Chapter 2

Sofia's POV

Giorgio and the maids stood outside the door, trying to talk me out of making a rash decision. They insisted that I should still go through with the ceremony.

Bella sneered, "Don't stop her. The whole family will be here soon. Let her embarrass herself."

I went into the bathroom and splashed some water on my face, trying to clear my head.

The situation couldn't have been any clearer. Matteo had chosen to miss his own engagement party just to accompany Elena to see the Firefall. He knew exactly how humiliating this would be for me, yet he'd gone ahead and done it anyway.

I tried sending him a message to demand an explanation. Upon opening our chat, I realized he hadn't replied to a single one of my messages in three days.

Relying on my memory, I searched for the account that had posted the video. Upon finding it, I reposted it with a congratulatory emoji.

If everyone was going to make a joke out of me, they deserved to know who was really responsible.

Just one minute after I posted it, a video call popped up on my screen.

"Delete the post," Matteo said.

I scoffed. "So after three days of being unreachable, you finally contact me just for this?"

He was silent for a few seconds. "Sofia, I told you I had something important to take care of."

I said sarcastically, "I get it. What could possibly be more important than Elena? The engagement party, your fiancée… None of it matters when compared to her!"

Exasperated, Matteo said, "Can you please stop kicking up a fuss, Sofia? I'm begging you. You know perfectly well that there's nothing going on with Elena and me."

He rarely humbled himself to soothe me, but whenever he did, it was always because of her.

When I first came to the Calderoni family, Elena had played a cruel prank on me. She had locked me in the attic for an entire day and night. I nearly got bitten by a rat.

Matteo had personally treated my wounds and even asked the kitchen to prepare a lavish meal for me, all just to convince me to forgive her.

During our first Christmas together, he'd booked a candlelit dinner for just the two of us. But then, he'd shown up with Elena. He said Elena had no family left, and he couldn't bear the thought of her spending Christmas alone. He asked me to be understanding.

To be fair, he'd treated me very well. As the Don of a renowned mafia family, he'd insisted on marrying someone like me, a woman of unknown origins, despite fierce opposition from his most trusted men.

I'd never doubted that he loved me. But whenever Elena was involved, his priorities always shifted in her favor.

We'd argued about it countless times. This time, I didn't have the strength to fight anymore.

I asked him only one question. "You canceled your flight last night without telling me. Did you want to watch me stand alone on that stage while everyone laughed at me?"

He sighed and explained, "No. I thought I could still make it if I took a later flight—"

I cut him off, "Right. As if you didn't know there was only one flight in the morning!"

Knowing he was in the wrong, he quickly changed the subject. "I've asked Giorgio to notify the guests. We're postponing the engagement party."

I gave a cold snort. "There's no need. There won't be another engagement party."

His face instantly flushed red, and the veins on his forehead bulged. "What did you just say?"

"You heard me. I, Sofia Marino, will never marry you!"

His voice trembled with anger. "So you want to call off our engagement? Have you forgotten that I'm the Don of the Calderoni family!"

My expression didn't change the slightest as I countered, "Who exactly is the one who caused our engagement to fall apart? You or me? If a Don can't even honor his own engagement, how can the other families trust him enough to do business with him?"

He practically roared, "Are you threatening me now, Sofia?"

In the six years we'd known each other, he'd always been decisive and commanding in front of others, but he'd never once raised his voice at me. This was the first time he'd ever been so furious with me. Strangely, it only made me feel relieved.

When I didn't respond, he paused before softening his tone. "I'll be back soon. I'm almost at the airport. Don't forget that I saved your life. You can't just walk away from me like this."

With that, he ended the call. I sat frozen in place, clutching my phone for a long time.

While it was true that he had saved my life, I'd long since repaid that debt.

When I finally came to my senses, I opened my phone and booked a flight to the north.

I would leave tomorrow night.