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Vicky smiles and takes his empty mug when he sets it back down on the table.
"I won't be long." She grins and skips off.
I am so relieved she didn't ask about Elle today because the last thing I need right now is for Stefano to have any opportunity to gather information about me or my daughter.
"I said I didn't want coffee," I say just as coldly as he is speaking to me.
"I ordered it - and you will drink it." He replies abruptly. His eyes are not as I remember. Apart from the scar on his face, it is the most obvious change I can see in him. They are empty and void of any kind of emotion. They are so cold and dead they remind me of the images I've seen of icebergs. Piercing and transparent as though there is nothing inside him.
He has become even more heartless and cruel over the years since I last saw him.
"So, you work here?"
"Yes." My hands are shaking so badly beneath the table. I twist my fingers even tighter together to try and stop it.
"What happened to business law, your dreams?"
"Things changed."
"Mm. They did, didn't they?" he says matter of fact.
Vicky arrives back at the table with two fresh cups of coffee and places one in front of each of us. "There you go. Are you guys going to order something to eat? Amelia, we have those caramel tarts you like so much."
"No thanks, Vicky. This is going to be a quick coffee, that's all." I reply before Stefano has a chance to.
Vicky hesitates, seeing the look in my eyes. Her gaze narrows towards me and she scrunches her face for a second, then she smiles again.
"Don't you want your favorite caramel tart, Amelia?" Stefano says coldly.
I glare at him.
"Next time." He smiles at Vicky, and it sends a shiver down my spine.
I don't think I know him anymore. Whatever happened in the last six years has turned him into a different person. Maybe I never knew him. Maybe that small part of him that I saw was just a dream, a perception that was never real.
Stefano lifts his coffee mug in his hand and then tilts his chin towards mine. "Drink your coffee, Amelia." He takes a sip of his own coffee, savoring the taste.
I ignore his order because I can't stomach even one sip of that coffee. I am barely able to keep myself composed sitting in front of this man. Never mind having a coffee. I might puke from anxiety if I try and eat or drink anything now.
He leans back in his chair, looking as cool and calm as ever and I watch the muscles of his jaw feather for a moment. Then his eyes lock back onto mine and I feel the coldness that connects us.
"I understand that you have a daughter, around six years old."
I can't have him knowing she belongs to him.
"I got married shortly after we broke up."
"I didn't ask for an explanation. A simple yes or no would do."
His eyes trace over my face and I do my best to hold steady.
"Yes." I breathe, the word leaving my mouth with regret. He already knows though. There is no point in denying it.
"Broke up?" He chuckles and the darkness in that laugh sinks deep into my bones like a knife. "We didn't break up, Amelia. You left - without a word - without an explanation. You left me for another man. And you did that right after you agreed to marry me - you married someone else. What kind of a cold-hearted monster does that? I have to admit. You fooled me. You made me believe we were more than we were."
The smile on his face does not reach his dead eyes.
"I'm sorry, Stefano, you and I…"
