𝐁𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐨 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚

Chapter 49

That night I went to bed alone. Oddly, I didn't feel tired. My anxiety over tomorrow was keeping me up.

It was almost 3:00 am when I heard Cristiano come into the bedroom. I pretended to be asleep. He went into the bathroom, and the shower started running. I felt bad for him, having to work so late, especially on a holiday. But I was not in the mood to comfort him.

After a few minutes the bathroom door opens, and I feel Cristiano climb into bed next to me.

"Are you really asleep?" He asks suddenly, hovering over me. My brain was screaming at me to just keep my eyes shut and not acknowledge him, but I couldn't help it. I turned over on my side to face him, and rested my head against his chest. I took in his scent, he smelt freshly clean, with the lingering smell of cigarettes that never seemed to go away.

"Merry Christmas, Cristiano." I say, cuddling up to him. He rested his chin on my head.

"Merry Christmas, Giada." He says, falling asleep. Being in his arms calmed me down, it made me feel safe. I shut my eyes, and prayed that I would get some form of rest tonight.

A few hours later

I woke up and found myself still in Cristiano's arms. We had hardly moved. My eyes felt heavy with exhaustion, but I was glad I still got some sleep. I turned over to look at the time, and practically jumped out of bed when I saw that it was almost noon.

I got up, and ran into the closet. I stood in the doorframe and started to tear off my clothes. Cristiano groans, and tiredly starts to sit up.

"What's the rush to get out of bed, Gia?" Cristiano asks, rubbing his eyes.

"It's almost noon Cristiano." I say, throwing my clothes to the side and searching for new ones.

"It's Christmas. I'm off work today, we can sleep as late as we want." He says, getting out of bed, and walking over to me. I let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry." I say, running my hand through my hair. I had completely forgotten it was Christmas.

"It's alright. We do have a dinner tonight, but for right now let's just relax." He says.

His words make my heart drop to my stomach. The Christmas dinner. The plot. Tonight I was going to murder a man. And not just any man, my husbands uncle. It didn't matter how awful Diavolo was, or how much he deserved to die, it was still betrayal. And if I was caught, I would be killed.

The distress on my face was visible.

"Are you sure you're alright? You just seem off lately." He asks, pulling me close, and studying my face, almost as if he looked at me hard enough he could see into my brain.

"I'm fine. Maybe just a little tired." I say, walking into the closet and changing into new clothes. Cristiano changed into a loose shirt and pants.

We walked downstairs and into the living room. Cristiano took my hand, and sat me down on the couch.

"Stay here, I'll be right back." He says, then quickly leaves. I do as he says, and wait.

I started to get a bit impatient, Cristiano had been gone for several minutes, and I wondered what was taking so long. I could hear someone walk up behind me. Hesitantly, I turned around. My body nearly froze when I realized it was Diavolo.

He looks down at me, as if he was grinning on the inside, as if he thought he had some hold over me.

"Merry Christmas, Gia." He says, with a sickening smile on his face.

I give him a curt nod, I wasn't even going to dignify him with a response. I begin to turn away from him.

"I don't suppose you know where my fiancé is do you, Gia?" He asks sarcastically. I quickly turn my head back to face him. How dare he even speak of her after what he did.