When I arrive at our destination, I head up to my office where Dunyasha is already waiting for me, and from the expression on her face, I imagine the news isn’t good.“Good evening, Dunyasha! What news do you have for me?” I ask, taking a seat.“Good evening, young Carluccio! You can call me Yasha, as I’ve mentioned before. Regarding the other matter, we still haven’t found the mastermind behind all this, but the good news is that I’ve started eliminating several locations that were indicated as starting points. Believe it or not, it’s a significant advance.”“And I told you that you can call me Alexandre, Yasha. I believe you; if Pietro recommended you, there’s a reason, so I trust both of you. About the other issue, what have you been informed?”“We’ve kept her under surveillance day and night as you ordered, so much so that I was informed when you went to look for her and where you visited.”“Perfect, keep it up.”“Don’t worry, young Carluccio, nothing bad will happen to your girlf
The next day, as I'm finishing getting ready, aunt Melike appears, her eyes a bit red and puffy, but despite everything, a small smile adorns her face."Oh, aunt Melike! Don't tell me you had a nasty argument with uncle Mich?" I ask, somewhat concerned."Just a little, but eventually he calmed down, and we sorted everything out.""But your eyes are still a bit red; for a moment, I thought you'd do what mom does with dad." I respond while trying to tie my hair into a ponytail."What does Mrs. Ekatherina do?" I start laughing and lower my voice so no one will hear us if they decide to open the door without knocking."When mom argues with dad, she locks herself in her room almost all day, making him feel miserable...""Liza! Don’t speak like that about your father." She responds, somewhat alarmed, glancing toward the door."Fine, making him feel bad, happy now?" She nods, so I continue, "She doesn't come out all day, but when dinner time comes, she comes downstairs all dressed up, wearin
"Stop, Bellini!" I order him as soon as I see his intention to draw his weapon and point it at Liza. She turns and looks at us with a smile."This place is beautiful." She comments, pointing to the photo in her hand."It is, darling. I'll take you there one of these days." At this, her smile widens, and she nods excitedly."Really, bonbon? I've always wanted to go, but I know it's extremely hard to get a ticket." She replies, a bit disheartened."Yes, darling, I promise. But now, I'd like to know, how does that place belong to your uncle Maurizio?""He bought it a year ago. Apparently, the previous owner went bankrupt, and since uncle Maurizio always wanted a place like that, he decided to acquire it.""And does he know who the previous owner was?" Yasha inquires, stepping ahead of us."He’s never mentioned it, but I suppose he does. Why is it so important to know that person's name?" Bellini subtly shakes his head at me, signaling not to say anything, but since she’s shared something
I leave my office after that conversation we had and head to the bar, where Liza is chatting with the bartender. I signal to him not to mention that I’m standing behind her, and I listen to their conversation."So, what drink do you recommend?" Liza asks, eyeing all the bottles in front of her."Do you drink alcohol?" Liza ponders for a moment and shakes her head. "In that case, I'll make you a Cosmopolitan.""And how do you make it?""With a bit of vodka, raspberry juice, some triple sec, and lemon juice. It's not too strong, so I hope you'll like it." He starts preparing her drink, and Liza watches intently as he mixes the flavors. When he places it in front of her, I signal for him to leave us alone."I'll be back later." He says before heading to the storeroom."Thanks, I hope you're not gone too long, I enjoyed talking with you." Liza murmurs, taking a small sip of her drink."Did you like it, sweetheart?" I ask, hugging her from behind and resting my head on her shoulder. She te
Yelizaveta "Yelizaveta!" Dad's shout pierces the silence that reigns at this moment. I look up and realize he is watching me quite annoyed."Mom! What happened?" She just cries a little louder and before she can say anything, Dad comes to us and takes mom by the waist."Why do you think I did something to your mother? Just because she's crying doesn't mean it's my fault." As soon as he says this, I feel ashamed for thinking that about dad, so I lower my head."So what happened to her?" I murmur, taking mom's hand."Grandpa Yuri is very delicate, honey. I have to go take care of him," She informs me with a choked voice."I want to go with you.""No honey, it's better if you stay with your father, besides you will leave Alexandre alone. I don't know how long I'll take to return. Uncle Mich will accompany me, and you know aunt Melike will be sad if you leave too.""But Alexandre will understand…""There’s no time, honey. They're waiting for me at the airport." She kisses my cheek and le
“But daddy…”“But nothing, I’m not going to accept that in any way, you’re still too Young.” He shouts increasingly louder.“What did you do, darling?” Alex inquires, holding back laughter just like I am.“Apparently, dad didn’t like the ring you sent me, bonbon.” I explain in a sad voice. “I don’t understand because the whole jewelry set you gave me is beautiful.” I turn the box around and show it to them. When dad realizes it’s not just an engagement ring as he thought, he glares at my cell phone as if he could direct all his animosity towards the bonbon through it.“Darling, you’re wicked. Why did you show the ring first and not the necklace or any of the other jewels? Do you see that it’s not just me who makes him angry?” At this, I can’t help but laugh as dad returns to his seat and begins cutting the food with such fury as if it were the cause of his anger.“I’ve picked up a bit of your habit of making him angry.” I hear him let out a small chuckle, and my heart trembles with ex
“Come in, Alexandre.” Liza's father, says as soon as we arrive at his office. I step in, and after he enters, he closes the door. We sit down, and for a few seconds, Mr. Belucci looks at me with a frown. “I must confess, I didn't like you. Not because of who you are, nor your connection with Lombardi. Generally, no man who kisses my daughter could please me, but I have to admit that your interest in her is sincere.”“As I told your wife a few weeks ago, fath... Mr. Belucci, my interest in your daughter is genuine. I want the best for her.”“And now I understand. Assigning bodyguards to her, knowing how she feels about it, clearly shows that you don't mind risking a big argument with her, as you've seen, she hates being watched. I want you to tell me how things happened and since when she has been under surveillance.”I start by explaining everything from the moment Liza saved me from those men who tried to kill me when I escaped from Passione Proibita, the first time she visited me at
Although I’m still a little upset about what happened this afternoon, I can’t deny that I’m excited to visit the Casino of the bonbon. The trip unfolds in complete silence, only broken when I receive a message from my little headache.“I’m counting the minutes to see you again! I love you, darling!” I smile at his words, but I decide not to reply, wanting to make him suffer a little.After almost two hours of travel, my gaze falls on an imposing building that could easily resemble an ancient castle. I look out the window, and large gates block our path, but after the men traveling with me exchange a few words with the guards, they allow us to pass.“You’ll need this, miss.” One of the men informs me, handing me a beautiful mask that covers most of my face.“What is this for?” I ask with a frown, momentarily saddened to think that bonbon doesn’t want people to know we’re a couple. I'm almost about to ask them to turn around and take me back.“It’s for security, miss.” Not entirely conv