Page 29 of Please, Forgive Me

And in that moment, I realized he wasn’t only worried about losing an employee. He was trying to figure out what else was hiding underneath. Maybe he was starting to see that, for me, this was about so much more than work.

“If that’s really what you want…” he said finally, with a calm that nearly disarmed me. “Tell me. But I’d like to know the reason. The real reason.”

I bit my lip, fighting the urge to let it all spill out. He wanted answers, but I wasn’t ready to give them. Not yet.

All I could do was shake my head, a silent way of saying I had nothing more to offer right now.

“I… I don’t know, Diego,” I said at last, looking away. “Just… give me some time, okay?”

He nodded slowly, but I caught the flicker of frustration in his eyes. Diego was not a man who liked loose ends. He always wanted answers, control. And the fact that I was pulling away without a clear explanation—it clearly got under his skin.

“All right,” he said, calm but firm. “But we’re talking about this when we’re back in Florianópolis. I’m not letting it drop.”

I nodded without replying, walking with him toward the elevator. The silence between us felt heavier than ever, thick with unspoken words and unresolved emotions.

When we stepped inside, my chest tightened. He always knew how to disarm me, but this time he was pushing me toward a place I wasn’t sure I was ready to go. Still, I knew I couldn’t run forever.

Sooner or later, I’d have to face it.

And as the elevator climbed, the only thought in my head was how that conversation would play out once we were back home. Because no matter how hard I tried to keep my distance, Diego was getting closer and closer to tearing down the walls I’d built.

CHAPTER 12

“The truth has the power to destroy—but also to set you free…”

DIEGO BITTENCOURT

I drew in a deep breath as the jet cut through the clouds, the steady hum of the engines a backdrop to the storm in my head.

For the first time in a long while, I couldn’t focus on anything but Maria Gabriela and the conversation we’d had.

Was she really considering quitting? The thought was absurd. It couldn’t be true.

Maria Gabriela had been essential to Amacel’s success, and part of me refused to believe she was ready to walk away.

I’d given her everything.

She knew how much the company had grown with her help, how much she meant to the business. But more than that… I trusted her in a way I’d never trusted anyone.

I turned to the window, watching the city crawl closer beneath us, but my thoughts stayed tangled.

She couldn’t leave. I wouldn’t allow it.

Not after everything we’d built together—professionally and… personally, even if she didn’t want to admit it. I had never let anyone get as close to me as I had let Maria Gabriela.

Only my son’s mother, and I regretted that bitterly.

Even with my mind screaming to fix this now, I knew pushing her wasn’t the answer. Control was necessary. As much as I wanted to confront her, I decided to wait. We’d talk tomorrow.

Tomorrow, I’d put everything on the table.

By the time we landed in Florianópolis, it was late. The weight of the trip, the meetings, and everything that had happened in the last few days clung to both of us.

I glanced at Maria Gabriela as we stepped off the jet, signaling one of my drivers. A gesture she knew well.

“I asked the driver to take you straight home,” I said, keeping my tone clipped. She looked at me briefly, as if searching for what might come next, but I kept my expression unreadable. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”

There was a firmness in my words she would recognize.