All Chapters of A Decision Made: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

George Costa’s words hit me suddenly. A sharp pain pierced my heart, making it hard for me to breathe.He was still on the phone. On the other end of the line, the person paused for a brief second before speaking up again. “Well, you’re the true heir to the Costa mafia family for a reason. A woman with Annie’s incredible background, and she’s nothing more than practice to you. You know exactly what kind of power the Alfonso mafia family wields here in Solaria. The empire her father commands is basically going to be hers one day.”George let out a casual, indifferent chuckle. “Being with me is a privilege for Annie, too.”The person on the line quickly chimed in. “But even though Annie has those gorgeous features, her figure isn’t nearly as voluptuous as Julie’s. Honestly, you’re the one getting shortchanged here.”George’s voice turned a fraction colder. “I must have lost my mind for a second back then. She looked so incredibly pathetic and helpless that it caught my attention. At

Chapter 2

In a dimly lit corner of the banquet hall, George and Julie sat together. Julie was wearing a sexy slip dress that perfectly accentuated her toned figure. She leaned back against George, and he naturally reached out, wrapping an arm around her waist to pull her close. With their backs turned to the rest of the crowd, the two of them were laughing and talking animatedly.In the photos, they were smiling at each other, and George was pressing a tender kiss onto Julie’s cheek. Even looking through a phone screen, I could see the affection radiating from George’s eyes. It was a look he had never once given me, and it tugged at my heart painfully to learn that George was truly in love with Julie.Sophie’s updates kept flooding my screen. The next photos showed the crowd cheering and egging them on to dance together. At first, they maintained a respectful distance, but suddenly, someone bumped into Julie, and she fell into George’s arms.With everyone watching them, Julie’s cheeks flush

Chapter 3

Late that night, I gathered every single document required for my application and hit send. The company belonged to an old friend of my father’s based in Londres. It was a legitimate business and utterly disconnected from the mafia and criminal networks back home.I took a quick screenshot of the confirmation page and texted it to Sophie. She was ecstatic. For the longest time, her biggest wish was for me to give up on George, leave Solaria behind, and live a peaceful, normal life far away from all this chaos. However, I had always stubbornly refused.Simply to be near George, just to catch a few fleeting moments with him, I had turned down multiple life-changing opportunities abroad. Instead, I stayed by my father’s side, forcing myself to learn how to manage a family business I never actually wanted any part of.Looking back now, I was incredibly foolish. Because our families had been good friends for many years, everyone naturally assumed that George and I would eventually get ma

Chapter 4

Exactly one hour after George left, I saw Julie post an update on her social media.The caption read: [How sweet! A cake that people normally would have to wait in a long line for was sitting right in front of me the moment I opened my eyes.]I stared at the photo of the cake, then looked at mine. Sure enough, it was the exact same kind.I wiped away my tears and looked around the room. This space held far too many memories of him and me. It was finally time for a clean slate. With that, I called the servants and ordered them to redecorate the entire room with brand-new furniture and decor. I also left strict instructions that George was no longer allowed to set foot inside this house whenever he pleased. Anyone who let him in would be fired on the spot. While the Alfonso family might not be as powerful as the Costa family, outsiders didn't get to come and go as they pleased under our roof.The servants worked tirelessly all day. By the time I stepped back into the room, not a si

Chapter 5

He was with Julie, accompanied by a small entourage of his personal security detail. The bodyguards were all dressed in tailored black suits, with subtle bulges near their waists. As they moved through the airport terminal, they kept the crowd at a distance. Other travelers instinctively steered clear, and no one dared to look at them.George walked at the very front, his hand in Julie’s. The two of them were murmuring something to one another, exchanging happy smiles every time their eyes met. On George’s finger gleamed the signet ring passed down from his father; the eagle-and-serpent totem glowed coldly under the lights. It was the symbol of authority for the Don of the Costa family, and it wouldn’t be long before it was officially passed on to him.I could feel the stark difference in how George looked at Julie versus how he used to look at me. He had never looked at me with the same tenderness in his eyes as he looked at Julie. Furthermore, whenever I used to walk with George, h

Chapter 6

I was having a wonderful time in Londres. I was learning so much at Matthew’s company, and my coworkers treated me wonderfully. Matthew Hayes was an old friend of my father’s from thirty years ago. Back then, my father had saved his life, and after Matthew left the mafia in Solaria, he moved to Londres to run a legitimate business. Absolutely no one at the company knew anything about my background; they all just assumed I was a distant relative of Matthew’s. Every single day was packed and fulfilling, leaving me with almost zero downtime to sit alone and overthink. Gradually, I even forgot that I had blocked George. However, Sophie would occasionally text me updates about him. Her father was a capo under my father, so she always managed to get news from Solaria a step ahead of everyone else.According to her, after George and Julie went to Vandemar, they only spent a few days actually hanging out. Sophie said George only stayed for two days before spending the rest of the trip doi

Chapter 7

When I landed at the airport, the family chauffeur was already waiting to pick me up. However, once the car started moving, I realized we weren’t heading toward my home at all. Instead, we were driving up to the Costa family estate. The sprawling Costa family estate was situated on a mountain in the northern part of the city, with a five-kilometer radius completely under their control. Regular citizens couldn’t even get close to the perimeter. The moment I stepped out of the car, I saw George standing there, dressed in a custom black suit. We hadn’t seen each other in only a month, but George seemed to have transformed completely. The boyishness in his eyes had faded, replaced by a sharp maturity. He already carried the imposing aura of a true Don. Standing behind him were two rows of men, all clad in identical black suits with their hands clasped in front of them. No one spoke a word; they stood as silent as stone statues. I never expected that after running away for so long, our

Chapter 8

Hearing those words, it became incredibly difficult for me to maintain a fake smile at this party.Seeing me sitting all by myself, Fiona walked over to spark up a conversation. “Annie, once you’re married to George in the future, you’ll be attending a lot of high-profile banquets like this. Being a prominent Donna isn’t an easy job. Networking, managing connections, and social etiquette are all arts in themselves. In a few days, you and George should go out and pick up some new clothes and jewelry.”With that, George walked over to join us.Fiona seized the opportunity to grab his hand, continuing seamlessly, “Our families have always shared deep roots in Solaria, and we have extensive business ties. You two need to get along well. Next month, the Mid-Area shipping routes are up for redistribution, and we’ll need the Alfonso family to step up and back us. George, keep your temper in check and try to be more accommodating to Annie.”George let out a cold snort. “If you ask me, her

Chapter 9

A long time passed after that, and I didn’t hear a word about George.My parents eventually noticed that something was off between us. Out of consideration for my feelings, they stopped bringing him up around me. Only my father would occasionally mention him, usually noting how the Costa family was expanding its territory or the new shipping routes George had successfully locked down. He always spoke with a subtle, competitive edge, as if saying, “See? Just because you stepped away from this life doesn’t mean others won’t fight for it.”However, I was living a genuinely happy life in Londres. I had made a circle of close friends and settled into a comfortable daily routine. The violent, high-stakes world I grew up in was slowly fading from my reality. The sound of gunfire, which used to haunt my nightmares, hadn’t echoed in my mind for a very long time. It was only then that I realized how much I had let my life revolve solely around George. In doing so, I had completely overlooked m

Chapter 10

George stood right outside my office building, the eagle-and-serpent signet ring still on his finger.I initially assumed he was just in the area to take care of some business, so I braced myself to walk past him and pretend I hadn’t noticed. However, he spoke up and stopped me in my tracks.“Annie.”My footsteps halted.“I had some business to take care of here in Londres,” he said. After a brief, heavy silence, he added, “I figured I’d stop by and see how you were doing since I was passing through the area.”The Don of the Costa mafia family was never just around the area. His entire itinerary had to be submitted three days in advance, his routes were always thoroughly swept for security risks, and he was constantly flanked by bodyguards. Yet, there he was, standing right in front of me, claiming he was just passing through.Instead of calling him out on his lie, I nodded. “Let’s grab something to eat together.”We walked over to a quiet little bistro near my office. After s

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