

I was eight months pregnant and had just gone into labor, but my Alpha mate, Damien, locked me in a silver cage in the basement to delay my labor. When I cried out for help, he just told me to wait. Because his late brother's mate, Victoria, was also giving birth that day. The Pack Seer had foretold that only the firstborn pup would be blessed by the Moon Goddess and become the future Alpha. "The title belongs to Victoria's child," he said. "She lost Marcus. She has nothing. You already have all my love, Elena. The silver cage will make sure you deliver after her." The contractions were torture. I begged him to take me to the clinic. He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him. "Stop pretending. I should've known you never loved me. All you've ever cared about is wealth and status!" "To force your labor early, just to steal what belongs to my nephew… You're truly wicked." Pale and trembling, I whispered: "The pup is coming, I can't stop it. Please, I'll make a blood oath. I don't care about the inheritance. I only love you!" He scoffed."If you loved me, you wouldn’t have forced Victoria into that contract to give up her pup’s birthright. I'll come back for you after she delivers. After all, that's my pup in there, too." He stood guard outside Victoria's delivery room. Only after he saw the newborn pup in her arms did he remember me. He ordered his Beta to release me. But the Beta's voice trembled. "Luna… and the pup… they're dead." And in that moment, Damien went feral

A week before Easter, Adrian gave me seven days off and had a ticket to Stockholm slipped into my bag. I thought he was finally learning how to care. Then I heard him talking to our son on the staircase. “Dad, are you really going to marry Aunt Bianca? What about Mom?” Noah was holding his model car, trying to sound brave. Adrian was quiet for a moment. “It’s only a legal marriage. Matteo is gone. Bianca and Sophia are exposed, and I can’t leave them that way. They need the DeLuca name for protection.” “Does Mom know?” “She can’t know.” His voice softened. “Keep this from her, Noah. On your birthday, I’ll buy you that Aston Martin model you want.” So the ticket was never a gift. It was a way to move me out of the picture. If he could put his family name on another woman, even for show, then I could take back the pride and ambition I had buried in this marriage. This time, when I left for the north, I would not come back.

A week before Easter, Adrian gave me seven days off and had a ticket to Stockholm slipped into my bag. I thought he was finally learning how to care. Then I heard him talking to our son on the staircase. “Dad, are you really going to marry Aunt Bianca? What about Mom?” Noah was holding his model car, trying to sound brave. Adrian was quiet for a moment. “It’s only a legal marriage. Matteo is gone. Bianca and Sophia are exposed, and I can’t leave them that way. They need the DeLuca name for protection.” “Does Mom know?” “She can’t know.” His voice softened. “Keep this from her, Noah. On your birthday, I’ll buy you that Aston Martin model you want.” So the ticket was never a gift. It was a way to move me out of the picture. If he could put his family name on another woman, even for show, then I could take back the pride and ambition I had buried in this marriage. This time, when I left for the north, I would not come back.

In the Corvona underworld, there is one unspoken rule. When a Don keeps a new woman by his side for three consecutive months, the Donna must personally remove the signet ring symbolizing her power and place it on the new woman's finger before the entire family. When my husband, Luca, the Don of the Bellini family, announced he would take Mia alone on a three-month business trip, the entire Corvona underworld waited for me to have a meltdown. I had been with Luca Bellini for seven years. I followed him everywhere, refusing to leave his side. I would even wake up in the middle of the night to touch him, needing to know he was there to feel secure. They were all aware of my clinginess and were betting I would never let go. But when Mia extended her hand to me, her voice dripping with saccharine, I didn't shed a single tear. I calmly removed the signet ring engraved with the family crest and slid it onto her ring finger. Luca, lounging in the leather chair at the head of the table, swirled the whiskey in his glass, satisfaction gleaming in his cold blue eyes. "Elara, you've finally learned your place." I lowered my gaze to my bare finger, saying nothing in return. What Luca didn't know was that a month ago, I had recovered all seven years of my lost memories. I wasn't some street orphan at all, but the long-lost Principessa of the Rossi family, the most powerful of the Old World families. In three days, my brother's armed convoy would roll into Corvona to take me home.

When I catch Antonio Ragusa in bed with another woman for the ninth time, he doesn't even look afraid. All he does is glance at the time, get out of bed, and hand his jacket to the woman in bed. Then, he looks at me and asks, "What did the doctor say at your prenatal checkup? Why are you back so early?" When he sees me staring at the woman on the bed, he steps forward to block my sight. "I lost control for a moment. She isn't to blame. If you're mad, just take it out on me." Antonio thinks I'm going to react the way I always do—screaming and starting another fight with my face flushed with rage. But he never expects that this time, I simply smile when I hear it. He's probably forgotten that the five-year alliance between our Famiglie is almost over. And when it does, I can walk away for good.

Gianna was born into one of the two most powerful mafia families in the North and South. She fell in love with Rafael, the heir to the Southern family, and became pregnant, only for him to cancel their wedding 17 times for his adopted sister, Natalia. Heartbroken, Gianna pretended to terminate her pregnancy, using the opportunity to leave the South and return to the Rosty family in the North.Armed with the business and underworld intelligence she had gathered during her years in the South, Gianna launched a fierce counterattack, crippling Rafael’s family empire and eventually becoming the head of the Northern mafia. She secretly kept her child and raised him alone. Years later, her son Luca grew into a bright and fearless young man.Rafael and Natalia eventually turned against each other and fell from power, while Gianna and Luca left the past behind and began a new life.

The night before our 17th wedding attempt, my mafia husband, Rafaeal Holloway, looks at me and promises an uninterrupted wedding. He solemnly swears. "Gianna, I promise you. I told Natalia that even if the sky falls, she'll deal with it alone." I am five months pregnant by then. After three years of dating and five months carrying his child, we've never managed to make it down the aisle because he's canceled the past 16 weddings. Every single time, it's for his sworn sister, Natalia Sullivan. The first time, she claims she has a fever. I spend the whole night at the hospital, still in my wedding dress, just to find out she has a mild cold. The second time, she claims her chest hurts. Rafael abandons me mid-wedding and rushes to her side, while she's out laughing over afternoon tea with friends. The third time, she cries for fear of thunder. He bolts mid-vows and leaves me alone in a hall full of staring guests. But everything's different now. Three days ago, a letter arrived from Northern Silenzio. My father, the Don of the Rossetti family, has finally summoned me home. If Rafael walks away for Natalia one more time, I'll leave for good.

After we lost our baby just three days after birth, I dropped every habit that made Julian frown. I stopped asking where he went. Even when he stayed out all night, I could still sleep soundly. Even when a stray bullet grazed my wrist during a street shootout and the doctor asked me to notify my next of kin, I simply said, "I don't have any family." A nurse recognized me. "You're Mrs. Marchetti, right? Mr. Julian's motorcade is parked downstairs. Should I go let him know?" I lowered my eyes and told her not to bother. Half an hour later, Julian pushed the door open anyway. He was dressed in an expensive suit, his voice a low murmur. "You're hurt. Why didn't you call me?" I looked down at the bandages. "It's just a scratch. The Capo has better things to do." My indifferent tone only seemed to irritate him. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the hushed gossip of his men drifted in from the hallway. "Heard about Mia? The Capo really has a thing for her. She twisted her ankle at the casino, and he sent three bulletproof SUVs to clear the block. Carried her out himself. Her shoes didn't even touch the ground." Julian's jaw tightened. He shot a guarded glance my way, as if waiting for me to fly into a rage and demand answers, just like I used to. But I remained perfectly quiet, leaning against the hospital bed without moving an inch. He thought I was finally done causing trouble. He didn't realize I was quietly preparing to disappear from his life forever.

In my last life, I was Adrian Moretti’s wife for ten years. Everyone said he loved me. They called me the luckiest woman in Chicago’s mafia world. Then I overheard him making his will. The Moretti shares, offshore trusts, and port revenue would all go to Noah, the boy I had raised with my own hands. The son Adrian had with Celeste, the woman he had loved before me. He had even chosen to be buried beside her, not me. That was when I finally understood. Ten years of marriage, and I was nothing but a replacement paving the way for his first love and their son. That night, I died in a car crash. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day Adrian had to choose his wife. Everyone thought he would choose me. Even the old Donna smiled and said, “Adrian used to follow Elena everywhere when he was little.” But when I looked up, I caught the flash of disgust in Adrian’s eyes. I understood at once. He had been reborn too. Since you never wanted me in either life, I’ll step aside this time. Before Adrian could say a word, I stood and bowed to the old Don and Donna of the Moretti family. “Godfather. Ma’am. I’m stepping aside.”