DANTE’S POV
“Helena!” I called after her, my voice rough, and tainted with anger. Her back was to me, her pace quick and determined, but I couldn’t let her just walk away like this. Not after what had just happened.
The image of her lips on Christian’s twisted in my mind, fueling the anger boiling under my skin. She had kissed him on purpose-on purpose-just to get back at me for something I hadn’t even wanted, hadn’t initiated. The sight of it burned, cutting me deeper than I cared to admit. How was I supposed to know Gianna would ambush me like that? She’d always been unpredictable, but this… this was different.
“Helena!” I called again, my voice sharper this time, frustration seeping into every syllable. She didn’t stop. Her shoulders were tense, her breath heavy, as if the force of her emotions was too much for her to contain. I could see it-she was trying to hold it all in, but it was spilling over and I wanted more than to gather her into my arms, but how could I do that when my entire body was equally shaking in fury.
This time, she stopped. She didn’t turn around, but I could see her body heaving, her breath ragged and uneven. For a moment, all I could do was stare at her back, fighting the urge to close the distance between us. I needed her to look at me, to understand. This wasn’t what she thought.
“Turn around,” I said, my voice more controlled now, though it felt like every word was scraping through me. Slowly, she turned, but her gaze remained on the ground, refusing to meet mine.
“It wasn’t what it looked like”
I told her, trying to keep my voice steady, even though every part of me was on edge. “I had no idea she was going to be there.”
She nodded slightly, a movement so small it was almost imperceptible. “I know,” she said quietly, and somehow, her acknowledgment only stoked a fresh wave of anger inside me. If she knew, then why?
“So why did you-” I stopped myself, inhaling deeply before continuing. “If you knew that, why did you go and do that?” The memory of her lips on Christian flashed again in my mind, a bitter taste in my mouth.
Helena was quiet for a long moment, the silence between us thick and suffocating. Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. “Seeing you like that brought back memories. Memories that I’d have rather stayed forgotten” and instantly I felt a pang in my chest, how long was she going to hold that over my head. We stood there in silence, the weight of everything unsaid crushing down on us. And then, when she finally lifted her eyes to mine, her next words cut me like a blade.
“I don’t think I want to do this anymore.”
My chest tightened, but I didn’t react the way I thought I would. I should’ve been angry, should’ve argued, should’ve done anything other than stand there staring at her like a fool. But all I felt was a strange calmness settling over me. “Helena-” I started, but she shook her head, cutting me off before I could say anything else.
“I don’t I can stand being around a woman that ruined my life, and she’s always going to be a part of your life”
“You have to be absolutely sure about what you’re saying, Helena,” I said, my voice calm, though inside I felt anything but.
She shook her head again, her eyes fixed on the ground. “She’s never going to let you go. Don’t you see it? And I’m just… I’m not going to be a part of those games and schemes. I want to go back to Paris. I want to dance again. Viviana can take over Papa’s business while I’m gone.”
The pain in her voice twisted inside me, but I still couldn’t find the right words.
“We made a deal, Helena,”
This time her eyes shot to me “That deal struck out the moment you told me you loved me.”
The silence stretched between us, thick and heavy, suffocating me. I couldn’t process the panic at first, not until she took a step back, putting more distance between us. My hands twitched at my sides, wanting to reach for her, wanting to stop her, but I remained still. Rigid. Frozen.
“I don’t think I want to do this anymore,” she repeated, her voice quieter this time, more fragile. I could see the resolve in her eyes breaking, but still, she stood her ground.
“Helena-” I started, but she shook her head again, her eyes downcast.
“She’s always going to be around,” she whispered. “And I… I can’t do this. I want to go back. I want to dance again. I want…” She trailed off, her voice faltering.
“Are you absolutely certain?” I could have said something, but the strange calmness I felt was slowly morphing to a near panic.
The panic didn’t hit me until she took another step back. And I let her. I stood there, watching as she turned her back on me, my hands still at my sides. I wanted to tell her I wouldn’t let her leave. I wanted to remind her that she was married to me, that divorcing a second time would be impossible, ridiculous even. How do you divorce the same person twice, how does that even work?
She waited, almost expecting me to say something. And when I didn’t, she took another step back.
Then I finally spoke, my voice steady, though my heart felt like it was being torn apart. “Then I can’t stop you.”
I heard her sharp intake of breath, but I couldn’t move. I couldn’t reach out to her.
She turned and she walked away.
I stood there, watching her leave. Just a few hours ago, I was deep in her guts and now she walking out of my life.
I stormed back into the party, everyone’s gaze immediately falling on me but I couldn’t be bothered about being the topic of gossip for the next few weeks. I looked around the party, ready to finish what I had started with Christian in a bid to let off the anger that was still burning inside me but he was gone and so was Gianna.
I stayed long enough at the party to get properly wasted so I could put thoughts of her out of my mind, but she stayed glued in like gum at the sole of my shoes. My head was swimming in the clouds, and I could barely walk in a straight line when I finally left the party but I couldn’t go home. I wasn’t sure if she was going to be there but I knew the sight of her would drive me to a near edge.
But it was completely strange to me when a few moments later I stood in front of Gianna’s hotel room.
She smiled at me, dressed in a bath robe that slightly exposed her cleavage and she said “I knew you’d come