Chapter 6 - The Breaking Point
The culmination of that suffocating pressure exploded during the reception. Nico had attempted to wheel himself toward the quiet perimeter of the library to escape the suffocating noise, but his wheel caught on a frayed edge of the Persian rug, tipping the chair and sending him crashing onto the hard marble floor. Instead of rushing to help him, Camille had snapped under the public embarrassment, marching over to hiss at him for "making a scene" before raising her hand and delivering the sharp, echoing slap that stopped the ballroom pianist dead in his tracks.
That was the moment Adeline dropped her tray and crossed the room. Catching Camille’s wrist in midair felt like declaring war on the entire Alfieri dynasty. The silence that followed was heavy with impending violence. Camille’s aristocratic fury clashed against Adeline’s unyielding professional calm.
When Camille stormed off, humiliated and furious, the guests pretended to look away, whispering behind silk fans and crystal champagne flutes. Adeline knelt beside Nico, gently helping him right himself and transferring him back into his wheelchair with practiced, respectful efficiency.
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Nico looked up at her, his dark eyes burning with a mixture of shock, humiliation, and a newly awakened fire. “You shouldn't have done that,” he muttered, his voice raspy. “She’ll try to ruin you.”
“Let her try,” Adeline replied, her hands steady as she adjusted his collar. “My brother’s heart surgery is already too expensive to worry about losing a job to a woman who doesn't know how to treat a human being.”
