Chapter 2

I didn't leave the table.

Tommaso seemed to think I'd finally come around.

He slid a bank card toward me.

"There's eight hundred thousand in there. Consider it repayment."

I looked at the card.

Over three years, I'd wired him a total of one million and sixty thousand dollars.

That was every paycheck, every bonus, plus my small share of the inheritance from selling Grandma's old shop.

"You still owe me two hundred and sixty thousand."

Tommaso's brow creased slightly.

"Sofia, we don't need to nickel-and-dime each other. Besides, Alessia's shops just expanded. Cash flow is tight."

"What does my money have to do with her shops?"

Alessia's face went pale.

Adriano raised his glass in front of her.

"The money you sent Tommaso—part of it went to Alessia's treatment, part of it funded her shops. We're all family. What difference does it make where the money went?"

I stared at Tommaso.

"I thought a rival family scammed you out of everything?"

Dead silence.

He didn't look away.

"No."

"The landlord chasing you for rent—that was a lie too?"

"Yes. All of it."

Each word came out slow and steady. Like he was reviewing an invoice that had nothing to do with him.

"Why?" I asked.

"If I told you things were going well, you'd have come to Milan."

Tommaso held his glass, his thumb tracing the rim.

"Alessia couldn't be left alone back then. If you showed up, she'd think you were interfering. She'd spiral."

"So you took my money and told me to wait?"

"Money I can pay back. But if something happened to her, I couldn't bring her back."

His friends started playing peacemaker.

"Tommaso's words are harsh, but he's got a point."

"Sofia, you're healthy, you've got a stable career. Alessia was genuinely falling apart."

Mom picked up the bank card and stuffed it into my bag.

"Eight hundred thousand is more than generous. Write off the rest as an investment in your sister's business. Don't make us look bad over pocket change in front of outsiders."

I pulled the card out and set it back on the table.

"What's the shop called?"

Alessia answered quietly.

"Dolce Segreto."

I went still.

When I was seventeen, Grandma told me to pick a name for the shop I'd open someday.

I wrote two words in my notebook.

Dolce Segreto.

Tommaso had been sitting right next to me. He'd laughed and said the name sounded old-fashioned.

Later, he had someone carve those words into a small wooden sign.

He hung it behind the door of Grandma's shop and told me that when we moved to Milan, we'd use that name for our first store.

That wooden sign was now sitting behind the birthday cake.

A new line had been added:

[Founders: Alessia & Tommaso]

I reached for it. Alessia grabbed it first, pressing it against her chest.

"Sis, the name's already registered. All seven shops use it. I can't give it back."

"What about my recipe?"

Mom cut in immediately.

"Alessia is Grandma's granddaughter too."

"Grandma only taught me. And I co-developed the recipe with her."

"You're twins. What's the difference?"

Mom said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

For a moment, I genuinely didn't know how to respond.

Tommaso pushed the bank card back toward me.

"The name and the recipe are already part of the brand. We can't just stop using them. Take the money. Let's end this tonight."

"And if I don't?"

He stared at me for a long few seconds.

"Sofia, you can't destroy the only thing Alessia has control over."

"And you can't bring yourself to walk away from what we have."

He knew me too well.

He knew I couldn't stand watching Mom cry. Couldn't stand seeing my sister sick.

Most of all, he knew that if he lowered his voice and said just wait a little longer, I'd make excuses for everyone.

Once upon a time, he'd have been right.

Not anymore.

Alessia wiped her tears and asked the waiter to bring out the party favors.

The box opened.

Inside, twelve almond cream pastries sat in neat rows.

Each one stamped with a chipped osmanthus leaf.

At the bottom, a line of small print:

[Dolce Segreto Traditional Craft. Original creation by Ms. Alessia.]

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