My instinct screamed at me to shut the door. I wanted nothing to do with him.

Dante blocked it with his hand before I could and frowned at me. "You're avoiding me. Why?"

He leaned closer, studying me carefully. He still wore that cologne I used to love so much.

"You're angry," he said with certainty.

"Is it because of Serafina?"

I shook my head quickly. "I'm not angry. I'm happy you finally found the woman you love."

Something unreadable flickered in his eyes. My answer seemed to disappoint him. "Is that the truth? Or are you just being petty?"

Almost immediately, he scoffed. He clearly didn't believe me. "Viviana, don't tell me you still haven't gotten over me.

"You kissed me at your 18th birthday party when you were drunk. I still have the 99 love letters you snuck into my desk drawer."

My eyes widened. So he knew everything?

"You thought you hid it well, but I taught you how to write. I'd recognize your handwriting anywhere."

He advanced slowly and deliberately. I stepped back instinctively and swallowed hard.

"The way you look at me is so full of infatuation. Everyone in the family knows you're in love with me."

He laughed to himself. "Good thing you never actually confessed. If you had, I would've thrown you out of this house."

He stepped around me and walked to my desk, yanking open the bottom drawer. I lunged forward to stop him, but I was too late.

Dante grabbed the thick stack of letters and scattered them across the floor, then stepped on them with his shoe.

"Viviana, I pulled you out of a shootout when you were seven years old. I raised you. I treated you like family. And you repay me by developing feelings you should never have had for someone who raised you!

"Give it up. Serafina is the only woman I'll ever love. The way you look at me makes me sick!"

I kept my head down, unable to meet his gaze. I couldn't argue. Everything he said was true. I had done all of it in my past life.

He leaned close and whispered in my ear. "Yesterday, after I was drugged, I knew you wanted me at first. Thank God you left when you did, or I would've been disgusted for the rest of my life."

My chest tightened. Even though I'd decided not to love him in this life, hearing those cruel words still hurt.

Dante looked satisfied with my reaction. He warned me again to stay away from him so Serafina wouldn't misunderstand, then slammed the door and left.

The sound of it echoed through the empty hallway. I didn't want to be an eyesore in front of them anymore. Besides, I needed to handle the paperwork for leaving the country.

I packed a few things and left the estate.

That evening, I deliberately waited until almost 10:00 pm to return. By that hour, Dante and Serafina were usually in the main wing's parlor. They wouldn't notice me.

The moment I entered my room, I realized something was wrong. Someone had been in here. My bed looked different.

I checked my phone and saw that Serafina had posted a new photo on social media. It showed her lying on a bed, taking a selfie.

The caption read, "Custom handmade mattresses really are the best! I only mentioned once that I wasn't sleeping well, and he immediately had it replaced for me. The joy of loving someone who loves you back!"

She'd taken the mattress Dante bought for me. After I injured my back during family training, Dante had it custom made with the finest materials to support my spine properly.

He used to be good to me. He knew exactly what it meant to treat a girl he raised like that. He made me fall in love with him.

But then he stood on some moral high ground and condemned me for loving the man who raised me.

Now, because of one casual comment from Serafina, Dante gave away my mattress without even telling me.

Dante appeared at my door when he heard me come in. He sounded indifferent.

"Serafina's a light sleeper, so I gave her your mattress. Your back's healed anyway. Any mattress will do for you now."

I didn't look up and merely hummed in response. Dante's brow furrowed as he stared at me.

"Viviana, why are you suddenly so agreeable? What's gotten into you these past few days? You always hated it when I was good to other people.

"Why aren't you throwing a tantrum now? Are you plotting something?

"I'm warning you, if you dare cause trouble for Serafina, I won't let you off easy!"

"Didn't you always want me to be more mature? You should be happy I'm acting this way now, shouldn't you?"

I slowly raised my head and replied softly, "I don't want to cause trouble for anyone. I just hope no one causes trouble for me either."

Dante pressed his lips together, his gaze boring into me. Dark emotions churned in his eyes. When he spoke, his tone dripped with sarcasm.

"You'd better mean what you say."

He slammed the door and left without hesitation. Whenever he acted like this, it meant he was truly angry.

What was he angry about this time? I hadn't done anything wrong. Why was he still mad at me?

I didn't want to placate him anymore. Whether he was angry or not no longer mattered to me.

Soon, I would leave this family that had wounded me over and over again.

The days that followed passed simply enough.

Serafina made a point of flaunting her relationship with Dante in front of me every day, eager to stake her claim. Dante was still angry with me, and this time I was determined not to appease him.

Life at the Ravenna estate felt calm on the surface but suffocating underneath. I spent my days secretly handling the paperwork to leave the country, terrified Dante would find out.

A month later, Serafina announced she was pregnant.

Dante excitedly shared the news with the entire Ravenna family. The old Don gave his blessing for their marriage.

Everyone in the family threw themselves into wedding preparations. From the venue to security, everything was arranged according to the highest standards.

In this life, his one true love was the one carrying his child. I decided to let them have their happiness.

The moment my paperwork cleared, I booked a flight to Cecily. The departure date fell on their wedding day.

Dante finally broke first and came looking for me. He waited until Serafina was away from the estate, then came upstairs and pushed open my bedroom door.

He pulled out his phone, opened an email, and held it in front of me.

"You touched the money your parents left you? I had the family lawyer check. You used it as a deposit for going abroad."

My pulse spiked.

The Ravenna family had connections everywhere. Tracking my finances would be child's play for them.

"What, my wedding's got you so upset you need to leave the country to clear your head?"

His next words eased my tension slightly. When I kept my head down and stayed silent, his tone grew colder and a touch helpless.

"Viviana, aren't you tired of this? If I hadn't come to you, were you planning to ignore me for the rest of your life?

"Ever since Serafina moved into the estate, you've been cold to me. But she's the woman I love. If you really loved me, you'd accept her.

"You can run for now, but you can't run forever. Are you planning to keep avoiding me even after Serafina and I get married?"

I shook my head in denial. "You've misunderstood. You raised me, so you're someone I respect. I only feel gratitude toward you."

He laughed as if I'd told the funniest joke he'd ever heard. "Viviana, ask anyone in the Ravenna family if they believe you only feel gratitude for me. Ask yourself if you believe it."

Then he glanced at my desk and smirked. "You've kept every gift I gave you all these years in perfect condition. And you still claim you don't love me?"

He walked over and picked up the items on my desk, examining each one. Then he looked at me seriously.

"Put all of this away. I'm getting married to Serafina, and she's pregnant now. If she sees these things, it might upset her.

"I don't want anything to happen to my precious wife or my precious son! This is your last warning. Give up on whatever feelings you have for me."

I hummed noncommittally and swept everything on the desk into a storage box without hesitation.

I planned to throw it all away before leaving the country anyway. I might as well deal with it now.

Dante's brow furrowed at my indifferent reaction. He stopped me.

"Viviana, can't you be more careful? You knocked the little rabbit off this hairpin!"

I glanced at the rabbit hairpin in his hand. After my parents died in a shootout, Dante, my father's closest friend, took me in. That hairpin was the first gift he ever gave me.

For years, I treasured it. I wouldn't let anyone else touch it. Now I'd just tossed it into a box of junk without a second thought.

"You're clearly so upset about my wedding that you're fleeing the country. But now you're standing here pretending you don't love me anymore?"

Dante couldn't take it anymore. "Stop this, Viviana. No matter how well you pretend not to care, I'm not canceling my wedding to Serafina."

He pulled out his phone and transferred 100 thousand dollars to my account.

"But it's probably good for you to get away and clear your head. Serafina's pregnancy is still fragile. Better if you're not around to upset her."

His gaze held mine. "Take your time abroad. Think about where we stand. I'll be a married man soon. You need to accept that.

"It'd be best if you forgot about me entirely and found yourself a real boyfriend, someone who's actually right for you."

Dante gave me a few more reminders about traveling safely. His tone carried a hint of concern he probably didn't realize was there.

But he didn't know that in this life, I'd been reborn. And this time, I was truly leaving. I would never come back.

On Dante's wedding day, everyone in the Ravenna family rushed around frantically.

Security surrounded the estate until it was airtight. The guests who came to celebrate were all high-ranking members from various mafia families.

While everyone was busy, I grabbed my suitcase and slipped out through the back door. I caught a cab straight to the airport.

Third Person Point-of-View

Dante changed into his custom wedding suit but stayed behind as the rest of the party left to retrieve the bride.

For reasons he couldn't explain, he found himself walking to Viviana's room instead of leaving with the others. He wanted to see her one more time.

Something felt off, like a piece of him was missing. When he found her room empty, his heart skipped a beat.

He'd never felt so unsettled in his life. She must have gone ahead to help set up the venue with everyone else. The thought calmed him enough to go pick up Serafina.

The wedding was being held at the Ravenna family's private vineyard, one of their core territories.

He couldn't contain his excitement today. He was finally marrying the woman of his dreams, and soon they would have a child together.

The thought made him smile so wide he couldn't stop. Happiness radiated from his face.

The moment he saw Serafina, he couldn't look away.

She looked breathtaking in her white wedding gown. She was everything he'd wanted for years. But he wasn't the only one staring.

Matteo Ricci, Serafina's childhood friend, looked just as transfixed.

Matteo was nothing but a street punk, not even in the same league as the Ravenna family. Dante didn't spare that poor nobody a second thought.

The man had decent looks and a smooth tongue, but that was it. He had nothing else to offer. He didn't deserve to stand anywhere near Serafina.

Dante deliberately kissed Serafina in front of him before carrying her to the wedding car. The ceremony began, but Viviana was nowhere to be seen.

He understood why. She couldn't bear to watch him marry someone else, so she'd refused to attend. The Ravennas were proud to the core, and she was no exception.

Fine. Let her sulk if that was what she needed.

The day after the wedding, he took Serafina to Arup for their honeymoon. He completely forgot Viviana existed.

Their itinerary was packed with every place Serafina wanted to visit. He only cared about making her happy.

Two weeks later, when the honeymoon ended and he returned to the Ravenna estate, Viviana still hadn't appeared. Only then did he call for the head butler.

The butler had been with the family for decades. He'd watched Dante grow up. He'd watched Viviana grow up too.

When he learned she'd left the country on his wedding day, he vaguely remembered something about that. He'd transferred 100 thousand dollars and told her to stay away for a month.

By his count, she'd be back in two more weeks. When she returned, he'd need to tell her to be more discreet about her feelings. Otherwise, Serafina would get upset again.

Serafina was pregnant now. Even he revolved around her. He wouldn't allow anyone to upset her, and that included Viviana.

Two weeks passed without any sign of her. Then another two weeks went by, and she still hadn't returned.

Dante started to feel restless, like something precious was slipping through his fingers.

He finally called her for the first time in all these weeks. He thought carefully about what to say. Maybe he should try being gentler with her.

All he got was an automated message. Her number had been disconnected. Only then did he realize she'd actually left him out of spite.

The Ravennas never did anything halfway. When they left, they left for good.

Dante felt uneasy. She'd really walked away from him without a word. She'd even changed her number so he couldn't find her.

But then he reminded himself why she left. It was because he got married and was having a child. She had no choice but to go.

The thought eased his discomfort slightly.

He'd married the woman he'd always wanted anyway. Whether Viviana came back or not didn't matter anymore.

It was probably better this way. At least now he had some peace and quiet.

He tried to calm the inexplicable panic rising in his chest.