Chapter 5At the entrance, she spotted Samantha.

She looked away, but samantha marched right over, fuming. "Amore, you knew yesterday was my birthday, and you still clung to Tony like that. What were you trying to prove?"

Amore laughed, a mix of annoyance and amusement in her voice. "Tony is my husband."

"So what? You got my sister killed. If she were still alive, Tony wouldn't have married you."

"Yeah. But let's be real, he wouldn't have picked you either."

That hit a nerve. Samantha raised her hand to slap her.

Amore caught her wrist mid-air, her voice sharp with irritation. "Ms. Feathers, keep it together. Your sister was all soft smiles and helpless charm. You just lash out? If Tony sees this, he might dump you."

Amore let go of Samantha's wrist and turned to her assistant. "Keep an eye on her. You don't want a paparazzi catching her throwing punches."

"Amore!" Samantha lunged, ready to fight, but her assistant held her back. "Samantha, stop. If someone gets this on camera, it'll wreck your career. You said Mr. Powers loves seeing you shine."

Samantha stopped struggling. Her assistant relaxed, but Samantha's voice turned sharp and mean. "You're wrong. That's not what Tony cares about most."

The chill in her eyes scared her assistant.

Amore lost her mood for shopping, so she headed to the studio to work.

Later that afternoon, the office door flew open.

Amor jumped, startled to see it was Tony. "What are you doing here?"

Tony stood in the doorway, his eyes burning with a hunger to tear her apart. "Amore, how could you be so cruel?"

She frowned. "Can you at least tell me what happened?"

He let out a bitter laugh. "Seriously? Are you trying to pretend or telling me you don't know what you did to Samantha's face?"

Amore shook her head, confused. "What? I ran into her, but I didn't touch her, definitely not her face. There are security cameras at the mall. If you don't believe me, go check the footage."

Tony scoffed. "Right. You deleted it. No wonder you're so calm."

"Wait. Are you saying the footage is gone? You think I did that?" she asked.

"Didn't you?"

The accusation hit like a punch to the gut. She could barely breathe.

She'd always known tony didn't trust her. But saying it her face didn't make it hurt any less.

Amore took a shaky breath. "Is it really that hard to believe me?"

His lips curled into a cold smile. "Believe you? Not a chance."

The light in her eyes dimmed. She laughed at herself for hoping, then drew a slow breath. "So what now?"

"Samantha's been crying all day, and it's slowing down her recovery. You're going to apologize and promise not to hurt her again," Tony demanded.

With every word, her frustration mounted.

"I don't—" amore started, but her phone rang before she could finish.

It was Anthon.

She took a deep breath, put on a smile, and picked up. "Hi, Anthon."

"My dear, are you off work? I told Matthew to come get you for dinner. Bring Tony to keep you company."

She glanced at Tony. His face made it clear: not happening.

Her heart sank, but her voice stayed soft. "Actually, we're heading out for a candlelit dinner."

Anthon lit up with joy. "Even better. Take your time. You two take a walk after dinner. Make a night of it!"

Amore kept up the act, saying exactly what Anthon wanted to hear.

Making him happy came naturally to her.

By the time she hung up, Tony was already fed up. He started the car before she could buckle up.

An hour later, they pulled up to the hospital.

Amore followed him inside. Samantha was out of treatment, her skin drained of color, half her face wrapped in gauze.

She was curled up in bed, delicate as a soap bubble ready to burst.

Her tears wouldn't stop, and her manager, Vicky, was murmuring words of comfort.