Married to My Enemy

“If I haven’t already made myself clear, let me make myself perfectly clear right now—I don’t want anything from you ever again in life. So please, just go away already!”

“I will not,” he said, stubbornly. “I will not let things end between us based on a lie.”

“You are the most infuriating person I’ve ever met.”

“Where to, ma’am?” the cab driver had lowered his window and peered out at me.

I hopped in the backseat and quickly gave him my home address, but unfortunately, I wasn’t quick enough because Gio ran over to the opposite side and got in the cab too.

“Are you kidding me?” I said, glancing sideways at him.

“Uhm…is he with you, ma’am?” the cab driver asked.

At the same time, I said ‘no’ and Gio said ‘yes.’

I swore. “Just drive,” I told the cab driver. “You can take him wherever the hell he needs to go after you drop me off.”

CHAPTER 22

Giovanni

“Thank you,” Arianna said as the driver pulled up to her parents’ house. She leaned forward to pay the cab fare and hurried out of the car. I followed after her.

“No!” she said, turning around and glaring at me. “You are not welcome here.”

“Well, I seem to remember differently. I’m pretty sure your parents gave me an open invitation to your home.”

“That was before the engagement was called off, you idiot,” Arianna said as she stormed to her front porch.

Following behind her, I couldn’t help but laugh. She sounded so cute when she was furious. Or perhaps it was just that some of my fury at her had dissipated now that I knew why she was carrying on the way she was. On some level, it was flattering that she was so upset because it indicated how much she had cared about me. Now, I just needed to get her to care again.

I wished she would just believe me, but at the same time, I couldn’t fault her for what she’d thought when she saw me with Maria. After all, I certainly hadn’t reacted too well upon seeing her dancing with that guy at the club.

When Ari pulled out her keys and unlocked the front door, she hurried inside and tried to slam it in my face, but I caught it with my foot.

“Ouch! Dammit,” I muttered, hopping on one foot as I stumbled inside.

“Serves you right,” Ari spat. “Now get out of my house before I call the cops.”

I shut the door behind me and proceeded to stare at her. She looked back at me, her expression livid, but her bottom lip trembling as if she was close to tears. As angry as I was with her before, I couldn’t stay mad at her. I wanted nothing more than to take her into my arms and tell her that she had the wrong idea. And then I wanted to kiss her anger away, and perhaps make love to her for the rest of the night.

But first, I simply had to get her to believe me.

“Remember how pissed you were when you first found out that I was the guy you were going to marry?” I asked.

“Why are you speaking in the past-tense? I’m still pissed,” she retorted. She was about to say something else when her cell phone started ringing in her purse. “Hello? Angela—I’m sorry. I’m home. I’m all right.”

I crossed the living room and went to sit on the couch to get off my foot, which was throbbing from where the door hit it.

“Look, I’ll explain everything tomorrow, okay?” Ari said into the phone. “I just can’t talk right now. I’m sorry again. Okay. Bye.”

She set her phone back down on the table and turned her attention to me. “Listen, you need to leave, Gio.”

“And you need to hear me out one good time.”

“There’s nothing for me to hear. I know your type, and I know you sleep around. I was dumb to think I could change that, but I know better now. So please, just go.”

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