LOGINI didn't answer.Noelle watched my reaction, perhaps looking for something that would explain why I'd gone completely blank for a few seconds.I had no idea Rafael had told her that, and I wanted absolutely nothing to do with knowing about it.Not once, throughout all our conversations about Max, security, the Malibu project, or the anonymous photos, had Rafael mentioned that he was considering ending things with Noelle.I remembered her introducing him that morning.My boyfriend, Rafael Moretti.And how she'd rested her hand on Rafael's arm before he slipped away to take the document.Damn. I really wished I hadn't noticed that earlier.“Noelle...” I tried to find the right words, something that wouldn't make an already bad situation worse. “I didn't know.”“I know.” She looked away, toward the long stretch of windows along the hallway, where the Los Angeles skyline stood beneath the bright morning sky. “But I told him I wasn't ready to let him go.”I raised an eyebrow.Noelle quickl
Henry nodded, then turned to Claire to discuss the next steps in the review.I jotted down a few things I needed to pass along to Athena and the project team, but my mind was still stuck on one piece of information.The sender had already contacted someone outside the Jamesson family.Which meant photos of Max, my marriage documents, and details about my personal life might already be in more hands than we knew about.I glanced at my phone lying beside my notebook.There was a message from Gabriella.A photo of Max sitting at the dining table, working on the worksheet he'd finally agreed to do, while Kevin sat in a little chair beside him wearing a homemade paper hat.Underneath the photo, Gabriella had written:He says Kevin graduated from breakfast.I fought back a smile and texted her back, telling her to make sure Kevin wasn't granted permission to use scissors without supervision.When I looked up, Rafael was watching me from across the table.His gaze dropped briefly to my phone
I looked at him.Henry raised a hand slightly, as if he didn't want me to misunderstand what he meant.“This person isn't asking for money. They haven't made any contractual demands. They want us to question the relationship between Aster House and Moretti Holdings. What I want to know is whether there's a business motive behind these threats or if someone is dragging a personal matter into the company.”I crossed my legs.“That's what we're investigating. My counsel has already requested preservation of all the original emails, including attachments and headers. Some of the personal information in those documents also relates to a security matter outside the Malibu project.”Henry studied my face. “Does that have anything to do with the photos of your child?”I held my pen just above my notebook.Beside Rafael, Noelle lowered her gaze.“Yes,” I answered.Henry turned to Claire. “I want any information involving a minor separated from the project document distribution. Access should b
I arrived a few minutes before eleven.Athena was already waiting for me near the executive elevators with our legal counsel. She was wearing a gray blazer and holding a black leather folder thick enough to make me feel better about the whole situation.“Please tell me that's the entire Malibu history.”“From the first proposal to the final approval.”I took one of the folders she handed me. “Excellent. If someone's going to spend their day reading documents, I want to make sure they really suffer.”Athena glanced at my outfit.“What?”“Nothing.”“Athena.”“You're wearing a white dress to a governance review.”I looked down at my simple ivory dress, which I'd paired with a cream blazer and nude heels.“And?”“Nothing. You look like you're about to win the case and buy the building while you're at it.”I smiled. “Finally. A compliment.”We stepped into the elevator.When the doors opened on the executive floor, one of Henry's assistants greeted us and escorted us to a conference room o
This morning, my son decided that formal education couldn't begin until every member of the family had been fed breakfast. Including a plastic triceratops.“Maxime, Kevin doesn't need pancakes.”“Yes, he does.”“Sweetheart, he's made of plastic.”Max looked up from his chair and fixed me with a pair of blue eyes that should never have been allowed on a child who could argue like a divorce attorney. His black bangs fell over his eyebrows, and his round cheeks still had faint pillow marks on them because he'd only woken up about half an hour ago.“Mami,” he said with clearly forced patience, “if Kevin doesn't eat breakfast, he's gonna be hungry.”I looked at the green dinosaur sitting beside his plate. “Kevin doesn't have a stomach.”Max immediately turned to Gabriella, who was arranging worksheets from Miss Harper at the other end of the dining table. “Gaby, Mami says Kevin doesn't have a tummy.”Gabriella looked up. “Well, technically...”“Don't,” I interrupted.She closed her mouth,
“I know.” I pulled the blanket over my legs. “But I've already spoken to my counsel and Rowan. Athena's also putting together the project documentation. There's nothing we're going to accomplish by sitting in my living room in the middle of the night, except maybe finding the three Lego pieces Gabriella couldn't locate earlier this afternoon.”Rafael was quiet for a moment. “All right.”I raised an eyebrow. “All right?”“Yes.”“Wow. That was suspiciously easy.”“You said you didn't want me to come over. I heard you.”I opened my mouth, then closed it again.Well. Now he was making me look like a woman who was disappointed that her ex-husband didn't want to argue with her.“Good,” I said, trying to sound completely unaffected. “I'm glad your listening skills have improved so dramatically.”“I'm trying.”Something about the way he said it made me stop searching for a sarcastic comeback.There was no mockery in his voice this time. He said it casually, almost like an ordinary comment, bu
Five years later.Los Angeles felt like a city built out of glass, sunlight, and people far too confident to ever admit they were confused.I stood in the twenty-third-floor boardroom at Jamesson Holdings, facing a presentation screen the size of a mortal sin, while Noelle Jamesson stared at the ho
The front door closed softly behind us, the quiet click echoing through our mansion in Brera, too beautiful, too silent, too expensive to be the home of a broken marriage.The foyer lights glowed softly over pale marble. The white flowers in the console vase were still fresh. Rafael’s coat had been
If this were ordinary drama, maybe I would have stood up, rolled my eyes, and told them all to get a hobby. But there was something in the way the entire room held its breath that made my spine go rigid.Vittoria pulled out the first photo and set it on the low table between us.I recognized it bef
SASHA :The Moretti family house in Milan had always felt like a museum that somehow still breathed.It was the kind of place built to remind everyone that old money never needed to raise its voice. The ceilings were so high the sound of a spoon touching a plate came out small. Old paintings in gil







