--Lucian POV--
From the first moment my eyes caught her, I should have guessed that she was no ordinary woman. While she held herself with the grace and composure of a wise ruler, she looked as though she held all the stress that came with it on her shoulders.
"When you say that your ex is a wealthy and influential man, how wealthy and influential is he exactly? I believe I should know at least that much if I plan on helping you with your case," I curiously asked, but I wasn't lying, I did need to know.
While I did very much want to know the identity of the man who was crazy enough to leave her, I also needed to know if my Vandenburg name would be formidable enough to go up against him and his influence.
She seemed hesitant to answer, but knowing that it was a valid question, she answered.
"Donovan Moretti,"
I sucked a breath in, biting my lip to hold back the curse that almost slipped through. But as I caught a look at her face, her broken eyes, I knew that whether or not I was formidable enough to go against that man and his dukedom, I would still be on her side.
Thankfully, thanks to my hard-earned skills, I've successfully brought the Vandenburg name up to be in the top 3 most influential families in the world. So, while Donovan Moretti might be a little wealthier than me, he definitely isn't more influential than me, and with the way the world currently is, influence is a lot more useful than wealth.
"Can you... help me?" I blinked, realising that I was silent for too long.
"I'm often told that I'm quite a smart man, but you're making me rethink that," A look of confusion fell over her face as I released a long sigh, running a hand down my face. "I should have been able to connect the dots when you told me your name, and the fact that your husband cheated on you with a maid,"
"Why..." She drifted off, looking further confused.
"Because the world of business is gossiping about you right now. How the Duke of Ludovica gave up his perfect wife, an attractive woman who has business skills that people only dream of, along with a friendly personality that makes her out to be a saint-"
"I don't understand if you're complimenting me or not right now," She cut me off, crossing her arms as she listened to me speak, but had a look on her face that told me to continue.
"I was getting there," I pointed out as she rolled her eyes, a small smirk playing at her lips. "He left all that for a mere maid who has nothing to her name, and I can't think of much else to add to that as I've never met her myself, but from what I've heard from you, there's not really much else to add to that," I finished off with a little shrug.
"You still haven't answered my question," She reminded.
"Oh, right," I snapped my fingers in realisation. "To answer your question, I-"
"Where in the world is Lucian!?"
I jumped at the booming voice that was approaching us, along with the loud clacking of heels against this expensive marble floor. That voice with the added hint of anger is nothing good for me, it can only be one woman. My mother.
"Come with me for a quick moment," I acted on instinct, not a single thought behind my actions as I leaned down, grabbed Angelina's hand, and spun on my heel as I ran out of the large room, the sound of her running behind me echoed in my head as we ran out the doors to the lantern-lit pathway of my large garden.
Once we had gotten far enough, I skidded to a halt, taking a moment to regain my composure as we both caught our breaths.
"You ran as though the devil himself was hot on your heels," She gasped out between uneven breaths of air.
"Hey now, my mother has her daunting moments, but I wouldn't go so far as to call her a devil," She hiccupped, hiding her grin behind her hand as she laughed at my words.
"Oops," Catching sight of a bench near us, she went to sit down, and I simply watched as she took her heels off, wiggling her toes and stretching her legs out while leaning back on the wooden bench, closing her eyes for a moment.
Going to sit beside her, I stretched my legs out, getting comfortable with my hands interlocked on my lap, thoughts running through my mind about her and everything regarding her.
This has turned into quite a complicated situation, at least compared to that day when I asked her for directions on a random street in Rome, to meeting her at a hotel bar, to sleeping with her as a one-night-stand. I never would have expected it.
"Why do you think your mother was looking for you?" She eventually asked.
"She's been trying to get me to marry, this whole party today was her last attempt at getting me to fall in love with a random woman for her to call a daughter-in-law,"
"And I'm guessing it's not going well,"
"Maybe not for her, but it's possibly one of the best parties I've ever attended thanks to you, Miss Russo," I smirked, turning to face her as I leaned my head on my knuckles while my arm perched itself up on the back of the bench.
"Well, I'm honoured to hear that, Mr Vandenburg," She chuckled, coming to mirror my actions as she too leaned her cheek on her hand.
"So, did you try making your mother's wish come true at least a little bit?" She raised a brow.
"Yes, that's what I was asking you directions for when we first met in Rome. I was going to propose to my childhood friend that day, Julia. But I realised that marrying her would be, no offense, boring. She took it well, in fact, she agreed with me,"
"Wow, I've never had that kind of problem before. Donovan was my first ever boyfriend. He'd pine after me in Uni, bringing me flowers, offering to help me whenever I needed it, etcetera, I fell for it eventually, and I never looked back, but I guess I should have," The small smile dropped off her face as she realised where those happy memories ended.
"Men can be such losers," I sighed.
She laughed, looking me up and down as if to double check that I was a man, and I rolled my eyes, but eventually gave in as I laughed with her.
"Of course, not all men. Some of them are rare jewels, and the same can be said about women, and all other genders," I pointed out.
"And do you consider yourself to be one of those jewels?"
"Maybe to some, I know for sure that I'm not a rare gem in everyone's eyes, nor do I aim to be." Wow, look at me being so poetic so late at night.
We continued to sit there for the next few minutes in comfortable silence, the distant sound of chatter resonating through the cold night air from all the guests that were having fun with the charity event inside the mansion.
I don't remember the last time I sat in such comfortable silence with someone. With Angelina, whether we be talking, making fun of each other, laughing, or even sitting in silence, I found myself relishing in her presence.
She had a presence which comforted anyone she was near, and I found that quite odd as I knew nothing about her, so while it was a looming fear, I didn't care to think much of it.
"Are we going to stay here all night, or do you plan on going back inside to where your mother is most likely waiting for you to appear with a partner?" She eventually asked.
But I paused when I opened my mouth to reply, my mind running over her words as an idea sparked to life, a light bulb moment that gave me a brilliant idea.
How could I have been so stupid to not think of this before?
The perfect solution to both of our problems! It's as if it's been looking me in the eye this whole time, but I've just been blind to its obvious presence because it's not a normal idea. But whether it's a normal ide or not doesn't matter, it made complete sense.
Sitting up, I slowly turned to look at Angelina as she too, turned to look right back at me, raising a confused eyebrow at my sudden change of posture.
"You're a woman," I pointed out.
"Thank you for noticing," Her confused brow raised itself higher.
"I need to marry a woman to get my mother off my back. You need a partner to help you get your business back from your greedy ex-husband," She didn't take long to catch up on what I was insinuating as her face fell in thought.
And just like mine, I saw the idea spark in her own hazel eyes.
"I have a business proposition," I started.
"And I think I'm already aware of that proposition," She massaged her temples as I spoke, her body going rigid with the thought of said proposition.
"You're one woman going against an entire dukedom. But with me by your side, you'll be so much more than that. Maybe not a Duchess, but your position will be one of much more importance, because for one, the Vandenburg name is alive and well, unlike the Moretti one," I will take whatever opportunity I can to throw shade at that heritage.
"So, Miss Angelina Russo..." Shifting myself, I went from sitting beside her on the bench to kneeling in front of her, taking her hand in mine as I smiled up at her surprised self.
I know, there's possibly so many more approaches for both of us in this situation, but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't my favourite idea. While it may be riskier for the both of us, it's definitely the fastest approach to the best outcome.
And I very well plan on taking advantage of it.
Especially if it involves being with her. Because whether she knows it or not, I can already tell that this is a woman who will mean much more than life itself to me at some point in the future, and it's scary to admit that.
But it's also exactly what I've been asking for. Excitement.
Angelina Russo is the most exciting thing to happen to me in my whole life.
"...Will you marry me?"
...