Page 35 of My Solemn Vow
My silence clearly not appeasing Patrick, he leaves me with one last thought. “Take a look at how they treat her when you’re at their funeral later today. Maybe it’ll clear up the differences.”
I let Patrick’s words stew as he walks away. All the while, I look at Antonella as she listens to some of the younger women in the pack.
Antonella looks over, as if to check in on me. Her brow knits together as she observes me, but one of the younger women places a hand on her forearm and draws her attention back.
There are many people here that I should speak with and family members I could catch up with, but I can’t take my eyes off her.
What do I do with you, darling?What is this pull?
My wolf cocks his head, and I mimic his movement, looking at her intensely.
She says something to the small group and then dismisses herself. Gracefully stepping around the fresh grave and past headstones, she makes her way to me.
Her sultry voice is low in volume, keeping the conversation between us. “Are you okay?”
I nod. “Why do you ask?”
“Well, the older man came to talk to you. It looked like you were debating hurting him. I thought maybe you needed a buffer.” Antonella’s offer is unexpected and oddly settles some of the rage burning in my gut. But the calm I feel doesn’t cross my face, and Antonella interprets my lack of response as a dismissal. “Alright, well, let me know.”
She takes a step to walk away, and I wrap my hand around her wrist, spinning her back to face me.
“Thank you for coming to check in with me. I appreciate your awareness of the world around you.”
“You’re welcome.” Antonella doesn’t try to pull away from me, though her eyes lock on where we’re joined. My fingers are nearly white where they’re pressing into her wrist.
Why is she so calm? Did they drug her?
Patrick’s words come back to me. She was raised to be a wife in this life.
Why are you the way you are? Let me figure out what makes you tick, darling.
“What’s going on?” Antonella stands a little taller and meets my gaze. “You’re upset by something, and I think it’s more than being married to me.”
“I don’t understand why you’re so calm.” I’m honest, but I can’t pinpoint why I trust her with any information. She’s too disarming.
Antonella grimaces, her little nose wrinkling, and I’m drawn to kiss her.
Kiss her . . . of all fuckin’ things.
I stand my ground in the short distance between us, trying to ignore my inner desires. Holding her here, the warmth of her wrist in my grasp, I wait for her answer. Despite being human, there’s something unbreakable about her.
“At the end of the day, there isn’t a choice in the matter. The best thing I can do is make the most of my situation and hope you do the same.” Antonella chooses her words carefully and, with a soft, sad smile, lowers her volume even further. “I’m committed to making this partnership work.”
“I’ll do what I can.” I slowly remove my fingers from her wrist, and my skin mourns the absence of her warmth, cold again in the early afternoon sun. “We should get moving. I don’t want to be late.”
Antonella nods and waits for me to take the lead. With herhead held high, she has no problem holding my hand and following my lead.
Everything she does, I want to question. I want to know everything.
16
ANTONELLA
A DIFFERENT WORLD
I don’t know how they decided on the order in which the funerals would take place. But in the familiar St. Catherine’s cemetery this morning, surrounded by people I had never met before, the people I’ve called enemies my entire life, I felt the most at home I have in a long time.
Hugged tightly and welcomed to mourn with them, I was not Antonella D’Medici but instead Antonella Cavanagh. No one even suggested I wasn’t. There wasn’t a question if I belonged there.
