Chapter 3

Even after Luca found out where Ilaria was, he hesitated for a long time. In the end, though, he didn't drop everything and chase after her the way she'd expected.

Ilaria waited for three days, but Luca's helicopter never came. Instead, she found out that Luca and I were engaged.

She refused to believe it. In her mind, Luca loved her so deeply that he'd indulge her no matter what she did. This sudden change had to be the work of the Balzano elders—especially Serafina, who had never been particularly warm toward her.

Papa and Mamma had spoiled Ilaria so completely that she believed she could do whatever she wanted. The more she stewed over the news, the angrier she grew, until she actually called Balzano Estate to demand an explanation.

When she realized Serafina was the one who had answered, she didn't even bother with a greeting. She simply let out a cold laugh.

"Signora Balzano, wasn't your own marriage just an alliance? The old Don never loved you. He spent his time drinking and sleeping around, leaving you miserable. So why are you forcing Luca down the same path?"

Without waiting for a reply, she pushed on. "Let's be honest. Luca is crazy about me. No matter how many times I push him away, he always comes back to me. If you keep forcing him like this, neither side is going to come out of this unscathed."

Serafina hung up before Ilaria could finish.

She'd once carried the entire Balzano Famiglia on her shoulders and survived more bloodshed than most could ever imagine. A few insults from Ilaria weren't about to rattle her. The moment the line went dead, she sent for Luca.

"Ilaria called me," she said. "Luca, you're the Don of the Balzano Famiglia, yet you bend to her every whim. To her, you're nothing but a dog. I've never interfered with your choices, but a woman like Ilaria will never be the Donna of the Balzano Famiglia. Marry Rosalia. It's the only thing I will ever ask of you."

Luca remained silent for a long time before he finally agreed.

Serafina's only son had died young, leaving behind Luca, his only child. She'd treasured him from the day he was born and had never asked a single thing of him—until now.

That night, Luca chain-smoked in his room while missed calls piled up on his phone.

…

When I arrived at Balzano Estate the next day, Luca walked straight up to me.

"Rosalia, marry me," he said.

He searched my face for any sign of reluctance before continuing, "I'll give you a third of everything I own. I loved Ilaria once, but I'll cut ties with her completely. I want to marry you, and not just because of Nonna. I want this too. Will you marry me?"

His offer was undeniably tempting. Besides, I had feelings for him, and in a way, this had always been mine to begin with.

I nodded without hesitation. "Yes."

The wedding preparations moved quickly, with even Serafina joining in the planning.

Meanwhile, Ilaria was still in Vestrand, waiting for Luca to defy his entire family, rush to her side, and drop to one knee before her.

She had no idea that the leading man of her love story was busy reviewing the wedding itinerary with me.

She sent a string of texts to taunt me. "Rosalia, you're just a pathetic loser. You might have come back, but all I have to do is pull a few tricks, and Papa and Mamma will still be mine."

A second message popped up right after. "And Luca? I've pushed you into his arms over and over again, but all I have to do is crook my finger, and he'll come running back to me. You still won't be able to take anything from me."

I snapped a photo of myself in my wedding dress, with Luca right beside me reviewing the itinerary, and sent it to her.

My phone stayed silent for five minutes. Then it started vibrating wildly. The messages that followed were too vile to repeat.

I put my phone on silent and left her to rage at her own helplessness.

Playing the victim was Ilaria's favorite trick, and it had never failed her.

She hurried back the very next day. The moment she arrived, she dropped to her knees in front of me, begging. She'd already given Papa and Mamma back to me, so couldn't I please stop trying to take Luca away from her?

She even brought a bag she'd intended to throw away, making a grand show of returning it to me.

Over the next several days, Ilaria went on a hunger strike. Papa and Mamma tried everything to coax her into eating, and the sorrier they felt for her, the more their resentment toward me grew. They even accused me, their own biological daughter, of being heartless and jealous.

"Rosalia, why do you always have to bully Ilaria?" Mamma demanded. "You said you'd give Luca back to her. How can you go back on your word like this? You're so vicious."

Ilaria had been right about one thing. Between the two of us, Papa and Mamma would always choose her. When it came to their love, I'd lost before the game even started.

But she'd overestimated how much she meant to Luca. Her arrogance would be the very thing that made her lose.

Not everyone would keep giving in to her forever.

Over the years, she'd tested Luca endlessly. More than once, she'd deliberately pushed me into his arms, even going so far as to drug us and lock us in a room together.

Each time, Luca pushed me away and went straight back to her without hesitation. And each time, Ilaria would throw herself into his arms with pride, showing off to everyone that no matter how hard she tried to push him away, he'd always come back.

As for me, the woman he rejected time after time, my only purpose had been to serve as a foil that made his devotion to her look all the more extraordinary.

She'd grown so used to being the one he chose that she forgot one simple truth—even genuine love couldn't survive being trampled on over and over.

Her petty schemes didn't bother me. I simply bided my time, waiting for my wedding ceremony to begin.

The wedding had been arranged in a rush, with barely two weeks to prepare, but it was lavish in every way.

On the day of the ceremony, the church was packed with members of the major families and powerful figures from the business world, all there to offer their congratulations.

Serafina sat in the seat of honor in the front row to witness the ceremony.

At the altar, the elderly priest opened his missal and slowly began the wedding blessing. Then he looked up at Luca.

"Signor Luca Balzano, do you take Signorina Rosalia Colonna to be your wife?"

Luca met my eyes and had just opened his mouth to answer when the heavy church doors burst open.

Wearing a wedding gown and clutching a bouquet of white roses, Ilaria gathered her skirts and rushed inside.