"I don't get to what? Leave the house without your permission? Meet people without your approval?" I laugh, but there's no humor in it. "I'm not a prisoner."
His breathing changes. Heavier. Rougher.
He's angry.
Good.
"You don't understand the world you've married into," he says. "There are people who would hurt you just to get to me. To my family. You need protection whether you want it or not."
"I know the world very well Bruno. In case you don’t remember, I was born into the same world. I literally married a stranger to protect my family from the consequences of our world. You think you’re protecting me while you are caging me."
"It's the same thing."
"It's not."
"You're being naive."
"And you're being controlling."
The word lands like a blow. I can feel it through the phone. The way his silence sharpens. The way the air between us turns to ice.
"I'm trying to keep you alive," he says quietly.
"And I'm trying to stay sane." I take a breath. "I agreed to this marriage. I agreed to play your wife. But I didn't agree to disappear. I have a family. Friends. A life outside these walls."
"Your life is here now."
"My life is wherever I choose to make it."
"You don't get to choose."
"Watch me."
Another silence. Longer this time. Heavier.
When he speaks again, his voice is low. Controlled. But I can hear the anger underneath. The frustration.
"You're making this harder than it needs to be."
"Maybe." I shrug, even though he can't see it. "Or maybe you're making it harder by trying to control everything."
"I'm not?—"
"Goodnight, Bruno."
"We're not finished."
"We are for tonight."
I pull the phone away from my ear.
"Antonella—"
I hang up.
CHAPTER TEN
Bruno
