LOGINGianna gave everything to Leone when he had nothing left. She stayed beside him when no one else would. Yet the moment his first love returned, the Don chose her over the wife who had always been there for him. Gianna was done. She had spent her whole life living in the shadow of her sister, but this time, she chose herself. She demanded a divorce, but the proud Don refused to let her go. Tired of always being his second choice, Gianna walked away, disappearing into the night—and carrying a secret he never saw coming. The moment Leone realized she was truly gone, he lost his mind. He locked down the entire country, ordering his men to tear the city apart to bring his wife back home.
View MoreGianna’s POV
The dark sky erupted with blinding lights as hundreds of firecrackers burst into the air.
I stood near the wall-to-ceiling window, watching the fireworks with stunned eyes because this… watching fireworks had been my favorite thing since childhood.
And tonight, it was my husband who was making it happen.
But not for me.
It was for his first love, Naya.
For her birthday.
I had seen the report on the news earlier—that Leone had bought out every fireworks display in the city and ordered them to keep the sky lit until dawn. The report also claimed that Leone was planning to marry his longtime girlfriend.
Marry her?
How?He was already married to me—Naya’s younger sister, Gianna Valenti, the fat, unwanted outcast of the family.
However, Leone had never acknowledged our marriage publicly. He never took me to an event, a gala, or any celebration where other wives stood proudly beside their husbands. I was always left at home, waiting for him like a dutiful, loyal wife while he traveled around the world with a different woman on his arm, making headlines in every newspaper and tabloid.
The world didn’t even know I existed. Only a handful of people in our family circle knew I was his wife.
When I married Leone, I never imagined my life would become even worse than it had been in my parents’ home.
My own parents had never liked me. They always said I didn’t look like a Valenti. I wasn’t charming or attractive, and I certainly didn’t know how to carry myself the way Naya did.
She had the perfect figure, beautiful features, and a natural confidence that made people notice her the moment she walked into a room. She always knew how to dress, how to behave, and how to make people admire her.
When she became Leone’s girlfriend, my parents were overjoyed. To the world, they were the perfect couple.
Then, five years ago, Leone was brutally attacked during a gang war and fell into a coma.
Naya abandoned him without a second thought. She wasn’t about to waste her youth waiting on a man who might never wake up.
But I stayed.
I believed that with enough care, he would open his eyes again. When his doctors eventually gave up, claiming he was beyond saving, I refused to accept it. I dropped out of school, threw away my dreams, and devoted every second of my life to him. I spent months searching for rare herbs, remedies, and holistic therapies to supplement his care. Day after day, I sat beside his bed—talking to him, massaging his useless muscles, holding his cold hand, and praying for a miracle.
After a year of unrelenting effort, my devotion paid off. He woke up.
His mother and sister wept with joy, celebrating his return. Yet no one acknowledged the endless nights I had spent beside his bed, refusing to give up on him.
Still, I didn’t care.
He was alive. He was awake and healthy. That was enough for me.
Only his grandmother, Grandma Caroline, seemed to truly see me. Months later, when she became bedridden, she asked Leone to fulfill her last wish and marry me. He eventually agreed, and we became husband and wife.
She was the only person who made me believe that maybe things could still change, that one day Leone might love me back. She kept supporting me until the day she died. And when she was gone, so was the only person who had ever stood by me.
My heart bled, shattering piece by piece, every time I saw Leone with another woman. I would go back to our room and cry alone, wondering how much longer I could keep waiting for a man who might never love me.
But it turned out that I was an idiot to believe fairytales were real.
Real life isn't a storybook.
A girl like me—fat, unattractive, and always treated like the family disappointment—was never going to make a handsome prince fall in love with her.
And when Naya suddenly came back, Leone chose her. He was always going to choose her.
I looked at my faint reflection in the window. My swollen, shapeless figure and disheveled hair seemed to mock me, a cruel reminder of everything I could never be.
I had never been enough for him.
Maybe that was why he was with Naya tonight instead of me.
Suddenly, the bedroom door opened loudly, making me jump.
I instinctively turned around, only to find my husband entering and closing the door behind him.
What?
Wasn’t he supposed to be celebrating Naya’s birthday?
Before I could stop myself, the question slipped from my mouth.
“You came home?”
His stormy grey eyes narrowed in clear annoyance.
“Why? Were you expecting someone else?”
“No…”
I stammered, trying to find the right words as he walked toward me, his overwhelming presence making me tremble under his sharp glare.
“I just… I thought…”
I couldn’t finish the sentence.
Without a word, he pulled a box from the inner pocket of his coat and dropped it into my hand.
I blinked in confusion, but he didn’t stay. He simply turned away, removed his coat, and began unbuttoning his shirt.
“What’s this?” I murmured, not even realizing I had said it out loud.
He glanced at me over his shoulder, his expression hard.
“Your anniversary gift.”
“My… gift?”
I stared at him in surprise.
He turned back to unbuttoning his shirt.
“Take it and stop making a fuss. I have better things to do than listen to you complain.”
I barely heard him. My mind was still processing the fact that he had brought me a gift for our third anniversary.
Oh yes, today was our anniversary!
Even I had forgotten, but… he remembered?!
With hesitant fingers, I popped the latch open. The massive diamond necklace inside caught the light, making me stare. In a daze, I lifted the necklace from the box, completely forgetting that the box had slipped from my fingers and landed on the floor.
Wait...
Wasn’t this the piece they had been talking about on the news this morning?
It was called The Azure Rose, named for the enormous 20-carat blue diamond at its center. Surrounded by flawless white diamonds and ultra-rare pink stones set in platinum, it had once belonged to an old Italian noble family before vanishing into a private collection for decades.
When it finally resurfaced at auction, Leone had fought off three billionaires to claim it, dropping $60 million—making it the most expensive jewelry purchase in world history.
And according to every report, he had bought it as a birthday gift for Naya.
“Wasn’t this for Naya?”
The question slipped out, barely more than a stunned whisper.
He turned sharply toward me, leaving his shirt partly unbuttoned and his bare chest exposed. The scowl on his handsome face remained, the furrow between his brows deepening as he looked at me.
“Aren’t you happy you got it?” he asked, his voice laced with disdain. “Isn’t money the only thing you care about?”
His gaze dropped to the necklace in my hands before returning to my face.
“You should be happy, Gia. Sixty million dollars. Isn’t that enough to satisfy you?”
His eyes mocked me, raking down the length of my body with a look that wounded far deeper than any physical weapon ever could. He averted his gaze as if the sight of me repulsed him, turning back toward the mirror to resume unbuttoning his shirt.
"Now do what a good wife is supposed to do when her husband comes home."
My fingers tightened around the box, the sharp edge of the velvet digging into my palm.
I had waited three years for this marriage to become something more. I had endured everything—humiliation from his family, rejection from my own, his affairs, and all the times he mocked me and treated me like his private punching bag.
I had put up with every cruelty, holding on to one fragile hope: that maybe, one day, he would change. That he would finally see me as more than an unwanted fixture in his house. That he might actually love me.
But now Naya was back.
And after hearing him announce that he planned to marry her, whatever little hope I had left was completely shattered.
So I finally said the words I never thought I would say to the man I had loved with all my heart, long before I ever became his wife.
“Since Naya is back, let’s get a divorce.”
My cheek stung as tears welled in my eyes. I had no idea what I had done this time—until I caught the quiet, satisfied smile spreading across Naya’s face.“Gianna Valenti, how did you become such a filthy slut?” she roared, the words ringing through the foyer as tears spilled down my cheeks. “Screaming a man’s name in the middle of the night? Is this the pathetic way you try to keep a man?”I looked at Naya. So she had called Mother to complain about me sleeping with my husband?“Mother, what happens in our bedroom is between a husband and a wife,” I said softly, keeping my voice low. “No one else has a right to speak on it.”“Gianna!” She lunged again, her palm raised to deliver another slap.“Mother, no!” Naya rushed forward, stepping between us to 'rescue' me.“You know how she is, Mother. She’s always been spoiled and stubborn,” Naya soothed, laying a gentle hand on her arm. “Please, don’t get provoked and cause a scene here.”Our mother exhaled sharply, trying to regain her compo
“Leo, please, don’t blame her,” Naya whimpered, looking up at him through a sheen of tears. Calling him by that intimate pet name right in front of me was a calculated move to provoke me, but I refused to take the bait. “She’s my sister. She’s just angry... and naive.”Leone’s eyes snapped to mine. I braced myself, waiting for the inevitable explosion—waiting for him to scream at me.“You did this?!” His cold voice sounded quiet, completely unreadable and devoid of any emotion.I didn’t bother replying. I stayed silent because, no matter what I said, everyone had always believed Naya. And he was in love with her. There was no way in hell he was going to believe me if I said I hadn't touched her.He simply shook his head and lifted her into his arms. I let out an inaudible huff.“No, Leo, put me down! She won’t like it,” Naya cried, playing her role to perfection. “I’ll leave... I’ll never come back...”“Stop it, Naya. You’re staying in the guest room, and that's final,” he said coldly
My heart clenched despite knowing how he felt about her when his hands rested on her slim waist. I averted my eyes and got up, trying to pull my zipper closed behind me.“What are you doing here?” I heard Leone ask my sister.“To see you, my love.” She said it in her most sensual voice, and I let out a frustrated breath. Why couldn’t I speak like her?“It’s late,” he said as he gently pushed her away and turned to look at me.“Yeah, and I’m staying here tonight,” she whispered sweetly.I was still struggling with my zipper. When I looked toward the door, I found Naya’s blue eyes, identical to mine, fixed on me with disgust. But then her gaze fell on the necklace around my neck, and I saw a flash of jealousy in her eyes before she quickly masked her expression.“Gia, what are you doing?” she giggled innocently, but the mockery in her voice wasn’t hidden from me. “We are here, and you’re removing your dress. Don’t be so shameless.”Then she placed a hand on Leone’s arm and whispered, “P
“What did you say?”His voice turned colder as he snapped around and glared at me.The anger in his steel-grey eyes made me lower mine.“I said…” I swallowed, wetting my dry lips. “Now that your first love is back, we should get an annulment.”One moment, he was glaring at me from three feet away.The next, he was standing right in front of me.His arm closed around my waist, and he turned me toward the mirror. His hard, bare chest pressed against my back, making me shiver despite the thin fabric of my dress between us. Before I could react, he snatched the necklace from my hand. The sudden pull made my fingers sting.His grip tightened around my waist as his angry expression reflected in the mirror.“Playing hard to get, huh?” His voice was low and cold as he slid the necklace around my neck. “You disgust me, Gia. You know very well that in famiglia, divorce never happens.”He leaned closer to fasten the clasp behind my neck, using his teeth. His lips brushed my skin, making me clos
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