Joey was the first to drop to his knees, his legs slamming hard onto the marble floor.
“Don! This is all a misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!”
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, a stark contrast to his earlier swagger. “I didn’t mean to hurt Elena. As her ex- husband, I just wanted to reminisce a little.”
To bring up their past in front of Dante wasn’t just stupid. It was suicidal.
In his twisted mind, even after he had thrown her away, Elena was still his property. A possession he was entitled
- to.
He believed that with a single word from him, Elena would come running back to his side.
Chapter 7
+25 BONUS
He was convinced Elena’s love for him would never change.
His blinding arrogance made him completely miss the way Dante’s expression darkened.
I could clearly hear the crystal glass in Dante’s hand crackling.
But Joey didn’t seem to notice, continuing with his self–serving speech:
“The Don must know how obsessed Elena used to be with me.”
“She only married you to get back at me. It was all about me!!!
“That’s why she deliberately did it, to make me angry!”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. He was trying to sow discord even as he faced certain death.
“But Don, I’m willing to forgive her!”
Joey grew more animated, as if he truly believed his own bullshit.
“If you return Elena to me, I will be your most loyal dog.”
“What do you say?”
CRACK!
Dante crushed the champagne flute in his bare hand. Blood dripped from his fingers onto the marble floor.
Seeing him hurt, my heart ached.
“Joey!” I stood up. “Shut your fucking mouth!”
It was the first time I had ever sworn in front of him. Even Dante was taken aback for a second.
“What do you think you are? You still dare to twist the truth here?”
I strode toward Joey, looking down at the pathetic man on the floor. My newfound power was a cold, hard shield around me.
“Three years ago, you were the one who abandoned me for that bitch!’
“You were the one who said I wasn’t good enough for your future! You said I was just baggage!”
“And now you have the nerve to say I’m trying to make you angry?”
Joey was stunned by my presence, unable to speak.
I turned to face Dante, my voice ringing with all the conviction I possessed:
“I belong to Dante Moretti,” I declared, my voice ringing with conviction. “And only to him.”
“He is my husband, the father of my child, and the one and only love of my life.”
At my declaration, Dante, his hand still dripping blood, smiled.
It was a smile of utter satisfaction and adoration, as if he had just been given the whole world.
I took out my silk scarf and carefully cleaned Dante’s wound.
“Does it hurt?” I asked softly.
Chapter 7
+25 BONUS
Dante looked at me, his eyes full of tenderness.
Suddenly, his grip on my wrist tightened. His voice was laced with a raw vulnerability I had never heard. “You said you belong to me?”
