I couldn’t help but keep my eyes on the woman holding onto Gio. Gio moved away from her and came closer to me. Although he tried to hide it, I could tell he was smiling at me, but I couldn’t bring myself to return his smile. My gaze lingered on the woman who seemed to be observing me as well. Who was she? I wanted to ask Gio right away, but I didn’t want to show everyone that I was feeling jealous.
Gio touched my elbow, getting my attention. I looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing here, Millie?” I wanted to chastise him for how calmly he was speaking to me, but I was feeling a bitterness creeping in.
“Sir, Ma’am Millie called earlier.” The secretary said. “I couldn’t tell you right away because you were talking to Architect Aleeza.”
Aleeza, huh? That’s her name, and she’s an architect.
I remained silent and continued to stare at Gio. Aleeza approached us and gave us a warm smile, as if she hadn’t been snubbing me just a while ago. My way of looking at her didn’t change. Even if she didn’t say it, I could sense it. She had a thing for my husband.
“Who is she, Gioseffo?” She called my husband by that name again. Most people around him usually call him Gio. Apart from me and maybe a few others, this woman was the only one I heard calling him Gioseffo, and I couldn’t understand why it left a bitter taste in my mouth every time I heard that name from another woman.
“This is my wife, Millie,” Gio introduced me to Aleeza. I saw the woman’s smile vanish momentarily, but she quickly composed herself and forced a fake smile. “Millie, this is Architect Aleeza Gallagher, one of my business partners and a good friend.”
Good friend, huh? I had no idea you were so friendly, Gio. Gosh, if only I could shout out the thoughts racing through my mind, I would have done so.
I extended my hand, taking the initiative, and presented a smile. I was good at masking my emotions, something I’d been doing for a long time. “Yes, I am Gio’s wife. It’s nice to meet you, Architect.”
I noticed the stiffness in her jaw when she heard me use the word “wife.” Who knows if she even knew Gio was married, or if she did, she was choosing to ignore the fact that Gio was taken. Nevertheless, she still tried to show that my presence didn’t faze her. I trusted Gio; he had proven his love for me multiple times and had never shown interest in anyone else. But, sorry, I didn’t trust some women around him, especially those who were fully aware of a person’s marital status and didn’t understand the concept of personal space.
“Sorry, Aleeza. I can’t talk right now. My wife is here. Let’s discuss the project some other time. You can also call Carter, as he’s part of the project.”
Aleeza nodded and forced a smile at Gio. “By Carter, you mean your cousin, Valerio?”
“Yes,” Gio replied tersely.
Aleeza nodded once again before looking at our now-interlocked hands.
“Okay, then. I’ll be going now,” Aleeza said, turning to me. “Nice to meet you, Millie. I didn’t make it to your wedding, so I didn’t know who Gio’s wife was.”
My lips quivered as I forced a smile at her, partly out of respect because she hadn’t done anything to anger me. I might be a pushover with my dad, but I knew how to stand up for myself when others crossed the line.
We waited for Aleeza to leave before I looked at Gio again. He guided me into his office, still oblivious to the tension between me and the other woman.
Gio had his employees in the office pantry arrange the food for us. After Dario and the others finished their tasks, they left us alone.
I took a seat, and Gio did the same. He sat beside me while I arranged our plates with food.
“Did you cook, Millie?” He ran his hand along my waist, causing me to inhale deeply.
I nodded briefly to answer his question, not in the mood for conversation. Speaking might just exacerbate the bitterness I was feeling. I could tell Gio noticed because he stopped his gentle caresses on my waist. I also filled his plate with food.
“Why are you so quiet, Millie? Is something bothering you?”
I despised how he always knew when something was wrong with me, even the slightest change in my mood.
“It’s nothing. I’m just quiet sometimes. Let’s eat, Gioseffo.”
He held my hand and stopped me from trying to change the subject. He turned me towards him, and as our gazes met, he raised an eyebrow.
“You’re only this quiet when something’s bothering you, Millie. Now, tell me what’s bothering you.”
I sighed. Sometimes I wanted him to know me this well, but often I wished he wouldn’t notice my silences.
“Is this because of Aleeza?”
He beat me to it, mentioning what was troubling me. I bit my lip and averted my gaze. Now that he brought up that woman’s name, I couldn’t help but feel bitter.
In the past, I never felt jealous because Gio was extremely reserved around other people, especially other women. But the moment I met a woman close to Gio outside his family, I felt an unexplainable sense of insecurity.
Gio sighed deeply when I didn’t respond, but my silence was enough for him to discern that his suspicions were correct.
Gio pulled my chair closer to him and turned to face me. He rested his arm on the back of my chair before speaking.
“Aleeza is a childhood friend. She’s the daughter of a friend and business partner of my dad. It’s only natural for us to talk often since we’re business partners now. But other than that, Millie, there’s nothing between us, and you have no reason to be jealous.”
I shot him a quick, sharp look, my forehead creased in response to his accusation of my jealousy.
“I’m not jealous!” I defended myself, but my cheeks were heating up because I felt like he could read my thoughts.
Gio gazed at me for a long while before a faint smile played on his lips. My cheeks flushed even more because of that.
“Fine, you’re not jealous. Don’t overthink Aleeza; she’s a friend and business partner. You’re my wife, Millie. What more assurance do you need, hmm?”
He caressed my cheek, making my tongue retreat. I couldn’t help but feel this pang of jealousy, even if I didn’t want to admit it.
“You, too, get jealous when a guy approaches me. So, what assurance do you want me to give you to stop your jealousy?” I returned his question since I couldn’t answer it myself.
He grazed his lower lip with his tongue, and I was captivated by the sight. It was undeniably enticing.
“Let’s eat!” I said, snapping out of it. “You might end up eating something else if you keep this up!”
I knew he heard what I said because he ran his hand up my thigh, causing me to inhale deeply.
“We can eat each other for dessert.”
I bit my lip again, but a smile crept onto my face because of Gio’s words.