Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Bastard Bride of Saint Giovanni: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 9

Adrian had been gone less than five minutes when Albert Rosario approached.He was the second son of the Rosario family, known for dirty hands and a worse reputation. He leaned close to my neck and inhaled."Miss Sorrento, you smell good tonight."I did not turn. "Albert. Stay away.""Adrian told me to bring you a drink." He laughed. "I ignored him. Don’t you think he’s lost his mind? Sending me to wait on you."I faced him.His eyes were dull with alcohol."I told you not to put all your faith in the Camerlanos. You should have learned to rely on me too. But now look at you. No signet, no protection.""Move.""No." His hand landed on my shoulder. "Grace, if you didn’t have that face, do you think a bastard like you would still be untouched? You really believe the Camerlanos will protect you forever?"Before he could press harder, another hand caught his wrist and twisted it outward.Albert’s face drained of color.Adrian’s voice was cold above him. "Didn’t I tell you not to touch what

The moment the plane stopped, my phone came back to life.Notifications flooded the screen, missed calls, messages, and app alerts piling up so densely it took three swipes to reach the bottom. Among them was a bank notification: the ticket price had been refunded tenfold.Then the announcement came.“Passengers, the Camerlano family has ordered a closure of Port Saint Giovanni airspace. This flight is delayed indefinitely. All losses will be fully compensated by the Camerlano family.”The cabin stayed silent for three seconds before someone inhaled sharply and another person muttered in disbelief, but no one raised their voice. In a city controlled by the mafia, the name Camerlano meant you could be dissatisfied, but you could not say it out loud.A quiet conversation started behind me.“Who are the Camerlanos looking for to make a move like this?”“I heard something went wrong at the Claiming Rite. The girl the heir chose ran.”“Ran? Who would dare?”“The Sorrento bastard. The one le

The stairs lifted behind me, and when the cabin door closed, the rain, the wind, and Adrian’s last words were cut off.“Don’t regret this.”I didn’t.The cabin was quieter than I expected. The seats were deep gray leather, the table matte wood edged with brass, and the carpet absorbed every sound.The white-haired butler inclined his head from the aisle.“Ma’am, the washroom is at the rear. You’ve been in the rain. Please change first.”I followed him back. The washroom was marble and brass, with clothes already laid out on the counter: a dark gray cashmere sweater and black trousers. There were no labels, but the fabric felt warm against my skin, as if it had already been worn in.The size was exact.I had lived in the Sorrentos’ house for eighteen years, and no one there knew my size. Someone who had never met me did.When I stepped out, the guards had been cleared to the rear of the cabin.“Is this Mr. Rizzo’s usual plane?” I asked.The butler looked up with a faint curve at the cor

On the day the Sorrentos came to Chicago for the banquet, the city had its first rain of the season.It was not the damp, clinging rain of Port Saint Giovanni, but something cold and clean that stung the skin. When the butler stopped the car at the hotel entrance, someone opened an umbrella over me, but I still caught the scent of dry dust turning wet. After three years in Chicago, I had grown used to it.The banquet hall was on the top floor, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the skyline. Light poured from a massive chandelier over hundreds of guests in evening clothes. The Sorrentos had been seated near the windows, a good position, but not the main table.Before the banquet, their butler came to summon me after ringing the bell three times. I was on the living room sofa, trimming leaves from a vase of white camellias. It was not deliberate. The Rizzo florist changed the estate arrangements every Wednesday.“Ninth Miss,” the butler said from the doorway, still using the super