Aria’s Pov
I awoke with a pounding headache, struggling to find focus as I looked around my familiar bedroom. I spotted some painkillers and a bottle of water and took them with a groan. Groggy and unbalanced, I struggled to navigate my way downstairs. My head was swimming, and my legs felt like jelly. When I finally made it to the bottom of the stairs, I stumbled into something solid. Looking up, I found myself face to face with Matteo. He looked exhausted and preoccupied, but even in that state, he was stunning.
He walked past me, his eyes never meeting mine. I took a moment to gather myself, then made my way to the living room. There, I found Carter sitting at the table, looking drained and troubled. His eyes were fixed on a piece of paper, and he seemed unaware of my presence.
“Hi”. My voice, hoarse
He looked up from the paper and smiled at me. It looked forced, and his eyes gave that away.
“What’s on the news”. I asked, prepping myself for the worst.
He leaned back on his seat, tossed the paper my way, and it landed on a couch next to me. I picked up the paper in my hand and read the major headline and a photo of Matteo and I with our lips locked. I was shaken. I looked away from the paper to Carter and then back to the paper again. It said “Popular businessman and new love interest?”. The press didn’t know about my marriage to Matteo. Only a few people did, and now we’re out in the open. I gulped and turned to Carter.
“How bad is it”. I asked, my voice betraying me by cracking.
“It’s all over the news. It’s too late now”. He said, his voice low and calm.
I sighed heavily and ran my hands through my hair.
“We kissed”.
He smiled at me. A knowing smile.
“I know. I saw”. He leaned forward. “I saw it all happen”.
“Is he mad because of that?”. I asked, scared that I may indeed be in trouble with him.
“Maybe and just maybe because you had Jimmy in your arms most of the night”.
“Jimmy?”. I asked, completely unaware.
“Who’s Jimmy?”
“An old friend”. A voice said from behind me. It was none other than Matteo Marino’s. His thick voice rang across the room, startling me in the process. “You didn’t think of what my reputation would look like after you did all you did with him”. He said in one breath.
“Matteo, just let it go man”. Carter said from his seat.
Matteo didn’t respond, but he kept staring at me, but I avoided his gaze. Instead, I found my feet more appealing to look at.
“She was drunk Matteo”. Carter said, worry laced in his voice.
“Maybe I need to teach her a lesson”. He said through clenched teeth.
I gasped and looked over at my husband. He was obviously furious. His hands were clenched into tight fists, and his face was set in a scowl. His hair, normally neatly combed, was sticking up in all directions, as if he’d been running his hands through it in frustration.
“No! No, you don’t need to do that”. Carter stood up and pulled me behind him, shielding me from my husband. I appreciated his protective gesture, but I could feel my heart racing as I looked out from behind his shoulder at the seething, enraged face of my husband. I was drenched in sweat, fear coursing through my body. I shut my eyes tight and prayed for a way out of this nightmare. For some reason, scenes from my childhood kept flashing into my head as I swayed carelessly behind him. It was all blurry and I couldn’t remember who exactly was in my place.
“Get out of my way, Carter”. He uttered.
“No. You have to think this through!”. Carter yelled at the top of his voice.
And then it was quiet, I didn’t hear anything anymore. I slowly opened my eyes, and I saw Carter aside, his head low and his eyes tightly shut and Matteo right before me staring at me. His eyes dared me to make a sound or even breathe before him. Suddenly, he threw my small weight over his shoulder, carrying me all the way to a room I didn’t know existed in this large house while I screamed and yelled. He took me into a small, windowless room with its walls bare and the floor, hard and cold.
He dropped my body without thinking twice on the hard wooden floor, and it made a loud thud. There goes my ankle. I thought to myself. I sat there, paralyzed by fear. The room was cold and dark, the only light coming from the small lamp on the other side of the room. The light cast a harsh, eerie glow over the bare walls. I watched as Matteo moved around the room, his movements slow and deliberate. I didn’t know what he was planning, but I was terrified of what might come next.
He walked out of the room and locked the door behind him with his eyes never looking in my direction. I screamed at the top of my voice but he never came back. There was no sign of anyone by the door, and that was when I knew I had married a man worse than a monster.
I felt suffocated being in that room with no windows at all, just a dimly lit lamp to keep me company. I screamed at the top of my voice for anyone at all to come to my rescue, but no one did. My fidgeting didn’t help, and I felt trapped in a place I should call my home. My mind raced with thoughts of the kiss. It was perfect, so I thought, but he hated me, and he always will, and there was nothing on this earth that could make him hate me less. I was only glad the feeling was mutual.