I stayed where I was. “About what?”
He rubbed the back of his neck, looking hesitant. “About Candela… since you let her go, I was thinking.”
I braced myself.
Then he smiled — gentle, patient, supportive. The same smile that once made me fall for him.
The same smile he wore every time he lied to me.
“…we could hire her as a housemaid,” he suggested.
My heart stuttered.
“As… what?” I asked quietly.
“She needs a source of income,” he explained casually, like this was a harmless idea. “And since you don’t trust her as much anymore, at least if she works here, you’ll know what she’s doing. I can still help her too. It works out for everyone. You know she’s alone… no family to rely on. I can’t just leave her with nothing.”
Works out for everyone.
For him and his mistress.
“No,” I said immediately, my voice sharp. “I already dismissed her. She’s not coming back here.”
His expression faltered slightly. “Isabella—”
“I said no.” I turned away before my anger slipped into something more revealing. “I’m exhausted, Sebastian. I don’t want to discuss this.”
“Don’t be like that,” he called gently, following me toward the bedroom. “You don’t have to react so strongly—”