Page 20 of Isabella

Isabella.

Looking absolutely fucking gorgeous in rose gold, of course. Her floor-length dress fits snug against her perfect curves while draping at the bottom into a modest train. She’s a vision, luring in the attention of every single man in here.

And I don’t fucking like it.

She turns to her side, the awfully high fucking slit in her dress showcasing her tanned long legs.

Fucking hell.

My dick twitches at the sight of her, just like it did on her birthday. Three and a half years later, and this woman still affects me. She always has, and I know she always will.

I’m about to get up and do who the hell knows what when Andreas Bonetti steps up to the table with his three sons: Massimo, Guilherme, and Giovanni. We all stand to greet them, but I’m still distracted by the vision in rose gold as she makes her way across the room to her table with her brothers and sister-in-law.

“Andreas, long time no see,” my dad says enthusiastically, which makes me internally wince at the fakeness of it all.

“Giuseppe,” Andreas says in a knowing tone, as if he’s fully aware of this not-so-coincidental seating arrangement. I’d put money down that my dad paid someone off to seat us with the Bonettis tonight. It’s embarrassing how desperate he’s become, thinking he’s sly by setting this up. Andreas Bonetti is not a fucking idiot, and my dadisfor thinking he’s one.

Thankfully, dinner goes by quickly and without a word requested from me, which is fucking good because I wasn’t listening to a damn thing anyone was saying. All I could think about—all I could focus on—is the woman sitting clear across the room from me.

Mayor Renaldo’s voice comes over the speakers. “Could I have everyone’s attention, please?”

Slowly, all of our attention goes to the short and stocky man standing behind the podium on the stage.

“I would like to take this moment to thank you all for coming out tonight. Your donations, the proceeds from the silent auction, as well as your dinner ticket fee will be going straight to the Children’s Hospital of New York City, where nurses and doctors are working every day to save our youths.”

Mayor Renaldo continues with his written speech about the children’s hospital, which I tune out and continue watching Isabella, who seems to be listening intently to our mayor.

The man is a scumbag and easily bought off. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s going on about what the children’s hospital does just so he can get more donations to help line his pockets, especially with it being his last year in office. He might say all proceeds from tonight go to them, but even I know Mayor Renaldo isn’t that good of a samaritan.

I tune back into his speech. “Please feel free to continue bidding on the silent auction items. The bidding will end at eleven p.m. The dance floor is open, so make sure to take advantage of that, and enjoy the rest of your night. Mingle, drink, and donate!”

The feeling of someone watching me catches my attention, so I shift my gaze over to Massimo Bonetti. He’s sitting in his chair relaxed but staring intently at me as if he’s studying me.

I raise a brow at him, challenging his gaze. He slowly moves his attention toward Isabella, which causes me to narrow my gaze on him. I’ve never had a problem with Massimo Bonetti, but that gleam in his eye and the newly formed smirk on his face when he drags his gaze back to mine has me wanting to climb across this table and make a fucking problem.

Our silent stand-off comes to an abrupt end when Massimo stands from his seat and clears his throat. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go… mingle.” His eyes never leave mine as he speaks, and I swear if this fucking guy is about to do what I think he’s about to do…

My face burns up as Massimo makes his way over to Isabella’s table. He greets everyone before turning his attention to Isabella and extending his hand out to hers. She graciously takes it with a smile on her face, allowing him to lead her to the dance floor, then I lose it.

15

ISABELLA

As soon as I walked off the elevator and stepped into the gala, I felt Nicco’s eyes on me. My body is so in sync with him that even when I don’t want to see him—don’t want to feel him—I do.

And I hate it.

I ignored the feeling of being watched throughout dinner, just trying to enjoy the company of my family and the Caldwell family who run the largest law firm in the city. They’ve been representing our family for decades.

We’re engaging in friendly small talk when Teo interrupts the conversation by welcoming a newcomer to the table. “Massimo,” he says, his gaze pinned directly above me.

I glance over my shoulder and notice the tall, dark, and insanely handsome next-in-line man of the Bonetti family.

“Matteo,” he states, his smooth voice seeping into my skin. He greets everyone else at the table before landing on me.

“Isabella, would you do me the honor of joining me on the dance floor?” he asks with a rugged smile on his face while he extends his hand out to me. “You don’t mind, do you, Matteo?” He asks my brother the question but keeps his eyes glued on mine.

Returning the smile, I place my hand in his and answer for Teo. “He doesn’t mind.” I steal a quick glance at my brother who raises a brow at me but says nothing.

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