The Godfather Was Too Proud to Love Me, So I Walked Away Chapter 03

The Godfather Was Too Proud to Love Me, So I Walked Away Chapter 03

The day of the welcome gala, I started on Serena’s makeup.

Her skin was actually decent, but her features were soft. I sharpened her contours, pinned her hair up, and by the end even I was doing a double take.

My skills were truly unmatched.

Serena stared at the mirror, visibly stunned.

“Odette, you’re incredible. No wonder you have so many followers.”

Now that was something I liked hearing.

She went up a notch in my book.

At least so far, she hadn’t gone out of her way to make my life difficult.

Renzo arrived while I was upstairs on the third floor changing earrings.

Out of habit, he headed straight for the second floor. A moment later I heard him ask one of the staff.

“Where’s Odette?”

“Miss Odette moved to the third floor.”

When he found me, his tone was sharp. “What happened to your room?”

I saw that look on his face—ready to raise hell on my behalf. “What? Feeling sorry for me?”

That shut him up. He recovered with: “If you’re homeless, you can always come work for me.”

When it was time to leave, Serena walked up to Renzo.

“Your car is so beautiful. Can I ride with you?”

At that moment, I was already opening Renzo’s passenger door, my mind stuck on one question—had Renzo actually come to pick me up?

Sure, the estate had five cars and three drivers, but Renzo and I were close. When he showed up, I defaulted to treating him as my personal chauffeur.

Then I remembered the comments.

Maybe he wasn’t here for me this time.

I was about to step back and close the door when Serena appeared beside me.

“Odette, I get a little carsick. Would it be okay if I sat in front? If you mind, it’s totally fine.”

[Here we go! The passenger seat!]

[Odette’s treated that seat as hers since they were kids.]

[Last time Renzo’s cousin sat there ONCE, Odette complained about it for three months straight. The guy got so annoyed he literally fled the country to go oversee mining operations in Africa just to avoid her for a few days.]

[She’s definitely not letting this one go.]

I stared at the stream of text.

Why did they remember my embarrassing history in such vivid detail?

Renzo stood with his arms crossed, watching me, clearly curious how I would handle this. Well, Renzo—it’s your car. Your call.

“Go ahead.” I smiled and pulled the door open for Serena, then fished a mint out of my bag and tossed it to her.

“If you’re really carsick, keep that under your tongue. Don’t throw up in his car.”

Serena: “…Thank you.”

Renzo’s expression went rigid for a second.

He slammed his door noticeably hard. Almost like he was taking it out on me.

I walked to the car behind his. The driver, immaculate in white gloves, opened my door with practiced elegance.

Come to think of it, Renzo was a pretty lousy chauffeur. I would have to break the bad habit of riding shotgun with him.

We arrived one after the other at the five-star hotel owned by the Vitale family.

As I stepped out, I saw Serena grab Renzo’s arm.

“Renzo, this is my first time at something like this. I’m so nervous. Can you stay with me the whole time?”

Renzo’s eyes found me again. Waiting.

We had attended every event together since we were kids.

Every single time, he would complain that my heels slowed me down, call me a pain in the neck, and then hold up the hem of my dress anyway.

Now someone else was going to get that.

It stung.

I gathered my own skirt, lifted it, and walked inside with my head high.

It was fine. A proud princess could hold her own hem.

During the gala, I sat in a corner handling my study-abroad paperwork.

Behind me, two women were gossiping, and every word drilled straight into my ears.

“I always assumed little Odette and the Ferraro heir would end up married. Childhood sweethearts and all.”

“Turns out the real heiress was someone else entirely.”

“Credit to the Vitale patriarch, though. Even after getting his real daughter back, he still let the adopted one attend the welcome gala.”

“Odette used to be so full of herself. Always had to be the center of attention. Look at her now, hiding in a corner…”

It hurt to hear.

But I had spent ninety minutes on this makeup.

So no. I was not going to cry. Because then it would smudge.

The next second, Renzo’s voice cut through the air behind me, cold as a blade.

“Since when are the Vitale family’s affairs any of your business?”