My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 16

Gianna

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I was still frozen, when Madeleine came jogging back down the stairs. She had a thick textbook tucked under her arm and a bright smile. The normalcy of it felt strange after the moment I’d just had with Raphael.

"Ready?" she asked, her voice light.

I nodded quickly, not trustring my voice. I just wanted to be outside of this house so I could breathe.

We walked out the front doors and toward a sleek, dark SUV idling in the driveway. I expected to see some guard in a suit. But when we reached the car, the driver’s door opened, and Adriano stepped out.

"I thought we had a driver," I muttered, my voice low.

"We do," Madeleine said, her eyes softening as she looked at him, "He just doesn't like anyone else behind the wheel when I'm in the car."

I slid into the back seat, pressing myself against the door and pulling my backpack onto my lap. A second later, Adriano climbed into the driver's seat. The whole car seemed to shrink when he entered, he was too big, too loud, too much. Madeleine sat beside him, and the moment she buckled her seatbelt, the energy in the car changed.

Madeleine buckled her seatbelt beside him, but Adriano didn’t start the engine right away. Instead, he reached across the console and wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, pulling her gently toward him. He didn’t even glance at the rearview mirror. It was like I didn’t exist in the car at all.

"Do you really have to go?" he murmured, "I should lock the doors and keep you here."

"Adriano, stop," Madeleine giggled, though she didn't pull away. She leaned into his touch, her eyes fluttering shut for a second, "Gianna is right there and I have a lecture."

"Gianna isn't looking," he said, his eyes dark and fixed on his wife’s lips. He leaned in, his nose brushing hers, "Are you, Gianna?"

"Looking at the trees," I said sharply, my face heating up.

He let out a low, dark chuckle and finally put the car in gear. As we pulled out of the gates, Madeleine turned in her seat to look at me, trying to be the good host.

"So, Gianna," she started, "What's your first class today?"

"I have to study," she gasped, her hand reaching up to feebly push at his chest, "Gianna, tell him... tell him I have to stay for the full day."

I looked at the back of Adriano’s head. He loved her. It was obvious in the way he touched her, like she was the only thing in the world that mattered.

But it seemed scary... kind of love that looked like it could swallow someone whole. Trusting someone that much was just asking for them to eventually break you.

"I think he only hears what he wants to hear," I said, looking back out the window at the gray Chicago streets.

Adriano caught my eye in the rearview mirror. He gave me a sharp, appreciative look, like I had finally passed some kind of test. "Smart girl," he said. Then he looked back at his wife, "She’s right, Maddie. I only hear you. And right now, your heart is telling me you want to go home and forget all about these books."

"My heart is telling me I have a quiz," Madeleine whispered, pushing him away.

The car slowed down as we pulled up to the curb at UIC. I didn't wait for Adriano to come around and open the door. I grabbed the handle and hopped out the second the car stopped.

"Have a great day, Gianna!" Madeleine called out. She looked flushed, her hair a little messy from Adriano’s wandering hands.