THE MAN I LOVED TRIED TO ERASE ME
Chapter 1 – THE COST OF LOYALTY
Adrian froze, his tailored shoulders suddenly looking too large for his frame. The silence in the dining room was absolute, broken only by the rain lashing against the…
“TAKE OFF THAT DRESS, MARGARET. YOU’RE THE HOUSEKEEPER, NOT ONE OF MY GUESTS!” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE HUMILIATED HIS 58-YEAR-OLD MAID IN FRONT OF FORTY PEOPLE—BUT WHEN HE SAW HER QUIETLY PUTTING HER APRON BACK ON, HE STOOD UP AND ASKED, “MARGARET, WHO TOLD YOU TONIGHT WAS YOUR LAST NIGHT IN MY HOUSE?”
Chapter 1 – THE NAME THAT SHOULDN’T EXIST
“Because Margaret was the only person they would believe.”
Vanessa said it so quietly that I almost missed the words.
Luca didn’t.
He was standing beside …
“CUT THAT UGLY BLUE RIBBON OFF, YOU IGNORANT LITTLE MAID! YOU DON’T EVEN UNDERSTAND ITALIAN!” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE HUMILIATED HIS 25-YEAR-OLD HOUSEMAID IN FRONT OF FIFTY DINNER GUESTS—BUT WHEN THE MAID REFUSED TO DESTROY A HANDMADE WEDDING GIFT, LUCA MORETTI DISCOVERED WHY HIS TEN-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER HAD BEEN CRYING EVERY NIGHT BEFORE HIS WEDDING.
Chapter 1
“Vanessa… is this really what you’ve been teaching my daughter?”
Luca Moretti’s question hung over the dining room.
Nobody moved.
Vanessa stood beside the banquet table, her diamond br…
THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE ORDERED ME TO SEND HIS SON AND A SEVEN-YEAR-OLD BOY AWAY BEFORE THEIR ENGAGEMENT DINNER—BUT WHEN LUCA MORETTI SAW THE CHILD HOLDING A HANDMADE CARD THAT SAID “GRANDPA,” HE STOOD UP AND ASKED, “DANIEL, WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME I HAD A GRANDSON?”
Chapter 1 – The Letter With His Father’s Name
For the first time since I’d known Luca Moretti, the man who could make powerful people nervous was looking at his fiancée as though he didn’t recognize …
“GIVE HER THE CHAMPAGNE, KATIE! SHE DOESN’T GET TO RUIN MY ENGAGEMENT DINNER BECAUSE SHE USED TO BE A DRUNK!” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE HUMILIATED HIS 27-YEAR-OLD MAID FOR PROTECTING HIS YOUNGER SISTER—BUT WHEN THE WOMAN WHISPERED, “I’VE BEEN SOBER FOR TEN YEARS,” MARCO VITALE STOOD UP AND ASKED, “THEN WHY DID YOU TELL ME SHE STARTED DRINKING AGAIN?”
Chapter 1 – THE PAPER IN ANNA’S COAT
“Bianca, what exactly were you trying to get my sister to give up?”
Marco Vitale’s question hung over the dining table.
His fiancée stood beside her chair, one …
“THROW THAT CAKE AWAY BEFORE HE SEES IT,” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE ORDERED ME. HIS 21-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER HAD SPENT SIX HOURS BAKING IT FOR HIS BIRTHDAY. WHEN I REFUSED, SHE CALLED ME A DISOBEDIENT LITTLE MAID AND REACHED FOR THE CAKE HERSELF. THAT WAS WHEN THE MOST FEARED MAN IN CHICAGO WALKED INTO THE DINING ROOM AND SAID, “TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER’S CAKE.”
Chapter 1 – The Letter He Never Sent
“I wrote those words.”
Dominic Moretti’s admission landed harder than any accusation Victoria could have made.
Caroline stopped breathing for a moment.
I was s…
“PUT THAT OLD WOMAN AT THE STAFF TABLE,” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE TOLD ME. “SHE ISN’T FAMILY ANYMORE.” I WAS HOLDING A PLACE CARD HIS TEN-YEAR-OLD SON HAD MADE WITH HIS OWN HANDS. IT SAID “GRANDMA JUNE.” WHEN I REFUSED TO THROW IT AWAY, SHE THREATENED TO FIRE ME. THEN THE MAFIA BOSS WALKED IN, SAW THE EMPTY CHAIR, AND ASKED A QUESTION THAT MADE HIS FIANCÉE GO PALE.
Chapter 1 – THE LETTER THAT SHOULD NEVER HAVE ARRIVED
Roman DeLuca took the envelope from June’s trembling hand.
For several seconds, he didn’t open it.
I stood beside the dining table, still holdi…
“TAKE THOSE CARDS AWAY FROM HIM,” THE MAFIA BOSS’S FIANCÉE ORDERED ME. “HE’S THIRTEEN YEARS OLD. HE SHOULD BE ABLE TO READ A FEW SENTENCES WITHOUT HELP.” HIS SON STOOD BESIDE THE DINNER TABLE, TRYING NOT TO CRY. WHEN I REFUSED, SHE CALLED ME AN IGNORANT MAID AND THREATENED TO FIRE ME. THEN HIS FATHER WALKED IN, LOOKED AT THE BOY’S TREMBLING HANDS, AND ASKED, “WHO TOLD MY SON HE HAD TO DO THIS?”
Chapter 1 – The Words He Never Chose
Adrian read the first printed card twice.
Then he looked at his son.
“Benjamin, did you write this?”
Ben shook his head.
The dining room seemed unusually quie…
THE MAFIA BOSS CAME HOME EARLY AND FOUND ME APPLAUDING HIS 23-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER IN AN EMPTY DINING ROOM. SHE WAS WEARING A NURSING GRADUATION GOWN, AND I’D MADE HER A DIPLOMA OUT OF A DINNER MENU. FOR TWO YEARS, SHE’D BELIEVED HER FATHER WAS ASHAMED OF HER. I EXPECTED HIM TO FIRE ME FOR TOUCHING HIS FAMILY’S BUSINESS. INSTEAD, HE PULLED OUT A CHAIR IN THE FRONT ROW AND SAID, “SOMEBODY BETTER START THAT CEREMONY OVER. I DIDN’T HEAR MY DAUGHTER’S NAME.”
Chapter 1 – The Letters He Never Read
“Camille, I asked you to bring me the letters. I didn’t ask you to explain why I shouldn’t read them.”
Lorenzo Moretti stood at the end of the dining table, hol…
THE MAFIA BOSS’S FOSTER DAUGHTER CAME TO DINNER WITH A CHECK. SHE SAID SHE WAS FINALLY DONE PAYING HIM BACK FOR RAISING HER.
Chapter 1 – The Paper She Never Wanted Signed
Marcus didn’t move.
For several seconds, the only sound in the dining room was the faint ticking of the antique clock above the fireplace.
Then he look…