Chapter 1

Vito Moretti was my husband, and no one in the whole Moretti Group knew it.

The day I joined the company, he asked whether I wanted to make our relationship public.

But I said no. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life as nothing more than the Don's wife.

I wanted the old men on the board to see what I could do, not step aside for me as a favor to Vito.

So I told Vito the rules.

"At the office, you're not allowed to call me your wife."

"Why not?"

He slid an arm around my waist and raised an eyebrow.

"The moment people know I'm your wife, they'll assume you handed me everything I've earned."

He didn't argue. He just smiled and kissed my forehead.

I started to leave, then turned back.

"Oh, right. What do I do when I run out of money?"

I held out my hand, not the least bit embarrassed.

"I can get promoted without you, but you're still my husband."

He took a supplementary card out of his drawer and put it in my hand.

"If you need money, tell me. Don't get so caught up in proving yourself that you can't afford new clothes."

At work, we kept things strictly professional.

He was the undisputed head of the Moretti Group and the Don no one in New York's underworld dared to cross.

I started at the bottom and worked my way up, earning each promotion and raise.

Until his chief secretary, Victoria, set her sights on Vito.

When Vito handed over his devices for a secret Moretti family council meeting, she had someone access his phone.

She found records of the money Vito sent me each month, along with security footage of me visiting his private apartment again and again.

An ordinary employee, constantly coming and going from the chairman's home.

That was all she needed to call me a woman who'd slept her way up the ladder.

Senior management immediately halted the awards and took me into a meeting room.

Martin, the HR director, looked grim.

"Isabella. Explain."

"It's nothing unusual. He's family," I said.

"Family?"

Martin's frown deepened.

"Your name doesn't appear anywhere in Don Moretti's family records."

I clenched my jaw. I'd asked Vito to leave me out of those records to hide my identity. Now that decision was being used against me.

"He's my..."

"You're not about to tell us you and the chairman are lovers, are you?"

At some point, Victoria had appeared in the doorway.

She sat beside Martin as though she were there to see justice done.

"Martin, Isabella has been claiming she has a special relationship with the chairman.

"I warned her, but instead of backing off, she's only gotten bolder."

Martin's expression hardened.

"Isabella, Victoria has no reason to risk her career by making something like this up.

"You'll sit out the Employee of the Year selection for now."

I wanted to tell him that Victoria had every reason to do this.

What she was after had never been just the chief secretary's job.

But before I could say anything, Victoria pushed me out of the meeting room.

She lowered her voice. "Isabella, some things will never be yours, not in this lifetime."

The moment I stepped out, my phone began buzzing nonstop.

A post on the company's internal forum had already shot to the top.

"Employee of the Year candidate accused of using connections to get ahead!"

The top comment was right below it.

[I knew there was a reason she rose so fast. Someone really has been backing her.]

I made a face and texted Vito.

"Honey, your chief secretary says I'm seducing you. Is that true?"

As soon as I sent it, I remembered that Vito was in the middle of a secret meeting and couldn't see my messages at all.

Which meant I couldn't get in touch with him until this whole mess blew over.

My husband was out of reach, and his wife was being branded the other woman.

Being Vito's wife sure keeps life interesting.