“Sofia?” She could hear her brother saying something, but other than her name, she couldn’t make much more out. She pushed back from the table and went to stand. “Will you excuse me? I’m not very hungry anymore.”
She left the restaurant without a glance behind her. When she made it out into the lobby, she could see Ozzie and Monica arguing but ran past and up to their room. He must not have seen her, but when she stopped to look, Dante, Nico, and Ares were right behind her.
“Come on, let’s get your things,” Dante said in a hushed tone, ushering her into the elevator. They rode up in silence and they sent in Ares to the master to help her pack. His long blonde hair was down, and it covered his striking features. The man was magnificent, but in that moment her heart was breaking over Ozzie and she barely noticed. He went into the bathroom and gathered up everything next to her sink. He dumped it on the bed and went for her suitcase. Either he was moving at the speed of light or she had stopped moving all together.
“You didn’t know, did you?” Dante asked from the doorway.
“About the woman? No.”
“Not the woman. I don’t think she’s anything to him. The man wanted to crawl out of his skin the second she walked up. I’m asking about the money. You didn’t know he was Oscar Ashford, did you?”
“I did, but I didn’t know who Oscar Ashford was. I still don’t. Do you?”
“Yes. But only because I checked out everyone who would be coming this weekend. With the conversations we had when we first met, it surprised me you’d date a billionaire’s son.”
“Billionaire?”
“Yes, Sofia. His family owns over sixty percent of the hotels here on the east coast. Including the one we are standing in right now.”
“What?”
“I think I have everything.” Ares said, holding her zipped-up suitcase.
“I’ll call downstairs and tell Micah and Izzy to meet us out front. It’s time for you to head home, Sofia. We will handle Oscar Ashford.”
“No. I don’t want you to kill him.”
Dante laughed, but Nico looked disappointed. “We won’t kill him. I’ll just clarify that there is no room for him here with our family.”
“Do you want to see him?” Ares asked.
“I don’t know what I want. Everything is happening so quickly. One minute we were all sitting for breakfast and the next my short-lived fantasy of a happily ever after got turned upside down.”
“Have a seat,” Dante said, motioning towards the bed. He sat down next to her and pulled her hand into his. “Happily ever after is a crock of shit. I know you’ve had a fucked-up life and the dreams of one day having everything kept you going, but all you have to count on is what you have in front of you.”
The tears in her eyes fell, and Dante nodded his head in the direction of the bathroom. Ares took the cue since Nico seemed too busy playing with a knife he pulled from somewhere. When Ares came back with a box of tissues, Dante continued.
“Years ago, I was promised happily ever after. I had to wait, though, and I did. I waited patiently for years, only to be fucked over by a promise that was never fulfilled. That promise would have changed all of our lives,” he said as he motioned to the other two men in the room, “So I’m speaking first hand when I tell you it’s all bullshit. Most people are the scum of the earth, hidden behind fancy clothes, cars, and houses. They put on a show for everyone around them without even realizing it. It’s so common for people to lie that they don’t even know their own truths anymore.”
“But Ozzie isn’t like that. He is a good person.”
“Riiiight,” Nico snarled from the corner he was standing in, “If he’s a good person, then I’m a saint. Lies are just as bad as murder, sweet thing.”
“You’re not helping,” Ares said before Dante could cut him off, “Dante, if she wants to see him and let him explain himself, then we should let her.”
“Why? Because you say so?”
“No, because if someone explained to us what happened with Valentina, then maybe we wouldn’t always be guessing. Even if the truth hurts, she may need to hear it.”
Dante sat in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time. She worried over the idea of seeing Ozzie, but Ares was right. She had questions she needed answered. The name Valentina was new to her. She had stayed with Dante for a few months, and none of them had ever mentioned a woman. Sure, Nico would have them crawling out of his bed in the morning, but she never saw Dante or Ares with anyone. She just assumed they were more discreet than Nico, but maybe not.
“Go get him,” Dante said, and Nico pushed off from the wall. It was always strange to her how Ares and Nico knew which one of them he was talking to. Like they had some secret code between them that no one else knew. How did Ares know to get the tissues, but Nico knew to go get Ozzie? The dynamic between the three of them was something she could never understand.
“You’re sure about this?” he asked as the hotel room door closed.
“I never said I wanted it to begin with, but now that you all have decided, I think I am. I want to know what he’s been hiding from me, and I want to know why.”
Ozzie was walking in from the valet after putting a rather pissy Monica into a car to leave. Luckily, her driver was waiting out front, because another minute with her and he was going to lose his shit. He needed to find Sofia. Maybe if he could explain everything to her, he would stand a chance. Everything was still so new between them, and her family looked as if they wanted to kill him. If nothing else, she deserved the truth from him. As he stepped through the double doors, he was grabbed by none other than Nico Marchesi, one of her cousin’s best friends.