/0/99240/coverbig.jpg?v=3608470e21b86e47b0c659585c06fb4f)
e to die on the side of a highway in the pouring rain. He had to r
hope was short-lived. The hospital was out of my blood type, and the only reserve had been set aside
urse beg him. "This woman, an
ce. "Isabella i
r risk. The ledger where I'd been keeping sc
new love with a man who cherishes me. I'm no longer the broken w
nd me. He got on his knees in the middle of
pte
phin
was the day I realized my marriage was a contract,
d a pair of winter boots I'd never worn in Boston, the black leather ledger was plain, severe, and utterly o
the family crest. He moved through the rows of his tailored suits with the same lethal grace h
hat could kill a man as easily as they could save
he st
le black box. His curiosity, a rare thing when directed at me, was pique
ger sat
He opened it to the first page. My handwriting, the el
nner's
noyance?-crossed his face. He read t
ng Sco
, each betrayal, sub
its zero,
oset. "A bored wife's game," he murmured, the words meant for h
his eyes scanning the entries.
y. The date that sealed the pact be
d our trip to Italy b
Isabella's name when h
meant for the Don of the Ricci family, to Is
n't a record of his betrayals. It was a testament to my obsession with Isabella Whitfield, th
an alliance was necessary. He remembered choosing me, Seraphina Rossi, the architect with a quiet demeanor and a
, shoving it back onto the shelf with careless indifference. He f
oset, my sketchbook open on my lap. A stupid, stubborn flicker of ho
at. He adjusted his watch. "Isabella's
like a candle, leaving only
iny stars painted on the ceiling and a crib carved with gentle waves. A strange, unreadabl
zed. It was his tr
ough the phone. "There's a fire. Isabella's gal
s place stood a man consumed by a singular terror. He grabbed his keys and coat, his mo
know why. Maybe I need
saw Dante at the police line, arguing with firefighters, his voice
his voice cracking with a panic I had never heard before. "I'm a surgeon. My entire future is in the
pped. It jus
been like this since they were kids," the soldier said. "Obs
bstacle. A plac
was truly mine. Watching him, a man willing to burn f
the line. He ra
r face buried in his chest. He whispered to her-reassurances, promises-his voi
ics, made sure she was br
her was done, did Dante Sa

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