After the chaos of the night before, the Moretti estate felt unnervingly still. Aria woke in Dante's bed, sunlight pooling across the dark sheets, but the space beside her was empty, already cold.
He was gone.
A soft knock came before she could even rise.
"Signora Moretti?" A young maid peeked in nervously. Everyone in the house had treated Aria with a new kind of cautious respect since the attack. "Mr. Moretti requests that you join him for breakfast. In the east study."
"Okay," Aria said gently. "Thank you."
Ten minutes later, dressed in a soft cream blouse Dante's staff must have placed in the wardrobe overnight, she made her way through the mansion. Guards trailed her discreetly at a distance now, silent shadows assigned to her the moment a bullet nearly pierced her skull.
The east study was warm with morning light. Floor-to-ceiling shelves lined the walls, and Dante sat near the window, suit immaculate, hair slicked back, silver eyes sharp with early morning fire.
If last night revealed the cracks in his armor, daylight restored the iron mask.
"Sit," he said simply.
Not cold. Not harsh. Just… Dante.
She sat across from him as a maid poured coffee and placed a small assortment of pastries and fruit between them.
"Did you sleep?" he asked.
"A little."
He nodded. "Good. You'll need your energy today."
She frowned. "For what?"
Dante looked at her like it should be obvious.
"You're coming with me."
She blinked. "Where?"
"To Moretti Global."
She sat up straighter. "Your company?"
"My empire," he corrected softly. "The legal half of it."
Her breath caught.
"You want me with you? In public?"
"Yes."
"Won't people wonder why I'm suddenly..."
His eyebrow arched. "My wife?"
Heat shot to her cheeks. She looked down.
"It's time the world sees us together," he added.
But Aria sensed something deeper beneath the words. Not pride. Not possessiveness.
A warning.
Anyone who saw her beside him would know she was under his protection.
A shield.
And a target.
Dante stood, buttoning his suit jacket. In the morning light, he looked like an entirely different man from the one who held her in the dark last night.
Gone was the shadowed, wounded son of a murdered mother.
Now he was the CEO of a billion-dollar conglomerate.
Ruthless. Controlled. Untouchable.
The transformation was chilling.
As she followed him toward the private elevator, she whispered, "How do you do that?"
"Do what?"
"Switch between two different versions of yourself."
Dante gave a humorless half-smile.
"I don't switch. Both sides are always awake."
The elevator doors slid shut behind them.
"One speaks. The other waits."
A shiver ran down her spine.
When they reached the ground floor, Nico was already waiting with two black SUVs and a cluster of armed escorts. Aria paused, nervousness curling in her stomach.
Dante noticed.
"You stay within arm's reach of me," he said lowly. "Always."
"Even at your company?"
"Especially at my company."
He opened the door for her, not gently, not romantically, but protectively.
By the time they arrived at Moretti Global's towering headquarters in the center of the city, Aria understood why.
The moment Dante stepped out,
flashbulbs exploded.
"Mr. Moretti! Over here!"
"Dante! Who's the woman...?"
"Is that your wife? Sources say..."
"Turn!"
"Look this way!"
Aria froze for half a second, breath caught, overwhelmed by the sudden crush of cameras and shouts.
Then...
A warm, steady hand slipped into hers.
Her head snapped up in surprise.
Dante didn't look at her. His attention remained forward, expression hard as steel.
But his fingers tightened around hers.
A silent message:
I'm here.
Walk with me.
You're safe.
Her heart stuttered, then steadied to match his stride.
The reporters surged, but Dante's guards created a tight wall.
Someone shouted aggressively from the back...
"Is it true she was forced to marry you?"
Aria stiffened.
Before she could process the sting of the question, Dante turned his head slightly, eyes cold enough to freeze blood.
"Watch yourself," he said quietly.
The man shut up instantly.
Inside the marble lobby, the noise faded. The transition from chaos to calm left Aria breathless.
Employees bowed their heads respectfully as Dante passed. Some stepped back. Some looked terrified.
It was clear:
This wasn't just a CEO.
This was a man who ruled fear as easily as breathing.
Dante led her into the private executive elevator.
Only when the doors slid shut did he release her hand.
Aria swallowed. "You didn't have to..."
"Yes," he interrupted softly. "I did."
Silence.
But it wasn't uncomfortable.
When they reached the top floor, the contrast was startling.
From mafia fortress to corporate empire.
Two worlds he walked effortlessly.
And Aria was now in both.
Dante pushed open the doors to his office, sleek, massive, glass walls overlooking the city. Power embodied in architecture.
"Stay close," he said again.
"Dante… why am I here?"
He turned to her slowly, expression unreadable.
"Because last night someone tried to kill me," he said, voice low. "And it almost killed you."
She swallowed hard.
"And because of that," he continued, stepping closer, "you don't leave my sight. Not at home. Not in the city. Not anywhere."
Her pulse fluttered. "You're doing this out of duty."
He stared at her for a long moment.
"Duty?" A slow, dark emotion flickered across his face. "Don't mistake me for a man who protects out of obligation."
He took her chin gently, tilting her face toward his.
"I'm doing this," he said quietly, "because I would raze this city to the ground before I let anyone touch you."
Her breath shook.
This was Dante's second life.
The billionaire.
The businessman.
The devil disguised in a suit.
And now she stood beside him...
caught between both worlds.