Bound by loyalty

Alina Moretti's world ended the moment she stepped into the grand, candlelit hall of the Valenti estate.

The air was thick with the scent of aged whiskey and cigar smoke, mingling with the suffocating presence of men in black suits-killers, criminals, men who bowed to only one name.

Dante Valenti.

And tonight, she was being given to him.

Alina stood stiffly in front of the long oak table where he sat like a king on his throne, watching her with dark, unreadable eyes. He was effortlessly intimidating-tall, broad-shouldered, draped in an all-black suit that hugged his powerful frame. His sharp jaw was dusted with stubble, and his midnight eyes burned into her with something colder than hate.

"Sit," Dante commanded, his voice a deep rasp that sent a shiver down her spine.

Alina hesitated for only a second before lowering herself onto the chair across from him.

Her father, Matteo Moretti, sat to her left, his face ashen, his hands trembling. The Morettis were once a powerful mafia family, but debts and betrayals had left them weak. Her father had gambled away everything-his business, his reputation, and now... his daughter.

"This isn't necessary," Matteo pleaded, voice shaking. "There must be another way, Dante. Alina-she's innocent in all this."

Dante's lips curled into a cruel smirk as he leaned back in his chair, rolling a whiskey glass between his fingers. "Innocent?" He let out a low, humorless chuckle. "Your daughter is the reason my sister is dead."

Alina's stomach turned to ice.

It had been a year since Isabella Valenti-Dante's beloved younger sister-was killed in a car explosion. And somehow, he blamed her.

"I didn't-" Alina's voice faltered as his gaze sharpened.

"You didn't?" he repeated mockingly, swirling his drink. "And yet, the last person she saw before her death was you. The last person she trusted."

Alina clenched her fists. She and Isabella had been friends. But she hadn't betrayed her. She knew she hadn't.

Dante leaned forward, placing his drink down with a quiet clink. "Your father's debts are worth millions, Alina. His life isn't even enough to cover it." His eyes darkened. "But yours is."

The words wrapped around her throat like a noose.