Bound by Hatred(64)

The Bardoni’s lived in a townhouse, which had been decorated to an inch of its capacities. They’d even set up a massive angel, which had been carved from ice, in their front yard. The decoration was white and gold, expensive crystal baubles adorned the massive tree. It screamed money, and felt so impersonal that I was sure an interior designer had arranged it. Mrs. Bardoni didn’t appear as if she’d ever moved a finger for anything. She was also at least twenty years younger than her husband.

She and her husband greeted Aria and Luca first, and while their smiles hadn’t been exactly warm or honest, they turned positively fake and condescending when it was time to greet me.

I shook Mrs. Bardoni’s hand with a polite smile, or at least I hoped it looked polite. Her expression was as if an untalented sculptor had tried to carve a smile into a statue. The smile of the ice angel outside had been warmer than hers. When Mr. Bardoni turned to me, I had to suppress a shudder. He reached for my hand but while he’d barely brushed Aria’s skin, his lips pressed firmly to my hand and then his tongue darted out and licked my skin. The accompanying leer he sent my way almost made me punch him. I quickly retracted my hand, only barely managing not to wipe it on my dress, and only because the silk was too beautiful to come in contact with that asshole’s slobber.

Matteo was in conversation with Mrs. Bardoni who was introducing him to a young woman my age. It was obvious that the old hag was trying to set Matteo up with her daughter. Anger bubbled up in me but I knew better than to show my emotions. When I finally turned my eyes away from the scene, I found Aria watching me with a worried expression. I gave a small shake of my head. Matteo tore himself away from Mrs. Bardoni and her daughter, and wrapped his arm around my waist. He scanned my face as he led me into the living room where the remaining guests had gathered. “You look pissed.”

I shrugged. If I told him what Mr. Bardoni had done, things would become ugly. “Looks like you have a fan,” I said instead, nodding in the direction of the Bardoni daughter whose eyes followed Matteo.

“Jealous?” he asked, smirking.

“You wish.” But was I?

We didn’t get the chance to talk more, because other guests approached us, and while most of them were acting polite, I could see in their eyes that they despised me. I had a feeling that they would show me what they really thought of me the moment Matteo wasn’t around. They soon got their chance. While Matteo and Luca joined the other men, Aria and I strolled toward the buffet. Of course we weren’t alone for long. Soon the bitch Cosima, Matteo’s stepmother Nina, as well as Mrs. Bardoni, and a few other women joined us. Aria’s presence still offered me some protection from direct insults, but none of the women bothered talking to me. It was as if I wasn’t even there. Even Aria’s attempts to include me in the conversation failed. I didn’t care. I hated these women, hated their fake smiles and nasty personalities. But the worst was watching Aria being polite to Cosima despite what that bitch had done.

Eventually I excused myself and headed toward the terrace door, which allowed a view into the small snow-covered garden. My reprieve was very short-lived however.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” a high female voice said.

Nina Vitiello stood beside me, her mouth stretched wide in the imitation of a smile. She no longer wore black. Her husband’s funeral had been more than a year ago. She linked our arms to my utter disdain and led me outside despite the cold. I knew this wasn’t going to be pleasant. Even though she was Luca’s and Matteo’s stepmother, she’d never come to visit. I had a feeling she was scared of her stepsons.

The moment we were away from privy ears, she turned her back to the windows and faced me with a face devoid of any pleasantness. She reminded me of an ugly toad. “You might be parading around like you are one of us, like you belong in our circles, but if it weren’t for Matteo, nobody would invite you.”

I raised my eyebrows. Did she really think I gave a damn? I’d never wanted to be part of this world, that was why I had run away. It took immeasurable control on my part not to say what I wanted. Instead I tried to return to the party but Nina Vitiello held my arm, obviously not done. “A decent girl would have died from shame after being caught with another man. The only reason you’re still alive is Matteo’s good-heartedness. That boy is too dutiful. Although nobody would have blamed him if he’d discarded you like a dirty rag after what you did. If my husband were still alive, he’d have fed you to our dogs.”

Dutiful and good-hearted? That didn’t sound like Matteo.