Page 147 of Deacon

‘Do it; let’s see what the loser is after.’

I swiped to take the call, bracing myself.

‘Ana?’

‘What do you want, Max?’

‘Per favore,’ my ex-husband’s voice sounded out, thick with desperation. ‘I made a monumental mistake. I’m begging for your forgiveness.’

I shook my head in shock and confusion, hit the speaker icon, and kept my gaze locked on Deacon’s shifting expression and still-arched brow.

Max, on the other hand, kept going, oblivious to the fact that Deacon was listening in.

‘Cara, I know I hurt you, and I’m probably the last person on this earth you want to hear from, but I’m losing my mind. I am so damn sorry. I made a colossal, unforgivable mistake, and I’m begging you to listen. I’m completely desperate, Ana. I know I betrayed your trust and broke us, but dio mio, I can’t accept that it’s over like this. I was an absolute idiot. I’m not here to offer pathetic excuses or justify the trash I pulled, but I’m pleading with you to take me back. I will do whatever it takes to fix this. I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you if you give me one more chance.’

I almost choked. ‘You’ve got to be joking?’

‘Mia cara, please. I know you’re furious and I don’t deserve your grace, but I can’t breathe thinking I lost you forever. If you can’t jump straight back into my arms, at least allow me see you. Let me prove to you that I can change. Just tell me what to do, Ana. I’m on my knees here. Mi dispiace, davvero!’

‘Hold on.’

I muted him and stared at Deacon, shocked.

‘He can’t be for real. This is giving me the ick.’

‘Handle it like you’ve been doing, by not indulging that clown, and by giving him zero airtime. Don’t permit his half-baked weak-ass anywhere close to you. Why take a single damn risk with this prick after what he pulled? You’re good now, malkia, and thriving. He fucked up big time; now he can sit in his own mess and deal with the consequences like a man.’

I mulled over Deacon’s words until he went on in a rumbling timbre.

‘Also, him hitting you up now is a massive red flag. I sense his intentions are total bullshit; he wants something from you.’

I took an inhale.

‘I agree. There’s the fact that Tonelli Olivetti’s is suing him and Francesca. Perhaps he’s after my money now to help him with his legal bills.’

‘Fuck him then. Tell him you’re slammed, on tour with me, then hang the fuck up, block his number on every platform, and throw him in the trash where he belongs. Get this parasite off your back, period.’

I stared into Deacon’s eyes, then unmuted the call.

‘Listen, Max, I’m busy; I’ve no time for this,’ I said, keeping my voice deadpan and dismissive.

‘Busy? How much?’

He sounded frantic, scared even. I had zero empathy for him.

I got hit with the sudden need to lay it out plain for him: that while he was begging for another chance, I had moved on to a life where loyalty wasn’t a negotiation.

I wanted him to understand, down to his bones, that he did this to himself.

And that no amount of late-night regret would ever buy back what he threw away.

‘I’m on tour with Six Sinners, Max. Which is keeping me tied up.’

Max inhaled, pausing to take in what I’d just shared.

A sputter of rage followed.

‘You’re with him,’ my second ex-husband spat, his tone turning venomous. ‘I knew it! You’ve been having an affair with Deacon all along. If it wasn’t physical, it was emotional.’