All Chapters of After My Divorce, I Became the Mafia Don’s Wife: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

I never imagined a luxury childcare ad would lead me to the most dangerous family in Chicago.The Bellandi estate sat behind black iron gates on the Gold Coast, its family crest worked in black and gold above the entrance. A row of black cars waited inside the drive. The butler who came to meet me introduced himself as Enzo. His gaze moved over my rain-soaked coat, then to the worn handbag in my hand.“Miss Ward, this house does not hire women to decorate a room or charm the Don. If you enter, the children’s needs come first, the household rules second, and your curiosity last.”He pushed the gate open.“Do not ask about locked doors. Do not repeat names you hear. Do not promise the children anything you cannot keep.”I tightened my grip on my bag and nodded.Eight hours earlier, I had signed my divorce papers. Sebastian Crane’s lawyer told me the prenuptial agreement left me with no claim to the Crane family’s assets and no right to remain in the house. Sebastian did not even come. He

At eight the next morning, Enzo opened the study door for me.Dante sat behind a long table in a black suit, the two documents from last night waiting in front of him.I stopped at the edge of the table. “I thought I was here to take care of the children.”“You passed last night’s interview.” Dante pushed the papers toward me. “Now I need to give them someone who can stay.”He spoke with the calm of a man discussing terms, not feelings.“The Bellandi family has enemies watching my children. A regular nanny can’t enter the security system, sign medical authorizations, or represent them at school and family events. Livia has seen too many people leave. She needs a mother written into the law.”I sat down.“You want me to marry you.”“On paper.”“Where would I live?”“Second floor. The room you used last night. Mine is on the third.”“How far do my duties go?”“Care for the three children. Help them adjust to a normal life. Attend family events as Mrs. Bellandi when necessary.”“And marit

A week after the Volvo appeared, I took the triplets to the preview hall of the Bellandi Children’s Arts Foundation.Dante’s family funded the annual charity auction, and one wall had been reserved for drawings from children across the city. Livia’s picture of Pearl had been selected. She insisted Pearl needed to see it in person.The guards followed at a distance and did not come too close. Livia sat in the back seat with Pearl in her arms, whispering to the rabbit about how important the day was. Matteo held the invitation card and checked the address twice. Nico kept asking whether charity events served cake.The preview hall occupied the second floor of a restored theater near the river. Brass railings curved around the staircase, and soft light fell across framed children’s drawings, auction tables, and discreet Bellandi security posted near every exit.Livia found her drawing immediately.Pearl had been drawn with a crooked crown and a blue ribbon twice the size of her head. Livi

The car stayed quiet on the way back.Livia sat beside me with Pearl in her arms, one hand gripping my coat. Nico only stared out the window, while Matteo wrote on the back of the event booklet, his pen moving softly over the paper.I did not cry or feel humiliated.Sebastian’s words seemed to come from somewhere far away, yet they were familiar enough to make my body tighten before my mind could settle.By the time we returned to the Bellandi estate, night had fallen.Livia pulled me upstairs as soon as the car stopped. In my room, she placed Pearl on my pillow and fastened the pearl clip to the rabbit’s ear.“Pearl will guard you tonight,” she said.Nico set a small cake wrapped in a napkin on my nightstand. “From the foundation. They had too many left.”Matteo handed me the folded event booklet. Inside were the names of the people who had stood with Sebastian, their companies, and even their license plates.“Why did you write all this down?” I asked.“He might come again,” Matteo sa

By the next morning, news that the audit team had entered Crane Medical had already spread through half of Chicago.I heard about it at breakfast.Nico was cutting his eggs into uneven pieces when Enzo quietly reported to Dante. He immediately looked up. “So the bad man is in trouble now?”Matteo set down his milk. “We wait for the audit results.”Nico stared at him. “Why do you sound like a lawyer?”“Because you sound like a witness.”Livia did not understand the details. She only sat beside me with Pearl in her arms and quietly pushed yesterday’s note, the one that said For Mom, toward my plate.I saw it, but did not expose her.Breakfast was nearly over when the security channel at the outer gate came alive.Enzo listened through his earpiece, then stepped to Dante’s side. “Don, Sebastian Crane is at the gate. He says he has something he must hand to Mrs. Bellandi personally.”My hand paused around my cup.Dante looked at me. “You don’t have to see him.”Livia clutched Pearl. “He ca