CHAPTER 77Amelia paced back and forth in her bedroom, her phone clutched tightly in her hand. She had been avoiding Luca’s calls for days, knowing that every conversation would lead to another argument. But Alessandro’s warning lingered in her mind—Luca was pushing too hard, and Alessandro was losing patience.She didn’t want this to escalate.And she didn’t want Luca to get hurt because of her so it was best for her to stop hiding from him. Taking a deep breath, she finally dialed his number.The call barely rang before he answered. "Amelia, you finally picked up. You...how...." His voice was sharp, urgent. "Quit the greeting. I’ll meet you," she said quickly, cutting off whatever he was about to say. "Tonight. Just us. I have something important to tell you."Luca exhaled, his relief almost palpable through the phone. "Great. Where are we meeting? I also have something important to tell you" "The café near my old apartment," she said. "One hour."She hung up before he
CHAPTER 78The private jet landed smoothly on the tarmac, the powerful engines humming as the aircraft rolled to a stop. The moment the seatbelt sign went off, Isabelle let out an irritated sigh and removed her sunglasses, rubbing her temple. She hadn’t wanted to return—not yet, at least—but when her father called, she knew she had no choice. She had given enough excuses to want to remain over there. As she descended the steps, the familiar scent of home hit her. It was supposed to be comforting, yet all she felt was annoyance. She had been enjoying her time away, pretending for just a little while that she wasn’t part of a world where every move she made was carefully monitored, where she had to play the perfect fiancée to a man who hardly acknowledged her but that she was in love with. The car waiting for her took her straight to the mansion, and she didn’t waste a second before heading to her father’s study.He was exactly where she expected—sitting behind his massive mahogany de
CHAPTER 79 The tension in Alessandro’s office was thick, the air heavy with unspoken thoughts as he leaned against his desk, arms crossed. His sharp gaze was fixed on Mike, who stood a few feet away with a neutral expression. “She’s going to find out soon,” Alessandro muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. “Luca won’t stop. He’s determined to make her question me, and it’s only a matter of time before he throws Isabelle’s name in her face.”He had kind of discovered that Luca had been going around digging dirt at him, and there was only one reason why he would do so — to show Amelia. Mike exhaled, shifting his weight. "Should we take him down?" "Amelia won't like it." "Then maybe tell her first.”Alessandro’s jaw tightened. “It’s not that simple.” “Yes, it is,” Mike countered. “If you don’t, she’ll hear it from someone else. And when that happens, you won’t have control over how she reacts.”Alessandro let out a frustrated breath. He knew Mike was right, but ho
CHAPTER 80For days, Amelia had ignored Alessandro.She avoided his calls, refused to answer his messages, and made sure to stay out of his way whenever he was around. She wasn’t ready to hear whatever excuse he had for keeping his engagement from her. She needed time to process everything—to figure out what she really wanted.But Alessandro wasn’t giving up.Mike had told her multiple times that Alessandro wanted to speak to her, but she always shut him down before he could say anything more. She knew Alessandro was furious about the silent treatment, but she didn’t care. She was angry, too. She had every right to. This morning was no different. Amelia sat in the living room, staring blankly at her phone, contemplating whether she should just pack up and leave when the front door opened.A woman stepped in like she owned the place.She was tall, strikingly beautiful, and dressed in an expensive coat that screamed elegance and wealth. Her dark eyes swept across the room until they la
CHAPTER 81Alessandro had never been the type of man to chase after someone.People came to him. People feared him. People listened when he spoke.But Amelia was different.For days, she had ignored him. She refused to speak to him, refused to give him a chance to explain, and it was driving him insane. He had never felt this helplessness in his life.So, tonight, he decided that enough was enough.He knocked on her door firmly, his heart pounding in a way that made him feel ridiculous. “Amelia, please.” His voice was low, pleading. “I need to talk to you.”Silence.He exhaled sharply, pressing his forehead against the door. "Fine,” he muttered. “I’ll stay here all night if I have to.”Still, no answer.Alessandro wasn’t bluffing. If she didn’t open the door, he would actually sleep on the floor outside her room.A few minutes passed before the door creaked open just a little. Amelia peeked out, her expression unreadable. “You’re being ridiculous,” she whispered.Alessandro
CHAPTER 82. Alessandro sat at the reserved table in an exclusive, dimly lit restaurant, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the polished wood. The weight of the situation pressed down on him, but he had already made up his mind. This had to end. Isabelle had to let him go. He would be careful with his words, but he wouldn’t back down.When the restaurant door swung open, Alessandro immediately recognized Isabelle’s presence before even seeing her. She had an aura of control, of dominance. She walked in like she owned the place, her designer heels clicking sharply against the floor. Dressed in a fitted red dress that hugged her body in all the right places, she smirked as she spotted him. “Alessandro,” she greeted, her voice dripping with fake sweetness as she took a seat across from him. “I was almost worried you wouldn’t show.”Alessandro didn’t respond to the teasing in her tone. Instead, he cut straight to the point. “We need to end this engagement, Isabelle.”Her smirk fa
CHAPTER 83Isabelle’s heels clicked against the polished marble floors of her family’s grand estate as she walked in, her fury barely contained. She had stormed out of the restaurant, furious at Alessandro for daring to think he could dictate the terms of their engagement.Although she had expected that he would play this kind of game with her considering the research she had done regarding who this Amelia girl was. However, hearing it from him today only infuriated her the more. She wasn't in love with Alessandro before. When he had come to her father's place to seek help years ago, she had only seen him as a young boy who wouldn't last long in this field. But then, all of a sudden, her father made a condition that he was going to marry her after getting engaged. Isabelle, thinking it was all a joke that wouldn't even come to pass, assured Alessandro that she was going to cut off the engagement later as her father wouldn't be able to go ahead and do anything else to her if she was
CHAPTER 84AMELIA'S POVI smiled as I watched my sister on the screen, her voice filling my quiet room with an energy I had missed. “…and then, Amelia, you won’t believe it! My professor actually said my paper was the best in class. Can you imagine? Me? The best in class?!”I chuckled, shaking my head. “Of course, I can imagine it. You’ve always been smart, Val.”She beamed. “Come on, don't call me that. It makes me feel shy."I shook my head, enjoying the teasing. "I can call you by any name that I want, darling. Momma gave you that name in her journal." "Blessed be the day you came across the name. I even thought you'd forgotten about it." "I have the sharpest memories, darling." "Of course." She rolled her eyes sarcastically while I sighed. "Anyway, it feels so good to hear it from someone else. I worked my ass off for that paper.” She let out a sigh and leaned back on her bed. The background of her dorm room looked slightly messy, with clothes tossed on t
CHAPTER 89Amelia was just beginning to settle into the quiet tension of Luca's house when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. Her heart leaped into her throat, and she hesitated for a brief moment before making her way to the door. Every nerve in her body was on edge—this wasn't part of the plan.When she opened the door, the last person she expected to see stood there with a bright, worried smile plastered across her face."Mia?" Amelia breathed, her voice barely above a whisper."Surprise!" Mia’s voice was cheerful, but her eyes quickly darkened with concern as she took in Amelia’s dishevelled appearance. Without waiting for an invitation, Mia stepped inside and enveloped Amelia in a tight hug. "I heard what happened. I couldn’t just sit around and do nothing."Amelia stiffened in her friend's arms, forcing herself to keep up the charade. "You didn’t have to come all the way here," she said with a shaky laugh. "I’m... managing."Mia pulled back just enough to search Amelia’s face, her
CHAPTER 88Amelia’s heart was still racing from the scene she had just witnessed. The stranger’s sudden visit had clearly rattled Luca, and no amount of his casual charm could hide the tension in his eyes. As he returned from the doorstep, shutting the door a little too quickly, Amelia decided to press gently. "Luca?" Her voice was soft, concerned, almost hesitant.He looked up, wearing that easy smile she had seen so many times before. "Yeah?"She took a careful step closer. "Is everything okay? You look tensed. Who was that person?"His jaw tightened, just for a second, but it was enough for her to notice. "Just some business. Nothing for you to worry about."The way he dismissed her question so casually made her stomach twist. "Business? At this hour? That's strange. Are you sure you're alright, Luca? One thing you can never do is to perfectly hide from me. You seemed… tense." She repeated. Luca chuckled, brushing past her like the conversation didn’t matter. "I am alright. T
CHAPTER 87Amelia's heart slammed against her ribs. No… not already.She froze mid-step, the weight of the accusation dragging her breath short. This couldn’t be happening. Not yet. She hadn’t even made it through a full day with Luca. Had she found her out?Her palms grew slick with sweat, and her eyes darted around for any way to spin this, any lie that could salvage the situation.But then… silence.Her eyes cautiously shifted toward the source of the voice, her pulse thudding against her throat. But lucky her!Luca wasn’t even looking at her. His back was turned, phone pressed against his ear. He was talking to someone else.The breath she didn’t realize she was holding slipped out in a quiet exhale. God, get a grip, Amelia.Her overactive imagination was going to ruin her before the mission even began.Swallowing the lump in her throat, she composed herself and crossed the room, careful not to draw attention to her sudden relief. Luca ended the call and turned to face her with a
CHAPTER 86THIRD PERSON'S POV Amelia stood outside Luca’s penthouse, her suitcase resting heavily beside her. Her shoulders slumped under the weight of exhaustion—physical, emotional, and psychological. The plan was set in motion, but it didn’t make the act of deceiving Luca any easier. "God help me." She muttered and wiped at her cheeks, smudging tears that weren’t entirely fake and took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell.Luca opened the door within seconds, his sharp features softening at the sight of her. His brows furrowed as his gaze scanned her messy hair, the dark circles beneath her eyes, and her trembling lips. "Amelia?” His voice was low, almost disbelieving. “What are you doing here? What happened? Why are you like this?" Without giving him the chance to hesitate, she threw herself into his arms. Her body shook with carefully crafted sobs. “You were right, Luca,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “Everything you said about Alessandro… it’s true.”Luca’s
CHAPTER 85.AMELIA'S POV “No.” I shook my head, my voice firm. “Absolutely not.” “Amelia—” “Are you insane?” I cut him off, standing up. “You want me to go back to him? Are you even listening to yourself right now, Alessandro? You could have just said that you wanted to get engaged to Isabelle instead of telling me to do such a thing.” "Amelia..." He tried to hold my hand but I decided to step back as I continued my words of anger towards him. "What do you even mean by I have to go back to Luca? As what? I wasn't even dating him, so in which manner am I going back to him? Make it make sense! We are nothing but friends, which I have managed to keep that way, so what the hell are you even saying?" "Amelia!" He half yelled and my eyes widened. But then his voice turned soft afterward, "Can you please listen to me without jumping to conclusions? You could have just easily asked me why I said that instead of responding this way."Okay, he was right about that. I clear
CHAPTER 84AMELIA'S POVI smiled as I watched my sister on the screen, her voice filling my quiet room with an energy I had missed. “…and then, Amelia, you won’t believe it! My professor actually said my paper was the best in class. Can you imagine? Me? The best in class?!”I chuckled, shaking my head. “Of course, I can imagine it. You’ve always been smart, Val.”She beamed. “Come on, don't call me that. It makes me feel shy."I shook my head, enjoying the teasing. "I can call you by any name that I want, darling. Momma gave you that name in her journal." "Blessed be the day you came across the name. I even thought you'd forgotten about it." "I have the sharpest memories, darling." "Of course." She rolled her eyes sarcastically while I sighed. "Anyway, it feels so good to hear it from someone else. I worked my ass off for that paper.” She let out a sigh and leaned back on her bed. The background of her dorm room looked slightly messy, with clothes tossed on t
CHAPTER 83Isabelle’s heels clicked against the polished marble floors of her family’s grand estate as she walked in, her fury barely contained. She had stormed out of the restaurant, furious at Alessandro for daring to think he could dictate the terms of their engagement.Although she had expected that he would play this kind of game with her considering the research she had done regarding who this Amelia girl was. However, hearing it from him today only infuriated her the more. She wasn't in love with Alessandro before. When he had come to her father's place to seek help years ago, she had only seen him as a young boy who wouldn't last long in this field. But then, all of a sudden, her father made a condition that he was going to marry her after getting engaged. Isabelle, thinking it was all a joke that wouldn't even come to pass, assured Alessandro that she was going to cut off the engagement later as her father wouldn't be able to go ahead and do anything else to her if she was
CHAPTER 82. Alessandro sat at the reserved table in an exclusive, dimly lit restaurant, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the polished wood. The weight of the situation pressed down on him, but he had already made up his mind. This had to end. Isabelle had to let him go. He would be careful with his words, but he wouldn’t back down.When the restaurant door swung open, Alessandro immediately recognized Isabelle’s presence before even seeing her. She had an aura of control, of dominance. She walked in like she owned the place, her designer heels clicking sharply against the floor. Dressed in a fitted red dress that hugged her body in all the right places, she smirked as she spotted him. “Alessandro,” she greeted, her voice dripping with fake sweetness as she took a seat across from him. “I was almost worried you wouldn’t show.”Alessandro didn’t respond to the teasing in her tone. Instead, he cut straight to the point. “We need to end this engagement, Isabelle.”Her smirk fa
CHAPTER 81Alessandro had never been the type of man to chase after someone.People came to him. People feared him. People listened when he spoke.But Amelia was different.For days, she had ignored him. She refused to speak to him, refused to give him a chance to explain, and it was driving him insane. He had never felt this helplessness in his life.So, tonight, he decided that enough was enough.He knocked on her door firmly, his heart pounding in a way that made him feel ridiculous. “Amelia, please.” His voice was low, pleading. “I need to talk to you.”Silence.He exhaled sharply, pressing his forehead against the door. "Fine,” he muttered. “I’ll stay here all night if I have to.”Still, no answer.Alessandro wasn’t bluffing. If she didn’t open the door, he would actually sleep on the floor outside her room.A few minutes passed before the door creaked open just a little. Amelia peeked out, her expression unreadable. “You’re being ridiculous,” she whispered.Alessandro