Chapter 25
I stared at Lorenzo, his words hanging in the air. The power to decide Dominic’s fate rested in my hands. My heels clicked against the concrete as I approached the man who’d once promised to love me forever.
Dominic’s eyes widened, tears streaming down his face. Blood seeped through his fingers where he clutched his leg. The sight of him broken, bleeding, terrified – should have given me satisfaction. Instead, I felt hollow.
“Val, please.” His voice cracked. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t… I never meant for any of this.”
I crouched down to his level, maintaining enough distance to stay safe. “You killed my parents.”
“Camilla.” He choked on the name. “She told me your parents‘ properties would be worth millions. Said if we could get them out of the way, we’d have everything.” His shoulders shook. “I was blind. So fucking blind. The money, the status she knew exactly how to play me. I became someone I didn’t recognize.”
“And my baby?” The words tasted like acid.
Fresh tears spilled down his cheeks. “I swear I didn’t know about that. Camilla… she orchestrated everything. I was just her puppet, too stupid to see the strings.” He reached toward me but stopped short. “I know it doesn’t change anything. What I did what I let happen – it’s unforgivable. But I need you to know the truth.”
I stood slowly, looking down at the pathetic creature he’d become. The man I’d once loved, who’d turned into my worst nightmare, now reduced to nothing but tears and regret.
“You’re right about one thing,” I said, my voice steady and cold. “It is unforgivable. My parents died. My baby…” I pressed a hand to my stomach, the phantom pain of loss still fresh.
“You don’t get to cry your way out of this.”
I stepped closer to Dominic, watching him flinch. “I won’t kill you. Death. would be too kind.” My lips curled into a cold smile. “Instead, I’ll make you feel exactly what I felt worthless, desperate, wishing you were dead. Every. Single. Day.”
His face crumpled as the weight of my words sank in.
Chapter 25
I turned to Lorenzo, my voice steady. “Put him in jail. Have our men take special care of him inside. Let him experience hell for a few months.” I paused, savoring the whimper that escaped Dominic’s throat. “After that, he can rot there for all I care.”
Lorenzo’s eyes darkened with pride at my words – particularly my use of “our men.” In one fluid motion, he swept me into his arms, his lips claiming mine in a fierce kiss that spoke of possession, protection, and pride. His touch erased every lingering shadow of Dominic’s presence, replacing old wounds with new promises.
Behind us, Dominic made a strangled sound – whether from pain or the sight of us together, I didn’t care.
For the first time since that terrible night when my world shattered, I felt truly, completely free.
Two months later…
I stood before the gilded mirror in my bridal suite at the Constantine estate, my heart racing beneath layers of handcrafted Italian lace. My wedding dress hugged my curves before cascading into a dramatic train.
Through the window, I glimpsed the transformed gardens below. Thousands of white roses and crystal chandeliers created an ethereal wonderland.
The guest list read like a who’s who of Europe’s elite – including those who’d once plotted against Lorenzo. They sat among the other guests now, cowed by his display of power in the weeks leading up to our wedding.
“Ready, cara mia?” Lorenzo appeared in the doorway, breaking tradition to see me before the ceremony.
My breath caught at the sight of him in his bespoke tuxedo. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
‘I make my own rules.” He crossed the room in three strides, pulling me against him. “And I couldn’t wait another minute to see you.”
His fingers traced the intricate beading at my waist. “You look like an angel.”
“A fallen one, perhaps.” I smiled up at him. “Considering who I’m marrying.”
“Then we’ll rule hell together.” His lips brushed mine, careful not to smudge my makeup.
The ceremony itself was a blur of ancient traditions and modern touches.
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my makeup.
The ceremony itself was a blur of ancient traditions and modern touches.
We exchanged our vows beneath an arch of roses, Lorenzo’s voice steady and sure as he promised to protect and cherish me for eternity. When he slipped. the massive diamond onto my finger, tears spilled down my cheeks.
“Ti amo, mia regina,” he whispered before kissing me with such passion that several guests gasped.
At the reception, I caught sight of former coalition members raising their glasses in our direction, their faces masks of careful respect. Lorenzo’s arm tightened around my waist, a subtle reminder that we were untouchable now.
“They never stood a chance against us,” he murmured against my ear as we swayed to our first dance.
I pressed closer to him, breathing in his familiar scent. “Against you, your mean.”
“No, cara.” He dipped me low, his eyes burning into mine. “Against us. You’re my equal in every way. Never forget that.”
I melted into Lorenzo’s embrace as we continued our dance, the world. fading around us. His fingers traced patterns on my lower back, sending shivers down my spine.
“What are you thinking about, bellissima?” His breath tickled my ear.
“How different everything is now. Some months ago, I was…” I trailed off, not wanting to revisit those memories on our wedding day.
“Look at me.” Lorenzo tilted my chin up. “You’re not that person anymore. You’re stronger than anyone I’ve ever known.”
“Because of you.”
“No.” He spun me in a graceful turn. “You always had this fire inside you. I just helped you remember it was there.”
The music shifted to a slower tempo. I rested my head against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. “Have they found any trace of her?”
Lorenzo knew exactly who I meant. Camilla had vanished that day at the abandoned building.
“Nothing concrete. But my contacts are watching every port, every airport.” His hand tightened possessively on my waist. “She won’t get near you again.”
“I’m not afraid anymore.” I lifted my head to meet his gaze. “Let her try.”
Chapter 25
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mouth in a searing kiss that made my knees weak. “Though I almost hope she
does return. I’d love to watch you destroy her.”
“We’d destroy her,” I corrected, trailing my fingers along his jaw. “Together.”
“Always together.” Lorenzo’s eyes darkened with promise. “No one will ever hurt what’s mine again.”
“Yours.” I pressed closer, breathing him in. “As you are mine.”
The world could throw whatever it wanted at us now. With Lorenzo by my side, I feared nothing not Camilla, not our enemies, not the darkness that came with our position in this dangerous world.
We’d face it all together, the mafia king and his queen, stronger for having found each other in the depths of hell.
The End?
