Chapter Seven_ He knows what happens to my father

Valentina

"This life," Caterina started, her voice clipped with precision. "is not for the faint of heart. As the wife of Matteo Nevarro, your every move will be watched, scrutinized. You must be strong and calculating."

I sat in the grand, dimly lit library, my back straight, my hands folded neatly in my lap.

Caterina sat across from me, speaking in a measured tone.

She knew what happened yesternight, and she didn't approve of any.

She didn't approve of my discussion with Luciana.

I nodded. "What if I don't want to be cold and calculating?" I asked, my mind not even close to present.

Caterina had been relentless, arriving at the stroke of dawn, then proceeding to cover everything from the proper way to address certain men to the subtleties of surviving this harsh world I found myself in.

Where were those lessons when I needed to talk to Sophia, Matteo's sister.

"Then you should consider the next possible option. Divorce."

The silence between us stretched, the only sound in the room