Chapter 48: CHAPTER 44: IGNORANCE

Neti

I was not going downstairs.

Absolutely not.

No way.

I clung to my blanket like my life depended on it, face buried in my pillow.

“Eliza, I swear to God, leave me alone,” I grumbled, voice muffled.

But Eliza, being the relentless force of nature she was, did not leave me alone.

Instead, she ripped the blanket off me in one swift motion, leaving me exposed to the morning chill.

I shrieked. “Eliza!”

“Oh, come on, Miss Neti,” she scolded, hands on her hips. “You’re acting like a child.”

“I am a child,” I muttered.

She scoffed. “You’re getting married in four days.”

“Against my will,” I reminded her.

She grabbed my arm and yanked me upright. “And yet, you still have to eat. Now, up.”

I groaned dramatically, flopping back onto the bed. “I’m never showing my face to them again.”

Eliza crossed her arms. “You do realize they’re just going to keep teasing you if you keep acting like this, right?”

I glared at her. “You are supposed to be on my side.”

She patted my cheek. “I am. That’s why I’m saving you from starving to death.”

I flopped again, sighing in defeat. “They’re never going to let me live this down.”

Eliza smirked. “Nope.”

With an exaggerated groan, I finally dragged myself out of bed, grumbling under my breath. “Fine. But if either of them says one word, I’m walking right back up here.”

Eliza just smiled knowingly.

I hated that smile.

Two days

In just two days, I was going to be married.

The realization hit me like a truck the moment I stepped downstairs, still groggy from sleep. I barely had the energy to glare at Pranav, who was grinning at me from across the breakfast table.

“Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to join us,” he teased, sipping his coffee like he was the smuggest person alive.

I shot him a tired look. “Shut up, Pranav.”

Adolph, sitting at the head of the table, smirked as he leaned back in his chair. “Good morning, dolcezza,” he said smoothly.

Sweetness

I refused to acknowledge how deep and rich his voice sounded in the morning.

Instead, I sat down and started stabbing at my food, determined to ignore both of them.

But of course, they didn’t let me.

“So,” Pranav started, grinning like a devil. “Two days, huh?”

I paused mid-bite. “What?”

“Two days until you’re officially Mrs. Adolph Alessandro.”

I choked.

Adolph chuckled while I reached for my water, glaring at Pranav between sips. “Don’t call me that,” I snapped.

“Oh, but it’s true,” he sing-songed, wiggling his eyebrows. “In two days, you’ll be wearing a wedding dress, walking down the aisle—”

“Pranav, I will end you.”

“—and then after the wedding, you and Adolph will be alone in a very luxurious honeymoon suite—”

“PRANAV!”

He burst into laughter while I threw my fork at him. Unfortunately, he dodged.

Adolph, still smirking, took a sip of his coffee. “He’s not wrong, dolcezza,” he murmured, his gaze way too intense for this early in the morning.

I hated them both.

Pranav finally finished his breakfast, stretching lazily as he stood up from his chair. “Well, as much as I’d love to stick around and make you blush some more, I actually have things to do,” he said dramatically, adjusting his shirt.

“Oh, wow. You actually work?” I shot back, rolling my eyes.

He placed a hand over his heart, pretending to be wounded. “You wound me, Neti. But yes, I do. Unlike some people, I don’t just sit around, looking pretty.”

I picked up my spoon, considering throwing it at him next.

Adolph, completely amused, raised an eyebrow. “Then go. Before she actually stabs you.”

Pranav grinned, backing away. “I’ll see you lovebirds later,” he teased, winking at me before heading toward the door. “And Neti—don’t miss me too much, alright?”

I flicked a piece of bread at his head.

He dodged it effortlessly, laughing as he walked away.

Finally. Peace.

Or at least, that’s what I thought—until I realized that I was now alone at the table with Adolph.

And he was watching me.

Intensely.

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Adolph

She was trying to ignore me.

Keyword: trying.

Neti sat across from me, eyes fixed stubbornly on her plate, moving her fork with unnecessary focus—like she was solving some kind of culinary puzzle. As if that would make me disappear.

I smirked, leaning back in my chair, watching her every move. “You know, dolcezza,” I drawled, “if you concentrate any harder on that toast, it might just run away in fear.”

She didn’t look up. “Or maybe I’m just trying to enjoy my breakfast without a certain someone ruining it,” she muttered, stabbing a piece of fruit with unnecessary force.

I chuckled. Feisty as ever.

Resting my elbow on the table, I tilted my head. “Ignoring me won’t make me go away, you know.”

She still refused to look at me, lifting her glass of orange juice and taking a slow sip.

My smirk widened.

I leaned in slightly. “Or… is it that you’re avoiding looking at me because you know what happens when you do?”

The way her grip tightened on the glass—just for a second—was all the confirmation I needed.

Interesting.

I decided to push her a little further.

“You were so bold last night,” I mused, tapping my fingers against the table. “Blushing, stuttering, running away like a shy little kitten. It was adorable, really.”

She finally looked up, glaring. Ah. There she is.

“You are insufferable.”

I grinned. “And yet, you’re still here. With me.”

Her jaw clenched. She grabbed another piece of toast, clearly trying to focus on anything except me.

I leaned closer. “You know, you could just admit that you like my attention, tesoro.”

She set her toast down with a sharp thud. “Or,” she said sweetly, “I could just stab you with this fork.”

I laughed, thoroughly entertained. “Now, now. Violence at the breakfast table? And here I thought you were too shy to even look at me.”

She huffed, taking another bite, clearly done with my existence.

But I wasn’t done with her.

Not even close.

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