Serena Valentino Books In Order Novels & Stories

# Chapter 5 – Valentina’s POV The words hang in the air like a death sentence. ‘Week’s up.’ I’m sitting on the edge of the bed, still in the oversized silk pajamas Sofia brought me a few days ago which was soft, expensive, and completely useless against the chill that just crawled up my spine. My hands are clasped so tightly in my lap that my knuckles are white. I can’t look away from him.

Every fragment slowly fell into place. And when the full picture finally became clear, a fire began burning inside my chest. Michela. It had to be her. The person who planted the seeds of those rumors. The person who let others water them. Rowen wasn't foolish enough to spread stories that put himself in a weak and humiliating position. My hands tightened around the armrests of my chair. Serena was a woman who had walked away from her husband rather than allow him to betray her again. She was a woman who had stood up for herself in a restaurant where her livelihood depended on keeping her job.

"Your father thinks he tricked me. He thinks he can keep his money and give me the 'spare' daughter. He's wrong." "What are you going to do?" Alessandro leaned closer, his breath hot against my ear. "I’m going to make him watch as I break everything he loves. Starting with you." Suddenly, his phone buzzed. He pulled it out and looked at the screen. His entire body went stiff. "What is it?" I asked, sensing the shift in the room. He looked at me, and for the first time, I saw a flash of real rage in his eyes. "Your sister didn't just run away, Serena," he said, his voice trembling with fury. "She’s at the border. With Marco Vitelli. And she’s carrying a Vitelli crest on her car."

"Miss Sophia, Madre is about to give birth. Please tell them to let us in—I need to get her into the delivery room!" Sophia didn't even glance at her. She simply let out a cold snort. "Lina is in the special care delivery suite. All other floors are sealed off. If outsiders come and go freely, who will take responsibility if the newborn gets infected? "That child is the future heir of the Valentino family. This is my sister-in-law's order—and the Don's arrangement. Do you dare object?" "But Madre can't wait! If this continues, both she and the baby will be in danger!"

She knew my temper, and she knew better than to argue. I leaned back in my chair, stepping my fingers as the plan formed. I would leak it slowly, and carefully, through channels she wouldn't be able to trace back to me. Anonymous whispers first, then articles, then headlines. By the time she realized what was happening, it would be too late. I could already picture it; Serena standing under flashing cameras, forced to defend herself while her empire crashed beneath her. Adrien finally loses his calm demeanor as the world turns against them. I raised my glass in a silent toast to the vision with a smile on my face.

I tapped on them and stared at the screen, my eyes fixed, waiting as the images slowly finished loading, each second stretching longer than the last. The first image opened. The moment Serena’s face appeared on my screen, everything else in the room seemed to fade away. She was sitting at a small table in a café. A book lay open in front of her, and a cup of coffee sat near her hand. Sunlight streamed through the window beside her, falling softly across her face. She looked… different. Her posture was relaxed, her expression calm in a way I hadn’t seen in a long time. Her hair fell loosely around her shoulders, catching the light.

They were born into it. Clara, from the other side of the table, looks at Valentina with the watchfulness. "That is the fifth book," she says. "There is no fifth book," Valentina says. "There will be," Clara says. "When you understand what it is." "I just said I would stop after four." "You said that before each one," Clara says. "You said it before the second book when I was thirteen. You said it before the third. You said it before the fourth."

My whole body shivered uncontrollably. Ian… How could he? Out there, with another woman? And so recklessly that it landed them in a hospital? The realization was like a blow to the gut. My breath hitched painfully, and I clung to the wall for support. Why did I have to find out like this—while carrying his child? Why did he have to betray me, especially today, of all days? Valentine's Day. Suddenly, a sharp, stabbing pain gripped my belly. I bent over, barely able to stay on my feet, while the voices around me continued unabated.

"You don't know anything about me." "Don't I?" His finger traced her jaw. "Princeton graduate, summa cum laude. Art history major with a business minor. You speak French, Italian, and enough Spanish to get by. You take your coffee black, you hate romantic comedies, and you've been sleeping in the guest room for eight months because your husband's touch makes your skin crawl." Serena's breath caught. "How could you possibly—" "I make it my business to know things, Mrs. Valentino. Especially things that belong to me."