HELENA’S POV
“What do you mean we never got divorced in the first place” my mouth fell open at Dante’s revelation and I shot curious looks between him and Gianna, who in fact was mirroring my expression, her skin almost turning white like a ghost. At this point, I presumed it was almost evident that I wasn’t leaving Algreen cove that morning. I couldn’t even think of that at that moment, not with what Dante spewed out of his mouth.
“Dante ” Gianna spoke this time, there was a certain desperation in her eyes, a certain anger tainted with shock and betrayal.
Dante ran a hand through his head with a wince, I wonder if he was going through a blistering headache but had to deal with two women bugging him for a secret.
“Five years ago after I told you leave, I never actually filed for divorce. I was going to but then Gianna left and I just couldn’t bring myself to do it so in all sense we’re still married”
“Wait ” I began placing the pieces together “Was that why you were reluctant to get the marriage certificate because we were in fact still married”
He nodded, a nod that bore no guilt whatsoever. In fact if I looked so closely I could see a smirk playing at the corner of his lips.
“You played me” Gianna lashed out.
“No you left me, this has nothing to do with you Gianna, you left. You Want to pursue your dreams, which is fine but you don’t expect the world to wait for you”
“I wasn’t expecting the world to wait for me, I expected you to wait for me because you promised you would you said you were going to wait and all these while you were still married to your fucking fat wife”
“Hey!” I protested, she shot me a spiteful look immediately. Her eyes flared and her eye balls were almost bulging out of her eye sockets.
“Gianna” Dante called calmly, almost grabbing her hand but he restrained himself but he had that threatening look in his eyes “You know this is all your fault, crashing that party and ambushing me just so Helena could see, you’ve caused enough problems since you came back here, don’t you think it’s time you went back to New York, LA or wherever the fuck you were and back to that acting career you love so much”
Gianna scoffed angrily, a certain haze settling over her eyes and she crossed her hands over her chest with her head tilted back “Fine, I’ll go back but first there’s something you should know about your ever loving wife don’t you think”
“What?” Dante gave me a brief look before looking back at her but I kept my eyes on the floor, I couldn’t stop her now, I couldn’t make her not tell him but all I could do was to keep my eyes on the floor with anger bubbling in my chest.
“Did you know that your wife was pregnant with your child before she moved to paris but here’s the thing, you can never have claims to the child because she put him up for adoption” she spewed out of her dirty little mouth. At first Dante was quiet, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at him so I kept my eyes on the floor.
I heard Gianna chuckle, her usual high pitched annoying chuckle and then I heard her ruffling to her bag and she fished something out, handing it to Dante “That’s him, incase you’re wondering what he looks like and yes an exact replica of you see those eyes, he definitely has D’angelo blood running through his vein but he is stuck with some French family that smokes cigarettes for breakfast and dinner”
Dante took the picture from her and peering at it, he didn’t say a word yet, he just stared and I couldn’t bear to look at me, the guilt weighed down on my chest like gold plunked in water but what choice did I have. I was young, cast away and in a strange country, how could I have had a child all by myself.
“Anyways, I should probably book a flight now back to the States but no, I want to watch how this plays out better than the movies I act if I’m being honest” then she walked away leaving just Dante and I basking in the silence of his unspoken words.
“Is this true?” he finally said after what felt like eternity of staring at that picture “Is this my son?”
This time, I looked up meeting his eyes “Yes” I said
His eyes were dark now, brewing anger, betrayal and conveying every emotion that he was feeling. “How could you ”
“How could I what?” I felt a certain anger flash through me at his words “You cast me away Dante to accommodate your ditsy girlfriend, I was 20 years old, pregnant for a man that no longer wanted me and in a strange country, what made you think I would be graceful enough to to raise the child for you. You know, I could’ve gotten rid of it, but I couldn’t do that. I wanted the child even though I knew I could never keep it, giving him up for adoption was the next best thing. At least the adoptive parents were graceful enough to keep me posted on his growth”
“I want my son” Dante said, calmly but there was venom in his voice.
“He’s no longer your son” I said back
“Of course he is, he has my blood, he has my eyes. I’m not going to have my heir running around speaking French when he doesn’t know a word of Italian”
“If it help, I could get them to get him Italian lessons. Antoinette is very accommodating”
“Who?” he echoed
“The adoptive mother”
“This is not a bloody joke Helena, you hid this secret for five bloody years what’s his name?”
“Julien”
“Damn!” Dante made a frustrated sound “He has Italian blood in his veins, he should’ve an Italian name”
“I gave him one” I blurted out “Marco”
Dante stopped, his eyes softened it was his middle name “You named him after me?”
“It was the least I could do, since I couldn’t tell him his father is a mafia drug lord and a Don”
Dante closed his eyes, then he opened them again to look at me “I want to see him” then he grabbed my suitcase and my hands immediately.
“We’re going to France right now”