Chapter 1

The courtyard of the harbor estate was lit with low gold lanterns and cigar smoke.

It was supposed to be a private gathering—capos, financiers, a few sons of allied families. No press. No outsiders. Just power dressed in tailored suits.

I stood beside Alessandro as he played through the final hand at the long card table. He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t need to. Men twice his age watched him carefully. When he pushed his chips forward, the table went quiet.

He won.

Not loudly. Not theatrically. Just decisively.

Applause broke out, scattered and respectful.

That was when the entertainment began.

A young woman was pulled toward the center of the courtyard, her heels scraping against the stone. Her dress hung loose at one shoulder, fabric torn slightly. She was crying—softly, not hysterically.

I recognized her before Alessandro moved.

Bianca—Alessandro’s first love.

Someone at the table laughed and said something about debts being settled in creative ways. A few men smirked.

Alessandro went still.

The change in him was subtle, but I felt it. His jaw tightened. His fingers stopped moving against the glass in his hand.

Then he stood.

He didn’t look at me. He didn’t explain. He just walked across the courtyard.

The laughter faded.

He removed his suit jacket and draped it over Bianca’s shoulders. The gesture was clean, measured. No lingering touch. No theatrics.

“She’s not part of the game,” he said calmly.

The man who had arranged the spectacle tried to laugh it off, but Alessandro’s expression didn’t change.

“Cancel it,” he added. “Her family’s debt is mine now.”

A silence followed that meant no one would argue.

Bianca’s hand trembled as she held the jacket closed. Alessandro didn’t comfort her. He simply stood between her and the men at the table.

From where I stood, it felt like a line had been drawn.

When he finally looked at me, the courtyard had gone silent.

“Seraphina,” he said calmly, “don’t make this bigger than it is.”

He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t apologize.

“She shouldn’t be treated like that,” he added.

I held his gaze. “And why not?”

He hadn’t expected me to question him in front of everyone.

A muscle in his jaw twiched. “Her father operated under our protection for years, When I chose you, that protection ended. Once a family loses the De Luca name behind them, people test their limits.”

There it was.

Responsibility.

I stepped forward slowly.

“And that’s my fault?” I asked quietly.

He didn’t answer right away.

“This isn’t the place,” he replied, tone cooling. “We’ll talk at home.”

Bianca’s fingers tightened on his sleeve. He didn’t shake her off.

I felt something inside me shift.

“Do you remember what you promised me?” I asked.

He held my gaze.

“Yes.”

But he didn’t step away from her.

That was enough.

The next afternoon, I drove back to the villa from the city.

Bianca was already outside the gates when I arrived.

Bianca was standing outside the gates when I arrived.

The guards hadn’t let her in. She didn’t look like she planned to leave either.

Alessandro was already there, speaking quietly with her.

When he noticed my car, he gave a short nod to the guards. The gates opened.

Bianca turned quickly when she saw me. Shes seemed a little surprised when she saw me. Her hair was loose. Her makeup smudged just enough to suggest tears. Alessandro stood a few steps behind her

“I only came to thank him,” she said quickly. “For last night.”

Alessandro looked at me before she finished speaking. “Nothing happened,” he said.

“Send her away,” I said quietly. “Anywhere. Milan. Rome. Abroad. Just not here.”

He didn’t answer right away.

“She has no protection right now,” he said at last. “You know what that means.”

“Yes,” I replied. “I do.”

“Seraphina,” he warned, “don’t turn this into something it isn’t.”

“Then choose,” I said. “Her, or our marriage.”

His expression changed—not angry, not shocked. Just colder.

“You’re asking me to throw her out just to make you feel better.”

“I’m asking you to remember who you stood beside when you made promises in front of both our families.”

He stepped closer, lowering his voice so Bianca wouldn’t hear.

“If I turn my back on her now,” he said, “it sends a message. That the De Luca name only protect people when it benefits us.”

“That I stand by the consequences of my decisions,” he added.

“Even if it costs you me?”

His jaw tightened.

“Without this marrige,” he said quietly, “your father loses De Luca backing. The families who smile at you now won’t hesitate to reconsider.”

“And without me,” I answered, “you lose nothing?”

He didn’t respond.

After a long moment, he said, “She’ll stay. As my assistant. That’s final.”

The decisiveness in his tone told me this wasn’t about Bianca anymore.

It was about control.

I slapped him.

The sound echoed sharper than I expected.

He didn’t react beyond turning his head slightly, jaw tightening once before settling.

“Take a few days,” he said. “We’ll speak when you’ve calmed down.”

He walked away without looking back.

I stood there for a long time.

Then my phone vibrated.

A message I had been waiting for.

The yacht was prepared. The route cleared. The anniversary trip to the Aeolian Islands confirmed. A private dive site reserved.

I had planned to tell him that we were going to have a child.

Out at sea. Just the two of us.

I stared at the screen for a few seconds.Then I typed: Cancel it.

Then I made another call.

“Prepare the papers,” I said calmly. “I want an annulment drafted.”

When I ended the call, I placed my hand over my belly.

“There’s a bigger world than this,” I whispered. “We’ll go somewhere they can’t follow.”

And this time, I didn’t look back.