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“Do you really think Giacomo is not a madman? The fact that he is pushing a new product should concern us all.” It seems I am the only one concerned. I know this man better than most. He has been silent up until a few months ago. He is up to something, and my gut tells me that a war is coming.

Dario’s eyebrow tips upward. “Don’t tell me that the great Matteo Davacalli is scared?”

I let out a low rumbling growl that escapes my mouth. “I fear no one. I am doing you a favor, Dario, by warning you ahead of time. Don’t get ahead of yourself thinking that you are some invincible man. You are still human, and not even you can account for what Giacomo will do next. The man is a deranged psychopath who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.”

Dario pats my shoulder. He is young and ambitious and has too much power at his disposal. “I appreciate the heads up, and I will look into what’s moving in my corners.”

“Okay,” I say under my breath.

In the thick of the conversation, a bellowing laugh makes it to my ears. It’s a sound I have memorized and engraved into my psyche. I whip my head to the side, and sure enough, I see the mop of black raven hair on the other side of the room.

As if he senses my eyes on him, he turns his head, dragging his attention away from the group he is with.

“Daniele…”

I have been looking for my son for almost a week. He just left Italy without so much as a word, and now here he is reappearing like a risen spirit. I can see the hurt flashing in his eyes before he blinks and looks away.

My heart clenches. I hurt him. I knew the truth and hid it from him upon his mother’s request. I move to take a step in his direction, but then I pause when I notice a flash of brown waves moving across the hall.

“No, Maria,” I mutter the words under my breath. “Don’t…”

There is a look of sheer determination and resolution in her eyes. If she starts something in the middle of this event, not only will it shake her down, but she will cause a scene and everyone will see.

I need to separate them—fast. I know how my son gets when he’s upset. And from what I’ve seen, Maria is just as explosive.

Maria comes to stand at the group Daniele is with. I see her say something that makes the woman hanging off of his arm laugh. Maria bites down on her lip, and even from here, I can see the glossiness in her eyes.

I don’t know if she is on the brink of tears or about to raise hellfire.

She and my son go back and forth before she grabs his arm and pulls him away from the group—out of the hall, away from prying eyes—my eyes.

Shit. I move, fast. Maria is about to start a war she doesn’t understand, and my son is too angry to care.

I weave through the crowd, my pulse hammering in my ears, but I’m too far.

Too late.

Maria and Daniele disappear behind the heavy doors.

13

MARIA

“This corset is so tight, I don’t even know how I’m breathing right now… I think…” Ginny’s words fade into the background. My eyes are focused on a man who has not been answering my calls or my texts.

Daniele throws his head back in laughter, and I freeze. He looks so… normal. My life for the past seventy-two hours has been completely upended and ruined, and he stands there like he is having the time of his life.

The annoyance pours into my system faster than I can gather my restraint. My legs are already moving long before my brain has a chance to analyze the situation. Ginny calls after me but I only have one thing on my mind.

Daniele Davacalli.

My strides are long and rushed, afraid that, like the day of my wedding, he will vanish before I can get to him. My blood sizzles with every inch I devour between us.

Be calm.My brain keeps repeating it like a mantra. I need to keep my cool—I am a Davacalli bride, and with that comes an image I must uphold.

When I’m just a few feet away, he looks up, and our eyes lock. The joy slips from his face.

“Daniele.” I come to a halt. “What the hell?”