The Villainess Wants a Divorce Chapter 09
Renato sat in the chair beside my hospital bed.
His gaze kept wandering to my stomach, and he was doing absolutely nothing to hide the smile that kept threatening his face.
Losing his mind over becoming a father. Now. In a hospital room. While I was trying to divorce him.
I was about to say something when the nurse came in.
“You’re lucky this time. We’ll give you something to help maintain the pregnancy.”
She moved to put in the IV.
Renato shot to his feet, eyes fixed on the needle in her hand. “Be careful. Slow down.”
The nurse tensed and missed the vein.
He looked at her like she’d personally offended him. “I said be careful.”
Her hands started shaking.
“Renato.”
He turned instantly. “Yeah.”
He’d crossed the room before I finished saying his name.
“Get out.”
A pause. He gripped the sides of his trousers. Then: “Okay.”
He turned and left.
The nurse let out a breath and smiled. “Your husband really cares about you.”
“He’s not my husband.”
She startled and missed the vein again.
Apparently being in the vicinity of Renato Gatti was medically hazardous. I needed to finalize this divorce before my veins gave out entirely.
The IV went in eventually. I played on my phone and drifted off.
When I opened my eyes, Renato was back, sitting quietly in the chair.
“You’re up. Hungry?”
He picked up a thermos from the nightstand. “I made butternut squash soup. Have some.”
He poured a bowl, lifted a spoonful, and blew on it gently.
“Don’t you have somewhere to be?”
He paused. Kept blowing. “My wife’s in the hospital. Where else would I be?”
“Go look at stars with your girlfriend. Drive through the desert. Do whatever you want, just stop hovering.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.” The admission came out deflated, his voice dropping to almost nothing. “She’s
not.”
He glanced at me, looked down, and muttered it again, half to himself.
He carefully held the spoon to my lips. “It’s cooled down enough. Open up.
I knocked it away. The spoon hit the floor and shattered.
He stared at the pieces. The light made his face look pale.
“Watch the glass. Don’t get out of bed. I’ll have someone clean it up.”
He stood, absently patted at a jacket that didn’t need straightening, and said quietly: “Don’t do this, Gianna. Don’t make me sign those papers.”
I’d had enough of watching him absorb everything I threw at him like a man doing penance.
“Renato. Be a man about it. Just sign.”
He turned away. His shoulders moved, just slightly, just once.
When he finally spoke, his voice was rough around the edges.
“Can we not get divorced? Please?”
“No.”
He seemed to compress under the weight of that word. “I was wrong. I know I was. I let things go too far with Noemi, let the distance between us get too wide. But I never betrayed you. Not really.”
He turned back. His eyes were wet.
“I made a mistake. Can’t you give me one more chance? Let’s start over.”
Something ached in my chest, the last reflex of something that should have already let go.
I exhaled.
“Renato. Think about where this was heading. If I’d stayed and fought instead of asking for a divorce, if I’d just yelled and cried and made scenes, what would you have done?”
“You’d have resented me for it. She would have felt like a refuge by comparison.”
“I have my own life. I’m not a prop in your love story.”
“Sign the papers. Let me go. Let yourself go.”
He shook his head. “You’re guessing. I wouldn’t have done any of that.”
“You would have,” I said quietly. “You would.”
He stared at the wall for a long moment, then snapped his head around, jaw set. “I wouldn’t! I swear to
God I wouldn’t!”
“Gianna, I am not signing those papers. I’ll hire the best lawyers in the country. I’ll fight this every step of the way.” He pressed his fist to his chest. “I will not let you leave.”
Then my phone buzzed. It was Luca.
“Miss Milano.” Luca’s voice came through clearly. “The cargo is on board. The ship has left port.”
