I stare at him wide-eyed, shocked that that’s how he chose to announce the news. I was expecting more finesse. I thought we’d sit through the show and announce our marriage at dinner afterwards, but he looks relaxed, as though his announcement isn’t as astonishing as his siblings’ faces make it seem. Sierra stares at us openmouthed, and then she narrows her gaze at me and shakes her head, a smile finding its way onto her lips. Relief washes over me when I realize that she isn’t mad at me.
Meanwhile, Grandma Anne glances from me to him and shakes her head. “We’ll see about that,” she says, turning away from us to look at the stage instead. I can feel her disapproval, and it kills me. She gave me a chance when I barely even believed in myself, and she’s supported me throughout the years, siding with me each time Luca tried to fire me. I feel like I’m betraying her in the worst way, and I bite down on my lip in an effort to hold back the tears that are gathering in my eyes.
I never should’ve agreed to marry Luca knowing how much this would hurt her. The arrangement with the Ivanovs is so valuable to the family, and I should’ve respected that. I never should’ve interfered where I don’t belong. Ultimately, I should’ve found a different way to gather the money I needed for my grandmother. It wouldn’t have been easy, but perhaps a bank loan would’ve been an option. Anything is better than hurting the one woman who believed in me when no one else did.
Luca brings our joined hands to his lips, distracting me. He kisses the back of my hand tenderly before lifting his face, a sweet smile on his lips. “It’s okay,” he murmurs. “Everything is going to be okay.”
I look into his eyes, struggling to believe his words. He leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek, and I let my eyes flutter closed for a moment as I take a deep breath.
“Smile,” he whispers, his eyes twinkling. “Or the jig is up.”
He leans in further, his nose brushing past mine for a moment, before his lips land on mine. He kisses me softly and leisurely, his lips lingering when he pulls away.
Luca drops his forehead to mine, his breathing ragged.
“How are you such a good actor?” I whisper, “Is any of it real? The kindness you show me, is that just how you think you should treat your wife? Are you fooling me too?”
He presses a kiss to my cheek, close to my ear. “You tell me, Valentina. Is it real?”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Luca
“Explain,” my grandmother says, her hands clasped in her lap. She looks every inch the sophisticated matriarch, right down to the tense expression on her face.
I wrap my arm around my wife’s shoulder in a silent effort to reassure her. The two of us are seated in my grandmother’s sitting room, neither one of us sure what to expect of the interrogation that’s about to ensue. Normally, Valentina performs extremely well under pressure, but not today. I underestimated how much my grandmother means to her.
“What can I say?” I murmur, tightening my grip on my wife. “I fell in love, and it only seemed right to follow my heart. I was scared that I’d regret it for the rest of my life if I let Valentina walk away, when it was clear that there’s no one else I could imagine myself growing old with.”
Grandma looks between the two of us, her gaze suspicious. “You said you got married?” she asks, her voice soft. I thought I knew my grandmother well, but in this moment, I’m finding it impossible to read her.
I reach for the documents I put in my suit jacket’s inner pocket and hand them to her. “This is a copy of our marriage certificate,” I tell her. “But you’re welcome to call Mayor Kingston to verify that he did, in fact, marry us.”
She stares at the papers in disbelief before glancing back at us, anger making its way onto her face when she realizes it isn’t a ruse. “What were you thinking?” she asks, exasperated. “And you, Val? How could you do this without even speaking to me?”
She slaps the papers onto the coffee table and looks away for a moment, her disappointment apparent. It’s near unnoticeable, but my wife starts to tremble and clasps her hands together, her gaze downcast. I pull her closer protectively and pin my grandmother down with a stare.
“We weren’t thinking,” I admit. “We’re in love, Grandma. Can you really blame us? Valentina and I were years in the making, and you above everyone else, should be aware of that.”
She glares at me and shakes her head. “I’m supposed to believe that you’re suddenly in love with Val after tormenting her for years? You’re forced to get engaged to Natalia Ivanov, and all of a sudden you decide you’re in love with the woman you couldn’t stand for years?”
My wife flinches, and I grit my teeth, guilt rendering me speechless. She’s right, of course. For years, I did resent Valentina, and I hear the implication loud and clear. She thinks I’m using Valentina, and she isn’t wrong.
“I don’t believe for a second that you two are in love with each other. Val,” she says, her tone harsh, “tell me honestly. Is he threatening you?”
My wife shakes her head and looks up remorsefully. “I’m sorry, Grandma Anne,” she says, her voice trembling. “It’s true. I… we’re in love with each other. I know that our decision to get married was rash, but Luca is right. We were years in the making.”
Grandma crosses her arms and raises her brows. “Pray tell,” she says. “What was it that made you suddenly realize you’re in love, after years of barely tolerating each other?”
Valentina blushes and looks down for a moment. “It was on Ares and Raven’s wedding day,” she murmurs. “Um… Luca… I… well, something happened that made us realize that… I mean…”
“I kissed her,” I admit. “I kissed her that day, and things haven’t been the same since.”
Grandma frowns, the gears in her mind clearly turning. “That was months ago, and I vividly remember that the two of you barely spoke to each other after that day. Val even stopped coming home for dinner.”
My wife looks down at her lap, and I grab her hand, holding it in mine. “Neither of us was sure how to handle the change in our relationship, but then you announced my engagement to Natalia.”
Grandma frowns and glances at my wife. “Is that when you realized you were in love with Luca?” she asks, her tone gentler now.
Valentina shakes her head. “That’s when I quit my job. I realized then that I couldn’t stand being around him if he was to marry someone else. The thought of him falling for Natalia tormented me, and I knew that witnessing him with her would tear me apart.”
Grandma’s eyes widen. “You quit your job? How come I never heard of that happening?”
“I didn’t report it to you because I had no intention of letting her go.”
Grandma smiles then. It’s only for a split-second, but it’s a real smile, nonetheless. “So I am to believe that you two fell in love that way and rushed into marriage?”
“Valentina has been by my side for eight years, Grandma. Why would I want to wait even one more second, when not making her mine could result in me losing her forever? With the engagement, there was only one way for me to prove my commitment to her.”