Chapter 2

When I first met Melville, my men and I were dealing with a mole Charles Whitmore had planted in our family.

We'd just sent the guy to meet his maker when Melville came charging in and pulled me behind him.

He thought I was some poor girl being harassed by gangsters.

The idea was new to me, and I found it amusing.

I was the only heir to the Calvetti family. I'd grown up surrounded by guns, betrayal, and blood.

My family was famous for being cold-blooded and practical. They loved me, but they never spoiled me, because that would only make me weak.

I'd never met a hothead who would rush in to protect a complete stranger. I fell for him.

Dewey Marino, the family's underboss, was about to pull a gun and teach him a lesson, but I stopped him with a look.

Melville got me away from those dangerous-looking men, never guessing I was the one in charge of them.

After that, we naturally grew close and ended up together.

The day after we made it official, I decided to tell him who I really was. But during our date, we walked straight into a shootout between two small-time local gangs.

Melville gripped my hand and hauled me out of there. "Filthy animals!"

The disgust in his eyes made me swallow my confession. Despite my pride, I was afraid for the first time in my life.

After that, we lived in a dark, damp basement and relied on each other for everything. At our lowest, we even fought homeless people for bread from the trash.

So even the hardships I'd remembered as bittersweet had been fake. Poor little rich boy. How hard it must have been to fight homeless people for scraps just to test me.

"Serafina Carter. A poor girl from some backwater farm town down South, with six siblings. You're the only one who ever got out. I don't care where you come from, but don't you dare embarrass me. You couldn't survive the Taylor family's wrath."

His voice was still gentle, but there was a warning in his eyes.

Suddenly I felt like a joke. To keep him from despising me, I had given up everything. I had even risked my life to become the respectable public face of the Calvetti family.

And now he was using it to threaten me. He'd destroyed our love himself.

He brushed my cheek with his thumb. "Done throwing a fit? Let me take you to get those wounds looked at.

"If you don't behave, I'll leave you here, and you can walk the 120 miles back yourself."

I stared at him for a long time. My heart was surprisingly calm.

A man who put power above everything didn't deserve to spend his life with me.

I took a deep breath. "Fine."

Once we got back to town and I reached my people, it would be over between Melville and me.

After I was admitted to the local community hospital, I sent an encrypted email. "Put the plan to clear the way for Melville on hold. Tell the family I'm coming home."

The reply came quickly. "Got it. We'll take care of everything and come get you within three days."

Then a text arrived from Cecilia: a photo of her kissing Melville under the northern lights.

The message read, "So what if he loves you? For his family's sake, he'll never say no to me."

Suddenly I felt sick to my stomach.

We had waited so long to see this once-in-a-lifetime display of the northern lights. We'd saved for a whole year and planned the trip for three months, all so we could take the happiest photo of our lives beneath them.

Now those lights had witnessed our breakup.

I didn't reply. I tossed my phone aside and started packing.

Dewey was already on his way with our people. They'd be here in six hours. Whatever was between Melville and me ended here.