Ann’s POV
I collide with a solid wall as soon as I open the door to the master’s bedroom. He grabs me quickly before I can stumble backwards and fall, and a surprised gasp leaves my mouth.
Standing there, bared chest is the man I lost sleep over last night. In order not to be caught staring at his naked chest, I lower my head down with a loud gulp.
Does he even know he is shirtless?
“Good morning,” his husky voice reminds me of what happened last night and how easily he slept off before I got back with Christiana and the food he requested.
Finally getting myself together, I step away from his stronghold and clear my throat. “Good morning, Vince.”
“Heading somewhere?” He has a look of amusement on his face, and I can’t figure out why.
I suddenly feel flustered, making it difficult for me to answer him. Instead, I nod.
“Where?”
I refuse to look at him or his naked chest. “How are you feeling now?”
It takes a moment for him to reply. “Strong as a horse.”
“I’m glad.” I finally look up. “You slept off before I brought you some food. Should I get Christiana to microwave some food for you?”
He shakes his head, his expression suddenly serious.
When I saw that he was sound asleep, I returned to my former room and took two hours to relax before getting ready to go to the culinary school.
I haven’t told Vicente about it yet, so I’m here to check if he’s awake.
“Where are you going?”
“Erhmm, I was supposed to inform you yesterday, but I didn’t. I’m going to a culinary school. I have to register and get some materials today.”
His eyebrow knits up in confusion. “Culinary school?”
“Yeah,” I answer. “Not the school you imagined. It’s more like a cheap academy…”
“Where is it?”
“Erhmm,” I dip my hand into my purse to retrieve the business card he gave me yesterday. “I’m not sure it’s somewhere I know, but the address is on this card.”
I stretch it to him, and he takes it without hesitation. I watch him study it carefully, my gaze drifting to his arm and back to his face.
If he weren’t shirtless, I wouldn’t even remember he was hurt last night. He doesn’t look like it at all.
“How did you find out about this?” He questions with a full-blown curiosity.
“Well, I met one of the chefs yesterday at a restaurant…”
“So he gave you this?”
I scowl instead of replying. “I’m not done explaining how I got it.”
“I already know.”
“How?” I demand.
“I saw you speaking with a man….”
“You were following me?” I ask in disbelief. I left home without any of his soldiers, but I didn’t expect him to follow me.
“If you don’t want that next time, go out with your guards.”
“I can protect myself now, remember? I don’t need them today on all days. It’s just a registration, and I can’t go to the academy with guards around me. Everyone’s attention will be on me.” I am trying to be calm about this. Since we got married, I have been indoors. The one time I tried to go out was the day I got attacked, but that shouldn’t stop me from chasing my dreams and going about my daily life.
He shrugs nonchalantly, giving me the I-don’t-care attitude.
I suddenly feel rebellious.
“I’m going to the academy, and I’m not going with any guards, Vince.”
“You don’t have a say in this. You need to be protected…”
“I can fight already. I can use a gun. You taught me well. I will be fine. It’s just the first day, and I can’t disrupt the activities with the attention of your guards.” I roll my eyes, annoyance taking over my will to explain myself.
He doesn’t say a word, so I ask. “Can I go now?”
He shakes his head. “No.”
“Why?”
He places his hand over my shoulder to pull me into the room. When he closes the door, he turns to face me.
“Either you go with them, or I go with you.”
A snarl leaves my mouth. “What?! You?!”
“Yes. That’s the condition.”
“Vince, you know I can’t…”
“Why can’t you?”
“Not everyone comes to the academy with their husbands.”
“Then go with Luca, Andrew, Gabriel, and Salvatore. That will make me assured you are fine.” He said with finality before walking past me.
–
Vince’s POV
I don’t know how long I am staring into space until a throat-clearing jolts me upright.
Fernando is staring right in front of me with a sly smile.
I adjust the swivel chair before focusing my attention back on the laptop’s screen.
“Something on your mind?” He inquires as he slops to the chair opposite my desk.
Annette has been gone all morning. No matter how hard I tried to concentrate on work, my mind keeps drifting to her.
I keep wondering if she is fine, if he truly is a chef, and if she is safe with him. I keep thinking of how best to discourage her, but I haven’t come up with any idea at all.
I don’t want her to accuse me of imprisoning me because that is what I want to do with her. But I keep reminding myself that this marriage was accidental, and she is still with me because I asked her to.
If we were married because we wanted to be, I wouldn’t mind restricting her from going out for her safety.
No matter how many guards I assigned to follow Ann, I find myself worrying about her safety. But this time, it is different. There is a man involved, and I can’t help but worry.
Annette and I have yet to discuss the way forward. She isn’t talking about an annulment either, and I thought she was going to pester me about that.
I clearly saw how interested he was in her. I saw how he looked at her on two occasions that I visited the academy.
Annette is either clueless or acting clueless.
Does he know she is married?
Even though Ryan Is out of the way now, this new guy is a threat. If she decides to date him since what we have isn’t real, it will ruin my reputation. If a situation like that happens, I am supposed to let her go and accept to annul the marriage, but for some odd reasons, I don’t want to.
I don’t want her to date him. And I don’t want an annulment.
“Vicente?” Fernando shouted out my name, and I composed myself before staring at him with a cold expression.
This is the wrong time to be here.
“Wife matters?” He peers down at me with amusement. “Have you made your findings about her yet? Do you still intend to keep her?”
I don’t reply.
“I see things are becoming real with you guys. You have already introduced her to the families; they see her as the queen. What’s your plan if she turns out to be…”
“Ann is not a spy, Fernando!” I cut him short quickly. I know that is what he wants to say.
A smile touches his face as he rounds his mouth. “Wow. Are you defending her, or is this purely based on a neutral ground?”
“I already told you she isn’t. Why do you keep emphasizing that?”
“Because she may be. Annette is a sweet girl, Vince. I like her too,” he mutters, and I glare at him. He laughs. “I mean for you. I like her for you, honestly. But we don’t have to overlook the possibility…”
“Trust me, she isn’t.”
He shuts up instantly. I continue working on the laptop, my mind in a frenzy.
“I heard your mom talking to Isabel about Liam. I heard he is interested in her,” he informs me, and I stop typing before looking up at him.
Fernando and I never spoke about Isabel and me.
“Liam is a good guy,” I nod.
“Who said he isn’t?” He flashes me a smile.
Silence falls.
“You didn’t seem to me like a brother who would worry over who his sister would end up with,” I finally voice my thoughts and stare up at him.
He looks worried now as he shakes his head.
“You never voiced out your agreement to…”
“I just want her to be safe. If she were with you, I wouldn’t have any cause to worry, you know?”
That sounds like what I expected him to do all these years. Tell me he wanted me to marry his sister and protect her.
For a moment, I feel glad he didn’t say any of these before I met Ann. That would have ruined our friendship.
“Liam will be a good spouse,” I reassure him again, shutting the laptop.
“You can’t be sure.” He smirks mischievously, “But I don’t want to get myself involved too much. I heard something unusual, so I thought I’d let you know.”
My curiosity piques up. This must have something to do with the Silicones. We haven’t gotten any information about them since the last attack.
He watches me for a moment before voicing out. “Ryan.”
I don’t need to ask him what this is about.
“I heard they dated and broke up only recently,” he completes, and I nod my head at him in acknowledgement.
“I know.”
“She told you?”
“I knew when they broke up.”
He remains quiet. I watch him looking lost in thought before nodding his head.
He already knows about Ryan, and I honestly want to know who told him that. If he knows, perhaps Isabel already knew.
How much more does he know about Ann? He already called her a spy, and if he finds out she has a true connection with the Silicones, that will put her in danger.
The rest of the families will believe she is here just to dig for information because she is married to me.
I keep thinking of the best way to tell Fernando. He already has his suspicions; any more will make Ann a suspect again.
I want to protect her, but when it comes to the five families’ involvement, I know it is just a matter of time before they find out.
“There is something you need to know, Fernando,” I start, taking my attention away from the desk. Resting my gaze firmly on his. “Promise me this will stay between us for now.”
Ann ran away from home. Like her mother, she is a victim. If Fernando understands, it will be easier to convince the rest that she isn’t a spy.
“Is this about the Silicones?” He demands, his face masked with full-blown curiosity.
“Not really.”
“What is it?”
“It’s about Annette,” I pronounce, expecting a reaction from him. His face is expressionless as he leans forward. “Her mother is married to Dante.”
A frown takes over his expressionless face as he questions with confusion. “Dante? Who is Dante?”
He deserves to know. If Ann had hidden this piece of information from me, I would also suspect her. If he didn’t know now, he would never trust her.
She needs to be accepted as the queen.
“Carter’s father. The same Dante who works for the Silicones.”
“What?!” His loud exclamation makes me close my eyes. “Vince! What the hell!”