Chapter 6: THE PRESENT

LORENZO’S P.O.V. As I stared at the letter, I was filled with blind rage. She left me all those years ago and instead of showing her face, she sent me a letter like it was supposed to fix anything. When the day started, I didn’t think it was going to end like this- with me debating whether or not to burn a letter from my wife. I ended up opening it and I was greeted with her familiar cursive. The last time I saw it, she had left me a letter saying she couldn’t take it anymore and she was leaving. That alone was enough to rouse my anger but I managed to shove it down long enough to make out the words on the paper. 'Lorenzo, I know I am the last person you want to hear from right now and I wish I could explain more but I can’t. His name is Leo and I want you to know that leaving him was the hardest decision I ever made but he isn’t safe, and neither am I but I can handle myself. Protect him. I know you won’t do it for me but do it for him. He is yours. I’m sorry for everything. Isabella.' By the time I was done reading it, I scrunched it up into a ball and threw it into the fire. She left me with more questions than answers. I don’t know why I expected anything different from her considering that had always been her nature. I ran my hands through my hair in frustration and loosened the top buttons of my shirt. I suddenly felt too claustrophobic. It took me longer than necessary to admit to myself that I wasn’t pissed that she left me with a son. I was pissed because she was in danger and her first thought was to save the child. If she had simply come to me then I would have protected them both or did she think I couldn’t do that? There were too many questions and not enough answers. I stormed out of the room and towards the kitchen. There was always a bottle of booze in the cupboards. I rummaged until I found a bottle of tequila. It wasn’t my first choice for a drink but I wasn’t picky tonight. I poured it into a glass and downed the shot at once. I heard footsteps and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a maid. As soon as she saw me, she froze. I couldn’t help but revel in her fear. At least I still had control of one part of my life. She left soon after that and I knew she must have spread the news to the other maids because I was alone for the better part of the night until I heard tiny footsteps. I knew it wasn’t any of the maids because neither of them walked with uncertainty. I knew the moment Leonardo walked into the kitchen but I didn’t turn around. I pushed the bottle behind some others so he wouldn’t see it. I knew I wasn’t the best person but I was above drinking in front of a child. I hoped he would leave but instead, he walked closer to me. He stopped behind me and I ended up turning to face him. He took one look at me and wrinkled his nose. “You smell like them,” he mumbled and I raised a brow. “There were some men who always smelled weird. They had these weird bottles but my mum always said I couldn’t drink it.” I didn’t understand the anger that grew in me. Why was he around men who were drinking and why didn’t Isabella do anything about it? “Did they ever hurt you or your mum?” I asked and he shook his head quickly. “They didn’t come over often. Mum said we couldn’t trust them but she needed their help.” I knew if I asked more questions, I would get angrier so I just exhaled deeply and crossed my arms over my chest. “Why are you here, Leonardo?” “I prefer Leo,” he whispered before continuing. “I can’t sleep. I’ve never slept without mum before.” He hesitated and glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes. I ran my hands over my face knowing what was coming next but still not being able to brace myself for it. “Can I stay with you?” A refusal was at the tip of my tongue but the way he was looking at me had me eager to say yes. I didn’t know why but I couldn’t refuse him. There was something about the way he looked at me that reminded me of Isabella. There was no denying that he was her son and a selfish part of me wanted to hold onto the only part of her I could get. “Fine,” I mumbled and got to my feet. “This is for one night. You cannot do this again. Am I clear?” Most men would have pissed their pants at that tone but he just giggled. I was taken aback and stared at him in shock. “Mum said you were grumpy,” he whispered as if he was telling me a secret. “She said you were like a big teddy bear and you liked to pretend to be mean but in reality, you were very kind.” “She talked about me,” I didn’t know I was shocked to hear that. He nodded as if I shouldn’t have expected any less. “She spoke about you all the time. Do you want to know what she said?” I nodded and he held out his hand to me. The last person I held hands with before Isabella was my mother. It always felt too intimate for me. I wanted to refuse him but he looked up at me with such innocent eyes that I couldn’t stop myself from slipping my hand into his own. His smile was almost worth the discomfort. “Your hands are rough,” he spoke as we walked towards my room. “Is there a reason for it?” Years of torture and hard work. “Not really,” I lied and he hummed. “You’ve had a long day. Why don’t we focus on getting you in bed?” He nodded. “Will you stay until I fall asleep?” I didn’t know how he figured out that I was going to leave him in the room. I realized that I had just met this boy today and he had demanded more from me in twenty-four hours than people had in years. “You don’t have to,” he began as if sensing my hesitation and I sighed. “Sure, whatever.”