The Don Toasted Another Woman First, I Took His Throne

Damian took a second glass from a waiter and walked over to me.

"This one's for my Donna."

He stopped in front of me and held out the glass.

I placed a hand over the rim. "I only drink the first glass."

Damian froze.

The conversations around us died down.

"Isabella," he said with a frown, "don't embarrass me tonight."

"You toasted someone else first." I didn't move my hand. "You embarrassed yourself."

Damian's expression darkened.

"Rosie's practically my brother."

"Your brother? She's a woman, and she shared your bed for four months."

"She was just protecting me back then. Nothing happened between us."

As he spoke, he gently took my hand.

"She's really just a friend. I only gave her the first toast because I didn't want..."

He paused, lowering his voice so only I could hear. "Sweetheart, I'm the Don now. I can't have people thinking I have to rely on you for everything."

Here we go again.

To protect his ridiculous pride, he was willing to grind my dignity under his heel.

"Don't be mad."

He leaned in close. "To make it up to you, I've planned a fireworks show."

When he leaned down, his collar shifted open without him realizing it.

A red mark on the side of his neck had not fully faded.

It looked exactly like a hickey.

I should have known. Damian had a tattoo on the side of his neck: R.A.E.

It looked like a name, but it had nothing to do with me.

He'd once told me the letters stood for three close friends who had meant the world to him. They were all dead, and he'd had their initials tattooed in their memory.

Now I knew. At least one of those so-called friends was a woman.

I hid my anger and suspicion and nodded. "Sure."

I wanted to see what he was really planning with the fireworks.

Damian relaxed, drained his glass, and walked off to mingle with the other guests.

I picked up my phone and texted one of my men. "I want everything on Rosie Carter."

After the party, Damian took my hand and led me onto his private yacht.

A few minutes later, the first firework burst over the dark coastline in the distance.

Soon, the entire night sky blazed with light.

Damian stood behind me and pulled my wrap tighter around my shoulders.

"Do you like it?"

"Mm-hmm."

I brushed him off.

I'd already read Rosie's file.

She'd started out as an ordinary hostess at one of the Moretti family's underground nightclubs.

Damian had steadily moved her up the ranks until she'd become part of his inner circle. She didn't have to do any real work, yet she was paid more than anyone else. Most importantly, he'd hidden all of it from me.

Whenever Damian traveled for business, Rosie was the only person he took with him.

The West Coast. Mexico. Russia.

To keep Rosie safe, he always shared a room with her.

Every time, he told me not to worry because he had a friend he trusted completely watching his back.

I never imagined that friend was Rosie.

The file also revealed that Rosie's nickname was Rae.

As the first round of fireworks faded, the last bit of warmth inside me disappeared.

Damian suddenly took my phone from me. "Stop looking at it for a second."

He tapped the tip of my nose. "There's another surprise."

The next moment, dozens of drones rose from the water.

The drones quickly formed a name in the night sky: ROSIE.

I slowly turned to look at Damian.

"This is your surprise for me?"

Damian's expression froze.

Paolo, his assistant, hurried over.

"Don, this is my fault. It was a programming error..."

Damian let out a breath of relief and collected himself.

I raised an eyebrow. Of course his assistant knew exactly how to hand Damian an excuse.

Damian said flatly, "Go take care of it. Don't let this happen again."

Paolo turned to go.

"Wait," I called after him.

Paolo stopped at once, and beside me, Damian stiffened.

I looked at the name still glittering in the night sky and asked calmly, "A mistake this perfectly timed?

"I don't keep anything that screws up when it counts."

Paolo went pale, then quickly lowered his head. "Understood. I'll get rid of every drone from tonight's show! And whoever screwed up the programming..."

I turned to Damian with a humorless smile. "How many people are going to take the fall for you?"

Damian looked livid. "All of you, go. I'll take responsibility for this myself."

Once Paolo was gone, Damian stepped in front of me, his expression dark.

"Isabella, come on. Don't embarrass me in front of everyone. It really was a programming error."

No glitch could be that convenient. Someone had simply forgotten to replace the old program.

I looked at the three letters on the side of his neck and gave a soft laugh.

"Of course I know. But I don't want to see that name ever again."

Damian pressed his lips together and answered quietly, "You won't."