Chapter 40 Give A Chance

• As they had imagined, due to the lack of notice from the doorman, it was Mirela at the door. She said she had stopped by to see her son before work, but both Paulina and Simon knew that wasn't the real reason. Simon even voiced his suspicion, to which Mirela laughed and didn't deny. While Simon got ready for work, Paulina stayed in the living room talking to Mirela, or rather, listening.
• Patiently, she accepted Salvatore's condolences, who lamented the end of her engagement. She didn't say a word when Salvatore assured her that she would find someone better, thanked her, and forced herself to hide her true thoughts behind a smile when she heard that she was a very good girl, a wonderful soul that would influence Simon to be a better man. Declaring that Simon was the one who influenced her to be a better woman seemed inappropriate.
• She imagined the chaos that would ensue if their arrangement was discovered. Mirela would demand her dismissal. Despite being friends with her mother, she doubted that Salvatore would accept such a breach of trust. Her father would disown her. For years he had been dissatisfied with her decisions, ever since she introduced Nathaniel as her boyfriend and moved out of the Salvatore's house to work for someone else. In her father's mind, the family was tied to the Salvatore's. Accepting the position as Simon's governess was one of the few joys she had given him. The scandal would kill him with grief, if he didn't kill her first.