Chapter 99: No more lies I promise

Eve stared at him for a long moment, and Dimitri couldn’t tell if she believed him.

"If I find out you’re lying to me again," she said finally, her voice low and dangerous, "if I find out there’s more you’re not telling me....we’re done. Do you understand? I don’t care how much I love you. I don’t care how good we are together. I will not be with someone who treats me like a child instead of a partner."

"I understand."

"Good." She turned toward the door.

"Eve, wait...."

"I need some space right now. I need to think." She paused at the door, looked back. "I’m going back to work. I’ll see you at home tonight. And Dimitri? If Isabella so much as looks at me wrong, I’m handling it myself. Partner or not."

Then she was gone.

Dimitri stood alone in his office, the weight of his lies pressing down on him.

Marco appeared in the doorway. "That went well."

"Shut up."

"She’s right, you know. Keeping things from her is only going to make it worse when she finds out the whole truth."

"If she finds out the whole truth, she’ll do something reckless. Something that puts her in Lorenzo’s crosshairs." Dimitri moved back to the window. "I can handle her being angry at me. I can’t handle her being dead."

"So what now?"

"Now we make sure Isabella actually follows the terms. And we find out why she was stupid enough to be photographed in public twelve hours after the deal was made." Dimitri’s voice turned cold. "Call her. Tell her I want to see her. Tonight. And Marco? Make it clear this isn’t a request."

***

POV: ISABELLA

Isabella sat in her hotel suite, a glass of wine in hand, feeling something close to victory.

She was still in the city.

Still close to Dimitri.

Still in the game.

Yes, there were restrictions. Yes, Antonio had warned her to be careful. Yes, Dimitri had made it clear that one wrong move would get her killed.

But she was here.

And as long as she was here, there was hope.

Her phone rang. Antonio.

She answered immediately. "Mr. Valentino."

"Isabella." His voice was smooth, controlled. "I wanted to inform you that the arrangement has been finalized. Dimitri has agreed to let you remain in the city."

Relief flooded through her. "Thank you. Thank you so much...."

"Don’t thank me yet. The terms are strict. You stay away from Eve Thorne completely. No surveillance. No contact. No interference whatsoever. You focus on your organization with Enzo and nothing else."

"I understand."

"Do you?" Antonio’s voice hardened. "Because if you violate these terms, if you give Dimitri any excuse...he will kill you. And neither I nor your father will be able to stop him. This is your last chance, Isabella. Make good use of it."

"I will."

"I hope so. Because I’ve invested considerable political capital in keeping you alive. Don’t make me regret it."

"I won’t. I promise."

"See that you don’t." A pause. "And Isabella? Stay away from public restaurants. You were photographed at lunch today. Dimitri knows. Eve knows. You’re lucky he’s giving you the benefit of the doubt, but that won’t last if you keep being careless."

Isabella’s stomach dropped. "I didn’t think...."

"That’s the problem. You didn’t think. You need to be smarter than this. More careful. The only reason Dimitri is allowing you to stay is because I convinced him you’d behave. Prove me right."

"I will. I swear."

"Good." Antonio’s voice softened infinitesimally. "I know you care for my son. But Isabella...he’s made his choice. The kindest thing you can do for yourself is accept that and move on."

"I can’t."

"Then at least be strategic about it. Don’t throw away the time I’ve bought you by being reckless." He paused. "Now, I need to go. Remember what I said. Be smart. Be careful. And stay away from Eve Thorne."

The line went dead.

Isabella set down her phone, her hand shaking slightly.

She’d been given a reprieve. A chance.

But Antonio was right, she needed to be smarter. More careful. More strategic.

No more public restaurants where she could be photographed.

No more careless moves that would give Dimitri an excuse.

She needed to be patient. Subtle and invisible.

At least for now.

Her phone buzzed. A text from Marco.

Boss wants to see you. Tonight. 9 PM. His office. Don’t be late.

Isabella’s chest tightened.

So much for the reprieve.

Dimitri wanted to see her. Probably to reinforce the terms. Probably to threaten her again.

She typed back: I’ll be there.

She had six hours to prepare. Six hours to figure out how to convince Dimitri she’d behave.

Six hours to lie convincingly enough that he’d let his guard down.

Because that’s what this was now. A waiting game. A long con.

Dimitri thought he’d neutralized her. Thought the restrictions would keep her contained.

He had no idea that giving her permission to stay, even with conditions....was the only opening she needed.

She just had to be patient.

Smart.

Strategic.

And eventually, when he least expected it, she’d make her move.

***

POV: EVE

Eve sat in her office, staring at the contracts on her desk without actually seeing them.

Dimitri had lied to her.

Not a big lie. Not a malicious one.

But a lie nonetheless.

He’d kept information from her. Made decisions about her safety without including her. Treated her like someone who needed protecting instead of someone who could protect herself.

And what hurt most was that she understood why.

He loved her. Wanted to keep her safe. Thought that controlling the information would somehow make the threats less real.

But it didn’t work that way.

She couldn’t fight enemies she didn’t know about. Couldn’t protect herself from dangers she wasn’t aware of.

And she couldn’t trust a partner who lied to her, even with good intentions.

Her phone buzzed. A text from Dimitri.

I’m sorry. I was trying to protect you. It was wrong. Can we talk tonight?

Eve stared at the message.

Part of her wanted to stay angry. To make him understand how much it hurt to be kept in the dark.

But another part, the part that loved him desperately just wanted to go home and hold him and pretend everything was fine.

She typed back: We’ll talk tonight. But Dimitri, no more lies. I mean it.

No more lies. I promise.

Eve set down her phone, hoping he meant it.

Because if he lied to her again, if she found out he was still keeping things from her...

She didn’t know if their relationship could survive it.

And that terrified her more than any threat Isabella could pose.