I can feel Rosa’s judgment radiating from her in waves as she watches her children play with gifts from a man she loathes, but I know it would be cruel to take them away. She doesn’t say anything else. She just watches as the kids sort through the bounty. More dinosaurs, building blocks, a set of toy cars that light up when you press a button.
Leon is in heaven.
Why has Cristiano sent toys? Has he realized whose likeness my son bears?
He’s not just courting me anymore. He’s courting my son. Building a relationship with a child who’s already starving for male attention.
Make Leon love him. Make Leon ask for him. Make it impossible for me to cut Cristiano out without breaking my son’s heart.
I feel sick.
I can’t fall apart, not in front of the children, or Rosa, who’s looking at me like I’ve lost my mind.
I take a breath, force my shoulders back, and reach for my jacket. “Come on, kids. Let’s go to the park before it gets too busy.”
The park is three blocks from my apartment, close enough that we walk. The kids run ahead, Leon proudly carrying his new T-rex, Mason and Carly clutching the toys they’ve claimed as their own.
Rosa and I walk in silence. I can feel her anger simmering beneath the surface. She keeps glancing at me like she’s trying to figure out who I am.
At the park, we settle on a bench while the kids scatter toward the playground. Leon immediately starts showing off his dinosaur to another little boy, his face bright with pride.
Rosa breaks first.
“He’s a rapist, Mina.” Her voice is low but fierce. “I don’t understand how you can let him back into your life.”
That old hot, tight frustration flares in my chest. The impossible position I always end up in, having to defend Cristiano in order to defend myself.
“Rosa, it wasn’t like that.” I plead with her to believe me, but she just shakes her head, her lips tight.
“I can see the guilt on your face.” She turns to look at me fully, her eyes hard. “You’ve kissed him, haven’t you?”
I look away.
“How could you, Mina?”
“I don’t want to talk about this right now.” My voice comes out sharper than I intended. “This isn’t the time or the place.”
“Then when? When is the right time to talk about the fact that you’re falling back under that man’s spell?”
“I’m not falling under his spell.”
The lie tastes bitter on my tongue. As much as I tell myself that I’m in control, he had all the power yesterday. He blew through me like a hurricane, and I loved every second.
“Is it because he’s rich?” Rosa presses. “Charming?” She makes a dismissive sound. “He’s not even that good-look…”
She trails off, her eyes fixed on something over my shoulder, her face going blank with shock.
I turn to see.
Cristiano is walking toward us across the grass. He’s wearing a charcoal suit today, perfectly tailored, with that long, expensive-looking black coat. The morning light catches his golden hair, his amber eyes intent on me. Two men flank him a few feet back, young, hard-faced, dressed in dark suits. Their eyes scanning the area like they’re watching for threats against their boss.
Around the playground, moms have broken off conversations or lowered their coffees to stare at Cristiano.
Not that good-looking? Even Rosa, disgusted as she is with him, can’t finish that sentence. Not when he looks like that. Not when he moves like he owns every inch of ground he walks on.
Because he does.
“Mina.” He stops a few feet away, inclining his head politely toward my sister. “Rosa. It’s good to see you again.”
