Chapter 2 - The Boss's Return
“Rosa needs to learn what happens when people forget their place,” Vanessa hissed into my ear.
Then she straightened up, her face instantly transforming back into a glowing, perfect smile for the passing guests. “Besides, Luca believes in giving people opportunities to earn their keep.”
Rosa said absolutely nothing. She just gripped the silver tray tighter, her knuckles turning pure white.
We walked into the grand dining room together. Thirty-eight elite guests sat beneath enormous, glowing crystal chandeliers, laughing and drinking expensive wine.
At the very head of the long mahogany table stood Luca Moretti.
Thirty-five years old. Sharp jawline. Dark hair. A perfectly tailored black suit that hid the intricate mafia tattoos wrapped around his wrists. He was a man whose quietest, softest words could make incredibly powerful people stop breathing.
He was laughing at a joke his younger brother, Leo, had just told.
Then, Luca looked up. He saw Rosa.
The smile instantly vanished from his face, replaced by a cold, terrifying confusion.
“Rosa?” Luca called out, his deep voice slicing through the noise of the party.
Rosa stopped walking, freezing like a deer in headlights.
Luca glanced at her conservative black dress, then at the heavy serving tray in her shaking hands. His dark eyes narrowed into lethal slits. “Why are you here? You buried Frank today.”
Vanessa quickly glided across the room, wrapping her arm intimately around Luca’s bicep, answering before Rosa could even open her mouth.
“She insisted on working, darling,” Vanessa lied smoothly, offering a fake, sympathetic pout. “She said she desperately needed the money.”
Luca frowned, looking deeply unsettled. “Today?”
“She's a very determined woman,” Vanessa shrugged dismissively.
Rosa's face completely crumpled under the weight of the lie. The humiliation and exhaustion finally broke her. She tried to lower the heavy tray to her hip, but her trembling hands gave out. One of the crystal flutes tipped over.
Champagne spilled directly across the pristine white tablecloth.
Vanessa dramatically gasped, covering her mouth. “For heaven's sake!”
Several wealthy guests turned around, murmuring in disgust.
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Vanessa aggressively grabbed Rosa's frail wrist, her manicured nails digging into the older woman's skin. “Look what you've done! Apologize to everyone right now!”
👉 How will the terrifying mafia boss react to his fiancée abusing the widow?
