Matteo.
“If Valentina means that much to you, you would do it.”
After today, Valentina would want nothing to do with me.
The cold concrete floor of the warehouse echoed with the sound of Luca’s footsteps as he paced in front of us.
His lips were curled into the same cruel smile like that day years back, his eyes gleaming with triumph.
I stood there, my fists clenched, barely keeping my rage in check. Valentina and Isabella were still on the floor, men surrounding them.
My heart clenched whenever I caught Valentina’s eyes… full of defiance.
“Look at you, Matteo,” Luca sneered, stopping in front of me. “The almighty Don, brought to his knees. Oh, how the mighty fall.”
I ground my teeth, resisting the urge to lunge at him. “You have no idea what you’re doing, Luca. Stop this.”
Luca threw his head back and laughed, a deep guttural sound. “Oh, I think I know exactly what I’m doing. For years, I’ve watched you pretend to be the better son, the heir to everything my father built. But you never deserved it. You never deserved the empire, your wife…. hell, even her.”
The emphasis on her wasn’t subtle.
I couldn’t believe I didn’t notice Luca was in love with Isabella then.
My eyes flicked to Valentina. She was trembling, but her gaze was fierce. I wanted to tell her it was going to be okay, that I had a plan, but right now, it felt like the walls were closing in.
“You want something else, Luca. What is it?” I spat, trying to keep the anger out of my voice.
Luca smiled, taking his time as he strolled over to Valentina. The asshole. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and I tensed as he leaned down closer to her ear.
“What I’ve always wanted, brother,” Luca said. “Everything that should have been mine.”
Valentina jerked away from his touch, glaring at him with pure venom. “You’re disgusting,” she spat.
Luca chuckled, straightening up. “That fire is exactly why I like her. It’s a shame she’s tied to you.”
“You won’t touch her,” I growled, my voice like steel. “She’s not yours to take.”
Luca’s eyes lit up with amusement. “Oh? Are you sure about that? After all, the two of you were never truly married, were you? No ceremony. No vows. Just a forged piece of paper. Technically, she’s not yours either.”
Valentina’s head snapped toward me, her eyes wide in shock. I couldn’t meet her gaze.
The truth, the secret I had kept from her for so long, hung in the air like a noose tightening around my neck.
“Matteo?”
I swallowed hard, keeping my focus on Luca. “You had no right to spill a secret like that.” I said, my normally smooth voice now hoarse. “You gave me the fucking idea.”
“Ahhh”
The gasp was small, almost unnoticeable, but I had trained myself to notice everything from Valentina. Then I finally forced myself to look at her.
To see those grey eyes I love so much be filled with hurt, confusion, and something else.. betrayal.
“You.. lied to me?” She asked, her voice shaking.
“I was angry. I was hurt. I thought Isabella had left me.”
“Oh, she would have eventually,” Luca chimed in, leaning against one of the beams casually. “But you’ve lost everything, brother. There’s no escaping it now.”
I glared at him. “You think you can handle being Don? You’re a joke, Luca. You’ve never been anything more than a parasite.”
Luca’s smile faded, replaced by a cold, murderous look. “Watch your mouth, Matteo. You’re not in control here.”
“I don’t care if you’ve got a gun to my head. You will never be Don.” My voice was low, barely contained fury.
Luca stepped closer, his face inches from mine. “I already am. With this farce of a marriage you had with Valentina, you lost all right to be the Don. And to think Sophia warned you.”
I could hear the desperation in his voice, the need for validation.
From a young age, Luca had always craved power, always wanted what I had, but he didn’t understand what it meant to lead.
And I wouldn’t let him ruin what I had built.
“And what are you going to do, huh?” I taunted, raising my chin. “Kill me in front of her?” I nodded toward Valentina. “Because that’s the only way you’re getting control.”
Luca’s jaw clenched, and for a moment, I thought he might actually pull the trigger.
But then he glanced at Valentina, and I saw hesitation flicker across his face. He didn’t have the guts.
“You want control, Luca?” I continued, pressing him. “You think taking my life will give you what you want? Go ahead then. But you’ll never have the title. You don’t have the respect, the loyalty. You’re nothing but a shadow living in my world.”
Luca’s face twisted, the rage bubbling under his skin, but he kept his cool, a calculated smile spreading across his lips. “Maybe I don’t need your title,” he said, stepping back. “Maybe all I need is to take everything you care about. Piece by piece.”
My stomach dropped.
I knew where this was going.
“And what could you possibly take from me now?” I snarled, though the answer hung heavy between us. I turned toward Valentina, the one person I had promised to protect, and the one I had hurt the most.
Luca’s gaze followed mine, settling on her before his lips curled into that familiar, cruel smirk. “Her. You never deserved her, Matteo. And now she knows the truth, she’ll leave you willingly. Just like everyone else.”
“Shut up!” I barked, but the damage was done.
Valentina’s eyes were locked on me, wide and wet with betrayal. The pain she felt was palpable, ripping through me like a blade to the chest.
I’d never seen her look at me like this.
Not even when she found out I didn’t need to marry her.
“You used me,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I was just… just a replacement for Isabella to you, wasn’t I?”
“No,” I started, reaching for her, but she recoiled as though my touch burned her. “Valentina, it’s not like that….”
“Then what was it like?” she interrupted, her voice trembling. “You lied about our marriage. You lied about everything.”
I swallowed the hard lump in my throat. “It was complicated. I…”
“I trusted you, Matteo. I thought… I thought maybe you cared for me, even just a little, but it was all a lie.”
My heart ached with every word she spoke. Luca was watching with sick satisfaction, feeding off the chaos.
“I did care,” I whispered, my words sounding hollow even to my own ears. “But….”
“But what?”
I stared at her, helpless. There was no fixing this. No going back.
With a deep breath, I did the one thing I knew would sever any remaining bond between us.
“You were never meant to be anything more than a replacement, Valentina,” I said, my voice flat, detached. “It was always about Isabella. You were just a foolish stand-in.”
Her face crumpled, and that image would hunt me for years and years to come.
The betrayal etched on her features was more than I could bear, but I didn’t let it show. I had to protect her.
I had to make her hate me, because it was the only way she would be safe.
“I hate you.”
No, you don’t.
Silence stretched between us, thick and suffocating, until finally, I turned away from her.
I pulled out my phone and dialed my father.
When he picked up, I didn’t waste time. “It’s over,” I said, my voice emotionless. “I’m done with Valentina. She’s no longer my concern. Do what you will.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line, but I didn’t wait for a response. I hung up, shoving the phone back into my pocket.
Valentina stood frozen in place, her breath shallow, her face pale. Luca looked smug as if he had won, but I didn’t care.
I had just lost the only thing that had ever truly mattered to me.
And now, all that was left was to walk away.