"Antonio, didn't you notice?"

In the study, my mother-in-law Sofia was discussing the dinner with the old Godfather.

"Lorenzo only ever talks this much when he's with Isabella. Look at him when he's with Vivian. He's never happy. If only they had gotten married later…"

"What are you trying to say now?" the old Godfather snapped.

Sofia pouted. "I'm not saying Vivian is a bad kid. I just want our son to be happy. You only live once, and I don't want my son to spend his whole life in regret over your Moretti family's damn blood debts!"

My hand, poised to knock, froze. Actually, I could tell them right now that I was willing to get a divorce, to set Lorenzo free so he could pursue his own happiness.

But the Moretti family couldn't bear the shame of being seen as ungrateful. They would never agree to a divorce for that reason. They might even think I was being unreasonable, which would only make things messier.

For this final month, I just wanted some peace.

I knocked on the door.

The voices inside stopped abruptly.

The door opened from within.

Sofia had an awkward smile on her face. She wasn't sure if I had overheard her.

My expression was blank. I no longer cared in the slightest about her opinion of me.

I told them I had quit my job to study for an exam.

They assumed I was reapplying to college and naturally had no objections.

Before I left, Sofia held my hand, a hint of guilt on her face.

"Vivian, when are you and Lorenzo going to have a child? With a baby, maybe his attention will be more focused on his home."

That was her motherly advice to me.

I gave her a slight nod.

As I turned, I walked right into Lorenzo.

His chest was as hard as a wall. His whole body seemed to stiffen, clearly uncomfortable.

Only he and I knew that we had never taken that step.

He must have heard what his mother just said, which would explain his discomfort. He couldn't even meet my eyes.

"Maybe I should move back into the master bedroom," he said suddenly.

A flush of red crept up to his ears.

My heart was calm, completely unmoved.

"Don't take what Mom said seriously."

Lorenzo's wandering eyes suddenly locked onto mine.

"You… don't you want to?"

I looked at him and smiled, but didn't answer.

He seemed to get angry, a fire rushing to his cheeks.

Maybe my words had wounded his male pride. After all, he had been so generous as to offer to share a room with me, and I had been so ungrateful as to refuse.

He stomped down the stairs, leaving me with nothing but his angry back.

I paid it no mind and went to retrieve my mother's belongings, ready to leave.

But the hard drive case wasn't where I had left it.

My heart skipped a beat. I rushed to find Lina. Sure enough, she had taken the box at some point.

She had just opened it and was about to rummage through the contents when I snatched it away.

"Who said you could touch this?"

Lina pouted and rolled her eyes. But when she caught a glimpse of Lorenzo out of the corner of her eye, her little mouth trembled, and tears instantly filled her eyes. "I'm sorry, Aunt Vivian. I thought it was my birthday present from you."

A four or five-year-old child who could act so well—Isabella's parenting was truly something else.

Lorenzo couldn't bear to see his goddaughter so upset. "What's wrong?"

Tears streamed down Lina's face as she clutched Lorenzo's sleeve. "Godfather, I made Aunt Vivian angry again. I'm sorry, I didn't do it on purpose."

Lorenzo looked at me with a hint of reproach in his eyes.

Honestly, this little actress almost made me laugh.

"Yes, it's all my fault. I'm sorry."

I hugged the box and walked out.

Lorenzo froze for a moment, guilt washing over his face. He had watched Lina grow up; he knew her habits well enough.

"Vivian, wait, I'll drive you."

"Godfather…"

Lina wasn't about to let him go so easily. By the time he had calmed her down, I was already gone.

Lorenzo chased after me, but there was no sign of me.