Becoming Mrs DeLuca novel Chapter 95

**Through Shadows We Painted Our Forever by Erynn Vel Coren**
**Chapter 95**

**ADRIAN**

As I stepped through the threshold of my home, a sound wafted through the air, pulling me toward the kitchen. It was a rhythmic tapping, a whisk making contact with a glass bowl, and for a moment, I thought my weary mind was playing tricks on me.

The kids were at school, and Sybil wouldn’t be back until later in the evening. The house was supposed to be a quiet sanctuary, a place where I could escape the chaos of the outside world, even if just for a short nap. I had taken a break from work, hoping to recharge before the inevitable storm of noise and activity returned.

With cautious steps, I approached the kitchen, my hand instinctively hovering near the gun I kept tucked away. The tension in my body was palpable, every instinct on high alert.

But as I reached the doorway, I froze, my breath caught in my throat.

There she was. Valentina.

Standing at the counter, her sleeves pushed up, her hair gathered in a loose bun, she was a vision of domesticity. Flour dusted her hands and cheeks, a testament to her hours spent baking. Trays upon trays of cookies were lined up, each one a little piece of her effort and love. She must have been at it for a while, completely absorbed in her task.

I blinked, disbelief washing over me. It seemed too surreal, too perfect. Had I drifted off into a dream? I shook my head, willing myself to wake up, but when I opened my eyes, she was still there, as real as the flour that covered her.

“Valentina?” I managed to utter, my voice barely above a whisper.

“Oh my God!” she exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock as the whisk slipped from her fingers and clattered to the floor. She pressed a hand to her chest, clearly startled. “What the hell? You scared me.”

The moment our eyes met, it felt as though the air had been knocked from my lungs. I hadn’t realized how profoundly I had missed her presence until that very moment. Without a second thought, I dropped my briefcase and rushed to her, enveloping her petite frame in a tight embrace. I held her as if I could fuse our souls together, afraid that if I let go, she might vanish again.

In that instant, I closed my eyes and breathed deeply, savoring the sweet, familiar scent that enveloped me, a fragrance I had longed for over the past month. It felt like a miracle, a moment I thought I might never experience again.

But when I finally released her, a bright smile spread across my face, a reflection of the joy bubbling within me.

“You’re back!” I exclaimed, unable to contain my excitement.

Valentina cleared her throat, stepping back as if my enthusiasm had caught her off guard. She shook her head gently, her expression shifting. “I—uh—I’m just here to bake cookies for Stefan’s bake sale at school tomorrow. I promised him I’d make them.”

Confusion washed over me. “What do you mean? You’re just here to bake cookies?”

“Yes, Adrian. I’m baking cookies for my kid’s school. Do you have a problem with that?”

I couldn’t help but scoff, the smile fading from my face like a shadow retreating at dawn. Anger bubbled beneath the surface, mingling with the exhaustion that had settled in my bones. The only reason she was back in my kitchen was for some trivial school activity—not because she missed me, not because she wanted to talk, not because she had realized anything or changed her mind.

“What? You disappear for a month, ignore my calls, and now you waltz in here to bake fucking cookies?” I couldn’t keep the bitterness from my voice.

“A date? I didn’t go out on any date. What are you—”

That was the moment everything spiraled out of control. Valentina seemed to teleport from her spot, her emotions erupting as she stood before me, tears streaming down her cheeks.

When she lifted her hands, I braced myself for what I didn’t know—yet nothing could prepare me for the fury that followed. She began to rain blows down on my chest, each hit fueled by her pain.

“How dare you?” she cried, her voice a mixture of rage and heartbreak. “How dare you do this to me? You couldn’t even wait? Did you have to rub it in my face? Do you have any idea how humiliating it was for me to see those photos? Do you!?”

With a shove, she pushed me back, her weight catching me off guard. I stumbled, trying to regain my footing as her cheeks flushed with anger, her eyes shimmering with tears that spoke of betrayal. I struggled to comprehend the whirlwind of emotions swirling around us.

“Val…”

In a moment of desperation, I grasped her arms and pushed her back against the wall, pinning her wrists above her head to prevent her from hitting me again. What photos was she even talking about?

“Baby, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I promise you, I don’t. I would never do anything to hurt you,” I pleaded, my voice low and earnest, a desperate attempt to reach her through the storm of her emotions.

But my words only seemed to ignite her fury further. Valentina was breathing heavily, her lips slightly parted, her chest rising and falling with each breath, and in that moment, she was so stunningly beautiful, even amidst the chaos. The fire in her eyes was both captivating and terrifying, and I felt my heart race for all the wrong reasons.