Beneath The Mask

(Tristan's Point Of View)

I left the dining room before Selena could say another word, the weight of her questions pressing heavily against my chest. I didn't look back, though every step I took felt like I was walking away from something far more fragile than either of us wanted to admit.

The halls of the house were quiet, but my thoughts were anything but. Her voice echoed in my mind: "Who are you afraid of, Tristan?"

I hated that she'd asked that. Hated that, for a moment, I'd almost answered.

I made my way to my study, slamming the door shut behind me. The room was dark, lit only by the faint glow of the sunlight filtering through the heavy curtains. I paced the floor, my mind racing.

She thought this was about power. About control. And maybe it was-on the surface. But it was also about survival, about keeping her alive even if she didn't realize the danger she was in.

I stopped at my desk, staring down at the stack of files spread across its surface. Contracts, ledgers, photographs. Evidence of the alliances and betrayals that had shaped my life-and now hers.

One file in particular caught my eye. I hesitated before picking it up, flipping it open to reveal a grainy photo of a man I knew all too well. Alessandro Ricci.

My jaw tightened as I stared at his face, memories flooding back uninvited. Ricci had been circling for months, looking for any excuse to fracture the alliance. The marriage to Selena was supposed to stop that, to cement the Rossi and Romano families as one unbreakable force.

But Ricci didn't believe in peace. He thrived on chaos. And if he thought Selena was a weakness, he wouldn't hesitate to exploit it.

The thought made my blood run cold.

A knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts.

"Come in," I said, my voice sharper than I intended.

The door opened to reveal Luca, his expression unreadable as he stepped inside.

"You look like hell," he said, closing the door behind him.

I glared at him, but he didn't flinch. "What do you want, Luca?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he replied, crossing his arms. "You've been brooding since breakfast. Let me guess -Selena?"

I didn't answer, but my silence was enough.

Luca sighed, leaning against the edge of my desk. "You can't keep pushing her, you know. She's not like us. She's not used to this world."

"You think I don't know that?" I snapped.

"Then act like it," he shot back. "She's not just some pawn in this game, Tristan. She's your wife."

"She didn't choose to be," I muttered.

"Neither did you," Luca pointed out. "But here we are."

I clenched my fists, resisting the urge to lash out. Luca was right, of course. Selena hadn't chosen this life, and neither had I. But that didn't change the fact that we were both trapped in it now, bound by promises and threats neither of us fully understood.

"She's asking questions," I said finally. "About the alliance. About who I'm afraid of."

Luca raised an eyebrow. "And what did you tell her?"

"Nothing," I admitted.

He shook his head. "You think keeping her in the dark will protect her? It won't. If anything, it'll make her more determined to fight you."

"She doesn't need to know everything," I said firmly. "Not yet."

"And when she finds out anyway?" Luca countered. "Because she will, Tristan. Selena's not the type to sit back and play the obedient wife. You know that as well as I do."

I didn't respond. What was there to say? Luca was right- again. Selena was fire and fury, and she wasn't going to stop until she had answers.

"Just think about it," Luca said after a moment. "Because if you lose her trust now, you'll never get it back."

He left before I could reply, the door clicking shut behind him.

I sank into the chair behind my desk, running a hand through my hair. Luca's words lingered, gnawing at the edges of my thoughts.

I'd already lost so much- friends, family, pieces of myself I'd never get back. Losing Selena wasn't an option.

But keeping her meant risking everything.

FINALLY, HIS POINT OF VIEW...to be continued..... loviessssss ❤️