Almostbeing the operative word, but because Justina no longer had any softness left inside of her—-
"May I have a moment with my husband?" She waited until Sarica turned to her before placing her hand over Giancarlo's in a casual claim of possession.
"O-Of c-course."
Sarica's stammer had Giancarlo stiffening next to Justina, and she squeezed his hand in warning.
Let this play out.
She turned to him, her gaze meeting his unflinchingly.
Or I'm going to make you regret it.
Sarica was now on her feet, but she was unable to look at either of them as she spoke in a rush. "I should...I, um, I actually have somewhere to go. And I t-think we discussed everything we had to."
Justina waited for Sarica to turn away before speaking again.
"I don't understand, Giancarlo."
And of course, she made sure that Sarica was still near enough to hear her every word.
"Why did you make it sound like nothing happened between us?"
Giancarlo's chest tightened at the way Justina's words made Sarica stumble. While he knew it could only be a good thing for Sarica to have more reasons to hate and forget him—-
He waited until Sarica was completely out of sight before turning to Justina. "What do you think you're doing?" It was one thing for him to hurt Sarica for her sake, but he had never asked Justina to do the same.
"You told me before you didn't want to be a brick around their neck and would never go back after it. Has that changed?"
A muscle started ticking in his jaw, but Giancarlo could not make himself deny the truth. "No."
"Then don't you think I've acted as you needed me to?" Justina asked with a shrug. "And besides, don't forget you have another mystery to solve. Or should I say who?"
Justina saw the shift in his expression, the way his jaw tightened at the reminder. Her next words came out more soberly: "I tried looking for information about Tueur, too, but he's like a ghost." Her fingers drummed against the table, a rare display of frustration. "I can't even figure out how Sarica got to know someone like him...unless, of course, it's the other way around."
Giancarlo knew what Justina was suggesting in not so many words, and as much as he despised acknowledging such a possibility—-
Of course it was possible that Dauphin Teuer had been the one to approach Sarica first.
Of course it was possible for another man to fall in love with Sarica...and be as obsessed with her as Giancarlo still was.
But regardless of who approached whom first—-
"Tueur has nothing to do with either of us," Giancarlo said flatly, "and as long as he doesn't do anything to hurt Sarica or myfamiglia,it's a waste of time to even think—-"
The buzz of his phone inside his pocket interrupted him, and Giancarlo answered the call when he saw Nassif's name on the screen.
"Your target has taken the bait. He'll be flying in tomorrow." A pause. "Maybe this time, my new vest will be of some help."
"I doubt it." Kivr's airport was recently declared a no-firearms zone and employed a comprehensive security system to ensure the rule applied to everyone flying in and out of their territory.
"One can always hope," Nassif murmured.
"Your concern for my well-being is unmatched."
"Just making the most out of a situation, my friend."
Giancarlo turned to Justina after dropping his phone back in his pocket. He considered telling her about Viktor but decided not to. The fact that she didn't like talking about her past was telling, and there were times when it was better for one's demons to simply disappear without having to face them.
