Chapter 1
The gunshot cracked through the foyer just as I stepped into Moretti Estate.
The bullet tore through a man's right hand. Blood streamed across the dark table and dripped onto the carpet. The shooter wore a black suit, his expression as calm as if he had just signed a routine contract.
Luca Moretti. My new husband.
"Marco, you sold our convoy route to the Rizzo family and got two of my men killed." Luca tossed a stack of bank records onto the table. "I gave you a chance to confess."
Marco reached for the gun at his waist with his left hand. Luca stripped it from him before his fingers touched the grip.
After wiping the blood from his fingers, Luca ordered his men to leave Marco on Victor's doorstep.
"Tell him the next man we send back won't be breathing."
Marco was dragged past me, leaving a ragged streak of blood across the carpet.
My fingers tightened around the handle of my suitcase. If anything, the rumors about Luca had understated the truth.
And I was supposed to stay married to this man for 6 months.
My sister, Celeste, was supposed to be the Moretti bride. But she ran away the night before the wedding, and our biological father, Malcolm, threatened to take Thomas's house unless I honored the contract in her place.
That little house—the one where my stepfather had raised me—was the only real home I'd ever known.
Luca looked up and spotted me. Then he started toward me.
I pulled out the old hearing aid Thomas had given me years ago and slipped it over my left ear. I pointed to it, then to my lips, and shook my head. The message was simple: even with the device, I depended on lip-reading to understand speech.
A wife who couldn't overhear secrets was far less threatening than a substitute bride no one knew anything about.
The butler explained that I had severe hearing loss and that the hearing aid only helped me register some sounds. Luca frowned and told Noah, his head of security, to call a doctor.
Panic tightened my chest. I deliberately dropped the hearing aid, picked it up, and tapped it twice before pretending it was working again.
Luca studied me for a moment, then took the device from my hand.
I thought he meant to pry it open and inspect it. Instead, he wiped away the dust with a handkerchief, stepped into my line of sight, and spoke slowly enough for me to read his lips.
"Turn around."
He brushed my hair aside and fitted the hearing aid back into place.
His thumb grazed the rim of my ear. I stepped away on instinct.
Luca's hand went still in midair.
Believing I couldn't make out words without seeing his mouth, he muttered, "I barely touched you. You look like I was about to kill you."
I signed, "Arrogant, cruel bastard."
"What does that mean?"
"Nice to meet you," I said carefully.
Beside us, Noah adjusted his glasses. Judging by his expression, he had understood every sign, but he chose not to expose me.
Luca picked up my suitcase and headed upstairs.
I hurried after him and gestured toward the guest rooms on the first floor. He shook his head. When I grabbed the suitcase, he refused to let go.
"Separate rooms on our wedding night?" He looked down at me, his voice low. "Did you come here to get married or attend a funeral?"
I signed, "I'm afraid of you."
After Noah translated, Luca glanced at the bloodstain on his sleeve.
A moment later, he placed the master-bedroom key in my palm. Then he stepped in front of me so I could see his face.
"The master bedroom is yours. Lock the door if you want. A 6-month marriage contract doesn't give me the right to force you into my bed."
Heat rushed to my cheeks.
He had already turned away. He ordered his men to remove every gun and knife from the bedroom, then coolly informed the staff that original bride or not, I was Mrs. Moretti now.
Anyone who dared gossip about me would answer to Luca—and Marco's ruined hand made clear what that meant.
Lightning flashed beyond the windows. Thunder rolled over the estate.
Luca's shoulders tensed almost imperceptibly. A moment later, he acted as if nothing had happened and walked away—although his steps were much quicker than before.
The most dangerous man in Greyport had a fear he kept hidden from everyone.
And from behind a useless hearing aid, I had heard every word.
