I slipped back into the residence and glanced out of the window. Busy locking tongues, Dominick and Gia were in no rush to get inside the house.

Letting out a long breath, I pulled the curtains shut and cocked my head back to tell the housekeeper, “Fetch me the purple tie that the Don was wearing a few days back.”

The housekeeper was taken aback. “Donna, Don Costa has kept the tie in his private collection. No one gets in without clearance.”

It was known in the family that Dominick would store every memento of our love, including the stuffed animals I’d given him, in the private vault.

His partiality toward me was the reason every member of the family hierarchy held me in utmost respect.

After a moment of silence, I picked up a bat and stormed straight to the collection room. I violently smashed the items there while everybody watched in shock.

“Donna! What are you doing?”

Offering no explanations, I grabbed a pair of scissors and went to town shredding the necktie and other possessions.

I destroyed the expensive jewelry.

My voice carried no emotions. “Pack these junk pieces into a box. This will be my gift to the Don’s upcoming wedding.

“Not a word about tonight, or I’ll make sure to send you down to the sub-basement. Have I made myself clear?”

The staff nodded, aware that the sub-basement held the worst of the worst criminals. No one ever walked out of there alive.

Once I was finished with business, the staff swiftly cleared the mess, restoring the room to its glory. Nevertheless, everything associated with me was gone.

Back in the bedroom, Dominick sat on the sofa with a cigarette between his lips. He looked ever-so captivating, taking a long drag.

He was quick to put out the cigarette in my presence and told his subordinate to air out the room with an open window.

Dominick knew that I wasn’t keen on the smell of cigarettes.

“Did you have a great time shopping, babe?” He murmured while approaching and wrapping his arms around my waist.

Due to the proximity, the lingering scent of tobacco made me sick to my stomach.

“It was fine,” I replied curtly, yanking his hands off me.

Oblivious to my odd behavior, Dominick took my attitude as nothing more than a little tantrum.

He shot his subordinate a look, and the latter presented a gift box on the double.

“So I heard that you threw away the roses and ring? That’s pretty willful of you, but that’s what I like about you.

“These are pearls imported from the Miranth Gulf. They cost me thirty million dollars at the auction. What do you think?”

Despite posing a question, Dominick never gave me a chance to answer.

He went ahead and put the pearl necklace around my neck before nodding in satisfaction. “As expected, the pearls look best on you.”

I was stunned. What was that supposed to mean?

Was the necklace a reject from Gia?

I let out a mocking chuckle, wondering how many Gia’s castoffs were stored in the supposed private vault.

With that in mind, I tore the necklace off and flung it onto the table in disgust.

“I appreciate the gesture, but I’m allergic to pearls, so I won’t keep the necklace on.”

Dominick furrowed his brows. “You’re allergic? Haven’t you worn pearl earrings to functions before?

“You can have your little fits, Luna, but I won’t tolerate your lies.” His voice turned icy.

As the tension in the air thickened, the staff hung their heads low without a word.

“Ha.”

Suddenly, Dominick chuckled under his breath. He held the pearl necklace up for a close examination and dropped it in the can without hesitation.

“Since my wife doesn’t care for it, I should just get rid of it.”

He came close to him and plucked my chin, his eyes reflecting complicated emotions beyond my comprehension.

“I’ll take you shopping tomorrow. Just get anything you want. Surely, that should cheer you up, my dear wife.”

I looked into his eyes and let out a soft laugh. “Okay. That works out well since I need to get a gift.”

“A gift? Who is it for?” Dominick frowned.

It could just be in my head, but there was a subtle hint of jealousy in his voice.

“I’m getting a gift for someone I’ve known for many years. Since his wedding’s coming up in a week, it’s only right that I get him a little something.”

Dominick wasn’t too pleased initially, but the mention of the person’s wedding put him at ease.

He patted my shoulder with a smile. “Okay. Go all out on your spending tomorrow. A friend of yours is a friend of mine.”

“Are you going to be my plus-one to the wedding?” I asked earnestly, my eyes boring into his.

Dominick responded right away, “Of course. Even if I have to blow off a meeting worth hundreds of millions, I will be there with you. It’s the least I can do to make up for standing you up today.”

There was solemnity in his words. Had I not seen the betrayal with my own eyes, I might have fallen for his sweet talk again.

He bent over and held me tight. Just as he pulled in for a kiss, a knock came at the door.

“Don Costa, here is the expense list. If I could get your signature on it.”

Frankie’s voice shook badly when he saw me. Not noticing Frankie’s distress, Dominick uttered in annoyance, “Just approve everything. You can sign the expenses off for me.”

“You shouldn’t do that, Dominick. The papers need your signature.” I took the document from Frankie.

Dominick paused, but only for a beat. Before long, he took a pen and signed each sheet without taking the time to review the content.

It wasn’t until Dominick flipped past the divorce papers that I finally let out a sigh of relief.

The moment Frankie left with the signed papers, Dominick eagerly pressed me onto the bed and planted light kisses across my neck.

However, I pushed him away and straightened my collar nonchalantly. I muttered, “I’m feeling tired today. Rain check?”

Though frustration flickered in Dominick’s eyes, he held his tongue.

Once I was out of the room, Dominick got back into his car and drove away.

Half an hour later, my phone chimed with a text message from Gia like clockwork.

“Well, aren’t you pathetic, Luna? You can’t even hold onto your own man.

“You’re not a wife to him. Why else would he call me his other half?”

Cool as a cucumber, I closed the chat and booked a flight to Averia, departing in a week.

Averia was my home country.

In fact, my family rivaled the Costas in standing. At that time, my parents were firmly against me marrying Dominick.

Being a Don, Dominick had far too many enemies. My parents feared the dangers that came with marrying him.

Young as I was, I got down to my knees and pleaded with my parents, “I want to take the chance. Dominick loves me. He won’t let me down.”

My parents looked at me, their faces etched with disappointment. Subsequently, they froze all my bank accounts and hadn’t been in touch even once in the last three years.

Sadness clouded over me for a long time. With each passing Christmas, I would cry my eyes out over the silence from their side.

Back then, Dominick would pull me close and say tenderly, “It’s alright. All that matters is that I love you.”

Alas, he was the very man who betrayed me, and I lost anyway.

In that case, it was time for me to head home.

With shaky hands, I sent the screenshot of my flight itinerary to my parents and left a sobbing voice note. “Mom, Dad, Dominick has abandoned me. Will you have me back?”

I didn’t hold out much hope since my parents had long been disappointed in me.

In a shocking twist, then came my mother’s response in less than a minute.

“Come back. Your father and I miss you very much.”

All the emotions I’d been holding in spilled over as I clutched my phone and wept uncontrollably.

I wallowed in tears all night, my swollen eyes and aching throat the aftermath of my breakdown.

Dominick was taken aback when he saw me. “What happened to you?”

I shook my head. “Nothing.”

The question ended there. Before, Dominick would summon the staff for a round of grilling as to why I was crying.

Yet now, he simply got into the car indifferently, likely sulking over my rejection last night.

We sat in the back of the vehicle, bound for the mall, in silence like strangers.

Suddenly, there was a notification on his phone. I caught a glimpse of the caller ID—G.

He edged toward the window and spoke in a hushed tone, “What is it?”

After a brief exchange, Dominick tapped on the driver’s shoulder. “Turn this car around and head to the hospital.”

Surprised, the driver glanced at me. “What about the Donna? It’s a chilly day out. Donna—”

Dominick’s patience ran out.

“You don’t get a say in this.”

He then turned to me. “We have run into some problems in the family, Luna. I need to leave now.

“You can catch a ride to get a gift. Here’s a card with unlimited funds. Spend it however you like.”

Dominick opened the car door and gestured for me to exit.

I stepped out of the vehicle with a grin and watched as the car sped away.

The driver was right about the cold. I was kicked out of the vehicle before getting the chance to grab a coat.

The mall was two miles away, and the snow was already up to my shins.

Since it was impossible to hail a cab in this weather, I trekked my way to the mall. Just steps away from my destination, I dropped limp into the snow.

Through my haze, I saw a man in a black trench coat running toward me. “Are you alright, ma’am?”

When I came to, the man was seated at my bedside. “You’re awake.

“You gave me quite a scare. The doctor said that if you’d arrived any later, neither you nor the baby would have made it.”

I paused for a moment, but my eyes quickly widened. “A baby?”

The man was more surprised than I was. “Didn’t you know? You’re three months along.”

I had no idea.

It was a moment I couldn’t describe. It felt as if fate was playing a cruel joke on me.

I walked out in a daze and stopped short because I saw Dominick, holding Gia in his arms, heading in my direction.

Working with agility, I ducked around the bend of the hallway to avoid detection.

“Dom, what are we going to do about the baby?” Gia sounded hurt.

Without a word, Dominick helped Gia into a ward.

Gia stopped in her tracks, her voice choked with sobs, “Do you not want the baby? I can terminate the pregnancy.”

She whirled around to run off, but Dominick was quick to catch her and held her tight in his arms.

“I do.

“I want the baby.”

He murmured, “The timing just isn’t right. You can have the baby, and as compensation, I can promise you one thing. Anything you want.”

Gia’s eyes brimmed with tears. “Okay. I want you to marry me. I don’t care if it’s a small ceremony. I want to be yours.”

Dominick fell silent for a moment before giving a nod. “Alright. I can do that for you. I’ll give you the most lavish wedding in the world in a week. This is just between us, all right?”

The pair strolled into the ward hand-in-hand as I hid in the corner of the hall, my tears rolling down my cheeks and my hand clutched against my lips.

I stumbled back into my ward, only to find the guy who’d saved me still around.

It then occurred to me to thank him. As a show of gratitude, I handed Dominick’s black card to him.

The man refused the card. “I don’t need the money. Thank you.”

He excused himself and walked to the door. Out of the blue, he turned on his heel and slipped a business card in my hand before making an exit.

I looked down at the card, which simply read a name—Cesare Lombardi.

For some reason, the name sounded familiar. Nevertheless, I dismissed the thought, knowing I had better things to deal with.

The plan was to be discharged immediately, but I had to extend my stay at the hospital on the doctor’s orders.

While I was there, friends reached out to show concern and came to visit. Wrecked with anxiety, my parents were just one step away from taking the trip over.

My husband was the exception, though. All he did was leave a brief and frosty text message.

“I’m away on business. Contact Frankie for anything.”

Dominick wasn’t with family. Instead, he was on an island, planning his wedding with Gia.

I must admit that he was clever to set the island as the wedding venue.

Without his permission, nobody could set foot there, including me.

Somehow, as if by telepathy, we had set the countdown to the wedding for seven days later.

It was probably because seven was Dominick’s lucky number. There was a time when he would never be found without a pendant in the shape of the number seven. It was a keepsake from his late mother, with the word “Lucky” etched on the back.

Dominick passed the necklace to me on the day of our wedding. “More than myself, I hope this necklace keeps you safe.”

No words were ever more beautiful.

With that in mind, I teared up, my hand reaching for the jewelry piece around my neck.

I looked down and froze.

The engraved letters on the back were missing.

The necklace had been swapped.

Having suspicions of my own, I grabbed my phone and scrolled past the chat log until my gaze zeroed in on a personal photo.

There, Gia’s bare body was adorned with a bronze necklace, the back engraved with the word “Lucky”.

It all became clear to me. I ran my hand across my belly and whispered to the baby, “No wonder neither one of us is lucky anymore.”

I was hesitating whether to keep the baby, but now, my mind was made up.

Like Gia’s, my child came at the wrong time. Dominick would never favor my baby.

Having come to a decision, I knocked on the door of an office.

“Hello there, I’d like to schedule an abortion.”

I believed the wedding gift could not be more fitting.