LOGINDIMITRI’S POV One month down. One more to go. That’s what I kept telling myself every morning when I woke up and every night, when I came home to an apartment that had Victoria in it and Giulia’s absence. One more month and the contract marriage ends quietly. One more month and I go to Giulia and tell things I'm not yet sure I would want her to know. One more month and I fix what I’ve spent the last thirty days breaking. One more month. I’d been saying it so long it had started to sound like something I was trying to convince myself of rather than something I actually believed. The call about my mother came in the afternoon. She was rushed to the hospital. Chest pains. Stable but they wanted her monitored. I was already grabbing my jacket when Victoria appeared in the doorway of the study. “I’ll come with you,” she said. “No.” “Dimitri—” “No Victoria.” I didn’t stop moving. “Stay here.” “She’s my mother in law—” “She’s not.” I turned to face her. “She’s
“Get your hands off her. You have no business here.” Dimitri’s voice cut through the space, a bit loud anddangerous in that way that meant he was holding himself back. Matteo looked at him slowly and completely unbothered. “Actually, I was here for business,” he said, glancing around the room like he was already done with it. “And I’m done.” Then he turned to me. “Leaving?” I picked up my clutch and stood without looking at Dimitri. I walked out with Matteo. The car was silent as we drove down the street. Matteo held the wheel with one hand, relaxed, as if the tension didn’t cling to my skin. After a few minutes, he asked gently, “You want to talk about it?” “No,” I said. He nodded but didn’t push the issue.Another stretch of silence passed. Then, without drawing attention to it, he moved his hand from the ge
The auction house was the kind of place that reminded you just how much you loved beautiful things. With its high ceilings, cozy lighting, and the lively chatter of people who clearly had an eye for art and a bit of cash to spend, it had a vibe that was hard to resist.I got there early and snagged a seat in the middle... just the right spot to see everything without feeling too much like I was on display. Before long, Matteo found me.“Hey, I’m glad there’s a spot next to you,” he said, plopping down in the chair like he’d been invited.“I didn’t save it for you,” I shot back playfully.“I know,” he grinned. “But here I am anyway!”I glanced sideways at him. He looked sharp in a well-fitted dark suit and seemed genuinely into the catalog. I figured arguing about the seat wasn’t worth it when the auction was about to start. I had saved it for Dimitri, but he was running late.“Alright, fine,” I conceded with a smirk.Matteo smiled back and didn’t press it. We flipped through our catal
GIULIA’S POV I hadn’t planned to come back. But my sketchbook was there, filled with three months of work, so I didn’t really have a choice. I used my key and stepped inside. The house was quiet. I headed straight to the bedroom, found my sketchbook on the nightstand just where I’d left it, picked it up, and was about to leave when I heard a sound from the kitchen. Victoria was standing at the counter in a silky robe, her hair flowing down as she made coffee. When she spotted me, she looked up and smiled warmly. “Giulia! You’re back!” “I came to grab something,” I said, holding up the sketchbook. “Oh, great! I’m glad you found it.” She turned back to her coffee. “By the way, he left early this morning.” I probably should have just walked out. But I didn’t. “You know, you didn’t have to leave the other day,” Victoria said, her back still to me as she poured her coffee. “I really hate being at the center of all this. I feel bad about it.” I stayed quiet. She turn
I walked her back to the bed slowly, taking my time with everything afterward. I kissed her gently, savoring the moment. She seemed eager to rush, but I gently caught her wrists, holding them above her head until she relaxed into the kiss. She made a soft sound that caught my attention. I kissed her jaw, then her neck, right over that tattoo, feeling the pulse beneath my lips. Taking my time, I undressed her slowly, piece by piece, her breathing becoming more erratic as the composed facade she often wore began to fade. When I pulled back to look at her, she turned her face shyly to the side. I gently turned her back to me, saying nothing, just gazing at her until she met my eyes. I resumed kissing down her throat, along her collarbone, and took her breast in my mouth, lingering there until she let out sweet sounds that surprised her. I went lower again, kissing her stomach, her hip, and the inside of her thigh, making her tremble. Her hand reached for my hair before I
NICO's POV The bar was pretty laid-back. I was casually sipping my second whiskey, not thinking about much, when something caught my eye. The tattoo. She was further down the bar, her hair up tonight, with her back slightly turned to me. And there it was, catching the low light just right. A snake wrapped around a dagger. I set my glass down. I couldn't help but take in the rest of her slowly. The blonde hair. The way she stood, like she was always half ready to leave. Gabby. She hadn't noticed me yet, and I thought maybe this was a bit of fate. I watched her for a moment. She was wearing dark jeans and a simple top, holding a glass of wine and sharing a laugh with the bartender. She seemed more real than the version I’d known before. I picked up my drink and decided to move down the bar. She felt my presence before she turned. There was just a little shift in the air beside her. Then she looked. Surprise flickered across her face. “You,” she said with a hint of a smil
He was taking me shopping. After three weeks of keeping me in lock down mode, after avoiding me, after that scene in his office… now he wanted to take me shopping for a dinner I’m not sure I want to go to? I looked at Nico. “Your brother is insane.”
ENZO's POV I shut the door to my office harder than necessary, the sound cracking through the room like it needed to feel what I was feeling, like the house itself deserved the impact. What the hell was wrong with me. I
I made it back to my room somehow, my vision still blurred with tears, my wrist throbbing where the metal had cut into my skin. I locked the door and stumbled to the bathroom, running cold water over the wound. I wrapped my wrist in a towel and sank down onto the bathroom floor, pulling my knee
As if her father’s name wasn’t carved into every decision I’d made since the moment I’d seen her face in that file. “I haven’t,” I said quietly. “You’re building her studios,” Bruno said, moving closer. “Giving her space. Letting her look at you







