NOVGO.NET Chapter 60 She is married?
Chapter 60: Chapter 60 She is married?
Rafael leaned back in the leather seat of the black SUV, his arms crossed over his chest. The car was dark inside, the windows tinted, the city lights blurring past as the driver navigated through the traffic. Eva sat beside him, her hand resting on his knee, her blue eyes watching the tension between the two brothers.
Alessio sat across from them, his face half hidden in shadow, his green eyes fixed on the window. He had not spoken since they left the hospital. His jaw was tight, his shoulders rigid, his hands resting on his knees like he was holding himself back from something.
"Bro," Rafael said finally, breaking the silence. "We are not stalking you. We were just eating in the cafeteria. That is all. We were hungry. Very hungry. Starving, even. We saw you and thought, ’Oh, look, there’s our brother. Let’s sit near him.’ That is all."
Sitting beside him, Eva nodded her head rapidly. Her long black hair bounced with each nod, the blonde highlights catching the dim light. She held Rafael’s arm tightly, her fingers curled into his sleeve like he was her lifeline. Because Alessio was still glaring at them. His glare was enough to give her nightmares for seven days straight. It was cold and sharp and made her want to hide under the seat.
Eva pressed closer to Rafael, her face half hidden behind his shoulder.
Rafael cleared his throat. "Okay, okay. We are sorry. We will not follow you again. We will pretend we did not see anything. We will erase this from our memory. It never happened. We were never there."
Alessio did not respond. He just kept staring out the window, his reflection pale against the dark glass.
Rafael sighed. "Fine. Let’s forget that and start a new topic."
He paused, then wiggled his thick brows, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "Why are you dating that mute woman in the cafeteria?"
Alessio’s head turned slowly toward his brother. His green eyes were flat, cold, and deadly.
"I am not dating anyone."
Rafael’s grin widened. "Oh really? Then why did you buy her food? Why did you sit with her? Why did you use sign language? Why did you roll your eyes at her?"
Alessio’s jaw tightened, a muscle twitching in his cheek. "I did not roll my eyes."
"Yes, you did. I saw it. Eva saw it. The whole cafeteria saw it. It was the most human thing I have ever seen you do. You actually looked like a person instead of a statue."
Alessio stared at him, his green eyes boring into Rafael’s face.
Rafael leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. "Come on, bro. Just admit it. We won’t tell anyone. We are family. We keep secrets."
Alessio’s green eyes flickered. Something passed through them, quick and sharp, like a crack in ice.
"She is married," he said, his voice flat.
Rafael’s grin faltered, his eyebrows shooting up. "She is married?"
"Yes."
Rafael stared at his brother, processing the information. The way Alessio had watched her eat like she was the most fascinating thing in the world...
"Bro," Rafael said carefully, his voice quieter now. "The way you were looking at her..."
"What way?"
"The way. The way you looked at her. Like she was the only person in the room... Like the rest of us did not exist... Like she was the only thing worth seeing."
Alessio’s expression did not change. His face remained cold and unreadable. "I do not look at anyone in any way," he said.
Rafael laughed in disbelief. "Bro, I have known you my whole life. I have seen you look at enemies with less intensity. I have seen you look at business rivals with less focus. You looked at her like she was the most important person in the world. Like she was the answer to a question you did not know you were asking."
Alessio turned his face toward the window, his reflection staring back at him.
"She is Cedric Evermont’s wife," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "So don’t speak nonsense."
He looked away, his jaw tight, his hands curling into fists on his knees.
Meanwhile, Cedric Evermont sat in his spacious office chair, his posture rigid, his shoulders tense. He leaned forward, typing rapidly on his laptop, his fingers moving across the keyboard with sharp, impatient strokes. A half-empty cup of coffee sat beside him, the liquid growing cold, a thin film forming on the surface. His blue eyes were fixed on the screen, his jaw tight, the muscles in his neck straining.
The door opened without a knock.
Cedric did not look up. He knew who it was. He did not need to see her face. He recognized the click of her heels against the floor, the sharp, confident rhythm. He recognized the scent of her perfume, floral and sweet, the same one she always wore.
Jessica.
"Ricky!" she called out, her voice sweet and bright, like nothing had happened between them, like the fight had never happened, like she had not screamed at him and thrown a glass against the wall. "I bought you breakfast."
She walked toward his desk, a paper bag in her hand, the smell of fresh pastries and coffee drifting through the air. The bag crinkled as she moved, the scent of warm croissants and something sugary filling the space between them. She set it down in front of him, her red nails tapping against the brown paper.
Cedric ignored her.
He kept typing. His fingers did not slow. His eyes did not leave the screen.
Jessica’s smile faltered. She waited, standing there, her hands on her hips. He did not look at her. He did not acknowledge her presence. He did not even glance at the bag of food she had brought him.
"Ricky," she said again, her voice softer now, almost pleading. "Baby. Talk to me."
Cedric stopped typing. He leaned back in his chair and looked at her. His blue eyes were cold and hard, like chips of ice. There was no warmth in them, no softness, nothing of the man who had kissed her so passionately just days before.
"What do you want, Jessica?"
Jessica’s lip trembled. She stepped closer to his desk, her red hair spilling over her shoulders, her green eyes wide and pleading. She looked vulnerable, fragile, like a wounded bird.
"Baby, I know you are angry. I know we fought. But you have to understand. I was just angry. I did not mean what I said. I was hurt. I was scared. I did not know how to handle it."
Cedric stared at her, his expression unreadable.
Jessica rushed on, her words tumbling out. "My dad is forcing me to meet some guy. Some businessman. He thinks I should marry him. He does not care about you. He does not care about us. He just wants the alliance, the money, the status. He does not care about my happiness."
Cedric’s cold expression shifted into shock. His eyebrows rose. His lips parted.
"What?" he exclaimed. "Your dad is forcing you to meet someone?"