I am Eliana Torre, the Consigliere for the Caputo Famiglia.

In Deyork, a city controlled by the mafia, everyone calls me Ice Lady. They say I am the first love of many MadeMen, that I clawed my way out of the slums with sheer ability, and am just one step away from the Don of the Caputo Famiglia, Lorenzo Caputo.

Only I know that for the past three years, all my hard work and persistence have been just for one goal. I want to be promoted to Senior Consigliere so that I can be worthy of Lorenzo, who is my secret boyfriend.

I believe we are in love.

We share so many private moments of tenderness, like the late-night embraces in the apartment, the warm breakfast that suddenly appears on my desk, and the way he quietly protects me at business dinners.

Until one day, my private photos spread throughout the entire company.

I go to Lorenzo for help, but outside his office, I overhear a conversation.

"Lorenzo, you casually send out Eliana's intimate photos, and all her efforts over the years are wasted. She can't compete with Fiore for Senior Consigliere anymore.

"But I don't get it. Eliana is so beautiful. Even if you are not attracted to her, why do you keep having your brother sleep with her in your place?"

It turns out that from the very beginning, Lorenzo is with me only to pave the way for my rival, Fiore Marotta. Even the intimate moments at night are carried out by his younger brother, Vincenzo Caputo, in his place.

Tears run down my face. I wipe them away and unlock my phone to buy a ticket to Grayland. Then, I start drafting my resignation letter.

I will never, ever return to this city full of deception.

Eliana's POV

My name was Eliana Torre, and I was the Consigliere for Caputo Industries, the company under the Caputo Famiglia.

Deyork was a city controlled by the mafia, and everyone here always referred to me as the "Ice Lady" because I looked naturally cold and aloof.

Yet, I was also referred to as many Mademen's first love. I had clawed my way up the ranks with my own abilities and professional skills, and I was literally just one step away from reaching Don Lorenzo Caputo's heights.

However, I was the only one who knew how much I drank and threw up at social parties and gatherings—sometimes until my stomach ruptured—just to seal contract deals and projects for the company.

I once even stayed up for three days and nights at the office to complete the dock project he'd approved, finally collapsing at my desk afterward.

I put in all this hard work, gritting my teeth and persevering through it all, just for the opportunity to be promoted to Senior Consigliere at the company and to be worthy of Don Caputo, who was actually my boyfriend in secret.

At least, I thought that we were in love with each other.

All those late-night embraces in the apartment, the warm breakfasts that would suddenly appear on my desk, and him silently deflecting alcohol from me at alcoholic social parties—these were all just kept as secrets between him and me.

However, today, my intimate photos were leaked. They immediately went viral throughout the entire company.

Every photo taken captured me at my most private, indecent, and vulnerable moments.

There were photos of me covered in hickeys all over my naked body, being lost in passion with dazed eyes from being kissed in the Maybach, and more. Each of these photos could only have been captured by someone who was also there during those intimate moments.

Overnight, I went from being a well-respected Consigliere to being called a slut and a whore who slept my way to the top.

I was immediately stripped of the chance to be promoted as the Famiglia rejected my application. I'd even received anonymous text messages asking me how much I charged for a night.

My colleagues' gossip and whispers were like poisoned darts, piercing straight into my ears.

"Wow, who would have thought? She acts all cold and aloof when she's actually so slutty behind doors."

"No wonder she made her way to the top so quickly. She slept her way there the whole time."

I practically ran out of the office with only one thought on my mind—I had to find Lorenzo.

I had to ask him why these photos were even leaked in the first place. I had to know why he did this to me.

I felt as though my heart was about to burst open during the elevator ride to the top floor of the building where the Don's office was located. Tears fell down my cheeks uncontrollably.

The door was left slightly ajar with a crack in the middle, and a very familiar bout of laughter floated out into my ears.

Then, I heard my name being brought up.

"But Lorenzo, I remember Eliana drinking so much she got a stomach ulcer and even working so hard on the projects until she got hospitalized multiple times, all just for the sake of this promotion. And now that you've leaked the photos, everything she's done thus far has been in vain.

"She'll never be able to fight Fiore for the position of Senior Consigliere anymore!"

I felt as though my feet had been nailed to the floor at that. All the blood seemed to drain from my entire body as I felt a chill shiver down my spine.

That was right. Who else would have these photos besides Lorenzo? And who else could have made that anonymous post if not him?

I supported myself against the wall, my fingers shaking violently as I thought of shoving the door open. However, the next sentence made me freeze immediately, to the point where I'd even forgotten to breathe.

"Still, I don't get it. Eliana is a really beautiful woman, and yet, you're not even the least bit attracted to her. You can't even bear to lay a hand on her, to the point you had to get your own twin, Vincenzo, to sleep with her for you. I must say, you're really devoted to Fiore after all."

Another voice, sounding exactly the same as Lorenzo's, was heard. The only difference was that his tone was more flippant, casual, and mischievous than Lorenzo's.

"Eliana's completely different at the office compared to when she's under me. You might think she's all prim and proper here, but you gotta see just how seductive and inviting she can be in bed. She can bend her body into any position you can think up. She's really quite the slut.

"Otherwise, why did you think I gave up those busty, booby models just to come back and do this for Lorenzo for three years? Of course, it's because the experience is so good that it's totally worth it!"

Three years.

Those two words felt like they were being seared onto my heart with a red-hot iron sear. It hurt so much that I couldn't even breathe anymore.

To think that every intimate moment, every tender night, and every second I thought was a blatant proof of our love for each other had been done with another man over the last three years.

I hadn't even known that his name was Vincenzo before today. This was the first I'd ever heard of him.

I had never seen him before, and I'd certainly never spoken a word to him before. And yet, I had been completely naked before him for countless nights before.

A wave of nausea and disgust surged immediately from my stomach. I bit my hand so hard until I could taste the metallic tang of blood in my mouth to stop myself from throwing up and prevent the people in the room from realizing that I was there.

The voices in the office still went on.

I could hear Lorenzo's voice, the voice of the man whom I'd loved for three whole years.

He was as cold as ice as he said, "If you're still not sick of sleeping with Eliana yet, Vincenzo, then you'd better hurry up and sleep with her a few more times while you still can within this week.

"News about Fiore's promotion will be announced next week, and I'll be holding a celebratory dinner for her then. I'm also planning to confess to her during the party. And when that time comes, I'll be cutting off all contact with Eliana completely."

"The hell, Lorenzo? You're saying that you're finally going to confess to Fiore after being in love with her for three years? You kept saying that Fiore didn't like relying on other people and wanted to prove her own efforts, so you're only confessing to her after she's gotten the promotion?

"So that you'll both be meeting at the peak of your careers?

"Sure, Eliana did get in her way all the time, and you didn't want to get her mad by letting Fiore take the back door. That's why you came up with this brilliant plan to ruin Eliana to make way for Fiore, didn't you? This is brilliant! Brilliant!"

Lorenzo didn't deny it. He scoffed lightly, and the sound felt like a sharp ice pick striking against my bones.

"Of course! Fiore graduated from a Privy League university. She's completely different from Eliana, who came from the slums. Eliana only agreed to be with me three years ago because I was the Don. It's her own fault and greed that she ended up like this in the end."

Tears blurred my vision so much that I couldn't see anymore. I leaned back against the icy-cold walls and clapped a hand over my mouth, stopping myself from making any sound at all.

So, this was the truth after all.

As it turned out, the bar scene where Lorenzo saved me from a perverted potential business partner by smashing a wine bottle against their head and dragging me out from the abyss had been nothing but a lie from the very start. My fate had already been decided then.

I thought that he was my salvation, but I never thought that he had only pulled me out of that abyss to shove me back into hell instead.

To him, all three years of my love, affection, and sacrifice were nothing more than a carefully-plotted means to pave the way for Fiore's future instead.

I couldn't even be considered Lozenro's bed partner at this point—just a substitute whom he cast to his younger twin brother and could be used as Fiore's springboard instead.

I staggered back to my feet and ran toward the fire escape, shutting the metal door behind me. I then backed against the cold metal and finally lost it, letting out a silent, heartbreaking wail.

The Deyork wind blew in through the vents, as cold as blades against my skin.

The man whom I'd loved for years, and the city that I'd sacrificed so much for, had both ended up being a lie.

I dried the tears on my face and shakily bought a one-way ticket home on my phone. Then, I tapped into my email and began typing out my resignation letter.

Lorenzo Caputo.

Fiore Marotta.

Vincenzo Caputo.

I wasn't ever coming back to this city of lies and deceit anymore, and I didn't want to bother with these people in my life anymore either.

I was still huddled up in a corner against the fire escape door when my phone suddenly rang. The caller ID on the screen said that it was Mom.

I inhaled deeply and shakily swiped on the "answer" button.

A split second later, Mom's shrill curses pierced my eardrums.

"Eliana Torre! How could you be so shameless! Your sex photos have all gone viral online! Did you know how embarrassed your dad and I were when your aunt sent them to the family group?

"Did you think that I paid for your tuition fees for years only for you to end up being a free slut? Forget about ever coming back for the holidays next month! We'll talk again only after this has blown over in a couple of years!"

I opened my mouth to defend myself, wanting to explain to her that I was a victim because I was being framed. However, I swallowed my words just as they had reached my lips.

I should have known earlier that she would never listen anyway.

Since I was young, Mom was only proud of me when I was at the top of the class, won scholarships, and got a job in the Caputo Famiglia's company, showing me off to all her relatives.

However, she chose to ignore me completely when I was suffering from gastritis due to staying up too late at night, or when I lay alone in a hospital bed after being sent in for a stomach ulcer because I was forced to drink too much too often.

In her eyes, she looked at me the same way Lorenzo did—a mere tool for showing off, and that was all.

"Got it," I heard myself saying, my voice so hoarse that I couldn't even recognize myself anymore. "I won't come back."

After hanging up, I swapped my flight ticket home for a one-way ticket to Grayland instead.

I couldn't even remember how I got back to my apartment, the place where "Lorenzo" and I had lived for the past three years.

I stood at the entrance, staring at the door. Every time I pushed it open, I would always be welcomed with a warm pair of arms and a series of hot, lustful kisses. I would always see the smile on "Lorenzo's" face as he welcomed me home and told me how much he missed me.

However, I'd only just realized now that the person who hugged me and kissed me every night was never the person I thought he was.

I went inside and began packing.

I packed up the jewelry Lorenzo bought me, the clothes Vincenzo bought me, and all our couple items over the past three years before throwing them into the recycling center downstairs.

I watched as the items sank into the dark abyss of the huge recycling truck and felt a sense of hollowness in my chest.

When I got back to the apartment, the door suddenly opened.

"You're back, darling. Did you just take out the trash? What did you just throw out?"

This voice was very, very similar to Lorenzo's. I had been hearing this voice countless times over the past three years as he whispered sweet nothings and dirty talk into my ear.

But I only found out today that this voice belonged to someone else called Vincenzo.

I turned around and finally looked at him seriously for the first time.

His face was almost identical to Lorenzo's, but the flippancy and cynicism in his eyes were completely different from the cold indifference in Lorenzo's eyes.

It had been three whole years since I slept with this man, but this was the very first time I was finally taking a good look at him.

"I just threw out all the things you gave me last time. And you're saying that you don't remember what they are?"

My voice was calm and flat, and he couldn't read my emotions from my tone alone. Only I knew how I felt.

I dug my nails firmly into my palm.

Vincenzo froze for a split second. Then, he chuckled and approached me, trying to hug me as he always did."

"Alright, alright. Don't stay mad anymore. I've already settled everything related to the leaked photos and suppressed the rumors about them. I'm sure it was leaked by a rival Famiglia, trying to attack and undermine our morale.

"It also doesn't matter if your promotion falls through because of this. I'll be taking care of you anyway. You can just resign and become a full-time housewife instead. I'll still be able to support both of us."

He would take care of me?

They destroyed my career, ruined my reputation, and completely crushed the past three years of my life, and yet, Vincenzo could still casually say that he'd "take care" of me and "support" me?

Before I could speak, Vincenzo hugged me from the back, pressing me back against his warm, burning body. He then planted kisses on my neck as his breathing turned quicker.

"Don't keep thinking about these anymore, darling. I missed you so damn much…"

His familiar touch and scent would have immediately made me go putty in his arms if this were in the past, and I would have responded wholeheartedly to him.

But now, I could only feel waves of nausea surging within me.

I shoved him off with all of my might as I spoke in a cold, icy voice.

"Don't touch me."

Vincenzo froze as a flicker of surprise and a hint of hurt appeared in his eyes. However, he quickly masked them and shrugged instead, then turned and walked into the bathroom.

I lay on the bed with my back to the bathroom.

The water sounds soon stopped, and the door opened. The mattress sank behind me as he climbed into bed, releasing cool, dampish steam.

I kept my eyes shut and didn't move a muscle.

Then, I felt Vincenzo pressing his body against mine and rubbing against me relentlessly.

His touches, which used to make my heart flutter, now only felt suffocating to me.

Finally, at the moment of his release, I heard him moan in my ear in the most tender voice I'd ever heard.

"Fiore… I love you…"

My eyes shot wide open at once, tears silently flowing down the corners of my eyes and dampening the pillowcase underneath my face.

So, that was how it was.

Lorenzo wasn't the only one obsessed with Fiore. Even Vincenzo was in love with her too.

As it turned out, I couldn't even be considered a substitute at this point. I was just a tool for Lorenzo and Vincenzo to relieve their unrequited lust and desire for Fiore instead.

Vincenzo sighed heavily in content and satisfaction, turned over in bed, and quickly fell asleep.

I kept my eyes wide open and stared at the Deyork moonlight outside the window until daybreak.

Every night of the past three years had been nothing but a pathetic joke.