Chapter 9
441 Words
The gala ballroom glittered with crystal chandeliers and dangerous people. Dante kept Aria glued to his side, one hand possessively on her waist.
“Smile, sweetheart,” he whispered. “They’re watching.”
Aria forced a graceful smile, though her knees shook. Sofia’s lessons helped, but fear still clawed at her. “They all know I’m the contract wife,” she murmured.
“They know you’re mine,” Dante corrected, kissing her temple publicly. Whispers rippled through the crowd.
Marco approached. “Some allies are wavering. They want to hear Aria speak.”
Dante nodded. “She’s ready.”
When the moment came, Aria stood at the microphone, heart hammering. “I know many of you doubt me,” she began, voice soft but steady. “But I chose this life with Dante. I stand by him.”
Applause followed, some genuine, some skeptical. Dante’s proud gaze warmed her.
Later, Victor appeared at the edge of the crowd, smirking. He raised a glass mockingly.
Dante tensed. “Stay here.”
But Victor approached anyway. “Lovely speech, Mrs. Moretti. Does she know yet, Dante? That she might be your half-sister?”
Aria gasped, the room spinning. “What?”
Dante shoved Victor back. “Lies. Get out.”
Chaos erupted as guns were drawn. Dante shielded Aria with his body, firing back with calm precision. Sofia pulled her toward a side exit.
“Run!” Sofia shouted.
Aria’s dress tore as they fled. Bullets whizzed past. She tripped, scraping her knees, feeling utterly weak again.
Dante caught up, scooping her into his arms. “I’ve got you.”
They escaped into a waiting car. Aria sobbed against his chest. “Is it true? Am I—”
“No,” Dante said fiercely. “Victor fabricated it. I had tests run quietly. You’re not my sister.”
Relief flooded her, but trauma remained. “I can’t do this anymore. I’m too broken.”
Dante kissed her tears away. “You’re not broken. You’re becoming unbreakable.”
Back at the penthouse, he tended her wounds tenderly. Their lovemaking that night was desperate, healing. Aria clung to him like a lifeline.
“I love you,” she whispered in the dark.
Dante stilled, then held her tighter. “I love you too, Aria. More than the contract. More than anything.”
Morning light brought devastation. Marco burst in. “Victor kidn*pped Luca again. And he has proof—your mother’s diary. It says you carry Moretti blood through a different line. Not Dante’s sister… but his cousin. Making the marriage… complicated.”
Aria’s world shattered once more. She looked at Dante, tears streaming.
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