The trembling lip steadied.
The fragile, delicate woman I had been watching disappeared in an instant.
In her place stood someone far colder.
Far more dangerous.
Her spine straightened, erasing every trace of vulnerability.
Her chin lifted. Shoulders squared.
The performance peeled away layer by layer until only calculation remained.
“I see you finally managed to whore yourself to my man,” Violet said, her tone laced with disgust. “You stink of sex and him.”
She stepped closer, eyes narrowing with barely contained fury.
“Vincenzo has never fucked me. Not once. I tried everything — even sent beautiful women to his bed — but he never touched them. Yet you... you disgusting slut somehow succeeded where I failed.”
Her voice turned icy.
“Don’t celebrate too soon.”
“He will never love you. He will never cherish you the way he cherishes me. If both of us were drowning, he would save me without hesitation.”
“This is only the beginning, Elena. I will win this war. I will humiliate you the same way you humiliated me on my weddingday. My family and my clan are already planning. We will make you suffer.”
I let a small, lazy smile touch my lips.
“Why does it bother you that I slept with my husband, Elena? It’s a marriage. What did you expect?”
I walked past her without hurry, letting the fabric of my nightgown shift against my thighs—still sensitive, still carrying the lingering ache of him.
“Of course I smell like him.”
I stopped near the mirror, glancing at my reflection before looking back at her.
“And I’m still sore.”
A small pause. “Deliciously sore.”
Her jaw tightened.
“I suppose it’s not my fault he chose to marry me,” I continued, voice calm, almost conversational, “and left you standing at the altar in front of every powerful family in Europe.”
I tilted my head slightly.
“If you were half as important to him as everyone pretends, he wouldn’t have humiliated you, your father, and your entire bloodline on what was supposed to be your biggest day.”
Her fists clenched at her sides.
Knuckles whitening. Shoulders trembling.
“If only you knew how powerful my family truly is,” Violet sneered. “You’d be on your knees begging for mercy. The entire Spanish mafia has a bounty on your head.”
I laughed softly, unfazed.
“Since you’re so eager to boast about your family’s power, let me tell you about mine. Ruslan Baranov — surely you’ve heard the name. A man more powerful than every mafia family in Italy combined. He’s had a bounty on me for six long years. Hundreds of assassins. Unlimited resources. All dedicated to hunting me down.”
