Page 26 of Isabella

Teo glances at Lux, who gives him an encouraging look, before settling his gaze back on mine. He lets out a sigh and says, “Only if you want to,” which takes me by surprise.

Teo doesn’t usually give people theoptionto tell him information he wants to know, and after seeing Nicco and me at the gala last night, I’m sure he has several questions flying through his head. Angry questions.

“Well, if I’m being honest, I’d rather not talk about it…” I glance at Lux whose eyes widen in a plea for help.

“But I know it’s something I should probably tell you… so… here goes…”

The buzzing of the espresso machine stops, letting me know my drink is done. I ignore it as my heart rate picks up and my cheeks flush with heat while I prepare to tell Teo the secret I kept for years.

“Niccolò Silvestri and I have—” I swallow deeply. “A past.”

“Good morning, oh sweet family of mine,” Enzo interrupts as he walks into the kitchen and heads straight for the cup of coffee Lux made for Teo.

“Aww, Lux, you didn’t have to make me any coffee,” he says, picking up the cup and taking a sip from it. He lets out a satisfied “Ahh…” before saying, “you’ve really become a master of the French press, huh?”

Giving her a wink, he brings his attention back to the rest of us, finally reading the room. “Did I miss something?”

“Well, first of all, that coffee you’re drinking isminethatmywife made for me,” Teo says. “And secondly, yes, you did miss something. We both fucking missed something apparently.”

Teo snaps his gaze back to mine. “Continue, Isabella,” he says through gritted teeth, the reaction I expected earlier now shining through. “You and Niccolò Silvestri have… a past. What kind of past are we talking about here?”

“Wait, you have a past with Niccolò Silvestri?” Enzo asks, his jaw dropping, then takes another sip of Teo’s coffee. “You know, I fuckingknewsomething was up when he told you to have a good birthday.”

“What kind of past are we talking about here, Isabella,” Teo asks, the patience in his voice wearing thin.

“We met my freshman year at CU and dated for a year and a half,” I spill before murmuring, “a few months before Mom and Dad…”

The room is quiet except for Lux who’s busy making another coffee for Teo. She keeps glancing up between the three of us with wide eyes, like the anticipation of how this conversation will go is making her anxious.

“YoudatedNiccolò Silvestri for a year and a half and never told us? Never told Mom or Dad?” Teo asks.

I shake my head. “Mom knew, but that’s only because she surprised me one night when she came to visit me, and Nicco was there.”

Teo points at Enzo. “You and Niccolò were both seniors while Isabella was a freshman. You never noticed anything around campus between the two of them?” Teo comes off accusatory.

“No, never. I’m just as surprised as you are,” he says.

Teo rests his elbows on the counter and drops his head in his hands, rubbing his temples. Bringing his head back up, he rests his chin on his hands. “Why wouldn’t you tell us? Why didn’t Mom ever say anything?”

Shifting my body so my back is now resting against the counter, I tell him how Nicco wanted to keep us a secret because of his dad and how we convinced Mom not to tell anyone until we had a solid plan of how to be together.

“You knew about this last night,” Teo says to Lux who’s in the process of pouring his new cup of coffee. “How long have you known?” She glances up, eyes wide.

“She’s only known since my birthday. She would’ve told you, but I asked her to give me a little time before doing so,” I answer for her, not wanting to cause a fight between them. “She was just trying to be a good friend to me, Teo.” I’m instantly relieved when a look of understanding washes over his face.

“I was worried about what you guys would think of me. I’m sorry I never told you. I just… I really don’t have a good excuse. It was just better for us to keep our relationship a secret.”

Dropping my gaze down to the marble floor, my mind gets lost in the gray veins before Teo speaks again.

“You know nothing can happen between the two of you, right? I won’t allow it after what his dad did to ours.”

“I know, Teo. And you don’t have to worry. I don’t want anything to do with him either.”

That seems to relieve some of the tension in his shoulders.

“Okay, okay,” Lux says as she hands him a fresh cup of coffee. “Why don’t you two go and do whatever it is you guys do while Izzy and I go and have some girl talk.”

“Why can’t we be part of the girl talk?” Enzo asks. “I want to know how the fuck I missed Izzy and Niccolò when we went to the same school for an entire year.”

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