Blurb: When Valentina Russo registered at university under a different name, she felt she had left the stifling world of her family's terrible past. She hides from the demons of her past by blending into university life as a quiet librarian assistant. Her delicate calm is destroyed, though, when she is drawn back into the world she so nervously sought to escape-one governed by secrets, power, and blood. Then meet Luca DeLuca, cold, merciless, and hiding his actual identity as the heir to one of the most strong mafia families. Luca, sometimes known on campus as the friendly but enigmatic transfer student, keeps his double life secret and acts as an average student by day and mafia prince by night. Valentina becomes the key to strengthening a weak partnership between their warring families when he learns her actual name. Luca suggests a deal-a flash marriage neither of which she can escape-to rescue his enterprise. Valentina finds herself caught in Luca's perilous world after being compelled into a transactional marriage with a man she hardly knows. But her uncovering of Luca's secret identities causes their illicit attraction to blossom, transcending obligation and risk. Secrets threaten to pull them apart; enemies from both their families show up; and the line between love from betrayal gets blurry. In a game when loyalty kills, can Valentina survive long enough to take back her life and her heart? And will Luca stay faithful to the empire that made him, or will he give all to guard the lady he is beginning to love? Stakes have never been more in a world where love and power coexist. And just one can emerge victorious.
Valentina 's POV
The wedding dress felt too tight. Too constrictive.
I fixed my gaze on my mirror reflection-a girl I hardly knew peering back at me. Clung to my body, the exquisite white lace spoke for grace and purity. But I felt anything but pure. And grace? < That had gone through my fingers the instant I turned Luca DeLuca's offer down.
Marrying you will be a protection.
Those were not phrases I could get out of my thoughts. They kept coming back to me as I stood by myself in the changing room, heart thumping with every second. The wedding was about to start. This morning. Swift and frigid, like a deal. For that is all this was. a deal. Luca's kingdom was safe, thus I wouldn't be under Enzo Romano's hands.
But there was something else chewing at me-a persistent sensation in the gut. The way Luca had stared at me last night, the glitter in his eyes when he declared this was not a love story. It started me to question my depth of sinking.
"Tina" A gentle voice emerged from my thoughts.
Turning to find Maria, my childhood friend, standing in the doorway, I Her hands were wringing anxiously, her eyebrows wrinkled with concern. Maria knew some but not all of my story. She understood I had fled a perilous life, but she was unsure of the whole scope of what was hunting me. She was also seeing her best friend wed a man I hardly knew right now.
Quietly approaching, she murmured, "Are you sure about this?" "I mean, this is quite abrupt. Why would you wed someone you know just a few weeks?
Opening my lips to respond, the words caught in my throat. How would I justify that this was not essentially a marriage at all? That this represented survival, nothing more?
Maria, "I have no choice," I murmured, my voice hardly a whisper. "I am in need of this."
Her eyes looked at me, seeking for answers I provided her. But you adore none of him. Is there another route as well?
I shook my head, resisting the tears that may have leaked over. NO. Not is it.
Maria moaned; her shoulders slumped in loss. She knew me enough to realize I wouldn't be moved. She glanced one last time and left the room, leaving me by myself with her reflection.
The door closed and I was once more quiet. The only sound coming from the wall was the clock ticking away the minutes till I would be Luca's bride.
The ceremony itself passed for nothing. Luca stood tall and frigid next to me, his hand tightly clutching mine as we committed vows neither of which we intended. His eyes as keen as ever, absorbing every detail and every movement in the room, his face was unreadable.
His strength seemed to weigh me in the way he carried himself. He seemed to be manipulating the very air around us to suit him. And, as much as I detested to admit it, it had a really fascinating quality.
The words of the priest poured over me, merging into the background as I concentrated on Luca's hand still clutching mine. Though not delicate either, his touch was forceful rather than cruel. a call to memory the agreement we had negotiated.
When it was time to kiss, Luca leaned in close and just brushed my lips, enough to make the few witnesses present believable. But the kiss lacked flare and enthusiasm. simply cold need.
We were ushered into the reception as soon as it ended, a little gathering of people connected to Luca's world that I didn't know. Important faces I knew were missing. While muttering behind our backs, wondering why the strong Luca DeLuca had decided to wed a nobody like me, they congratulated us with false smiles and hollow words.
A few hours later, I was standing on the balcony of our new house-a large estate outside the city. Now it was only me and Luca; the wedding was finished, the guests had gone. By oneself.
Nothing helped to release the strain in my chest as the cool breeze stroked my skin. Luca tonight seemed different than what I had anticipated. Though we were united by marriage and had taken our vows, this was not genuine. Not least, not to me.
Behind me, I heard the gentle creak of the balcony door opening, then Luca's footsteps. Silent for a bit, he came to stand next to me as we both gazed out at the darkening sky.
"You did well today," he murmured at last, his voice low and steady. "Everyone suspects nothing."
As always, it was closely guarded; I looked at him, trying to interpret his emotions. "I don't care what they suspect," I said, sounding more sharply than I wanted. "This isn't for them.."
"No, it's not," he said, turning to squarely face me. That does not mean we can afford to be negligent, though.
I turned away, unable to hold his eye for too long. Something about Luca unsettled me, something deadly hiding just under the surface. He was chilly, analytical, and every word he said seemed to hold an unsaid threat. But there was another thing as well, something I couldn't quite identify. Maybe a flutter of sensitivity here. Or was I thinking of it?
More to myself than to him, I murmured, "I'm not sure how much longer I can do this."
Luca's knuckles went white as his fingers tightened the balcony railing. " Valentina, you are without options. You agreed upon a bargain. And I will keep up as long as you maintain your end.
His comments stung, a sobering reminder of the deal we had negotiated. I disliked this. I loomed over him. I couldn't deny, though, that he was my only shield from the Romano family at the same time.
" Why did you agree to this?" Suddenly I asked the inquiry out before I could stop it. "Why married me?"
Luca's jaw tightened, and for a split second I assumed he wouldn't respond. Still, he spoke at last following a protracted silence.
Quietly, he continued, "Because I need you," staring directly at me. "You are the secret to keeping everything I have created from disintegrating."
I scowled, perplexity knotting in my chest. "What do you imply?"
But a great crash from within the home broke the quiet between us before he could respond. As I whirled, eyes wide, my heart shot into my throat.
Luca's whole attitude altered quickly. His body stiffened, he was on great alert, staring into the darkness for any indication of threat. His voice low and menacing, he said, "Stay here."
He vanished into the house without waiting for a reply, leaving me on the balcony alone with terror slinking up my spine.
As I waited, seconds felt like hours and my imagination ran a million possibilities. Was the Romano family among them? Had they lately come upon us?
But then quietly followed the smash, exactly as fast as it had arrived. excessive silence.
I could no longer stand it. Ignoring Luca's caution, I entered and followed the faint sounds coming from the corridor, my bare feet lightly padding across the marble floor.
I stopped turning around the bend.
There was a man towering, broad-shouldered and threatening. Though shadows covered his face, I could sense the threat pouring off him in waves. Luca was facing him, his back to me, his body stiff as if a predator about to attack.
The man spoke softly, nearly like a growl. "Did you not realize you could never permanently hide her?"
My blood came cold. Their search turned up me.
Once more, Valentina's fragile life is disrupted as an unidentified menace confronts Luca in their new house. This unexpected incursion makes the reader wonder about the stranger, why Luca's defense is failing, and what this implies for Valentina's delicate feeling of safety. The chapter finishes suspensefully, preparing the next confrontation as danger closes in.
Chapter 1 The Price of Protection
05/10/2024
Chapter 2 Shadows in the Dark
05/10/2024
Chapter 3 Unravelling Secrets
05/10/2024
Chapter 4 A Dangerous Gamble
05/10/2024
Chapter 5 Breaking Through the
05/10/2024
Chapter 6 Secrets in the Shadowline
05/10/2024
Chapter 7 Shadow Play: A Game
05/10/2024
Chapter 8 A Dangerous Bargain
05/10/2024
Chapter 9 Between Two Fires
07/10/2024
Chapter 10 Shadows of Betrayal
12/10/2024
Chapter 11 Broken Loyalties
12/10/2024
Chapter 12 The Thin between Loyalty and Betrayal
12/10/2024
Chapter 13 Shadows of the Past
12/10/2024
Chapter 14 The Point of Breakthrough
12/10/2024
Chapter 15 Fire Lines of Action
12/10/2024
Chapter 16 A Divided Heart
01/11/2024
Chapter 17 A Dance with Danger
01/11/2024
Chapter 18 On the Edge of Darkness
01/11/2024
Chapter 19 The Price of Betrayal
01/11/2024
Chapter 20 From the Lion's Den
01/11/2024
Chapter 21 A Fractured Alliance
04/11/2024
Chapter 22 The Depth of Betrayal
04/11/2024
Chapter 23 Breaking the Silence
05/11/2024
Chapter 24 Between Life and Death
05/11/2024
Chapter 25 Shattered Loyalties
06/11/2024
Chapter 26 Web of Lies
06/11/2024
Chapter 27 Unraveling the Threads
07/11/2024
Chapter 28 Shadows in the Distance
07/11/2024
Chapter 29 Fractured Loyalties
08/11/2024
Chapter 30 Bargains and Betrayals
08/11/2024
Chapter 31 Shattered Alliances
12/11/2024
Chapter 32 The Edge of Deception
12/11/2024
Chapter 33 Dangerous Choices
13/11/2024
Chapter 34 Into the Crossfire
13/11/2024
Chapter 35 Beneath the Surface
15/11/2024
Chapter 36 Threads of Deception
15/11/2024
Chapter 37 The Tipping Point
19/11/2024
Chapter 38 Echoes of a Broken Alliance
19/11/2024
Chapter 39 Under Siege
19/11/2024
Chapter 40 A Dangerous Bargain
19/11/2024
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