Page 124 of Sins of the Orchid

Time before he broke my heart and after.

I didn’t want to be in the same country as Santino Russo, never mind the same city. I’d never be ready, except that I wasn’t a coward. I’d shove all the feelings for Santi somewhere deep and put on a happy face.

Girls’ giggling pulled me out of my thoughts and my attention turned to two girls in front of us. They had passed us by three times since we’d come to the beach, eyeing Adriano. But now they got to see him with a white pasty nose and chest.

“What’s funny, ladies?” Adriano was suddenly awake, lifting himself onto his elbows. He had his normal suave smile on his lips, and I rolled my eyes behind my own sunglasses. I would never understand why women fell all over themselves for him. Just the way he looked at them was a clear indication he was just looking for a passing thing.

But then, so was Santi, apparently, and I was too blind to see. So, who was I to judge!

The two women just giggled and took off. Another set of giggling girls passed us by, and I hid my smile.

It took Adriano almost an hour to realize something was on his face. I couldn’t help it; it was way too much fun. I burst out laughing at seeing his horror when he grabbed his phone and glanced at his reflection.

“I’m going to kill you,” he threatened jokingly, rising to his feet. But I was quicker and took off running and laughing, Adriano right behind me.

“I’ll make your nose all white now,” he shouted. Giggles escaped me, sand at my feet flying behind me. I picked up my pace, aiming to put more distance between us, but Adriano was quick too.

The sounds of a camera clicking had me faltering and slowing down. It was how Adriano caught me, lifting me up into his arms.

“Actually, change of plans,” he announced. “I’ll throw you into the sea.”

“Stop, stop,” I pleaded, laughing. I wiggled, attempting to get free of his grip. But Adriano was strong too. “Adriano, stop—”

Splash! I closed my mouth just in time to not swallow a gulp of seawater. My feet touched the rocky bottom, and I pushed myself up, kicking my feet to get to the surface faster. As soon as I resurfaced, I took a deep breath.

“Ah, sweet revenge,” Adriano’s voice purred next to me, and I whipped around. He had jumped into the water with me. He was such a kid, despite turning twenty-five in a few weeks.

“You ruined my sunglasses,” I complained.

“I’ll get you another pair,” he drawled. More clicks of the camera, and I groaned. If I could go back to the day I decided to become the face of the company and then take it all to the next level by being a model, spokesperson, and hostess for all the company events, I would have taken a bit more time to re-think the whole plan. Because the paparazzi became obsessed with snapshots of me.

“Come on.” Adriano pulled me by my hand. “Let’s just swim to the yacht. I’ll send someone to get our stuff.”

Santi’s yacht. It was the last place I wanted to swim to. The ruthless don lent his yacht to Adriano but unknown to Adriano, I hated being on it.

I wanted nothing that belonged to him.

* * *

Lorenzo, DeAngelo, Adriano, and I were seated at a local restaurant.

While Lorenzo and DeAngelo were acting like responsible adults, Adriano and I were acting like goofballs. We cracked bad jokes, really bad jokes, and Adriano was on his fourth shot. We celebrated my early graduation and business success, though I suspected it was just an excuse to get drunk.

“What should we toast to?” Adriano slurred. Unfortunately for him, he had started celebrating my birthday three hours ago. It was barely five in the afternoon, and he was already hammered. “How beautiful and smart you are? Or how rich you are?”

Lorenzo, DeAngelo, and I shared an amusing glance. I couldn’t remember the last time he got so drunk. I was still on my first glass of wine, while DeAngelo and Lorenzo opted for mineral water. Those two could be boring sometimes.

“I just love white on you,” he purred. “You know that. You look so angelic in white.”

I grinned. It was actually a golden yellow sundress that came to my knees. And one thing I was certain of, I have never looked angelic in my entire life. Not with my vibrant red hair.

“Thank you.”

“Women get married in white,” he deadpanned in a slurred tone.

I rolled my eyes. “Do they now?”

An annoyed expression passed Lorenzo’s face, but he said nothing.