All Chapters of Giving up on the Boys I Loved: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The moment I stepped out of the hospital, Sicily’s cold wind hit me in the face.Lorenzo De Luca called almost immediately. His tone was as commanding as ever. He did not even bother with a greeting before launching into a reprimand.“Stop pretending. Your asthma isn’t nearly as serious as you make it out to be. Come back and apologize to Sophia.”Dario De Luca’s voice came from somewhere beside him. “Sophia hasn’t been able to sleep because of you. Look at the dark circles under her eyes!”I glanced at my reflection in the glass doors. I looked pale, haggard, and almost unrecognizable.They had not always been like this. In the past, they had worried about me more times than I could count.I had had asthma since I was little, and every change of season could trigger an attack.I remembered one night when I suddenly could not catch my breath. Lorenzo scooped me into his arms and ran all the way downstairs without even stopping to put on his shoes. Dario drove me to the hospita

I thought I would be taking a lot with me, but when I finished packing, everything that truly belonged to me could not even fill a single suitcase.Several jewelry boxes lay scattered nearby, filled with the pieces Lorenzo had given me over the years.After he became Godfather, he often took me to family banquets. Before every event, he would personally put my jewelry on for me, then take my hand and lead me into the ballroom.Back then, he would always lean down and whisper, “Stay by my side, Evelyn. No one will ever dare look down on you.”Now, those expensive pieces were stuffed into a cardboard box. The necklaces and earrings tangled together, and a few of the gemstones still had stains that would not come off no matter how much I wiped them.I looked at them and suddenly found it amusing.Back then, he had personally chosen the most expensive jewelry for me, afraid that someone might look down on me if I wore anything less. Now, I did not even have the right to keep them.I

Victoria De Luca lived in a villa by the sea.The moment I stepped through the door, she heard my footsteps. When she turned around, the smile vanished from her face. Her eyes immediately fell on my swollen, reddened cheek.“Oh my! What happened? “Come here. Let me see how bad it is.”She reached out to touch me, but I instinctively turned my face away.“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”Victoria did not press me for an explanation. She simply had a maid bring out the first-aid kit and personally treated the swelling on my cheek.Only after she put down the cotton swab did I remove the De Luca family crest from my coat and place it in front of her.“I’m going back to New York. It’s time I returned this to you.”Victoria stared at the crest for a long moment without reaching for it.“Maybe it would be good for you to spend some time in New York.” She spoke cautiously. “You can come back after you’ve had time to cool off.”“I’m not staying there temporarily.” I gently cut her off.

“I can’t accept this. The meaning behind this ring is too significant.”Old Madam Romano gently pressed my hand down.“Then take your time getting used to what it means. And from now on, just call me Grandma.”She explained that Matteo had already given his authorization, then summoned the butler.“From today onward, Evelyn has full authority to use the family’s cars and security personnel. All family gatherings will be arranged as she wishes. No one is permitted to make decisions without consulting her. She is the mistress of the Romano family!”I was startled for a moment. Lorenzo said something similar to me back then.“Evelyn is the most honored young lady of the De Luca family. Her orders are my orders.”However, everything that had once belonged to me was later taken away. Sophia even broke my father’s pocket watch into pieces, and they still chose to protect her.My eyes stung with tears. Old Madam Romano tightened her grip on my hand.“There will always be a place for

Back then, I rejected the marriage for Lorenzo and Dario’s sake, yet Matteo had kept the authorization in place all these years, turning down lucrative marriage alliances with other families.Dario scoffed, “So in the end, this is still about Sophia. You married Matteo just to force us to take the rings back, didn’t you? Sophia is just a girl who lost her father. We gave her those rings so the other families would know she was under the De Luca family's protection. She could never replace you.”He stepped closer.“Just come back with us. We’ll give you your own room at the manor again. The De Luca family will cover all your expenses, and we’ll assign guards to you again.”Lorenzo suddenly grabbed my injured palm. Pain shot through my hand and all the way up my arm.“Come back to Sicily with me. I’ll personally tear up the Romano marriage contract. Whatever consequences there are between the two families, I’ll take full responsibility.”He said it as though it were the most natura