Page 7 of Vows of Silence

“I don’t know what to tell you, Mum. I just don’t care,” I shrugged.

“What about the song for your first dance? You must have thought about that.”

“Might I suggestDon’t Stand So Close to Me?” Marco grinned.

“Marco Carbone, you stop that this instant!” Mum snapped. Marco looked at me, winking quickly, and then shovelled a forkful of food into his mouth.

Luca:Young Girlby Gary Puckett is a good option.

Isabelle:Stop it.

But I added a laughing emoji.

Luca:What? It’s even from his generation as well. He might appreciate the throwback.

“Honestly, Mum. I really don’t mind. You know me, and I trust your taste. You make the decisions.”

“Good answer. I trust your taste impeccably, Mrs Carbone,” a pleasant voice called from the hallway, chilling my blood immediately.

A moment later, our second surprise guest of the evening made his way into the dining room.

“I hope you don’t mind the intrusion. I told your guards I could find my own way.”

And there he stood in the flesh.

Adrien Vescari.

Luca:Isabelle, get out now!

“I thought it time I met my fiancé in person.”

Shit.

Chapter 3

The Flame

“Mrs Carbone,” Adrien said, grabbing her hand with a flourish and bending over it, placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles. “You are looking as beautiful as ever. Pink always was your colour.”

I frowned at that. They barely even knew each other. Was he just complimenting her, or was I simply wrong?

“You’re too kind,” my mother beamed back, just as my dad got to his feet to shake his hand.

“Were we expecting you, Adrien?”

“Surprise visit, but no less welcome, I hope?” he asked with a laugh. “I found a gap in my schedule and couldn’t resist dropping by.”

When Adrien had entered, I’d noticed Marco stiffen next to me. But now he was standing up, extending his hand to him. “No less welcome than I am, I suppose. Seems we both went the surprise route tonight.”

“Indeed,” Adrien murmured back, their handshake seeming to last longer than necessary. And were their knuckles whiter? But the handshake ended before I could really analyse it.

My phone was buzzing endlessly on my knee, threatening to drop off the side. But I was more or less frozen, confused by the undercurrents of tension.

And, as reluctant as I was to admit it, I was kind of in awe seeing Adrien in the flesh.

I had seen him before. Of course I had. But it was always on video calls. And he’d listened with bare minimum patience as we got to know each other, seeming pleasant enough, if not a little distracted. But, like Mum said, that was to be expected from a businessman, especially one as successful as the Vescaris.

But seeing him in person was something I was wholly unprepared for.