LOGINEPILOGUEARIA POVONE YEAR LATER.“Adrian Vladimir!”My husband looked up immediately from where he sat inside the living room holding our daughter against his chest carefully.“What?” he asked defensively.I pointed accusingly toward the tiny human currently chewing the diamond buttons of his expensive black shirt proudly.“She’s eating your clothes again.”Adrian looked down calmly at our DAUGHTER. Then unbelievably, he shrugged.“She has good taste.”I stared at him in disbelief. Our daughter let out a tiny happy sound before continuing her assault on his shirt like she owned the world.Which honestly? She probably did.Because Adrian Vladimir, one of the most feared men in the city, completely lost his mind the second our daughter entered this world eight months ago.The same terrifying mafia king who once made grown men panic with one look now spent half his time carrying pink baby blankets around the house while arguing with paediatricians like an overprotective lunatic.And it
ARIA POV“You’re crying already?” Allison groaned dramatically from behind me. “The ceremony hasn’t even started.”“I’m hormonal,” I defended immediately.“You’ve been using pregnancy as an excuse for everything.”“Because it works.”She laughed loudly while fixing the last part of my dress carefully.I never imagined my wedding day would feel peaceful. Especially after everything that happened.Yet somehow… standing in front of the large mirror while Allison adjusted the veil behind me carefully, peace was exactly what I felt.The wedding gown itself was ridiculously beautiful.Soft white satin wrapped perfectly around my body while the lower part flowed elegantly toward the floor. The long sleeves hid the fading injury on my arm almost completely while the neckline remained simple enough that even Adrian would probably still lose his mind the second he saw me.Honestly, the man nearly lost his sanity just seeing me in oversized shirts lately.“You look beautiful,” my mother whispere
ARIA POVThe moment Adrian dropped to his knees, my entire brain stopped functioning.For several seconds, I genuinely thought I was hallucinating because there was absolutely no way Adrian Vladimir, the same terrifying mafia King, and the man who had dominated me in all ways, was kneeling beside my hospital bed looking at me like I was the most important thing in his entire world.My heartbeat instantly lost control. “Adrian…”He slowly wrapped his hand around mine carefully, almost like he was scared I would disappear if he held me too tight. And somehow that alone nearly broke me emotionally. Because this man…This dangerous, emotionally damaged, revenge-driven man, was trembling.His dark eyes remained fixed on me while emotions I had never fully seen before moved across his face openly now.I could see his fear, love, regret, and relief pass through his face all at once. “All my life,” he said quietly, “I thought hatred was enough to keep someone alive.”The room remained painfu
ARIA POVI woke up with a banging headache, I looked around and found myself in the hospital. Suddenly, everything that had happened began rushing back. I held my stomach, hoping my baby was still there.And immediately I felt a little bump inside of me, and that made me smile.“Oh thank God you are awake.” I had the familiar voice and I came face to face with a worried Adrian, beside him was my mother, my sister and surprisingly Creigh.“How long have I been out?”“Two days.”I nodded briefly, “What of Victor Bennett and Ethan?”My mom stepped forward now, standing right beside me running her hand through my hair. “He is in custody, and his trial is in a week for now.” She said with a sad look on her face.I sighed deeply, “To think, I once prayed for your type of love growing up. I thought you were so happily in love, I didn't know you all were just putting on a facade. But now I reject it.They all chuckled, while my mother had a sad look.“Life happens baby.” She said, “Ethan has
ARIA POV Allison nodded painfully.“He said nobody would suspect me because publicly I was already the ‘rebellious daughter who ran away.’”My stomach twisted VIOLENTLY. “Oh my God…”Allison looked toward me again.“The entire story was fake,” she whispered. “The boyfriend, the scandal, the disownment… all of it.”Victor scoffed coldly from across the ROOM. “You were useful,” he muttered.Adrian’s entire body tensed beside me instantly.I felt the murderous rage vibrating beneath his skin. One more sentence from my father and Adrian genuinely looked ready to kill him in front of everybody.“Adrian,” I whispered weakly.His eyes immediately dropped back to me.And suddenly all that rage softened instantly into panic again.“Hey,” he murmured quietly while brushing trembling fingers against my face. “Stay with me.”My breathing became shaky again.“It hurts…”“I know, baby.” His voice cracked slightly now. “I know.”The way he looked at me nearly broke me apart completely. Like seeing
ARIA POVThe gunshot exploded so loudly that for one second, my entire body stopped functioning. I didn’t even understand what happened immediately.All I heard was the deafening sound ringing violently inside my ears while chaos erupted around the dining room at once.Someone screamed, another person shouted. Then the FBI agents moved instantly. And then suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my arm. I gasped.My knees nearly gave out beneath me as I stumbled backward in shock, staring down at the blood already soaking through the sleeve of my dress.Blood, my own blood.“Oh my God,” Camille’s voice broke somewhere nearby.Everything became chaotic immediately.Federal agents lunged toward my father at once while shouting filled the mansion from every direction.“DROP THE WEAPON! GET HIM DOWN! MOVE!”One of the agents slammed Victor hard against the dining table while another ripped the gun from his hand violently.Crashing against the furnitures as, glass shattered across the marble floor
ARIA POVThe silence in my father’s study after Ethan spoke was suffocating.I clenched my hands, my heart was beating faster against my ribs that I was certain everyone could hear it. My hands shook, where I kept them in my lap, and I had to grip the fabric of my black dress tightly to keep them s
ARIA POVI heard a loud knock on my door again. BANG! BANG! BANG!My heart skipped at the sound, thinking my father was back for me again, probably Ethan had reported me to him. “Miss Aria!” One of the security guards called from outside, with a very loud voice. “Your father wants you in his stud
ADRIAN POVThe day finally broke after what felt like forever. I lay on my back in the large king-sized bed of my private penthouse above the casino, staring at the ceiling my eyes refusing to give in to sleep. Each time I tried to sleep, I saw an image of Aria crying, wearing a white wedding gown
ADRIAN POVThe old pier had never felt so desolate. I stood at the very end, leaning against the iron railing, the cold wind passing through my jacket and into my skin. The sea was furious tonight, the waves slamming against the wooden posts below with violent, rhythmic crashes that sent icy spray







