Filed to story: Second Chance Mafia Bride Drama Novel
Serena strolled off, hands empty-she hadn’t even brought her phone outside. A recording? Of course not. She’d just wanted to give Alice a little scare.
When she returned to the living room, Nicholas was still there, and Logan was speaking to him quietly.
Without realizing it, Serena quickened her pace and ran over.
“Back already?” Nicholas gestured for Logan to pause and looked up at her, his deep, enigmatic eyes reflecting her small, fluttering figure as she approached.
“Mm-hmm!” Serena’s lips curved in a gentle smile. She hadn’t expected that just a casual request would make Nicholas agree to deliver the medicine himself, without the usual remarks about how Lady already had plenty of doctors around her and didn’t need her help.
Thinking of how he had stood up for her twice that evening, a warm sweetness unfurled inside her. She sat beside him, close enough that their shoulders almost touched, and teased, “Darling, were you worried Grandma might misunderstand me just now? Is that why you spoke up for me?”
Nicholas’s expression remained unchanged. “You did nothing wrong. There’s no reason for Grandma to get the wrong idea about you.”
Serena was touched but said softly, “Next time, you don’t need to defend me in front of her. I don’t want Grandma thinking you’ve forgotten her now that you’re married. You and she are so close-I’d hate for there to be any rift between you because of me. I can handle it myself.”
Memories from her past life stung her. Back then, she’d been reckless and selfish, and Nicholas’s efforts to protect her had more than once wounded Lady’s heart. The guilt still lingered.
When she first told him not to stand up for her, Nicholas thought she might be upset. But as she went on, he understood.
He paused, then said, “Don’t worry. Grandma isn’t that petty.”
His voice was noticeably warmer than usual.
Logan couldn’t help but marvel-what a sweetheart his new lady was! No wonder Mr. Salerno treated her so differently. The previous women had always looked terrified just to speak to him, let alone care about his feelings. Who could fall for someone like that?
Just then, Alice entered the room. She saw Serena sitting close to Mr. Salerno, chatting with him in a way that, for him, bordered on affectionate. What shocked her even more was that he didn’t look the slightest bit annoyed. In fact, if you looked closely, there was even a hint of indulgence in his gaze.
Jealousy twisted inside her, mixed with a growing sense of panic.
Damn that Serena. What was she saying to Mr. Salerno? Hadn’t she just glanced her way? Would she really keep her promise not to play that recording for him?
Alice’s gaze darkened. No, she couldn’t trust that woman. She had to destroy that recording, and somehow, she needed to get the forty thousand from May as well…
Grinding her teeth, she slipped quietly off to her room.
Serena had no idea that a casual glance would set off such a storm of suspicion. She hadn’t even mentioned Alice; instead, she was talking to Nicholas about something else entirely-the upcoming party hosted by the Fairhaven branch of the Salerno family.
The Salernos were split into the main family in Riverton and a satellite branch in Fairhaven. Nicholas was the sole heir of the main house, while Damien’s family was just one of several offshoots in Fairhaven.
This time, it was their turn to host the family gathering.
That morning, Rubina had sent her a message, insisting she had to attend. Serena still couldn’t figure out what she was up to.
She was surprised when Nicholas brought it up as well.
He nodded, his handsome features as composed as ever, his voice even. “They heard about our wedding and invited me to bring my new wife. The host is Barry Salerno, my uncle’s illegitimate son, and his son Damien-apparently, he’s a student at Kingsbridge University too. Maybe you know him.”
Damien?
The sudden mention of his name made Serena’s heart skip a beat.
She met Nicholas’s fathomless gaze, feeling a wave of nervousness. She couldn’t tell if he knew about her past with Damien, or if he was trying to test her…
Nicholas looked at her. “Would you like to go?”
“…Go on, then.”
If she refused, wouldn’t it just make her look guilty?
Serena felt a flicker of anxiety at the thought.
The Salerno family’s party was being held in honor of the Lady-Barry’s mother -turning sixty. The Lady, though, was merely Uncle Nicholas’s longtime mistress, and for a man of Nicholas’s stature, attending this event was already a step down. That he agreed to come at all made it all the more extraordinary.
On the day of the party, Serena stepped out of the car and immediately parted ways with Nicholas. Barry hurried over, all eager smiles and servile nods, to whisk Nicholas away he clearly had his own business to attend to.
Serena had barely set foot inside the grand ballroom when someone popped up beside her.
“Serena!”
It was Rubina.
Her eyes flicked over Serena’s outfit, and for just a moment, envy flickered in her gaze. In truth, Serena wasn’t even dressed up that much tonight; her looks and poise were such that, unless she tried to look outrageous, she’d always end up turning heads.
“Come with me, quick!” Rubina grabbed her by the wrist.
Off guard, Serena let herself be dragged all the way out to the back garden.
“What are you doing?” she protested, shaking Rubina off, irritation plain in her voice.
Rubina stared at her, surprised. “This is the Salerno estate! Don’t you want to find Mr. Salerno?”
“Why would I want to do that?” Serena raised a perfectly arched brow, looking even more surprised than Rubina.
Rubina grew flustered. “Serena, back at Rosewood Manor, I know you were worried Mr. Salerno would be angry, so you didn’t dare leave. But this is different. You don’t need to worry so much now. All you have to do is apologize- make him forgive you, patch things up. Then, tell Mr. Salerno the truth, that you and he have been together all along. What, do you think Mr. Salerno would actually steal his own nephew’s fianc?e?”
Apologize?
Serena’s eyelid twitched. “Apologize for what, exactly?”
Rubina looked at her as if it were obvious. “For marrying into Rosewood Manor, of course! You let him down. Isn’t that worth an apology?”
Serena gave a short, cold laugh. “I let him down? I was never even with him. How exactly did I let him down?”
“But-but you two agreed to leave together! You left him waiting for you, then just up and married into Rosewood Manor without a word. Don’t you think you owe him an apology?”
Serena’s smile grew wider. “Oh, I should apologize, all right-“
Rubina began to relax, but then Serena continued:
“I was engaged to Mr. Salerno. He tried to convince another man’s fianc?e to run away with him-how is that justifiable? Yes, I should absolutely go apologize to Mr. Salerno. Tell me, what do you think he’d do to someone who tried to steal his bride?”
Rubina gaped at her, stunned.
“No, wait, Serena, you-“
“Serena!”
A voice suddenly called out.
At the sound-familiar, and yet so long unheard-Serena’s gaze turned instantly cold.
She looked up. A handsome man was walking toward her.
Serena’s hand tightened involuntarily; shadows flickered in her lowered eyes.
Damien.
This man had never loved her. From the very start, he’d only come close to her for what she possessed.
How laughable-she’d been fooled for years in her last life, betrayed so completely that it had cost her everything, even her life.