War of A Rose

War of a Rose • Chapter 46

Chapter Forty-six
Alessio

I felt the heat of the night air as it wrapped around my neck. Standing on the terrace, I faced the woman standing in front of me.

"What do you want?" I asked, my tone guarded.

She ran her slender fingers along the balcony railing, and turned to me. "It's been a while," she said, her voice low.

I rolled my eyes. "Not long enough," I said, turning away from her and leaning against the wall.

Serena's eyes narrowed. "You always were so cruel, Alessio."

I faced her again. "Cut the shit, Serena. Why are you here?"

"Don't act like you don't know, Alessio. I'm tired of playing this game," she said, reaching out to touch my collar.

I took a step back, avoiding her touch.

"Why the fuck are you here?"

Her face shifted, something similar to sadness shone in her eyes, "You used me. All those years ago, you used me to get what you wanted." Her voice was thick with emotion, and I could see the hurt and betrayal in her eyes. But I didn't care. I never really loved her, and she knew that. I had only agreed to marry her as a deal with her father, and we both knew it."

"Yes, I used you," I said, my voice cold and emotionless. "And you used me. We both got what we wanted out of that arrangement."

Serena sneered at me. "You never really loved me, did you? I was just another conquest for you. But you know what they say, Alessio? What goes around comes around. Karma's a bitch."

I raised an eyebrow, not really caring what she meant, "Did you really think that your little rose could tame that beast inside of you?" But then she mentioned Rosaelia, and my blood boiled.

"What do you know about Rosaelia?" I spat, stepping closer to her. "Don't you dare bring her into this." How the fuck did she know what I called her?

Serena smirked, enjoying the reaction she was getting out of me. "Oh, Alessio. Don't tell me you're still hung up on that little Romano girl. You do know what she did, don't you?"

Heat rushed to my ears, my face, my neck. What the fuck was she talking about? I felt my heart pounding in my chest, as pure rage coursed through my veins. "What are you talking about?" I growled.

Serena's smirk widened. Her eyes were light, "Oh, you really don't know? I thought you were smarter than that, Alessio. Your little rose has been hiding some pretty thorny secrets." She mocked the nickname once again.

I lunged at her, my hands wrapping around her neck as I slammed her against the balcony railing. "What did she do?" I screamed in her face. I pushed my body into hers, making sure that her back was arched over the railing.

But Serena just laughed, enjoying the power she thought had over me. "You'll have to ask your sister. She knows. Or I suppose you can call up that father in law of yours. He would love to tell you all about his darling daughter." Her laugh was cut short as I tightened my grip around her throat, squeezing, cutting off her air. Still, she did not flinch.

"Did he send you? Domenico?" I asked, bending her back further over the railing. I let my grip loosen just enough for her to squeak one word out.