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หน้าหลัก / Mafia / BLOOD AND VOWS: THE MAFIA WRONG BRIDE / บทที่ 131 - บทที่ 140

บททั้งหมดของ BLOOD AND VOWS: THE MAFIA WRONG BRIDE : บทที่ 131 - บทที่ 140

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CHAPTER 131A TABLE FOR TWOLUCIEN Dinner had been ready for nearly ten minutes. The kitchen staff knew better than to complain. No one spoke or questioned why the food remained untouched while steam slowly disappeared from the dishes arranged across the long dining table. They simply waited, Just as I was.Marco sat beside me, swirling the wine in his glass before taking a slow sip. His eyes drifted toward the grandfather clock standing against the wall. “She’s taking her time.”I didn’t answer. At the other side of Marco sat Miss Rossi. Valentina. She had changed into another elegant dress before dinner, her jewelry carefully chosen, her makeup flawless. Every detail had been planned. She smiled pleasantly.“I heard from Chi…” she paused, almost making the mistake of calling Chiara by her name. With annoyance in eyes, she corrected herself. “I heard from Valentina that you went to Switzerland for a business meeting.” And I knew she didn’t talk to Chiara. She happened to find out t
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CHAPTER 132THE IMPOSSIBLE TRUTHCHIARADinner ended much later than usual. One by one, the servants cleared away the dishes while Marco excused himself, claiming he still had work to finish before the night was over. Lucien remained seated for a few minutes longer, discussing something quietly with him before finally standing. I didn’t wait.After wishing everyone good night, I quietly slipped away before anyone could stop me. The walk back to Lucien’s room felt strangely unreal. The corridors were as familiar as ever, yet every step seemed heavier than the last. I closed the bedroom door behind me and leaned against it. It was completely silent, save for the pounding sound of my heart. Finally, I let out a slow breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.“What… was that?” The question escaped before I could stop it. Absolutely nothing about that dinner had gone the way I’d expected. Lucien had smiled. He had actually smiled. At me.I squeezed my eyes shut. No. It wasn’t at me, but a
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CHAPTER 133THE GHOSTS OF MIDNIGHTS LUCIEN The estate had long since fallen silent. One by one, the lights throughout the mansion disappeared until only a few remained glowing against the darkness outside. Somewhere downstairs, the night guards changed shifts. The faint sound of footsteps echoed through the corridors before silence reclaimed the house once more. I remained in my office.Another report lay open across my desk, though I’d stopped reading it nearly twenty minutes ago. The words no longer held my attention. Marco had left hours earlier after insisting I should get some sleep.Sleep.The thought almost made me laugh. I leaned back in my chair and rubbed a hand across my face. Normally, by this hour, I would already be upstairs. But not tonight. The bedroom had stopped feeling like a room. It had become… complicated.Every evening over the past week, I found myself lingering a little longer before returning upstairs, inventing excuses to stay in the office. Another docume
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CHAPTER 134KEEPING DISTANCESCHIARA The next morning, I woke with the strange feeling that the previous evening had never really happened. The room looked exactly the same. The pale morning light filtered through the curtains, painting soft patterns across the floor. My clothes remained folded neatly on the chair where I’d left them. Nothing had changed. And yet, Everything had.I dressed slowly, brushing my hair until it lay neatly over my shoulders before leaving the bedroom. Perhaps if I kept myself occupied, the thoughts from last night would finally disappear. And for a while, they did.I wandered through the gardens, stopping occasionally to admire flowers I still didn’t know the names of. The morning air was cool, carrying the scent of freshly watered roses. Somewhere nearby, gardeners quietly trimmed hedges while birds settled among the trees. It was peaceful. Almost enough to convince me that nothing was wrong, the keyword being Almost.I turned onto a narrow stone path lea
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CHAPTER 135A CALCULATED FIRELUCIEN Morning settled quietly over the Moretti estate, but silence never lasted long inside my office. By eight o’clock, the first reports of the day had already been placed on my desk. Financial statements, port security updates, movements from our various branches. Both illegal and legal. There was routine intelligence gathered overnight.Marco stood opposite me, reading through the remaining files while I signed the documents requiring my approval. The room smelled faintly of coffee and leather. Outside, the estate was beginning another ordinary morning. Inside, nothing about it was ordinary.“There is one more report,” Marco said, setting another folder in front of me.I didn’t look up immediately. “What is it?”“It concerns Miss Rossi.” My pen paused.“Which one?”Marco almost smiled. “The real one.” Only then did I lift my head. He opened the folder. “It appears she’s been asking questions.”“What kind of questions?”He glanced down. “Lucien’s sch
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CHAPTER 136A DANGEROUS HABITLUCIEN The estate had returned to its usual rhythm. Servants crossed the corridors with practiced efficiency. Meetings came and went. Reports continued piling onto my desk. Nothing about the day was unusual. Or at least, that was what I told myself.I left the office shortly before noon, intending to inspect the newly arrived security equipment in the west wing. As I walked through the corridor, my eyes drifted toward the reading room. Empty. I continued walking. Near the staircase, two housemaids bowed respectfully as they passed. Neither of them being the person I had unconsciously expected to see.By the time I reached the west wing, I realized I hadn’t paid attention to a single word the security chief had said. My attention had been elsewhere. I dismissed the meeting early. On the walk back, I passed the conservatory. Without thinking, I glanced inside. Empty. I frowned. Why? Why had I looked?I continued toward the dining room. Lunch had already be
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CHAPTER 137BORROWED HAPPINESSCHIARAWhen one of the housemaids knocked on my bedroom door shortly after breakfast, my first thought was that something had gone wrong.“Mrs. Moretti?”I looked up from the book resting in my lap. “Yes?”“Don Moretti would like to see you in his office.”My stomach tightened immediately. “Did… did he say why?”The maid shook her head politely. “No, ma’am.”After she left, I remained seated for another moment, staring at the closed door. Had I done something wrong? I replayed yesterday in my mind. Dinner. The conversation with Valentina. Nothing came to mind. Still, Lucien rarely summoned me without a reason. He never really summons me at all.I smoothed the wrinkles from my dress before making my way toward his office. The closer I got, the louder my heartbeat became. I knocked softly.“Come in.”I stepped inside. Lucien was standing near the window while Marco remained beside his desk, sorting through several files. Both men looked up. Immediately, I
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CHAPTER 138THE PERFORMANCE LUCIEN By the following afternoon, I had reached a conclusion. Valentina Rossi was predictable. She hid it well. Better than most people would. But jealousy had its own language. A tightened jaw. A smile that never quite reached the eyes. The brief hesitation before speaking. For a fraction of a second she forgot to breathe whenever Chiara stood too close to me.Yesterday confirmed what I already suspected. She wasn’t angry because Chiara was pretending to be her. She was angry because my attention remained on the wrong sister. I was happy about that. It meant she was becoming emotional. And emotional people made mistakes. Exactly what I needed. I intended to help her lose what little control she still possessed.******Lunch was served on the terrace overlooking the gardens. The weather was pleasant enough that even Marco abandoned his office for an hour. Valentina arrived first. Perfectly dressed and composed. She greeted everyone with effortless grace
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CHAPTER 139THE WRONG SISTERCHIARA I woke to gentle knocking instead of the alarm I’d begun setting for myself every night. “Come in,” I called softly. The door opened, and one of the younger housemaids stepped inside carrying a silver tray. Steam curled from a porcelain teapot, and beside it sat two small pastries dusted lightly with powdered sugar. She smiled warmly. “Good morning, Madam.”“Good morning.”She crossed the room and carefully placed the tray on the small table near the window. “I brought your tea.”I stared at it in confusion. “But I didn’t ask for tea.”The maid hesitated for only a second before answering. “No, Madam. But Don Moretti mentioned this was the blend you preferred.” My eyes fell to the delicate teacup. It was the same tea Lucien had poured for me several days earlier. “I thought you might like it before breakfast.”“You didn’t have to.”Her smile widened slightly. “It wasn’t any trouble, Madam.” There it was again. Madam. The word still sounded strange
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CHAPTER 140UNSPOKEN RULESLUCIENThe estate functioned with the kind of precision most people mistook for perfection. It wasn’t. But the thing is, perfection didn’t exist. There were only routines refined through years of discipline, corrected whenever flaws appeared. Every servant knew where they were expected to be. Every guard understood his patrol. Every member of the household carried responsibilities that rarely needed repeating. That was how I preferred it. Predictability made mistakes easier to notice.I crossed the eastern corridor shortly after breakfast, reviewing the day’s schedule in silence while Marco walked half a step behind me. “The shipment from Genoa arrived before dawn,” he said, reading from a tablet. “Everything has been accounted for.” I nodded. “The meeting with the bankers has been moved to two.”“Good.”“The lawyers are still waiting for your signature.”“They’ll wait a little longer.” Marco made another note without comment. Before we reached the main stai
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