Karma

This made Nicole extremely nervous. She pulled over the car, not wanting to cause an accident with Bruno in that state. She gently removed his hand that was gripping her leg, but he put it back while giving her a mischievous look. 

He began to lean in closer to her face, but at that moment, he started to gag and vomit. Nicole couldn't believe her bad luck. The interior of the car and part of her clothes were stained. She quickly got out of the car, opened the passenger door, and helped him out. 

She held him while he vomited. In that moment, she thought that Bruno Leone must have entered her life because of karma. If that had to be the definitive reason, then she must have done something in her past life that she was paying for with him in this one.

When he regained control, she let go of him to clean his face. She took some paper towels from the car and started to clean him up. Bruno stared at her and then smiled.

"I love you," he said, his gaze fixed on her and a silly smile on his face.

Nicole ignored what he said, cleaned the car interior a bit, and helped him get back in. She was completely regretful of going there with Sophie. 

Taking care of drunk people was not her thing. She drove him to his mansion, and upon arrival, the butler came out to greet them. He helped her get him out of the car, and together they took him to his bedroom.

"Now I will leave him in your hands, madam."

"No, wait. I have to leave now."

"I'm sorry, but I'm leaving. This is beyond my duties and outside my working hours. Don't leave him alone or he could choke. The gentleman has had too much to drink," she said intentionally, a malicious smile forming on her lips. She left the room while a mischievous grin remained on her face.

"I'm definitely paying something with you, Leone. I have no doubt about it anymore," she thought to herself.

"I love you," he said as he opened his eyes to repeat the same phrase.

She ignored him again and headed towards the bathroom. She filled the bathtub with cold water and returned to the bedroom. She removed all his clothes, then led him to the bathroom and put him in the tub. He started trembling immediately as the water was completely icy.

"Cold, so cold," he exclaimed.

"I know, but this will help you feel better. I'll leave you here for a moment while I go find you some clothes," she said, unable to deny that immersing him in cold water was somewhat vengeful.

She turned to walk away, but Bruno grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him. The tub was large, so she fell directly onto his body, and she too began to tremble as she became completely soaked.

"Damn it! It's freezing," she thought, realizing that instant karma did exist.

"Haha," Bruno started laughing, finding everything amusing in his state.

"I don't see what's so funny," she exclaimed, annoyed, while trying to stop shivering.

She got out of the tub and grabbed some towels from the cabinet. She approached Bruno and carefully dried his body, unable to avoid blushing. There was no denying that this man looked even better than before, if that were even possible. He remained calm as he watched her.

She led him to the bed and immediately covered him with a blanket. He fell asleep almost immediately. She returned to the bathroom, took a quick shower, and upon stepping out, she grabbed one of Bruno's shirts and put it on. She worried about going back home dressed like that. She took her phone and sent a message to her nanny, explaining the situation.

Sara felt relieved upon receiving the message. She had been worried because she hadn't heard from Nicole. She had been calling and was surprised that she hadn't answered. Now she knew the reason.

Nicole approached the bed and attempted to change Bruno's position. It was better to have him lying on his side. She had heard somewhere that people in that state should sleep in that position to prevent them from suffocating.

"Bruno, come on, you need to turn over, Bruno," she said, trying in vain to move him. Those nearly two meters of muscles were heavy. After persisting for a while, she managed to turn him over, feeling exhausted.

After doing so, she took a blanket and lay down on a chair next to the bed. She would stay there in case anything happened. Despite their disagreements, he was the father of her child, and that was enough for her.

In the early hours of the morning, Bruno woke up. He felt his mouth incredibly dry and needed to drink water. As he got up, he noticed that he was completely naked. "What the hell had happened?"

He saw Nicole sleeping in the chair, looking so beautiful in her sleep. After observing her for a moment, he grabbed a bathrobe and went downstairs to get a glass of water.

Small memories in the form of flashes began to enter his mind. He hoped that the images of him vomiting on the car and on Nicole were just products of his imagination, not real.

"Always subtracting points, Brunito, instead of earning them," he said to himself as he shook his head, making mistake after mistake, and the worst part was that he seemed unable to avoid it.

Since he started his relationship with Nicole years ago, he had developed a habit of talking to himself, usually to draw attention to himself or to chastise himself for everything he did wrong.

Maximilian, on the other hand, still felt confused about what had happened at the bar. Who the hell was that man? He needed to find out; he had never experienced anything like that before.

In the morning, Bruno woke up early while Nicole was still sleeping. He took a shower and left the room. When Nicole woke up, she found a dress and everything she needed to get ready on the bed, including shoes, makeup, and even underwear.

She quickly showered, got dressed, and went downstairs. Bruno was about to start breakfast.

"I was waiting for you to have breakfast. I've been contacted by Amadeus Richter, and he wants to talk to us. He'll be at the company in two hours. He wants us to present the ideas we have and get everything in order before he returns to Russia."

"Well, that's just great. I promised Santi I'd take him to school, and now I won't be able to fulfill that. I'll ask the nanny to take him and drop him off at the office once he's done."

They sat in front of each other and had breakfast in silence. When they finished, they headed to the garage. Nicole was surprised to see the number of cars there. When she lived with him, he had several, but now there were twice as many, if not more.

"You have so many cars," she remarked.

"Yes, some of them are collectibles," he replied proudly.

"If you sold half of them, you could feed many needy children around the world," she said, voicing her true thoughts.

Bruno fell silent, feeling ashamed at what she said. He never thought about those things. He acquired those cars merely to satisfy his vanity. Every time he achieved something he set out to do, he bought one as a way to reward himself.

Upon arriving at the company, they quickly went upstairs, prepared the conference room, and put together a brief presentation. They would show Amadeus a preview of the designs for the construction and remodeling of his hotels.

Bruno had decided to do the designs and plans himself to spend more time with Nicole.

"Who made these designs? They're simply spectacular. I'm sure Amadeus will be pleased," Nicole commented.

"Amadeus? Wow, you're on a first-name basis now. That's great," he said through gritted teeth.

"He specifically requested it."

"Perfect. I made the designs myself, and I hope they integrate well with the garden design."

"I think they do perfectly," she said, handing him the tablet to view the designs.

"Great, our designs unexpectedly complement each other wonderfully."

"You should have informed me that you were doing the designs yourself. Although they're still just ideas we're presenting to the client, since it's the same project, I believe we should work together," she suggested.

"I believe that too. By the way, I want to apologize for what happened last night. I behaved inappropriately."

"Don't worry, it's already forgotten."

At that moment, Bertha entered to inform them that Alizza had been at the company early in the morning. She had set up a workspace next to her desk so she could assist her with anything she needed.

"That's great. Thank you, Bertha. I'll include her in the project as my assistant so she can put her knowledge into practice."

Later, Amadeus arrived at the corporate office accompanied by managers from some of his hotels. He wanted them to be aware of the areas that would be remodeled, so they could handle the situation accordingly, as the renovations would be done in parts to avoid complete closure of the hotels.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," Bruno greeted them cordially.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Leone," they replied in unison.

"Nicole, you look radiant today, absolutely perfect," Amadeus said as he took her hand and planted a warm kiss on it. Nicole blushed; this man had a smile that could melt anyone, and his appearance was flawless.

"Ahem," Bruno coughed loudly, trying to interrupt the moment. The direct interaction between them bothered him. "I think it's better if we start the meeting," he said in a serious tone that didn't go unnoticed by Nicole and Amadeus.

Nicole asked Bertha to call Alizza; she wanted her to be present in the meeting so she could start getting acquainted with the project. The girl hurriedly entered the conference room but stumbled and fell onto Bruno. He caught her and helped her up.

"You should be more careful when walking, miss," Bruno exclaimed in an unfriendly tone. He couldn't believe how incredibly clumsy the girl was.

"I'm sorry, sir. I'll be more careful," she apologized, clearly embarrassed.

Amadeus observed how the girl didn't take her eyes off Bruno for a single moment throughout the entire meeting.

"Interesting," he murmured.

He was interested in Nicole. Upon requesting an investigation, he found out that she was Bruno's wife and the embarrassing reason why they had to get married. Anyone who interacted with them could tell that they didn't have a typical marital relationship. Something was going on, and Amadeus intended to take advantage of it.

Unaware of the Russian's thoughts, Nicole and Bruno explained each of their designs in detail. When it came to their work, they seemed to complement each other very well, capturing the interest of everyone present.

Upon concluding the meeting, the Russian felt satisfied with the sketches they had shown him.

"I congratulate you both. You have impressed me greatly. I believe my choice couldn't have been better; your sketches are simply brilliant."