HELENA’S POV
“No ” I breathed.
I walked into the room and froze. The sight in front of me felt like a dagger to the chest-Gianna’s lips on Dante’s. My heart pounded, the sound roaring in my ears as the world slowed to a suffocating crawl. Dante was the first to react, jerking away from her, his eyes locking onto mine with a flash of guilt so strong it pierced me deeper.
I opened my mouth to speak, to demand an explanation, but nothing came out. The words were trapped in my throat, buried beneath the tidal wave of pain rising inside me. Dante took a step toward me, his hands reaching out, desperation clouding his face.
“It’s not what it looks like,” he said, his voice hoarse, guilt ridden and a twinge of anger hiding within.
But I couldn’t hear him. I couldn’t process anything beyond the image seared into my mind-Gianna, her lips pressed to his, the way he hadn’t pulled away fast enough. I took a step back, the ache spreading like wildfire through my chest. I wanted to scream, but all I could do was stand there, frozen, shattered. He said he loved me, how could you love someone and then go ahead to hurt them, I couldn’t fathom it.
He tried to reach out to me “Helena ”
“Don’t touch me,” I managed, my voice cold as I recoiled from his touch.
From the corner of the room, Gianna’s voice cut through the air like a knife, smug and dripping with satisfaction. “You don’t have to lie, Dante. It’s exactly what it looks like.”
Dante shot her a glare. “Shut the fuck up woman.”
But her words were already lodged in my heart. I couldn’t believe him. Not after everything. The weight of betrayal settled on me, dragging me under. I felt myself spiraling, the memory of his betrayal five years ago flooding my mind, blending with the present. The pain felt the same.
I looked down at the diamond necklace hanging around my neck, the one he had given me from the auction. It felt like a noose. My fingers reached for it before I could stop myself, pulling it from my neck and throwing it to the floor. The sharp sound of it shattering echoed in the room, but I didn’t care. I wanted to be away from him, I couldn’t bear to look at his face and not feel a painful pang in my chest.
I turned and bolted for the door, my heart in pieces. I heard Dante call my name behind me, his footsteps pounding after me, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. The tears burned in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not yet. Not where he could see me. I wanted to hurt him. I wanted him to feel the same pain twisting inside of me, ripping me apart from the inside out.
A little part of me believed it was all a setup, because Matteo had sent me to that room to fetch Dante because he wasn’t feeling well and he wanted to leave. I believed him, because his face was pale but yet he kept knocking back glass after glass, and cigarettes after cigarettes but I was exhausted too, that’s why I went to look for Dante and Matteo had told me the exact room to go to. But it didn’t matter. It didn’t erase what I saw. It didn’t erase the image of Gianna’s lips on his, or the memories of Dante betraying me once before.
Just then, I spotted him. Christian lounging near the bar and holding a drink.
His eyes met mine, and in that moment, he knew something was wrong. He straightened, concern flashing across his face as I stormed toward him.
Without a second thought, I grabbed him by the arms and looked him square in the eyes. “Kiss me.”
Christian blinked, surprise flashing in his gaze. “What?”
I didn’t have time to explain, and I didn’t need to. I could feel Dante’s presence behind me, looming closer, and I needed to hurt Dante just as much as he had hurt me and I knew kissing Christian would tip him over the edge, drive him mad and nearly mental.
“Now” I urged, a sense of urgency in my voice.
Christian glanced past me, and when he saw Dante, understanding flickered across his face. His lips curled into a slow smile, and he nodded. “Anything for you, miss.”
He leaned in, his lips meeting mine in a kiss that was supposed to hurt Dante the way he had hurt me. But there were no butterflies, no spark, nothing. Just emptiness. It was hollow, and I couldn’t force myself to feel anything but regret. The stars weren’t falling around me like sprayed confetti, the way it did when Dante kissed me. I could still hear the chattering of people around me, oblivious to what was going on around them.
Before I could even pull away, I felt Christian being yanked from me. Dante’s fist connected with his jaw, and Christian hit the floor with a grunt, and there was a hushed silence in the room with everyone turning to us, their interest suddenly peaked and I felt all the color rush to my face. I had expected it, but that didn’t make the guilt any easier to bear. Christian didn’t deserve to be dragged into my mess. I had used him, and I hated myself for it. He was a mere collateral damage between Dante and me, I guess he knew and he was taking his chances.
I turned my eyes to Dante, whose gaze burned with a mix of rage and hurt. He was breathing heavily, his fists clenched, his body trembling with barely contained fury. I met his eyes, the pain twisting inside me growing unbearable.
“You did not just ”
“I did” I said back in defiance
“If you’ll just bloody listen to me and stop being so fucking stubborn” he yelled. My eyes shot to him, angry, hurt and every word in the book I could use to describe the burning in my chest.
“Now you know how it feels,”