All Chapters of Invalid Pact, Irresistible Pull: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"I'm starting now." Tommaso Volpe's voice pierced through the darkness. His tone was icy, as if this were a formal business meeting. I closed my eyes and let his hands roam freely against my skin.It had been like this for five years now. Each time was no different from the other, like a mechanical clockwork sans emotion.Moonlight filtered through the blinds onto the Eralian marble floors of the bedroom. Even the air felt suffocating."Is this okay?" He asked for consent like this was official business, and I nodded, just like I had on countless nights before. This was our routine, our obligation—a clause clearly outlined in our contract. Tommaso began, and my mind had already drifted elsewhere.At tonight's family dinner, he sat at the head of the table as always, and I sat beside him like we were the perfect couple. Everyone envied us, for the marriage between the Don of the Volpe family and the daughter of the Gallo family created the most powerful mafia alliance.However, t

I thought of the obligation clause in our contract. "During the marriage, both parties shall fulfill marital duties."The divorce proceedings would take time to finalize, and the contract hadn't fully expired yet. With that in mind, I nodded slowly. "Va bene."That night felt endless. Tommaso was more intense than usual. I simply endured it quietly, my mind occupied with tomorrow's schedule.The next morning, Tommaso had already left to handle family business. Apparently, there was trouble at the docks. A shipment needed his personal inspection.I sat alone at the dining table. An elaborate breakfast was laid out before me, but I had no appetite.I'd just taken a sip of coffee when my stomach suddenly churned violently. A wave of nausea surged up my throat. I hastily set down the coffee cup and rushed to the powder room, leaning over the sink as I dry heaved.The marble counter was ice cold. I gripped the edge tightly, my knuckles turning white."Are you pregnant?" Gelsomina's v

"What dissolution process?" Tommaso asked with a frown, but he was listening to Gelsomina's increasingly urgent crying on the phone and completely missed what I'd said."Tommaso, where are you? I need you! The doctor says the drugs I took before have side effects!""I'm on my way," Tommaso said to me anxiously. "We'll talk about this when we get home."He left in a rush, clearly not having heard what I'd just said. And if he did, he'd chosen to ignore it.Over the next two weeks, I rested at the private hospital. The burns in my stomach needed time to heal. The doctor said it would take at least a month for me to fully recover.Since then, I received photos from Gelsomina every day—photos of her and Tommaso on the beach, where she wore a bikini and nestled against him; photos of them on a shopping spree, her arm linked through his as they browsed luxury boutiques.Every photo proclaimed her victory. After all these years, I was used to it. Tommaso's love for her remained as const

Tommaso's voice carried a tremor, his eyes flickering with anger I couldn't understand. I nodded faintly, smoothing the creases on the comforter."Va bene. One last week. I won't mention him again."Tommaso froze, his brows knitting together. "What do you mean, one last week?"I didn't answer. I simply got up and walked to the vanity, beginning to remove my earrings. For five years, I'd prepared myself in front of this mirror every day, playing the perfect Signora of the Volpe family. But in one more week, all of this would be over."Alessia, what did you just say?" he pressed, a note of unease creeping into his voice. Just then, hurried footsteps and crying came from outside the door."Tommaso!" Gelsomina burst into the room, her eyes brimming with tears. "You're punishing me because of that woman?"Her voice was especially jarring in the quiet night."I'm your sister! You've never treated me like this before, and certainly not for some outsider!" she shrieked hysterically.To

When Tommaso returned to the hospital, Gelsomina was destroying everything in sight. Expensive medical equipment lay shattered on the floor, and the room was in chaos."Tommaso!" The moment she saw him enter, she threw herself into his arms. Tears instantly streamed down her face."I was so scared! I thought I was going to die!""It's over now." Tommaso patted her back mechanically, but my calm face involuntarily surfaced in his mind.My composure even after a life-or-death situation had stirred something in him that he couldn't quite name."You won't leave me, will you?" Gelsomina looked up at him, her eyes almost pleading as she pressed on, "You'll always protect me, right? Just like when we were little?"Tommaso looked at her. His lips moved. Before, he would have agreed without hesitation. It had been his instinct, like a promise carved into his bones.But now, faced with her tantrums and unreasonable behavior, he felt a flicker of irritation. The feeling shocked even him.