Page 31

“Adelina? Are you there?”
I cleared my throat. “Yes, I am.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Do you care?” I croaked.
“Of course I do—”
“You barely called—”
“I should’ve done better and I’m sorry. I’ve had little sleep… Your grandparents told me you’ve seen a doctor and needed rest. Is that not true?”
“No, it’s not,” I said evenly.
“I’m sorry. How are you feeling, Bella? Tell me, please.”
He sounded so concerned, and a bit annoyed.He has no reason to be annoyed. He hasn’t reached out to me via text…just like Percy said.I tried to focus my breath to calm my racingpulse. Just hearing his rich baritone lifted my spirit. But I had to remind myself none of it was real. He’s never going to marry me.“I still don’t understand why you’re calling now?”
He scoffed down the line. “What do you mean by why? The funeral Mass is tomorrow.” His voice was weighted with burden.
I sighed heavily as I’d spoken more harshly to him than I meant to. “Sorry, I’ll be there. Uhm, we’ll all be there. What time does it start?”
“11 a.m. I’ll have a talk with your grandparents, too. We’ll get the wedding in a few months. Work it out. Don’t worry.”
My heart sank.A few months?There was no way they would agree to that or let me leave with him. Besides, even if I went with him, it wouldn’t last.He’ll never marry me now that he has a choice.What a difference twenty-four hours could make. When I was with Cass, I had still tried to hope. But since she’d gone?It had been reinforced that my life was not my fucking own. “You’re just a pawn for Rocco’s desires. You’ve got nothing to offer a man like him. He fucked you because you’re easy, but he never planned to keep you.”
Rocco never planned to keep me.
Before I met Rocco, I’d accepted my fate, and I could do so again. So, even if this felt like agony, it was thinking about Jacob that gave me strength.
“No. I don’t…I don’t want to go back with you.” I closed my eyes and dug the beds of my fingertips in my hand.
The line went silent, and my heart contracted.
“You don’t mean that. Shit, I knew I shouldn’t have let you go back there.”
“I chose to go with my grandparents, and I’m going to…to marry Percy Sterling—”
“What the fuck are you talking about—”
“I said I’m going to marry someone else, Rocco, so you’re now free to marry whoever you want. Okay?” I choked and hung up before I said something more or he could make more false promises. Dropping to my knees, I sobbed down on the carpet as the ache in my heart took hold and spread.
I hated Rocco at that moment for turning my world upside down and filling my head with things I’d never have. For occupying my every thought of happiness. For looking at me like I was all he could ever desire, and claiming my body as his own. How I wish I hadn’t fallen so recklessly for him, making me yearn for his love to be mine alone.I’ll cry, mourn, and somehow move on. But I’ll never forget his cruelty.
I woke up before my alarm, showered, and went to my closet. In all my brooding, I hadn’t checked if I had something to wear for the funeral. To my surprise, there was a garment bag on a rack I hadn’t seen before. I opened it and found a black crepe satin dress, and heels. Inside was a handwritten note tied to the hanger from Nadia Crane.
Nadia had been nothing but kind to me. I would thank her for her friendship, but I doubted it would last past today. She was Rocco’s friend.
I changed into the dress for the funeral. I had just managed to fasten the back of it when raised voices sounded from somewhere in the house. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I tied my hair back and padded out into the hall.
“This is unacceptable. You’ll have to call the police to throw me out of here.”
It was Rocco yelling. What was he doing?
“We’ve made other arrangements for our granddaughter. As our contract states, any delays void the agreement.”
“We’re holding a funeral—”