I really want to.”

And I'd believed him too.

Enzo had promised to take care of me. He'd kissed me and told me that I was his, and ever since that day, I'd held on to those words like my very life depended on it, hoping that the perfect fairytale would be waiting for me once I got my eyesight back.

But I was wrong, very wrong.

Now, the first thing I saw after regaining my eyesight, was him betraying me.

When I'd started regaining my eyesight two days ago, I was ecstatic. I imagined how I would tell him, how his face would light up, and how he would finally take me into his arms, before pressing a kiss over my mouth.

I'd even pictured the kind of future we were going to have, but one thing lingered in my mind.

What if I'd never regained my eyesight, would I really blind to all of this?

I pushed the said memories to the back of my mind, forcing myself to shut them from coming up again.

Anger, so icy and hot spread through my chest, but I struggled to get a hold on it.

I couldn't react. Not now.

I didn't want to admit it, but I still needed his father's money. My mother's treatment depended on it, and I feared that if he found out I could now see, he would take everything away.

So I did the only reasonable thing I could think of, I continued pretending.

Without thinking, I staggered forward, my shoulder coming in contact with the cabinet just next to me.

A loud noise pierced the room as a glass bottle shattered all around me.

It was a saline bottle, and it had burst open the moment it hit the ground, bathing both Lena and Enzo in a dose of liquid that I was a hundred percent sure was freezing.

Lena let out a sharp gasp , her arms flying in shock. Enzo swore under his breath, as he tried to fix his wet shirt clinging to his body.

“What are you doing?” I asked, tilting my head to the side. “is everything okay?”

“Yes.” Enzo didn't even hesitate. “Everything is fine.”

“It's nothing.” He added, his voice as smooth as silk. For a moment in my life, I'd always gushed about how he sounded, but now, all I could hear was the voice of a liar. “Lena was just helping me fix the air conditioning. You know how hot it gets in here.”

My stomach churned at how easily he'd just lied, and it made me wonder just how many times I'd fallen for it.

I said nothing, but instead schooled my expression into a small smile.

I was still reeling from the obvious betrayal, when something caught my attention. From the corner of my eyes, I watched Lena's smirk falter. Her gaze flickered to my face, before her eyes reduced into slits.

Oh no, was she getting suspicious?

Enzo must have noticed, because he turned to her immediately. I couldn't see his face for the moment, but Lena's facial expression said everything her lips didn't.

She was suspicious.

Enzo's gaze flicked to my face again, and at the last minute, he mouthed the word impossible.

I was blind, there was no way I could have seen a thing, but Lena wasn't convinced.

“Since you're already up, Gianna.” Enzo’s voice reached my ears, and I watched Lena's eyebrows raise. “Could you help me get something?”

“Sure.” I nodded with uncertainty as he gestured towards the bedside table.

“My cold medicine is in the black box over there, can you please get it for me?’

I froze immediately.

The black box? The same one he never let me open?

I bit down on my lower lip as a wave of anxiety hit me square in the guts. After what seemed like forever, I headed towards my target. I hesitated when I got close, but I still played my part.

Slowly, I traced the lid of the box before flipping it open.

Inside, lay a small packet of condoms, and I sucked in a deep breath.

Realization settled at the pit of my stomach immediately, and I fought the urge to panic.

Enzo was testing me, and that wasn't all.

I was going to fail.