"Yes."
"By stalking her? By inserting yourself into her life and making her dependent on you?"
The words hit harder than they should. "I'm not?—"
"Romeo." She tilts her head, looking at me knowingly. It’s an uncomfortable look because it makes her look older than she is. "I love you. You're my brother, and I would do anything for you. But I also know you. I know how you are when you want something. You become obsessed. You don't stop until you get it. And you don't always care about the collateral damage."
"This is different."
"Is it? Or are you just telling yourself that because you want her?"
I set down my glass carefully. "You don't understand."
Giulia lets out a slow breath. "Then explain it to me."
I'm quiet for a long moment, trying to find the words. "She's not like anyone I've ever met. When I'm with her, I feel—" I stop, frustrated. "Ifeel.That’s the whole thing, Giulia. Everything else I’ve ever wanted has been because it served me somehow—it made me more in some way. Or it gave me pleasure. It was all wholly selfish. I’ve never felt anything other than that raw id, that desire to have because I could. But with her… Ifeel… something. Like maybe I could be a little bit better for her. Not change entirely… just… a little bit.”
Giulia looks at me, startled at first, and then her expression softens. She’s never been afraid of me. She’s always known that if there was anyone in this world that I cared for, it was her. But she also knows I’ve never felt love for anyone else, and definitely never romantic love.
"I don't know what I am. I just know I can't stop thinking about her. I can't stop wanting to be near her. I can't stop—" I run a hand through my hair. "I'm losing control, Giulia. And I don't know how to stop it."
“You could just let yourself feel it. See what happens, even if it doesn’t turn out how you want.”
I can feel my teeth grinding together. "I don't know how to do that."
"I know." She reaches across the table, taking my hand. "But Romeo, listen to me. If you really love her—if this is real and not just obsession—then you have to let her choose. You can't force this. You can't manipulate her into being with you. You have to give her the freedom to decide what she wants."
"And if she chooses him?" Just the thought makes me feel sick.
"Then you have to let her go."
The thought is physically painful.Let her go.Let her marry Whitmore. Let her be trapped in a life that will slowly destroy her. "I can't do that."
"You have to. Because if you force this, if you manipulate her into leaving him, she'll never really be yours. She'll always wonder if she made the right choice. She'll always resent you for taking away her agency."
"He's embezzling from her father's company," I say abruptly. "Whitmore. He's stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars. He has gambling debts to dangerous people. He's planning to move up the wedding timeline because he's desperate for her family's money."
Giulia's eyes widen. "Does she know?"
"Not yet."
"Are you going to tell her?"
"I don't know. If I do, it destroys both families. The scandal would be massive. Her father's business, her family's reputation—everything would be ruined."
"But if you don't tell her, she marries a man who's using her. Who might hurt her."
"Exactly."
Giulia is quiet for a long moment. "What do you want, Romeo?"
"I want her safe. I want her happy. I want—" I stop, the truth catching in my throat. "I want her to choose me. Not because I manipulated her into it. Not because I destroyed her other options. But because she wants me. Because she loves me."
"Then that's what you have to give her. The choice. The freedom to decide."
"And if she chooses wrong?"
"Then you have to trust that she knows what's best for herself. Even if you disagree."
