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D ani threw herself into her work. If there was one area where she was confident, then it was here. And what better way to prep for that promotion than to throw in a few extra hours?

Besides, if she tired herself out, she didn’t have to think about what a lying, cheating bastard Zack Kincaid was.

She didn’t have time to concentrate on how much her heart hurt and why she couldn’t understand how she’d read him so wrong.

Because he’d never come across as someone who had a wife at home or like he was sneaking around behind someone’s back.

Then again, her own parents had fooled her for eighteen years too, so maybe she was just a terrible judge.

She erased all those questions from her mind. It didn’t matter. Facts were facts, and those had been established.

No point in crying over spilt milk. The damage was already done. She gave herself the pep talk at the same time as she brushed away yet another tear; one more to add to the sea she’d already cried along with all those other platitudes she’d quoted to herself.

Plenty more fish in the sea.

Narrow escape.

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Blessings in disguise.

Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. She wasn’t sure if she believed that one yet.

It didn’t matter though, she told herself with absolute determination.

It just meant she had more time to dedicate to her job.

She was going to need it once she got this promotion, because there was going to be a huge amount to do to launch the new marketing plan she was putting to the board this afternoon.

It was the most ambitious proposal she’d ever delivered, but she was confident it was also ingenious and would set their top line at an all-time high.

But it was complicated, so she’d be needing all that extra time to put it into action.

If she told herself that enough, she might start believing it.

Besides, hadn’t she always told herself men were bad news.

Better all around to keep it to just sex.

So, she dried her eyes, touched up her make-up and dived into her presentation with the plan to knock their socks off.

And she did.

Even Zio Lorenzo was impressed, and he was always a hard sell.

“Ah! Daniella. This is truly inspired,” he congratulated, and Dani could feel his faith in her filling up all the empty places Zack’s departure had left.

She was going to be fine.

There was a babble around the room as the board members commented and complimented her, and all of it buoyed her and filled Dani with a new hope for the future.

Luca got up from his seat, right in front of everyone, and gave her a hug; told her what a brilliant job she had done.

Everything was going to be alright.

Lorenzo started talking again, and everyone settled down. “While we’re all here, this seems like the most opportune time to announce the promotions I promised.”

Dani’s heart soared. This was it. Everything she’d ever worked for. She’d delivered a presentation that had impressed everyone, and now she was going to get her reward.

She didn’t need Zack Kincaid. She didn’t need any man. She had all she needed right here.

Everything was going to be perfect.

Lorenzo announced a couple of the minor roles, and there was muted applause with each one.

Then it was time for hers. She held her breath, almost unable to contain her excitement.

She felt like she might burst, but that would have to come later.

Right now, she needed to behave like the consummate professional she was.

“And finally, I’d like to announce the promotion for the position of Promotions Director.”

There was a hushed silence around the room.

It was the first time a directorship had become available in all the years Dani had been working here, and that was over a decade.

Well, not unless you counted Luca’s, but that had been a made-up post, because he was the owner’s son and future heir.

There wasn’t likely to be another coming up anytime soon.

“As I’m sure you’re all aware, this is a very important and prominent position, so I’ve given it a great deal of thought.” Lorenzo droned on, and Dani wished he’d just get on with it. She hated all this suspense.

“I’m sure you’ll all agree that the best person for the job is…”

He paused, smiling from ear to ear, milking the build-up before he announced, with a flourish.

“Justin James.”

There was a muted, almost awkward scatter of applause as the man in question popped up and pumped her uncle’s hand.

Dani felt like there was a loud roaring sound in her ears, while everything seemed to be happening in slow motion.

For a long, long moment she sat there, right next to the display showing what they’d said was her amazing presentation, completely stunned.

Her mouth hung open, her eyes widened in sheer disbelief, as shock coursed through her body on a surge wave of adrenaline, until her brain finally caught up with the events that unfolded before her, and the shock was replaced with the kind of fatal anger that wiped out every other emotion.

In her peripheral vision, her subconscious catalogued the uncomfortable shuffling of several other board members as they looked from her, to an oblivious Lorenzo, to Justin.

Even Luca’s handsome face was a rictus of surprise, then annoyance, proving he’d been left out of this equation, too.

If looks could kill… now there was another metaphor that was going to be used today.

Dani turned her furious gaze on Lorenzo, and even he had the awareness to look taken aback by the lethal venom that must be pouring off of her.

“Is this your idea of a joke?” she asked in a voice that dripped ice as she slowly rose to her feet. And she was damn proud of how composed and calm she sounded, when underneath that veneer of surface calm she was a seething mass of boiling anger.

“I’ve worked all hours to bring you the best marketing plan ever, and you give my promotion to someone who’s worked here half the years I have and has a fraction of my experience?”

“Now, now dear,” Lorenzo said in that obsequious tone that proved he was just humoring her.

“What’s the point in promoting you into a man’s job, when you’ll just end up leaving to pop out babies as soon as Concetta secures you a husband?

I know my sister’s been working on finding you the perfect suitor, and we all know that will happen soon; you’re not getting any younger, after all. ”

“Papa…” Luca’s shocked voice issued a warning to his father, but Dani didn’t hear anything that was said over the eruption of shocked, murmured whispers that buzzed around the room.

She clenched her jaw as a red haze swam before her eyes. She fisted her hands and held them rigidly at her sides because the urge to lash out, physically, and transfer some of the hurt and betrayal currently overwhelming her was a very real threat.

The straw that broke the camels’ back. Now there was a very pertinent idiom, because that was her.

No more.

No more would she slog her guts out just to have the rug pulled out from under her feet just when she thought she’d reached her goal.

Things crystallized for her then. She’d never be anything, in her uncle’s or her mother’s eyes, except a little woman who would one day marry and have babies, which was exactly what her place should be.

No matter how hard she worked, or how hard she tried, he was too blinkered to see her value, and her conniving mother simply encouraged him.

Well, so be it. If he thought he could manage without her so easily, then he could start right now.

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. That was something her uncle would do well to mind.

“I quit,” she said through gritted teeth, and suddenly the room was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

“Now don’t be so ridiculous and melodramatic, Daniella,” her uncle reprimanded. “Concetta hasn’t found the right man for you just yet, so there’s plenty of time for you to help out.”

He just didn’t get it.

Lorenzo shook his head and looked at her as if she were a difficult child who needed to be cajoled. “I still need you to assist Justin in getting your marketing plan up and running.”

She stared at him through eyes narrowed to slits. “Well, I’m sure since you think Justin is more competent and deserving of a directorship than I am, he’ll be perfectly capable of handling it himself.” Dani sneered, derision dripping from her voice like poison.

He wouldn’t, but she’d be damned if she spent one more fraction of a second on anyone who didn’t appreciate her worth. And if her uncle came to regret it, then perhaps he’d learn a valuable lesson. One far too long in coming. And as for her mother…

Picking up her purse, she turned on her heel. She didn’t bother stopping at her office. There was nothing she needed to take with her.

Instead, she walked right on out of the building for what she swore to herself would be the last time.

It was time to find something else to do with her life.

There was nothing left for her here anymore.

Not in this company; not in this city.

Luckily, she knew of a brand-new island resort that might just have an opening for someone with her skill set. And it had the added benefit of being far, far away from her mother’s matchmaking schemes.