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“We have separate rooms?” I check, wondering how it’s taken me this long to realize.
“We’ve been married three weeks and you are just picking up on this now?” He laughs at me.
“Why?” I ignore my own ignorance and ask, not quite understanding why the thought hurts so bad.
“I figured you’d want your space away from me.” He shrugs, and when I realize that I don’t, it takes a while for me to let it sink in.
“So, you were going to force me to get pregnant with your child, but offer me the courtesy of my space?” It’s me who’s laughing now, and the look on his face suggests he is not impressed by my humor.
“I have things to do today, perhaps you could invite your stepmother over.”
“Or I could go visit her.” I climb onto my knees and look at him seductively. I’ve come to learn that it can help me get my way.
“You know I prefer you to stay at home whenever possible.” He buttons up his cuffs and makes me question what his true feelings are about me. I get that being his wife puts a target on my head, and that we were both forced into this, but I can’t help wondering if, deep down, he really does care about me.
“I’d like to see my father and brother, I haven’t seen them since the wedding,” I point out.
“Fine, Lucian will drive you, but make sure you are home in time to get ready for tonight.”
“Tonight?” He catches me off guard.
“Yes, we have a party to go to,” he tells me casually, opening my pills and shaking one onto his palm before holding it out for me. I smile as I take it, reminded of my victory and starting to wonder if I might be able to fall for this man.
“Have fun with your family,” he tells me, flicking my nose with his finger the way he’s started doing recently, then leaving me smiling like a goof as he walks out the door ofmybedroom.
“Have fun working,” I call after him, before scrambling out of bed to find myself something to wear.
I can hear him shouting in his office when I come down the stairs and since Luician is already waiting by the door to take me to my father’s new home, I think it’s best I leave him to whatever it is he’s dealing with and move on.
We pull up outside my family's new mansion just under an hour later, with a security team following close behind. Serena looks excited as she rushes out the door to welcome me.
“Madalina!” She throws her arms around my shoulders and breathes me in like we’ve been separated for months and it feels so good to see her, I could burst into tears.
“It's good to see you.” She leans back and checks me over. “You look well.” Guiding me inside, she smiles over her shoulder at Lucian politely. “Come see our new home,” The excitement in her voice is infectious and reminds me of why I agreed to marry Dario. Not that I had much choice in the matter, Thadeo DeMarco is not a man many can say no to.
“This place is beautiful.” I smile once she’s finished showing me around their lavish new home. Of course, it’s nowhere near as elaborate as Dario’s place, but it’s a vast improvement on the home we had before. It’s modern and fresh, there are no repairs that need doing to the building like there were at our old mansion.
“You wait till you see your father, he is so much happier than he was before. He’s taken up golf, that's where he is, right now. He tells me this district practically runs itself.” Serena looks deliriously happy and it’s rewarding to see. “Now, I just need to know that you're okay.” She looks away to thank the housemaid after she’s placed our coffees on the bistro table, and I try to think of where I can start.
“Nothing much has happened, I’ve just been settling into married life.” I give her the answer she wants to hear.
“And is he kind to you?” she checks with a frown on her face that warns me not to lie.
“Kinder than I thought he would be.” I smile over the rim of my coffee cup before I take a sip.
“And… in other places, is he kind to you there? I assume he’ll be wanting to start a family right away?” She looks as if she feels sorry for me.
“Actually, we talked about that and decided to wait.” I look down at my dress and play with the hem to avoid eye contact and when I’m brave enough to look back up, Serena is staring at me in shock.
“He wants to wait?” She checks she heard me right as she places her cup on the table.
“No,Iwanted to wait. I don’t feel like we know each other well enough to bring a child into the world. I told him I wasn’t ready,” I admit.
“Wow.” She laughs as she takes in what I’ve said. “I did not think the DeMarcos could be negotiated with. But then, you always have been a smart girl.” She slides her hand through my hair fondly.
“Which leads me to a question...” I don’t feel sosmarthaving to ask her this. “...Have you ever been on the contraceptive pill?”
“Yes, for many years. I decided after I married your father that I wanted to focus on being a good mother to you and Nicolas. He made it clear he didn’t want more children.” She smiles, although I sense there's a little sadness behind it.
