My knees scraped against the shards of jade, leaving blood stains on the pale floor. The pain shot through me like a blade, but no one in the room moved. No one would. Not when the Don had spoken.
Seeing the mess, Dominic released me with a look of disgust.
"You broke her bracelet on purpose and injured her. Don't you think an apology is the least you owe her?"
Since marrying into the Valente Family, "I'm sorry" had become my most-used phrase.
The soup I cooked was too bland, so I apologized.
Worried that he might feel uncomfortable after drinking, I sent him a message, disrupting his peace. I apologized again.
I stumbled upon a text from Daniela, inviting him to a hotel. And once more, I found myself saying, "I'm truly sorry for invading your privacy..."
With blood in my mouth and pain in my bones, I straightened up, resigned. My thumb pressed against the inside of my ring finger where the wedding band still sat, though it felt like nothing. Like absence shaped into gold.
Bowing 180 degrees to Daniela, I offered three deep apologies.
Then I looked at Dominic with cold, empty eyes.
"Is that enough?" I quietly asked.
His chest rose sharply, eyes fixed on the blood at the corner of my lips.