"Why is it a problem?" Giulia takes a bite of cheese and looks at me with genuine curiosity. "Because he's intense? Because he's part of this family?”
“Because he does crazy things on account of it.” The words come out before I can stop them, before I can think about whether this is some small betrayal of Romeo. “He stole my birth control. He got me pregnant on purpose because he thinks itwill solve everything. He’s controlling and obsessive… and he’s completely in love with me, and he doesn’t know how to separate the two. And… every time I try to walk away from him, I come back.”
Giulia’s eyes widen. “You’re pregnant,” she repeats, and I feel my chest tighten.
"I just took the test. This morning. Romeo doesn't know yet." Tears well up in my eyes. I don’t know why this girl, who looks like she’s a little younger than me, is so easy to talk to, but she’s the only person here who knows and understands Romeo, and also seems to be on my side. She feels like a lifeline, and right now I’d cling to just about anything that did.
"I don't know what to do. My father wants me to terminate it and come home and marry Thad. Romeo wants me to keep it and stay with him and let him take care of me. And I just want—I just want to make my own choices. I want to finish my degree and build my career and not have my entire life determined by men who think they know what's best for me."
"Then do that." Giulia reaches across the counter and takes my hand, and her grip is warm and firm—surprisingly comforting. "Make your own choices. Tell Romeo what you want. Tell your father what you want. Stop letting them make decisions for you."
"It's not that simple?—"
"It is that simple. It's just not easy." She squeezes my hand. "Look, I'm not going to defend what Romeo did. Sabotaging your birth control is fucked up, and you have every right to be angry about it. But I also know my brother, and I know that he doesn’t love. He doesn’t feel things for people… for anything. I’m the only person he’s ever felt love for, and I know how suffocating that can be. He broke a boy’s jaw in grade school because the kid flirted with me. I was actually glad to go to boarding school for a while because it meant having some space to breathe. Nowhe’s found you, and while I’m glad he’s learned to love someone romantically… it’s going to take him time to figure out how to do that in a healthy way. What I do know is that he means it. He loves you completely, and it’s real, Savannah. I've never seen him like this with anyone."
"That doesn't make it okay?—"
"No, it doesn't. But it does mean that if you tell him what you need, if you set boundaries and make demands and refuse to let him control you—he'll listen. He might not like it. He might fight you on it. But he'll listen because losing you is worse than giving you space." She lets go of my hand and leans back. "Romeo has spent his entire life being controlled by our father, being told what to do, who to be, and how to act. He doesn't know how to love someone without trying to control them. But he can learn. If you teach him."
The idea that I could teach Romeo Ciresa anything, that I could have that kind of power over someone who seems so completely in control of everything around him, is almost laughable. But there's also something appealing about it, something that makes me think maybe Giulia is right. Maybe I do have more agency in this situation than I've been allowing myself to believe.
"What if I can't?" I bite my lip. "What if he's too far gone? What if the obsession is all there is?"
"Then you walk away. But I don't think that's what you want. I think you want him. I think you want this baby. I think you want a life that's messy and complicated and nothing like what your father planned for you. You're just scared to admit it because admitting it means accepting that you're not the person you thought you were."
The words hit too close to home. "I am scared," I admit finally. "I'm terrified. Of Romeo… my father… having a baby…how all this is making me feel. How he feels. Everything that’s happening.”
“You’d be crazy not to be scared. But you're not alone, Savannah. You have Romeo, and you have me now. And I'm going to be the best aunt this baby has ever had. We can plan the nursery, and we'll need to have a baby shower, obviously. Something elegant but not stuffy?—”
I laugh, suddenly feeling lighter as Giulia smiles at me. "You're already planning a baby shower? I just found out I'm pregnant an hour ago."
She shrugs. “What can I say? I’m very excited to be an aunt. And Romeo is going to be a father.” She grins at the thought. “But when you tell him, make sure you stick to what you want out of this. He’s going to push, but you push back. He needs that.”
"I want to finish my degree," I say slowly, working through the thoughts as I speak them aloud. "I want to have this baby. I want to be with Romeo, but not if it means giving up everything else. Not if it means becoming dependent on him the way I was dependent on my father. I want—I want a partnership. Not ownership. Not control. Just—someone who sees me as an equal instead of something to be protected or managed… or possessed."
“Then tell him that,” Giulia says firmly. “And don’t give in.”
I realize, for the first time in my life, that I feel like I have people inmycorner. Romeo is over-the-top and unhinged in how he shows it, but he wants to protect me and give me what I want. His sister is sitting here, smiling ear to ear at the thought of being an aunt and having my back through this, counseling me on how to deal with her brother. I don’t feel alone here.
“Thank you,” I say softly. “All of this was way more than you needed to do. I can’t tell you how much it helped.”
"Why wouldn't I be kind to you? You're important to my brother. And from what I can tell, you're exactly the kind of woman who could handle being part of this family—if you decide that's what you want." She starts cleaning up the food, putting things away in Romeo's refrigerator with the ease of someone who's been here many times before. "Now, I'm going to leave you alone for a bit. But I want you to call me if you need anything. I'm serious about this, Savannah. You're not alone anymore."
She writes her number on a piece of paper and leaves it on the counter. She hugs me goodbye, and then leaves with a wave, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I know I need to make some decisions before Romeo comes home, before I tell him about the baby. I pick up my phone and stare at my father's number for a long time before I finally press call.
He answers on the second ring, and his voice is cold and businesslike. "Savannah. I was beginning to think you weren't going to call."
"I needed time to think." I try to sound confident, sure of myself. "About your ultimatum. About what you said."
"And?" There's expectation in his voice, and anticipation, like he's already certain I'm going to tell him what he wants to hear. I can hear that he's already planning my return home and my wedding to Thad… the life he's decided I should have.
"I'm not coming home. I'm not marrying Thad. And I don’t know what I’m going to do with the pregnancy, but I’ll decide for myself." The words come out stronger than I expected, clearer, and I feel something shift in my chest as I say them. I can feel myself making the decision instead of letting it be made for me. "I'm staying in New York, and I'm finishing my degree. I'm going to decide whether I have this baby or not. And I'm doing it on my terms, not yours."
The silence on the other end of the line is absolute, and I can picture my father sitting in his office in Charleston, his face going red with rage, his hands clenching into fists as he processes what I just said. "You're making a mistake," he says finally, and his voice is tight with barely controlled fury. "A mistake that will cost you everything. Your education. Your future. Your family."
"Then that's my mistake to make." I feel my eyes burn, and I struggle not to let the tears fall. "I'm not a child anymore, Daddy. I'm not a pawn in your business dealings. I'm not a trophy for Thad to display. I'm a person. And I deserve to make my own choices, even if you don't agree with them."
