Chapter 3
Vivienne took a glass of wine from a nearby table.
She drank.
Calmly.
Deliberately.
“You've all lost your minds.”
Alessandro watched her.
She smiled over the rim.
“One frightened maid.”
“One thirsty child.”
“One dusty glove.”
Her gaze swept across the capos.
“And suddenly you’re building a conspiracy.”
Gerald laughed.
“That's what grief and fatherhood have done to him.”
Alessandro looked toward him.
Gerald leaned against the broken picnic cabinet.
“You were sharper before Lily.”
The insult hung there.
Gerald continued.
“Now anyone only has to make the little princess pout and the great Alessandro Carbone forgets how to think.”
Lily lowered her eyes.
Nora moved in front of her slightly.
Gerald noticed.
“Look at that.”
He smirked.
“The maid thinks she's a shield.”
Nora did not move.
Gerald’s eyes narrowed.
“Be careful.”
His voice became quieter.
“You're confusing his attention with importance.”
Alessandro’s jaw tightened.
But he did not strike.
Not this time.
He looked toward Vivienne.
“What bell?”
She sighed dramatically.
“The garden bell.”
“What happens when it rings?”
“Lunch?”
A few capos exchanged glances.
Vivienne smiled.
“Is that sinister enough?”
Nora finally spoke.
“She told someone the bell meant the council room was full.”
Vivienne’s face changed.
Gerald’s eyes hardened.
Nora continued.
“I heard her three days ago.”
“Where?”
“The service corridor.”
Vivienne laughed again.
“She spies now.”
Her eyes moved over Nora.
“Apparently folding sheets no longer satisfies her.”
Nora’s cheeks flushed.
Vivienne stepped closer.
“You know what your problem is?”
Nora said nothing.
“You've spent too long around Lily.”
Her smile sharpened.
“Both of you have started believing being pitied makes you valuable.”
Lily’s lip trembled.
Alessandro finally moved.
One step.
Vivienne looked at him.
Still smiling.
He spoke quietly.
“Finish that sentence.”
Her eyes flashed.
Then she lifted her chin.
“No.”
For the first time, she obeyed the boundary without admitting she had.
Nora continued.
“She said when the bell rang, the men inside would be busy.”
Alessandro looked toward the council-room doors.
At today’s luncheon, all six senior capos had indeed been inside with him.
Vivienne knew.
Of course she knew.
She had arranged the luncheon.
“What else?”
Nora hesitated.
Gerald stared at her.
That stare was enough to explain the hesitation.
Alessandro saw it.
“Nora.”
She looked at him.
“What else?”
Her voice dropped.
“She said the west garden would be empty.”
Vivienne exhaled.
“Because it usually is.”
“And then?”
Nora’s eyes moved toward Gerald.
He smiled.
It was not friendly.
“Go ahead.”
His voice softened.
“Tell him what you think you heard.”
Nora’s hands shook.
Gerald’s smile widened.
“Then remember where you sleep.”
The threat was quiet.
Casual.
That made it worse.
Alessandro’s head turned.
Gerald held his gaze.
“What?”
He spread his hands.
“I meant servants’ quarters.”
Nobody believed him.
Nora swallowed.
Then spoke.
“She said…”
A pause.
“After the wedding, the house would already belong to them.”
The garden went completely still.
Vivienne slowly set down her wine.
Then smiled.
Not embarrassed.
Not afraid.
Proud.
She looked directly at Alessandro.
“Well.”
May you like
Her fingers touched the diamond ring.
“You did ask me to marry into it.”
