Chapter 1

I thought I was the treasured princess of the Gallo and Moretti families. But three months pregnant, I found out my fiancé had already married my father's bastard daughter. It was all a setup, just to make my child a bastard too.

"Bella, you're so lucky. Mr. Gallo and Lucas treat you like a real princess," a socialite told me, her eyes full of envy.

Their gazes swept over my expensive jewelry and dress, proof of how much my father and Lucas supposedly worshipped me.

I forced a smile, my face felt stiff.

Princess?

A princess betrayed by her father and her fiancé, about to become the laughingstock of the city?

What a fucking joke.

My phone buzzed in my palm. "Lucas" flashed on the screen.

I took a deep breath, walked to an empty corner of the church, and answered. I didn't say a word.

It wasn't Lucas's voice on the other end, but a roar of rough laughter.

It wasn't Lucas's voice on the other end, but a burst of rough laughter.

"The Don’s got some moves. Bella finally agreed to sign over the Gallo shares," a gravelly voice said. One of Lucas’s top guys.

"If it weren’t for Miss Sofia whispering in the Don’s ear every day, saying Bella’s mother raised her wrong, that all she cares about is power, the Don would’ve never made up his mind."

"Tell me about it. Miss Sofia’s so sweet. Always saying, ‘My sister’s just confused. Taking her shares is for her own protection,’" another voice chimed in. "The Don’s killing two birds with one stone. He gets the shares, Miss Sofia becomes the official Miss Gallo, and he gets to play the hero. Now Bella can finally focus on the baby instead of meddling in all this dirty business."

So that was it. Everything was for Sofia, all under the guise of ‘what’s best for me.’

I thought back to three months ago, when Lucas had me sign the share transfer agreement. He’d said the Gallo family business was too dangerous, that he didn't want me and the baby caught in the crossfire. He'd manage everything for me, let me be his carefree princess.

And like a fool, I believed him.

The line went dead quiet. A beat later, Lucas's smooth voice came on, laced with a hint of panic he couldn't quite kill.

"Who touched my phone?"

"Sweetheart? When did you call? Did you… hear anything?"

He knew I was on the line.

I did my best to sound normal. "It's nothing. I just missed you…"

Just then, Sofia's sweet voice cooed in the background, "Honey, the baby's kicking!"

Lucas mumbled a few quick words to calm me down and hung up.

That evening, I returned to the villa that once felt like home.

My father and Lucas were already there.

My father looked exhausted, but he still pulled me into a hug. "Bella, sorry I couldn't be with you today. Some family business came up, but it's all handled. From now on, you don't have to worry about these things."

Lucas presented me with an elegant velvet box. Inside was a key and a document. "An island in the Maldives. I named it after you. Do you like it? A little something to make up for today."

They were perfect actors, playing the good father and the loving fiancé.

Lucas came closer, reaching for my hand.

I flinched back, avoiding his touch.

He froze. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," I said, pulling a document from my purse. I handed it to him, trying to keep my voice steady. "You know how pregnant women get, Lucas. Insecure. I just… need some reassurance. Sign it."

Lucas glanced at the cover: "Asset Transfer Agreement." He must have thought I was having a moment, looking for another way to test his love.

He didn't even open it. He just picked up a pen and scrawled his signature.

"There, my princess. Feel secure now?" he said with a smile.

I took the document back and walked to my room.

The second I closed the door, the tears finally broke free.

I flipped to the last page, to the clause I’d buried deep in the fine print: "Lucas Moretti voluntarily relinquishes all rights of inheritance, ownership, and guardianship over Bella Gallo and her children."

Then, I wiped my eyes and dialed the lawyer my mother had trusted most. "Mr. Capello, I need to activate the full authority of my mother's trust. Immediately."

I paused, watching Lucas and my father chatting happily downstairs through the window.

"And," I said, each word sharp as glass, "cut off all funding to the Moretti family's operations."