Chapter 2

The photo didn't show his face, but I recognized Aido immediately. That hand with its prominent knuckles rested on the edge of the table, palm pressed against a half-full wine glass. On his left pinky sat an extremely thin, plain band.

That was our wedding ring.

Seven years ago, when we registered our marriage, he'd chosen it himself. He said wearing it on his ring finger would draw too much attention, so he kept it on his pinky instead.

To anyone else, it looked like an ordinary accessory. No one would know it was a trace left behind by a marriage.

How ironic. What should have symbolized our marriage had become just another piece of jewelry he could wear without a second thought while out with another woman.

I liked the post with a blank expression, set my phone aside, and turned to arrange the small Christmas cake for Leo.

Candlelight flickered across his face as he pressed his palms together and closed his eyes, making his wish as serious as if he were saying a prayer.

"I want to stay with Mamma forever."

I froze for a moment, then smiled and brushed the hair from his forehead.

"Okay," I said. "Mamma promises."

In that instant, the last trace of my hesitation disappeared. After Leo fell asleep, I took out the divorce papers I'd been keeping in my drawer.

At 2:00 am, Aido finally came home. When he pushed through the door, his coat still carried the damp chill of the night air.

He caught sight of the untouched Christmas cake and the dinner that had long gone cold on the table, and his steps faltered slightly, as if only now remembering what day it was.

"Sorry," he said. "I forgot."

I almost laughed out loud.

He hadn't forgotten. He'd just put another woman ahead of Leo and me.

I handed him the documents, keeping my voice as calm as I could. "Sign these."

He glanced down but didn't take them. "What documents?"

"A few family matters that need your signature."

Aido was about to flip through them when his phone suddenly rang.

Isabella's voice came through, clearly pouting. "Aido, the power just went out on my street. Can you come keep me company?"

Aido stood up without hesitation. "Sure, I'm on my way."

After he said that, he didn't even look at the documents in my hand. He just flipped to the last page and signed his name with a few sharp strokes. When that string of bold letters landed at the bottom of the page, my chest felt strangely calm.

The door slammed shut behind him.

I looked down at the signed resignation letter and divorce papers. Suddenly, it felt like the weight I'd carried for seven years had finally lifted.

"Aido, don't forget. You're the one who signed these."

…

The next morning, I went to the secretariat for my final handover. I submitted the resignation letter with Aido's signature, returned the guest lists, the encrypted phone, two handwritten schedules, and the black-and-gold pin that marked me as his private secretary.

On my way back, Aido stopped me. He was holding an elegantly wrapped gift box.

"Christmas present for Leo," he said. "I forgot last night."

I took it and opened it right in front of him. Inside was a black Doberman model, meticulously crafted with teeth and eyes that looked disturbingly realistic.

My hands went rigid. Leo was terrified of dogs. More precisely, he was terrified of all large dogs.

When he was four, Aido had promised to take him out for the first time. At a horse racing club, he'd left Leo with a bodyguard halfway through so he could meet with an important business partner. The bodyguard answered a phone call, turned away for just a moment, and Leo disappeared.

When we found him, he was huddled against the fence outside the kennels, face pale as death, frozen in place. The guard dogs inside were barking viciously at him, their foul-smelling saliva spraying across his face.

Ever since, dogs had become the nightmare that woke Leo up screaming in the middle of the night. And his father had just given him a Doberman model as a Christmas present.

I couldn't even tell if what churned in my chest was anger or exhaustion.

I closed the box again, my voice soft. "Grazie."

Aido probably noticed something was off about my expression, but he didn't ask.

He just paused, as if remembering something, and spoke in that same detached tone. "Isabella will be moving into the estate for a few days."

I looked up at him.

He continued, "Isabella likes the building on the east side. The sunlight is better there, and she thinks the white roses outside the window are beautiful. She'll be staying there. You and Leo need to move out."

I could hardly believe what I was hearing. "You're saying that because she likes the sunlight and the roses in that house, I need to take our son and leave?"

Aido frowned. "It's only temporary."

"Temporary?" I let out a short laugh.

"Aido, Leo and I have lived there for seven years. Now you want us to give up our home because another woman likes the sunlight and flowers, and you're telling me it's temporary?"

He was silent for two seconds, his tone still calm. "I'll compensate you both."

But what good was compensation when the damage was already done?

I didn't argue further. "Fine. We'll leave tonight."

That evening, after packing our things, I went down to the basement. I placed the signed divorce agreement in the safe that hadn't been opened in seven years.

Then I took Leo and left.

The moment we stepped outside, we ran into Aido personally escorting Isabella into the estate. The black sedan was parked at the front steps. The driver had just opened the trunk when Aido moved ahead to pull open her door.

He shielded the top of the car with one hand and steadied her wrist with the other, his movements smooth and natural, every inch the attentive lover.

Isabella stepped out in her high heels and froze when she saw me. "Signorina Conti?"

Her gaze dropped to the suitcase by my side, then swept over Leo standing next to me. Her smile flickered.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.