The Second Chance for A Mafia's Runaway Bride

I froze. It was Lorenzo.

I saw Matteo behind him watching us. He might follow me too as instructed by his boss.

“Aletta, where are you going?” Lorenzo’s footsteps echoing against the pavement as he approached me.

I looked straight at his eyes, my heart pounding in my chest. His expression was unreadable, his dark eyes searching mine for something he would never find.

“I just changed my shoes, Lorenzo,” I answered his query somehow. And amazingly, my voice came out steadier than I expected, though it carried the sharp edge of betrayal. “Why? What do you want, Lorenzo?”

“You’re here,” he said, his tone urgent. “Did you—”

“Did I do what?” I asked innocently. He looked guilty with just controlled emotion in his eyes.

Lorenzo’s gazes daggered me and it felt suffocating. My heart, fragile and fraying, strained against his piercing eyes.

I smiled bitterly. “Oh! I saw you and Stefania talking. Was that the thing you wanna ask if I did see you?” I probed.

Lorenzo took a step closer. “Aletta, listen. It’s not what it looks like,” he began, his voice steady and calm.

“Not what it looks like?” I snapped with a frown. I continued my act as if I didn’t see and hear them while my anger actually wanted to break free. “Is there anything I need to know? You see…” I shrugged. And there I glanced at Matteo who was still monitoring us with a grin on his lips. “I just changed shoes, Lorenzo, for the one I put in trash didn’t fit my feet and made me bleed.”

Lorenzo looked at my feet and thankfully the blisters I had became part of my act. He opened his mouth to respond, “Aletta, I—”

“No need to worry, I can manage…” I smiled again, a mischievous one. “I always manage, remember?”

"Yes, of course. And you do understand why I brought Stefania here, right? She is your sister and she’s drunk so I helped her." Lorenzo’s voice was convincing.

I nodded. My breathing shallow as I controlled myself to scream to his face what I really saw. Instead, I stared at him, the man I once called my anchor in a storm.

"Yep, certainly I do. Stefania’s my ‘half-sister’ after all." I said calmly, each word dripping with venom. "She’s the child of a mistress that broke my family. And being recognized as the legitimate daughter of Domenico Volante after my mother gave up being into a toxic relationship…” I sneered as I saw Stefania approaching us, “I hope my dear ‘half-sister’ won’t walk the same path of her mother, who will whoring herself to become a mistress as well."

Stefania’s expression faltered, but Lorenzo’s rage intensified with what insult I said to his beloved Stefania. He stepped closer, his looming figure casting a shadow over me. "Enough, Aletta! Your poisonous words have no place here. Don’t say that to Stefania or—"

“Or what?” I straightened, refusing to cower.

Lorenzo crossed her brows. "No wonder your mother abandoned you, and your father favored your sister over you," Lorenzo stated, which made me tremble. "With that sharp tongue and venomous heart, no one could ever love you, Aletta. In fact, you deserve to spend your life alone!"

His words hit me harder than any physical blow ever could. I’d spent a decade building a life with this man, pouring my soul into loving him, believing in the strength of our bond. And now, he was tearing me apart, defending the very person who had tormented me.

"Lorenzo…" I whispered, my voice barely audible. "Do you even hear yourself? I’m your bride but you are scowling me because you felt bad for your bride’s sister. What a joke you are!"

Lorenzo didn’t answer as his attention had already shifted to Stefania, who sniffled delicately behind him with hands trembling. Wow. The theatrics of my ‘dear half-sister’ disgusted me, but Lorenzo? He fell for it—hook, line, and sinker. Stupid!

"Stefania, are you okay?" he asked, his voice softening as he turned to her. He cupped her elbow with tender familiarity, and something inside me snapped.

This wasn’t the man who had sworn to protect me, who said he would shield me from every harm I will encounter once I became his wife. This was a stranger, one who proved that everything he had said before was just a bait to lure me.

My feet throbbed as I took an unsteady step back. The blisters caused by the heels I wore first still give me pain, but… it was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.

Lorenzo’s gaze flicked to my feet. For a fleeting moment, guilt flashed in his eyes. "You’re hurt, Aletta," he muttered, almost as if it pained him to admit. “Let’s get back inside the villa. You need first aid.” He commanded Matteo next, “Bring Aletta inside.”

Before I could say something to refuse, Stefania suddenly bolted, her tears spilling over dramatically. "I can’t stay here!" she cried, her voice quivering with the perfect blend of anguish and despair. “Aletta hates me and I felt bad causing trouble here!”

The sight of her fleeing out next—running into the middle of the driveway—was the final act in her carefully choreographed performance. Lorenzo, predictably, rushed after her, shouting her name. And I? I followed with Matteo following me too with an unerasable smirk on his lips from watching us.

“Stop smirking,” I said to Matteo. “Can’t you see your boss ridiculing himself by chasing his bride’s half-sister? You should help him, right?”

“Your sister is not my concern here,” Matteo answered with amusement in his tone. “I’m only here for you, Miss Damsel.”

I made a face and looked at Stefania stumbled into the cobblestone. I rolled my eyes.

“What a pitiful act!” Matteo chuckled. “Your sis—’dear’ half-sister, I mean, should be in acting class.”

I hid my smile from what Matteo had said. I continued watching Stefania and Lorenzo as the latter cradled her trembling form as if she were the most precious thing in his world.

"Stefania, are you okay?" Lorenzo asked, his voice laced with worry.

She nodded weakly, clutching his shirt like a true damsel in distress. "I… I didn’t mean to cause trouble. Aletta just… she hates me so much, Lorenzo. I’m sorry for ruining everything."

“That’s the real damsel in distress…” I told Matteo and walked away. I ignored the sharp pain in my feet as I strode away from the scene. My heart ached, but my resolve hardened with every step.

Lorenzo’s voice rang out behind me. "Aletta! Wait!" he called. “Matteo followed her!”

I stopped but didn’t turn around. "Do yourself a favor, Lorenzo!" I almost yelled, my voice colder than I thought possible. "Focus on your precious—I mean…” I sneered, “focus on my dear half-sister. Help her. She’s so precious, right?”