Chapter 9
Isabella?!
Massimo appeared in the opulent ballroom with Arianna on his arm, her pregnant belly prominently displayed under her flowing evening gown.
The moment he saw me, his pupils dilated and he let out a strangled roar: “You faked your own fucking death?!”
The sight of her rounded stomach hit me like a physical blow. My chest tightened with a pain I thought I’d buried.
So they really had ended up together. Of course they had.
Massimo instinctively lunged toward me.
A cold, hard walking stick whistled through the air, cracking viciously across his outstretched wrist!
incenzo had materialized beside me like a shadow, one hand casually possessive on the small of my back.
He wore a matching dark formal suit that probably cost more than most people’s cars, his face still carrying that deathly pallor, but us eyes were pure ice–radiating an aura that screamed don’t fucking try me.
Massimo Ducati.” Vincenzo’s voice wasn’t loud, but it sliced through every conversation in the room like a blade. “Keep your dirty Lands off what’s mine. She belongs to the Moretti family now.”
trianna’s face crumpled as she clutched Massimo’s arm. “Please, don’t make a scene,” she whispered, her voice small and frightened. We’re the ones who hurt her… Isabella, I’m so sorry for everything…”
he actually had the audacity to bow slightly with that pregnant belly on full display.
caught a flash of irritation in Massimo’s eyes as he looked at Arianna–like her presence was more burden than blessing.
nteresting.
Ancient history,” I replied, my voice flat as winter concrete. I turned to leave before I did something stupid.
uddenly my feet left the ground. Vincenzo had swept me up bridal style like I weighed nothing.
Vincenzo! Put me down right now!” I hissed, mortified.
le looked down at me with that infuriating smirk, the chandeliers creating dramatic shadows across his sharp cheekbones. “Relax, rincess. You were about to face–plant. Can’t have my fiancée eating marble in front of the competition.”
ack in his suite–which looked more like a war room than a bedroom–servants had laid out an entire wardrobe of designer clothes. ll dark, all expensive, all exactly my style.
You know everything, don’t you?” I confronted him as he shrugged out of his jacket, revealing a lean frame that was deceptively trong under expensive fabric.
Well, duh” He grinned with that lazy arrogance that used to drive me crazy as a kid. “How do you think I pulled off your little death ake? I don’t fight battles I can’t win, princess.”
le reached out and ruffled my hair like we were still teenagers. “My princess deserves the best of everything. Including me.”
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Chapter 9
At the evening banquet, Tomasso Moretti commanded the head table like the king he essentially was, radiating authority that made everyone else look like children playing dress–up.
Massimo forced himself to play nice, raising his glass with barely controlled rage. “Don Moretti, your hospitality is legendary. It’s an
honor.”
But Tomasso barely acknowledged him. Instead, he turned to me with genuine warmth.
“Isabella, sweetheart, thank you for putting up with my wild son. He’s always been a handful–I appreciate your patience.”
“You’re very kind, Don Moretti,” I managed, keeping my voice steady.
Tomasso’s gaze swept the room, his voice carrying absolute authority: “Since we’re all here, I’ll make an announcement. Isabella
Sorento is now officially part of the Moretti family. Anyone who has business with the Sorentos goes through us now.”
Massimo’s crystal glass started to crack under his grip.
“Don Moretti!” He shot to his feet, his composure finally snapping. “Isabella is my wife! She can’t marry into your family!”
Dead silence.
Tomasso looked at him like he was gum on his shoe.
“You?” Vincenzo stood slowly, leaning heavily on his walking stick. “You think you deserve her? That’s fucking hilarious.”
Massimo lost it completely. “Isabella! Tell them! Are you really choosing this dying bastard over me?!”
“Watch your mouth,” Tomasso’s voice was silk over steel.
But Vincenzo just laughed–low and dangerous.
He began walking toward the center of the room, each step deliberate with his cane, looking fragile under the crystal chandeliers.
Then, halfway across the marble floor, he stopped.
With theatrical flair, he tossed his walking stick aside like it was nothing more than a prop.
The cane clattered across the marble as Vincenzo straightened to his full height, moving with fluid grace that belonged to a predator,
not an invalid.
The roo
vely held its breath.
he pulled out a sealed medical file and ripped it open dramatically.
held up the documents with that signature cocky grin. “Funny thing about that. Turns out my princess here worked a According to these very official, very expensive doctors, I’m completely cured.”
The room exploded in chaos. ALS doesn’t just disappear.
“You manipulative little shit,” Tomasso growled, but his eyes were suspiciously bright with unshed tears. “How long have you been playing dead?”
“Long enough to know who really gives a damn about me,” Vincenzo replied, his gaze finding mine.
I stared at him, pieces clicking into place. This beautiful, manipulative bastard had orchestrated everything.
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Chapter 9
“So you see,” Vincenzo continued, dropping to one knee in front of the entire criminal elite of Europe, “I owe her my life. Seems only fair I should offer her everything else.”
He produced a ring that made every woman in the room gasp–a black diamond the size of a small planet, set in platinum that caught the light like captured starfire.
“Here’s the deal, princess,” he said with that lazy arrogance that somehow made my heart race. “I know you probably want to murder me right now for all the lies. But hear me out.”
His voice carried that perfect blend of cockiness and vulnerability. “Marry me. Not just as some political alliance–though the perks are pretty fucking spectacular. I’m talking about signing over half the Moretti empire to your name. Every weapon, every trade route, every dirty politician in our pocket.”
He gestured grandly. “Remember that contract you signed? Plot twist–it wasn’t you selling yourself to me. It was me and my entire bloodline selling ourselves to you. Lock, stock, and nuclear arsenal.”
The room was dead silent.
“So what do you say, Your Majesty?” His grin was pure sin and promise. “Ready to own the most dangerous family in the world?”
Massimo’s face twisted with rage. “Isabella! You can’t be serious! Choose me!”
I looked at the black diamond–beautiful, dangerous, perfect. Then at Massimo’s desperate, possessive expression.
In my past life, I’d died begging for scraps of his love.
Now I had a man offering me an empire, giftwrapped with his devotion.
“Vincenzo Moretti, you magnificent, manipulative bastard.” My voice cut through the silence like a blade. “Consider your offer accepted. Time to show these amateurs how a real queen rules.”
With reverent hands, Vincenzo slipped the black diamond onto my finger, where it settled like it had been waiting its whole
existence for this moment.
Then he lifted my hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to my knuckles with the kind of devotion usually reserved for religious ceremonies.
“Ti amo, mia regina,” he murmured against my skin, his voice soft enough that only I could hear. I love you, my queen.
The room erupted in applause, but all I could see were his eyes–dark, dangerous, and completely mine.
Mi scusi, You Chose White Swan, I Became Black Queen
