Isabella’s lips curved into a slow, deliberate smirk, the kind that carried more calculation than amusement. Her posture remained elegant, relaxed, as if everything had already fallen into place exactly as she intended.“And make sure Luca finds out,” she said.Her voice was calm, but there was something sharp beneath it—an edge that hinted at control, at confidence, at certainty that bordered on arrogance.Alessandro, who had been pacing slowly across the room while scrolling through his phone, paused mid-step. He lifted his gaze to her, brows drawing together slightly.“Why?” he asked.The question wasn’t doubt. It was curiosity.Isabella leaned back against the couch, crossing her legs with effortless grace. Her fingers tapped lightly against the armrest, her eyes half-lidded as if she were already imagining the outcome.“He won’t accept it,” she said.Alessandro tilted his head.“Won’t accept what?” he pressed.She let out a faint, almost amused breath.“That I moved on,” she repl

The atmosphere in the living room tightened like a coiled wire, every second stretching under the weight of hostility.Isabella sat elegantly on the sofa, one leg crossed over the other, her posture relaxed but her eyes sharp with contempt. Beside her, Alessandro leaned casually against the armrest, his lips curved in a faint, mocking smile. Across from them, Luca stood tall, unmoved, his presence calm yet suffocating.Between them, Isabella’s lawyer adjusted his glasses, a smug expression spreading across his face as he flipped through the documents in his hands.“Mr. Gray,” he said with a low chuckle, “false accusations have no legal value.”His tone dripped with condescension, as if he were addressing someone far beneath him.Luca’s gaze darkened slightly, his expression turning colder by the second.“You’ll regret saying that,” Luca replied.His voice was calm, almost quiet—but it carried a weight that made the air feel heavier.The lawyer scoffed, closing the file with a soft sna

The silence that followed felt suffocating.It pressed down on everyone in the room, heavy and unrelenting, as the weight of the newcomer’s presence settled into reality. The arrogance that once filled Isabella’s living room had cracked—just slightly—but enough to make the atmosphere unstable.Isabella stared at the man standing beside Luca, her composure slipping for the first time.“How is that possible?” she blurted out.Her voice carried disbelief, sharp and unfiltered, cutting through the tension.She looked between Luca and the man again, as if expecting the scene to suddenly make sense.It didn’t.Beside her, her lawyer lowered his head, his earlier arrogance completely gone.“I… can’t compete with him,” he admitted.The words came out strained, almost humiliating.A man who had just minutes ago spoken with absolute confidence now looked like he had been stripped of it entirely.Alessandro’s expression darkened instantly.“What do you mean you can’t compete?” he snapped. “You’r

The room no longer held the same balance it had at the beginning.What started as arrogance and control on Isabella’s side had crumbled into something far more unstable—anger, disbelief, and a growing sense of humiliation she couldn’t suppress. The photos still lay scattered across the table, silent witnesses to everything she had tried to deny.No one spoke for a moment. Then—The negotiation collapsed. Abruptly. Completely.“This isn’t over,” Isabella said sharply.Her voice cut through the silence, laced with anger and wounded pride. She stood from her seat, her posture rigid, her gaze locked onto Luca as if trying to force him back into the position he used to occupy.Below her. Powerless. Controllable. But Luca didn’t move. He didn’t react.He simply looked at her—calm, distant, as though she no longer held any weight in his world.“It is for me,” Luca said.His voice was steady. Final. No hesitation..No emotion. Just an ending.The words landed harder than any insult she had thro

Alessandro’s eyes darkened.The moment Luca left the house, the carefully controlled mask on his face slowly disappeared, revealing something colder underneath. The fake concern, the patient smiles, the supportive words he fed Isabella every day—all of it faded.What remained was calculation.Possession.Greed.He glanced toward Isabella, who still stood near the table, staring at the scattered photos with an ugly mixture of anger and humiliation in her eyes.Good.That was exactly where he wanted her emotionally.Confused people were easier to manipulate.Alessandro quietly stepped away while Isabella remained lost in thought. His movements were calm and natural, careful not to attract attention. A moment later, he reached the hallway near the entrance where Isabella’s lawyer stood alone, adjusting his tie nervously.The lawyer looked exhausted.Humiliated.The appearance of Luca’s attorney earlier had completely crushed his confidence.Alessandro stopped beside him.“We need to talk