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Chapter 3

Author: Freya
“So you want Emily to bring us the rings?” I asked sarcastically.

“Yes. Emily said she wants to carry the rings for us.” Enzo looked at me with a trace of apology. “I know Buddy means a lot to you, but if we want the wedding to go smoothly, Emily is the better choice. Besides, having her blessing might make it more meaningful. Don’t you think?”

I had no interest in arguing with him anymore, so I simply nodded. “Fine. You can decide everything.”

My reaction seemed to genuinely surprise Enzo. He stood beside the bed and studied me for a long moment, as though he were trying to find some sign of reluctance on my face.

“Linda...” He bent down and reached out to hold me. “You’ve been acting really strange today. Have you been feeling exhausted lately? Don’t worry about the wedding. I’ll handle everything. You just need to relax and be my bride.”

I stepped away before he could embrace me.

“I’m a little tired, and I haven’t been sleeping well lately. I’m going to sleep in another room tonight.”

Enzo’s hand remained suspended in midair.

“You mean you want us to sleep separately?”

“Yes.” I picked up my pillow and walked past him. “You should get some rest too.”

Without looking at his expression, I headed straight for the guest room at the end of the hallway.

As I pulled the door closed, I heard Enzo’s confused voice from the hallway. “Linda? Are you feeling unwell?”

I shut it without answering.

Where the wedding would be held and who would carry the rings no longer mattered to me, because I was not going to be there.

The next morning, I was woken by a burst of noise.

I threw on a robe and stepped out of the room to see what was going on.

Emily was standing in the middle of the foyer downstairs with seven or eight suitcases piled around her feet, directing the butler as he moved her luggage.

“Put this suitcase over here, and leave that one for now. My skincare is inside, so it needs to go in the bathroom,” Emily kept saying, as though she were already the mistress of the estate.

“Good morning. Did you sleep well last night?”

Enzo walked over with a cup of coffee in his hand.

“So, are you going to explain what’s going on?”

I gestured toward the foyer below as I looked at him.

“It’s like this, Linda. Emily hasn’t been doing very well lately, so I told her she could stay here for a while.” He took a sip of coffee before continuing. “Besides, she’ll be carrying the rings at the wedding, so staying here will make it easier for her to become familiar with the arrangements.”

Emily immediately picked up where he left off.

“Linda, please don’t be angry. There have been a lot of shootings around the neighborhood lately, and I just feel safer staying at the estate. If you mind, I...”

She looked up at me with concern and apology in her eyes.

“Mind? Of course not,” I said with a cold laugh.

Emily blinked, while Enzo glanced at me as though he wanted to say something else.

Just then, Buddy came trotting into the foyer. Seeing so many people gathered there, he wagged his tail excitedly and rushed toward Emily.

Emily screamed in fright and stumbled backward several steps, knocking over one of the suitcases behind her.

Startled by her reaction, Buddy stopped where he was and tilted his head at her, his tail slowly dropping.

“Oh my God, get him away from me!” Emily’s voice trembled as she kept backing away, trying to put as much distance as possible between herself and Buddy.

Enzo immediately hurried over and grabbed Buddy by the leash before looking at me with clear reproach.

“Linda, why did you let Buddy out? Emily is afraid of dogs. Take him to the garden and keep him out there for the next few days.”

I looked at Buddy as he turned his head toward me, his eyes damp and confused as though he were wondering what he had done wrong.

I walked over and took the leash from Enzo, and Buddy followed me obediently. Even after I brought him into the garden, he kept wagging his tail at me, still thinking I was taking him out to play.

I crouched down and stroked his head while he happily licked my hand.

“Just hang on a little longer, Buddy,” I said softly. “We’ll be leaving soon.”
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    Three years later, under my leadership, the De Luca family had become the most prominent arms dealer in all of Europe.De Luca warehouses and docks could be found at nearly every major port.My life had settled into a peaceful routine. I woke early each morning to deal with paperwork, spent my afternoons checking on the docks or warehouses, and came home in the evenings to read or listen to music, occasionally meeting a business partner for dinner.Of course, there was also a new Don in my life, and that was Caspian.I had already moved on to a completely different life.News about Enzo still reached me from time to time, although I never asked about him myself. I would only hear bits and pieces when my lieutenants happened to mention him over dinner.They said Enzo had begun making mistake after mistake in his decisions for the Falcone family. First, he lost two major arms clients, and then someone outmaneuvered him during an acquisition deal, costing him a considerable amount of mone

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  • He Bought Me Everything but Chose Her   Chapter 7

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  • He Bought Me Everything but Chose Her   Chapter 6

    “Keep looking. There’s no way she left on her own!” Enzo yanked his tie loose in frustration and barked at his right-hand man, “Check every hotel and every private club. I don’t care if you have to turn all of New York upside down, I want Linda found.”Half an hour later, his right-hand man handed him a phone.“Don, you need to see this.”A surveillance video was playing on the screen.In the footage, Linda walked out of the estate with Buddy on a leash and a suitcase in her hand before getting into a car and driving away.“We traced the license plate, and the driver confirmed that he took her to the airport.” His right-hand man hesitated before continuing. “We also checked Miss Linda’s travel records. She booked a flight to Rome this morning, and the plane should be landing soon.”“What?”Enzo dropped heavily into the chair.Rome was where the De Luca family was based, which meant Linda had not been throwing a tantrum at all. She had truly left him.His right-hand man stood beside him

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    Enzo’s POVEnzo called Linda for the fifth time, but all he heard was the same automated message telling him that no one was answering.His patience was beginning to wear thin, and after opening their message thread, he typed rapidly.“Linda, where are you? The wedding is about to start. Why aren’t you answering your phone?”“Are you still angry about what happened with Buddy yesterday? I told you we could bring him back inside later. Just come over first.”“The guests are already here, and people from all the major families have arrived. This isn’t the time to throw a tantrum.”There was no response to any of his messages.Enzo tightened his grip on the phone and turned toward the window.The parking lot outside the estate was already packed with cars, and formally dressed guests were stepping out one after another. Several of them nodded to him in greeting, and he returned the gesture mechanically while the irritation inside him continued to build.His right-hand man pushed open the

  • He Bought Me Everything but Chose Her   Chapter 4

    The following afternoon, the butler pushed open the door just as I was slipping my travel documents into a folder.“Miss Linda!” His face was deathly pale. “Men from the Morek family have broken in. They’re already in the main hall downstairs!”Gunshots erupted below, mingling with the crash of shattered glass and overturned furniture.I hurried to the window and looked down. Three black sedans were parked across the front courtyard, while the guards from the gate lay sprawled beside the driveway. From the upstairs landing, I could make out at least two armed men in the hall below.“Call Enzo.”The butler pulled out his phone and dialed. The call connected, only to be cut off a few seconds later.He looked up at me, his expression strained. “Miss Linda, the Don said... he said he’s busy and can’t make it back right now.”Busy, was he?A cold laugh escaped me.“Don’t bother calling him again.” I closed the folder, put it into the drawer, then opened the bottom drawer of the nightstand.

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