Chapter 52AnnalisaThe funniest thing about forbidden places was that they scream at you to explore them. And tonight? That scream was practically deafening. Stepping out of the elevator and onto Cristiano's forbidden floor, I felt like I was breaking into Area 51, except instead of aliens, I was probably about to uncover some deep, dark mafia secrets.The lights overhead shining from the ceiling were dim, casting the massive space in this moody black-and-white vibe that was so… Cristiano. Everything was perfect, simple, and cool, like a luxury penthouse straight out of a Pinterest board titled “Rich Villain Aesthetic.” There was no clutter, no personality really—just sharp lines, sleek surfaces, and black and white of everything.At the far end of the room, a small gym area sat tucked in the corner. There was a punching bag swinging slightly like it had recently been used, a treadmill that looked more like art than workout equipment, and a rack of weights neatly arranged by size. Ne
Chapter 53AnnalisaYou know that thing your brain does when it reminds you that you were a trash person for forgetting something important? Yeah, that was where I was at. I swore I wanted to be worried about Cristiano’s health. Like, I even mentally bookmarked the idea of texting or calling Ricardo—Cristiano’s right hand man and tech guy with a gun—but, you know, life happened. Or rather, Giovanni happened. And when Giovanni happened, he happened hard.Take today, for example. I was on set, trying to nail a scene where I was supposed to look effortlessly glamorous while fake-sipping coffee in a ridiculously overpriced designer dress, and suddenly—boom—there he was. Giovanni, with his stupidly perfect hair, his stupidly cocky smirk, and his stupidly loud cheer team.Yup, you heard that right. An effing cheer team!They burst into the studio like they were storming the gates of hell, holding this obnoxious banner that read: GO ANNALISA! THE STAR OF MY HEART! I could feel my soul leave
Chapter 54AnnalisaIf there was one thing about the internet, it was that it never forgets. Like, ‘never ever’ forgets. You could sneeze in public, and ten minutes later, there would be a skit remix of it going viral with the caption, “Bless you, queen.” So yeah, my little “I’m married” moment on the livestream? That had the world laughing their asses out.There were memes, reaction videos, articles, and even some random guy claiming to be my husband for clout. Let him just fear the return of Cristiano from wherever he zoned off to. And my DMs? They were a complete circus. People alternated between congratulating me and asking where Cristiano had been lately. The cherry on top was a tweet that said, “Giovanni got married in the group project and didn’t even get picked as a partner.” Hilarious. Truly.And now, my flu-ridden self was dragging through another day on set, my nose redder than a stop sign, on the verge of losing the very last iota of my patience. Every time I sneezed, my m
Chapter 55CristianoThere was something funny about lying in an MRI machine, listening to its robotic hums and clicks, while you were trying not to panic about what some genius doctor was going to say about your brain. Like, do they practice that ominous sigh that comes before revealing a sad truth about your condition in med school? You know, that sigh—the kind that makes you think, Great, just tell me how screwed I am already.But none of that mattered right now. All I could think about was her smile. That ridiculous, sunshine-on-a-rainy-day smile. Lisa. My Lisa.Her smile burned into my brain like a melting candle on the palm of my hand. It hurts at first, but then it becomes oddly comforting. Ha, what a joke. She probably wasn't even thinking about me right now.God, I hated this.*****FlashbackThat day was supposed to be a regular Thursday. You know, school, boring classes and trying not to punch anyone in the face. But then, my life hit a plot twist I never saw coming.The da
Chapter 56AnnalisaYou know that saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”? Well, in my case, life didn’t just hand me lemons—it chucked them at my head, one by one, while laughing maniacally in the background.I should have seen this coming, honestly. When your husband’s job description included words like “underworld” and “hitman” and you were married before your 27th birthday, it was not like you were signing up for a rom-com. But no one told you how to handle it when a psychopath with too much gel in his hair decides you were his consolation prize.Giovanni. Freaking Giovanni.He was sitting across from me on a mahogany desk, his Rolex watch glinting under the overhead light, smirking like he owned the place. Oh, wait. He practically did.From the look of the empty shelves and dusty floors, I knew this must be one of the abandoned warehouses Giovanni had. They had blindfolded me on the way, so I had no idea where exactly we were.“Annalisa,” Giovanni started, his voice
Chapter 57CristianoThere was nothing else that could compete with sitting in an uncomfortable hospital gown that barely covered my ass to remind me of how utterly pathetic life could be. Honestly, I would rather be dodging bullets than sitting here under the harsh fluorescent lights while some German doctor with an unpronounceable name stared at my MRI scan like it was the freaking Mona Lisa painting.“Mr. Cristiano,” Dr. Reinhardt finally said, his voice thick with a German accent but his words cold and professional. “The results are not encouraging.”No shit, doc. Tell me something I don’t already know.Apparently, my Glioblastoma—a fancy word for “you’re screwed”—was in its final stage. Glioblastoma wasn't just any cancer; it was like the mafia boss of brain tumors. Rapid growth, impossible to kill, and absolutely ruthless. Headaches, seizures, mood swings—I had it all. So, I shouldn't be blamed for my personality changes in the past.And guess what? All those treatments, those
Chapter 58AnnalisaIf hell had a Yelp page, this place would have a solid five-star rating. Seriously, I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. My whole body ached as if I had just finished a full exercise session, and my stomach growled louder than a thunder on a rainy day. And the food? Don’t even get me started on that. Giovanni’s version of “princess treatment” was a plate of two limp slices of bread, smeared with something that might have been margarine—or glue. I didn't know. It was hard to tell.I sat on the cold, concrete floor of what looked like an abandoned warehouse. Every creak and groan of the metal walls made my anxiety spike. Giovanni’s men weren’t the chatty type, and my assigned babysitter—a bulky guy with all the charisma of a dead houseplant—hadn’t taken his eyes off me since I woke up here after being injected with a sleeping dose for trying to run away.I needed to escape again. Just like yesterday.“Hey,” I called out to my Dead Houseplant Guard, who barely bli
Chapter 59CristianoThe private jet touched down in Milan just as the sun was setting into its bed. The moment the wheels hit the tarmac, I was already unbuckling my seatbelt. The flight from Germany had been short, but it felt like an eternity knowing that Annalisa was out there—missing, possibly terrified, and in the hands of a man who didn’t deserve to breathe the same air as her.But the second my feet hit the tarred floor, it was though the world tilted. My vision blurred and a sickening wave of dizziness rolling over me like a bad hangover from hell. I clenched my jaw, forcing my body to stay upright. No, I couldn't feel sick today. Not now. Not when Annalisa was out there, trapped with that bastard. A firm grip landed on my arm and I didn't need too look before I knew it was Ricardo. His brows were furrowed when my eyes managed to meet his sharp that were filled with concern. “Are you good?” I yanked my arm away. “Ask me that again, and I’ll have you buried next to Giovanni
Chapter 83CristianoThey say you only appreciate the sky when you have been buried underground. In this hospital room, buried was exactly how I felt. Being trapped at the center of a cube of white walls, dim lights, and the space filled with nothingness where my memories should have been.Since I woke up, every minute felt like a crash course in reality. Nurses with their forced smiles and ice-cold hands poked and prodded me, but none of it dug deep enough to scratch the itch of my missing memories. I had been bed-bathed more times than I could count, their soft sponges against my skin a bitter reminder of how helpless I had become.But today, I told myself I have had enough.“I want a real bath,” I told the nurse, my voice rough, like gravel being scraped along the pavement. She pursed her lips, her pen frozen over the clipboard, and rattled off a list of medical restrictions: no showers, no standing too long, no this, no that. The word “no” clanged around my head like a jail cell d
Chapter 82CristianoWaking up from the surgery felt like swimming through concrete. So cold, tight and suffocating. My eyes cracked open, and all I saw was white—like a blank canvas or the kind of nothingness you see in movies when someone dies. For half a second, I thought maybe I had kicked the bucket. Maybe this was heaven, or some kind of in-between.Then I saw her.She had this softness around her, a glow, like she was pulled straight out of a dream. ‘An angel, maybe?’ I had thought because, honestly, I wouldn't have been surprised. But then my brain caught up, processing the sterile smell, the faint beeping, and the tubes attached to my body. I was in a hospital. Alive. And thoroughly confused.I didn't know what hurt more—the throbbing in my skull or the empty echo in my head where memories should have been. I reached for something, anything, that felt familiar, but it was like standing in the middle of a foggy field with nothing but shadows and whispers.When my eyes adjuste
Chapter 81AnnalisaThey say grief has five stages—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. But what about the grief of losing someone who is still breathing? What stage do you get stuck in when the love of your life looks at you like you are a total stranger?I sat by Cristiano's hospital bed, the room completely shrouded in that suffocating, sterile silence. Machines beeped steadily, a rhythm that should have been reassuring but only made my nerves more uneasy. The rising and falling of his chest was like a reminder that he was still here, but the warmth and spark that used to be in his eyes were somewhere else, somewhere I couldn’t reach.The room was cold. Or maybe it was just me that felt it.My fingers twisted into the blanket, and I forced myself to breathe evenly. Dr. Moretti’s words still echoed freshly in my head. He said, ‘Memory loss can happen after prolonged surgery. It may be temporary’I clung to the word ‘may’ like it was a lifeline on a stormy day. I ju
Chapter 80AnnalisaHospitals smelled like antiseptic, like sterile hopelessness.I never liked them.The bright white lights, the hushed whispers, the way every breath felt like it could be your last…it made my skin itch like a bug was crawling on me. But now, standing in the middle of the corridor, staring at the red light above the operating room door, I had never hated a place more.Cristiano was in there.My husband, the only man who had ever truly owned my heart, was lying on a table while surgeons cut into his skull, fighting to keep him alive.I wasn’t a woman of faith. I never had been. But right now, I was making bargains with every god I had ever heard of. If they let him live, I would do anything. I would be a better person, I would truly forgive my family, I would—I would just do whatever it took as long as he came back to me.I wrapped my arms around myself, staring at the door like my desperation could somehow make the surgery go faster. My heart pounded so hard it made
Chapter 79CristianoI swear, I thought I was done for.For a solid month,I had imagined what it would be like if I ever got to hold her again. If I could kiss her, touch her, remind her that no matter what happened, she was mine. Every night in my cold bed at my mansion, I dreamed of it. I replayed memories of us like a damn movie I never wanted to end.And now, it was real. She was here now.Annalisa was in my arms again, and for the first time in a long time, I felt like I was actually permitted to breathe now.I stared at her, taking in every little detail of her beauty. Her soft brown hair cascading over her shoulders, her flushed cheeks, the way her lips were still slightly swollen from our kiss. She was fucking beautiful. A walking temptation. And right now, she was mine again, even if the universe had tried to pull us apart.I tilted her chin up, my thumb brushing against her cheek. “You don’t know how much I needed this,” I murmured.Her lips parted slightly, her breath shaky
Chapter 78AnnalisaI needed this.I needed him.The moment Cristiano's lips crashed against mine, it felt like the world stopped spinning. Like every ache, every lonely night, every whispered “I miss you” into my pillow didn’t matter anymore—because he was here, and I was in his arms, and God, I had forgotten what it felt like to breathe without him.His kiss wasn’t just a kiss. It was desperately filled with all the things we couldn’t say. Apologies. Longing. Love and whatnots. His hands slid up my sides, his fingers pressing into my skin like he was afraid I would disappear.I didn’t care that we were in a hospital room. I didn’t care that he was recovering, or that I could still hear the faint beeping of machines outside the door.All I cared about was him.His warmth. His touch. The way he tasted like mint and something only Cristiano could taste like.“Hubby,” I gasped against his lips, my hands fisting his hospital shirt.“What did you just call me?” Cristiano smiled, pulling o
Chapter 77AnnalisaI told him yes!Of course, I wanted to see him. The moment those words left my lips, it felt as though my heart was about to burst out of my chest. Cristiano wanted to see me after everything; He still wanted to see me after what felt like the longest separation, after all the pain… and yes, I was finally going to see him again!But the moment I hung up the call, panic gripped me, blood rushing to my head as I began to question myself. What the hell was I doing? What if I got there and lost my nerve? What if I saw him, and everything came crashing down again? What if I saw pity in his eyes, and it broke me?Those thoughts brought a sad sensation to my belly, but I told myself no this time around. I didn't have the time to have spiraling thoughts.Because as soon as I shot up from the couch, Bree walked into the apartment, holding two cups of coffee. “I'm back with your favorite iced cappuccino!” she said, flashing her usual smirk.I barely let her finish before I
Chapter 76CristianoShe texted me.She fucking texted me.I blinked at my phone, rubbed my eyes, and stared at the screen again. Maybe I was still unconscious. Maybe the IV in my arm was messing with my head. Maybe—just maybe—this was some twisted dream or hallucination, and when I woke up, it would be gone.But it wasn’t. It was, in fact, real. Right there, in my messages, Annalisa had actually texted me first. And not just some casual, meaningless message. She said she missed me.Annalisa missed me.For a solid five seconds, I just sat there in the hospital bed, gripping my phone like it might disappear if I let go. My brain short-circuited, and every rational thought just left the damn building.This had to be a mistake, right? A slip-of-the-finger text? A moment of weakness she would instantly regret? Right?But if that were the case, then why did my heart feel like it had just been ripped out of my chest and put back together in the span of a single message?Because deep down, I
Chapter 75AnnalisaI told myself I wouldn’t think about him today. It was a promise to myself, even. But I guess the universe always had other plans.Because the moment I woke up, he was everywhere. In the stupid scent of his cologne that still clung to the shirt he once left in my room after a good sex. I had kept it to myself, refusing to throw it away and now, as I found myself in it, I felt like crying. He was also in the way my bed suddenly felt too big and cold. In the silence of my new bedroom, so deafening that my heartbeat pounded in my ears.I squeezed my eyes shut, inhaling deeply. One well has passed again. A whole-ass month plus one week. And I was not doing fine.Sure, I got up every day, showered, and ate. I did the whole “pretending to be normal” thing. But every time I laughed, it felt fake. Every time I smiled, it felt forced.And Cristiano? He hadn’t called. Not once. Not a damn text. It was funny how I still hoped he would even though I had clearly pushed him away