Heiress No One Could Replace

"You finally came back."

The airport doors slid open, and my brother Marco Romano blocked my path. My former fiancé Matteo Bellini stood on his left, and Nico, once my closest friend, flanked my right.

Three years without seeing them, and this was the welcome they had prepared for me.

"I'm here for grandfather's birthday. I'm flying back to Paris tomorrow morning."

"Still throwing a tantrum over Giulia?" Matteo stepped forward and seized my wrist.

I looked down at his hand, then raised my eyes. "Let go."

"Giulia’s father died for the Romano." Matteo's grip tightened. "Everyone else has shown her some decency. Only you can't stand her. "

"You locked me in the wine cellar and listened to me beg all night." I kept my voice level. "And you call that a tantrum?"

"It was punishment." Marco laughed coldly. "You shoved her into the champagne tower just to humiliate her in front of everyone. The Romano family gave you everything, and you learned nothing but how to step on people."

Three years ago, Giulia stumbled into a towering champagne tower at a family banquet. Crystal shattered across the marble floor. She fell among the broken glass, bleeding from her palms, and pointed at me, sobbing that I had shoved her because I couldn't stand her being welcomed into my family.

I said I had never touched her. No one believed me. My father publicly condemned me for disgracing the family. My mother held Giulia and did not even look my way. Marco called me a venomous woman. Nico said he regretted ever calling me a friend. Matteo dragged me into the wine cellar. They all knew I suffered from claustrophobia. They locked the door anyway.

I screamed through the night, and they stood right outside.

Nico stepped forward. "You're going to apologize to Giulia tonight."

I studied him. Nico's father had been my grandfather's most trusted consigliere. We had grown up together. I had once believed that no matter what happened, he would at least hear me out.

"For something I never did?"

"Giulia hasn't left her room since she heard you were coming back." Nico's voice rose. "She still has nightmares about you. You destroyed three years of her life."

"Then tell her to find a new therapist. If three years of acting hasn't cured her, she's not working with the right one."

Nico's face darkened. "You haven't changed at all."

"Of course she hasn't." Marco cut in. "She was raised too high to know how repulsive she is. We thought three years in Europe might teach her some humility."

"I did learn a few things." I looked at him. "That blood doesn't make a family. That a betrothal doesn't mean loyalty. And that when someone is too stupid to help, the best thing to do is walk away."

"Grandfather wants me at his birthday dinner tonight, so I came." I stepped around them. "After that, I owe nothing to the Romano family."

A black armored sedan without family insignia waited at the curb. The driver had already opened the rear door.

I started toward it, but Matteo planted himself between me and the car. "You are a Romano daughter and my fiancée. Don't embarrass both families at the airport."

"Ex-fiancée."

"That annulment was never signed by both families."

"Cancelling an engagement doesn't need your permission."

Matteo dismissed the words with a flicker of impatience. "You ran off to Paris three years ago and sent back a lawyer's letter, and you think that dissolves a marriage pact between two families? This isn't a girl's tantrum, Elena. You can stay away three years or ten, but in the end you're still marrying me."

"Apologize to Giulia tonight, in front of everyone. If she forgives you, the wedding proceeds as planned."

I nearly laughed. "You're offering me charity?"

"I'm giving you one last chance." Matteo looked down at me, cold and certain. "If you refuse to apologize tonight, the Bellini family formally withdraws the engagement. You won't enter the Bellini family, and the Romanos will lose our weapons routes, union votes, and port leverage."

"I don't need it." I met his eyes. "The night you chose Giulia and dragged me into that cellar, you lost me."

"Don't be childish." The impatience crept back into Matteo's voice. "If you truly didn't care about this engagement, you wouldn't have come back today. I know you, Elena. You're waiting for me to fold. But I won't let you keep hurting Giulia."

"You never knew me at all."

I drove my heel into his instep. Matteo winced and stepped back. I shoved him aside, slid into the rear seat, and slammed the door.

"Drive."

The sedan pulled away from the curb, then my phone buzzed. The screen lit up with a video request from Lucien. He was in his Chicago study.

"You're twelve minutes late."

"I was blocked at the airport."

Lucien's eyes chilled. "Who touched you?"

"Matteo."

"Good." His voice was soft and unsettling. "I was looking for an excuse to visit the Romano estate tonight."

"It's just a family dinner. I don't want you involved."

"They locked you in a wine cellar three years ago, and now they're blocking you at the airport." His tone hardened. "Your definition of 'family dinner' is too generous."

"My grandfather is still there."

Lucien did not press further. "My driver will wait outside the estate. If you miss the eleven o'clock call, I'll come in and get you."

"There's no need to worry. How is Sofia?"

Lucien shifted the camera toward the sofa. Sofia was curled in a thick cashmere blanket, clutching a stuffed rabbit larger than her head, fast asleep.

The sight of my daughter brought the first real smile to my face.

"Tell her Mommy will be home tomorrow."