The Slave of Pleasure
Chapter 30

Vincenzo

As soon as the nurse left the room, I stared at Rachel, processing the last words I had heard. My head was still throbbing a little, and my arm was heavy with the cast, but at that moment, the physical pain wasn't what bothered me the most. It was the lie.

"My fiancée?" I repeated in a lower tone, now that we were alone. "Why did you lie about that, Rachel?"

She looked down for a moment, clearly uncomfortable, and pulled up a chair next to the bed, sitting down slowly. Her body was tense, and I knew she was trying to replace the right words.

"I... I didn't know what to do, Vincenzo." Her voice came out softer than usual. "When I got here, they said I could only see you if you were family. I... I was desperate. I thought something worse had happened." "So you decided you were my fiancée?" I asked, trying to remain calm, but feeling a mix of surprise and irritation. "Couldn't you have said something else?"

She took a deep breath, clearly frustrated with herself, but still determined. "It wasn't going to work. They weren't going to let me in." I sighed, laying my head back on the pillow, trying to digest what she was saying. There was something in the tone of her voice, the urgency of her words, that made me hesitate to fight her. She really was worried about me. "I just don't understand why this was so important to you, Rachel," I said, my tone softer now. "I'm fine. You didn't have to do this." "You almost died, Vincenzo," she said suddenly, her voice breaking. "And I... I don't know... I couldn't just stand by and do nothing, not even knowing if you were alive." I was silent for a moment, staring into her eyes. I wasn't used to people worrying about me like this. Ever since my parents died, I'd always been the one to deal with everything on my own, and maybe... maybe that was why her attitude had surprised me so much. "I just didn't want to lose you too." She murmured, more to herself than to me.

Those words echoed in my mind. Lose. Too. The weight of them fell on me in a way I hadn't expected. I was used to controlling every situation, to always being the one with all the answers. But now, I felt vulnerable in a way I didn't like. Rachel looked at me, waiting for me to say something, but the truth was that I didn't know what to say. She did it out of concern, but at the same time, she had broken a barrier I had kept between us. And I didn't know how to deal with it. "Okay." I finally said, letting out a breath I hadn't even realized I was holding. "Just... don't do that again, okay?"

She nodded, relieved, but there was still something in the air, something we couldn't put into words.

"I didn't mean to cause you trouble, Vincenzo." She murmured.

I shook my head, not knowing how to respond. Maybe it was more complicated than she imagined.

As soon as I finished speaking, the door opened and my assistant, Marco, came in. He was visibly nervous, as he always was when he had to give me bad news, which in this case seemed inevitable given the circumstances. The atmosphere grew tense, and I knew I had to deal with this as quickly as possible.

"Honey," I began, turning to Rachel and surprising her with the unexpected sweetness in my voice, "can you excuse us for a moment?"

Rachel looked at me, clearly suspicious. She knew I didn't usually speak like that, especially not so gently. But even so, she nodded, still puzzled, and left the room without saying anything.

As soon as the door closed behind her, the soft expression I had forced immediately disappeared. Marco looked at me, waiting for instructions, as he always did, although it was clear that he already didn't like what was coming.

"I already know how we're going to get around this situation," he said, straight to the point. "Here's what we're going to do: I'm going to introduce Rachel as my fiancée publicly." Marco's eyes widened, not believing what he had just heard. "Your fiancée, sir?" he asked, his voice full of surprise. "Are you sure this is the best way out?" I leaned a little further on the bed, feeling the pain from my broken ribs, but I tried not to show it. "It's the only way out. You know as well as I do that the paparazzi won't let me off my back any time soon. If we don't act quickly, the gossip will spread like wildfire. The media is already feeding on any information they can about me, and this latest headline will only make it worse." Marco hesitated for a moment, as if he was still processing the idea. "But sir, Rachel... is she okay with this?" I shrugged, not showing much concern. "She already posed as my fiancée to get in here. It shouldn't be that hard to keep her in that role for a while. The truth is, I have no other option. The sooner we deal with this, the more rThe tabloids will quickly change their focus." He was silent for a few seconds, clearly processing what I had said. Then, finally, he nodded, accepting the plan. "Okay. I'll schedule a press conference as soon as possible." "Do it," he said, closing his eyes for a moment, trying to ease the pain in his ribs. "I want this resolved as soon as possible. The less time we spend in the spotlight, the better." Marco made a mental note and was already heading for the door, ready to execute the plan. However, before he left, he hesitated for a moment and turned to me again. "What about Rachel, sir? Do you think she'll actually go through with it?" I slowly opened my eyes and looked at Marco, trying to convey the same confidence I always had, even though inside, a small part of me was uncertain about how she would react. "She'll do whatever it takes. And I'm going to make sure it works."

Marco nodded, this time without any further questions, and left the room silently, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the weight of the decision I had just made.