Chapter 33 Marco Brought Some Surprises to Our Vacation.

Elena Garcia POV:

So, I got back to the villa and instantly started second-guessing myself.

'Did he just mess with me to get me back here? Am I playing right into Albert's hands?' I thought.

I was still hoping William would notice I was pissed, but he didn't follow me.

That kinda stung, but then I realized I shouldn't be feeling this way.

I slapped my forehead, annoyed at my own childish thoughts.

I tried to think it through calmly, 'He's with Sofia and those other girls, and he didn't hear what Albert and I said. Maybe he doesn't know I'm mad, or he does but can't ditch the beach volleyball game that's about to start.'

Anyway, expecting people who didn't know the reason to come comfort you was kinda messed up.

It meant I was getting soft.

And it made it easy to lash out at someone who had no clue what was going on.

Still in my swimsuit, I rinsed off in the bathroom and wrapped myself in a towel.

On the second floor of the villa, there was this big floor-to-ceiling window in the living room.

Outside, there was a huge balcony. When I opened the window and stepped out, I could see the beach not too far away.

I leaned on the balcony railing, watching William on the beach. He eventually teamed up with Sofia.

After I left, Albert and one of the girls he brought formed another team.

The ones who couldn't play surrounded the court, cheering them on.

Seeing Albert fall after missing the ball, I let out a mocking laugh.

It didn't get rid of my anger, but it made me feel a bit better.

After laughing, I felt a bit sad because I didn't get why Albert treated me that way.

When I was trying to get my parents' attention, Albert had given me advice. I thought he was actually being nice to me.

He answered my questions and told me how to get along with the Garcia family.

He told me about the problems James was facing and said it was my chance to improve my family's opinion of me.

Even though I didn't like his playboy side, which was super annoying, I still thought Albert and I just hadn't figured out how to communicate and get along.

Because we were family.

Families might not always get along on the surface. But deep down, they actually loved each other.

My adoptive mom Rosa told me that when she was young, she always felt her parents didn't love her because they were super strict with her, which caused her a lot of pain.

Until she grew up and met my adoptive dad Andrew, her parents showed strong resistance, which made Rosa even more upset, thinking they were interfering too much in her life, even though later it turned out they were right.

But back then, Rosa didn't see it that way. She was convinced her parents didn't love her, so she chose my adoptive dad Andrew and followed him to Chicago.

After her parents gave in to her love and called to apologize for their past behavior, she thought she had won.

But later, Rosa started to regret it. She realized that the conflict with her family came from never finding a good way to communicate and get along, which was the real reason for their conflict and growing apart.

Learn to trust your family; true family would always show their love for you.

That was what Rosa wanted to tell me.

I really wanted to follow Rosa's advice in dealing with my family, but when Albert bluntly told me he wanted to push me to Marco, his boss, I felt hurt.

'Why doesn't he care about his sister's feelings? Or do rich people just get used to making choices for others?' I wondered.

After thinking about it, I immediately dismissed it.

This wasn't helping; Marco's dangerous identity was something to avoid. Albert's words made me think of my adoptive dad Andrew.

To clear his gambling debts, he had tried countless times to use me as a bargaining chip.

I didn't want to think Albert was like Andrew, but I couldn't help but lump them together.

After all, in Albert's plan, both Marco and Albert were the ones who'd benefit the most.

That was why I was so mad.

But I also worried that I was overthinking it and that this was just a communication gap between us.

'Albert says the Garcia family values family, so does he feel the same? To him, do I need to show more to gain his approval? Is that why he treats me so frivolously? Maybe I should stay away from Albert until I truly understand him,' I pondered.

As I looked at the beach, I heard other sounds behind me.

Marco's footsteps and his voice came from behind me. "I don't want anyone disturbing me at this time."

I turned to look; he was wearing long pants, his upper body bare.

He frowned as he walked into the second-floor living room, focused on his phone call, not noticing me standing on the balcony.

He searched every corner of the second floor, seemingly urgently searching for something, until he opened the closet and found a black box. He placed the box on the cabinet and opened it.

His expression turned cold after hearing the person on the other end of the phone.

"Damn it. This is your negligence, Francesco. How long will it be until those guys get here? You are my agent. Since you chose to support me, you need to eliminate other dangers for me. What you need to do is take him away before he finds me. Otherwise, I can't guarantee he won't end up like a toy missing some parts," Marco huffed.

His voice was low, his mouth pressed down, and his face expressionless. His thick eyebrows looked like sharp swords, and his two-colored eyes were full of cold light.

At this moment, he looked like a real mafia, someone I feared.

For a moment, I seemed to understand why Albert thought Marco was showing me favor.

The real him was terrifying.

Marco rolled up his sleeves, exposing his muscular forearms, which looked very powerful.

He took a dagger from the box and tested it a few times, as if experimenting with its performance. Then he took out a gun.

Seeing the gun, I almost screamed out.

"If he hurts anyone, I'll kill him," Marco said.

He wasn't using any metaphors; he was straightforward and ruthless while talking to the person on the phone.

His cold demeanor made me take a step back.

My retreating footstep made a sound, causing Marco to notice me.

When he saw me, his expression turned to surprise.

I was sure his expression became bewildered, even making him seem a bit flustered.

He instinctively turned to block the dangerous box.

"There's no one around me; you misheard. I'll handle what I need to do, and the same way to you." Marco quickly hung up the phone.

The dangerous aura around him seemed to disappear at that moment.

Those hazel eyes looked at me calmly. "Elena, why are you here? I... I'm sorry, I thought you all should be on the beach?"

I awkwardly explained, "I was on the beach earlier. Albert and the others wanted to play beach volleyball. I was originally on a team with Albert, but for some reason, I had a dispute with Albert and came back to the villa!"

I was very grateful Marco didn't directly call out my name during the call because they seemed to be discussing something very dangerous on the phone.

From the information I inadvertently got, those words were not suitable for others to hear.

Marco looked at my pressed lips, which was oozing with nervousness, and turned back to put the gun and dagger back in the box.

After he closed the box, I breathed a little easier.

Marco asked, "You had a dispute with Albert? Did he give you a hard time? What happened?"

Marco walked closer to me, glancing at Albert on the beach.

Although his expression didn't become as dangerous as before, I started to get all nervous again.

"No, just some ordinary family disagreements, I can handle it!" I quickly denied it.

I was very afraid Marco would say something terrifying and uncomfortable, like he did when he heard I was hurt by my parents before.