“Are the cookies ready, mommy?!” a tiny body hugged Alice’s leg as she finished placing the latest batch of cookies on the Bianchis’ kitchen counter.
“Your favorites are almost ready, darling.” She took off the oven glove to stroke Millie’s hair for a moment “They just need to cool down.”
“Did you do the others I asked for?” Her daughter asked, with an expectation that left Alice confused.
“The ones with caramel and chocolate drops? Yes, I did. They're over there." She pointed toward the end of the kitchen counter, though her eyes were on Millie's delighted expression “Are you sure you want to eat them? I thought you didn't like caramel that much...”
“Uh... Yes, I'll eat.” Mil
“What letter is that?” Alice asked, holding up one of Millie's old colorful cards, which had actually belonged to herself in her childhood."B!" Millie raised her finger excitedly.“And what word starts with B?”“Bee!” Millie looked for the bee figure among the various illustrations that were spread across the table, until she managed to help Alice put the two together.“You are so smart!” Alice pulled her close, hugging her until Millie was laughing, trying to pull away “So, shall we draw the bee and try to write its name, like we did with the apple?” She sat her baby in her lap, reaching for the blank sheets of paper and the colored pencils that were also on the table “You're getting so good at this...&r
“Massimo!” Thea gasped, like a mother who had just seen her son get into an accident, but she didn't even have time to take more than a few steps into the room before a shout from Massimo stopped her.“Don’t come near me!” he growled, but even though he was trying to hide his face as he was struggling to stand up using only his arms, Alice could see the pain and humiliation in his expression “Neither of you! If you don’t want to be thrown out of this mansion right now, then you better stay where you are!” His voice sounded harsher and more menacing than usual, his limp legs making harrowing sounds over the broken glass, dragging the shards across the carpet and certainly forming some cuts in the fabric of his sweatshirt and on his skin.“Massimo, please...” Josiah held his crying wife by the shoulders,
“You shut up too!” Massimo raised his finger in her direction, angry as if she had stabbed him “Me and my treatments have nothing to do with you! You have no idea what I went through to end up this way and what I'm willing to do to get back to the way I was! I don’t give a fuck if you’re a nurse or not. You’re not even my wife to want to meddle in my affairs!”“Believe me, when you’re in a hospital bed again, you’ll be sorry for this.” Alice countered, wishing that all the worry she felt for that man could just disappear, so her heart wouldn't have to break a little more every time she looked at him “I just hope you can realize how wrong you are before your attitude push away everyone who still cares about you, Massimo.”Unable to stand being there any longer, Alice just turned her ba
“Get that rubbish out of my sight, Thea. I already said I won’t touch it.”That phrase, coming from Massimo, was the first thing Alice heard when she and Millie entered the dining room hand in hand, still in their pajamas, finding Massimo sitting there, with the room completely dark. Some fruit, a sandwich and a bowl of what looked like oatmeal were in front of him, while Thea remained standing by his side, observing his haggard and exhausted expression, with deep circles under his eyes...At least, until he saw Alice there.“What the hell are you doing here?” he growled, his posture changing completely, like a porcupine bristling “Do you have any idea what time it is? Why did you get the girl out of bed so early?”“Millie
“Massimo!” Thea gasped, but Alice just held her shoulder, calming her.“So, you just want to do what you want, right?” Alice raised an eyebrow “Okay then.” Calmly, she pulled his plate away from him, making Massimo groan.“What do you think you’re doing?!”“If you're not willing to do something that you know will only be good for you, then that means you're not willing to do the rest either, I believe.” She raised an eyebrow, moving to where he couldn't reach her “Or was I wrong? Thea, could you get the medicine back, please? Since Mr. Bianchi wants to eat, that means he is also willing to do whatever he needs, right?”“You...” Massimo glared at her, cornered as if he had been caugh
“And that’s Rainbow Dash! She likes to fly, so she will stay on your lap where it is highest.” Millie skipped across the garden until she reached where Massimo was, placing her little plastic pony on his knee.“Uh... Thanks. I will take care of her.” Massimo promised hesitantly, taking the toy between his hands as if he didn't know what to do with it, and Alice wasn't very successful in containing her laughter, as he immediately turned to her, irritated "I think I've already had a sunbath long enough. Why don’t we continue this game inside?” he offered to Millie, as careful and gentle as if he were dealing with a soap bubble.“But we just arrived.” Millicent blinked, confused “We still have plenty of time to play!” She clapped her hands, running to get one of her baby dolls, but instead
“Look at that.” Emma Bianchi narrowed her eyes, almost as if she was looking at an insect “It seems that your condition is not as critical as your lawyers said to find an excuse to further delay the process of transferring positions in the company.”“Mother...” the man next to her, who Alice knew very well was Massimo’s half-brother, Dante Bianchi, tried to calm his mother, but neither Emma nor Massimo paid any attention to her.“Do you want me to call the police to get you off my land...?” Massimo questioned, intimidatingly “Or do you want to do this with your own legs, Emma?”“Still disrespectful even after all that’s been through, I see.” His stepmother raised an eyebrow “I thought a situation like this would have at least t
“Get her out of here right now!” Alice's order reverberated through the garden, and even herself was surprised at how firm she seemed, especially because there had been few times in her entire life when she had had the opportunity to take control, but even so she remained with her expression unchanged, determined to expel those people who were disturbing Massimo.“Get me out of here...? Do you really think you can kick me out of the farm that belongs to my family...?” Emma growled, her voice rising even more as Joshua and his men began to approach “Don't you dare touch me...!”“Let’s go, mom.” Dante held her arm, almost as if she were a mischievous child trying to throw a tantrum “This has gone too far already...”“How can you want to leave afte