I’ll Marry Another Mafia Instead Chapter 02

I’ll Marry Another Mafia Instead Chapter 02

My head was splitting with pain as I asked him over and over again, “Why?”

Dante’s eyes turned dark. “Because you’re too naive. You’re too naive. I don’t want to keep lying to you forever.”

That was the first time I hit him.

My palm connected with his face, and in that split second, my heart felt like it… stopped beating.

Before the anger, there was another emotion—pity.

I was the one who couldn’t stand seeing him hurt more than anyone else.

When we were eighteen, the brakes failed, and our car got caught in a chain collision. Dante threw himself on top of me.

A shard of windshield pierced his hand straight through. Blood splattered all over me.

But he just clenched his jaw and gently stroked my hair with a look of relief. “As long as you’re okay. Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

The scar on his hand was still there, a testament to how deeply he’d loved me once.

Once upon a time, he couldn’t stand seeing me hurt either.

Dante touched his reddening cheek casually and glanced at his Patek Philippe watch. He wasn’t the least bit angry.

“Serena, are you listening?”

It was my father’s tired voice on the line.

Our family was drowning in debt, on the verge of bankruptcy.

Finally, my father asked hesitantly, “Serena… can you talk to Dante? See if we can move the wedding up?”

I felt like I’d been struck by lightning. I looked up at the man in front of me, who’d already lit a cigarette, looking utterly confident of victory.

Through the smoke, Dante pinched my cheek. “Even if you wanted to break up, we can’t. Ne sweet, Serena.”

The car stopped rocking. A bodyguard opened the passenger door.

Sofia Rossi was sitting in the backseat, her cheeks flushed bright red. When she saw me, her pupils trembled violently. “Serena… I… what are you doing here…”

The white dress she was wearing looked familiar. It was one Dante had given me.

Dante noticed my gaze and shrugged. “I messed up her clothes this morning. Borrowed yours. You don’t mind, do you, Serena?”

It wasn’t just the dress, but the earrings and necklace—everything in my closet had been taken, just like this man.

Dante’s eyes were full of mockery, like he was waiting for me to throw a fit like I always used to.

I fought back the nausea and smiled. “Not at all. Miss Rossi, that dress looks lovely on you.”

Dante raised an eyebrow in surprise.

But Sofia started stammering out apologies, promising to get everything cleaned and returned. “It was an emergency, you understand?”

“Miss Rossi.” I paused. “If it was really an emergency, you could’ve just taken the dress. There was no need for you to take my fifteen-thousand-dollar necklace.”

Sofia’s face froze. But Dante just laughed. “Don’t nitpick with her. I’ll buy you a dozen more.”

That line sounded familiar, too.

Because of my father’s situation, I had no choice but to swallow my pride and submit to Dante.

But the bad temper he’d spoiled me with over the years didn’t disappear overnight.

I couldn’t confront him, but I could do something to those other women.

An actress’s career ended in scandal. An office worker’s reputation was ruined throughout the entire company.

They’d come crying to Dante, and he’d just smile, write them a check, and make the problem go away.

“Don’t nitpick with her.”

Every woman in the city learned to fear me. Fewer and fewer women hung around Dante.

Sofia was just an ordinary college student.

When I showed up at her school, Dante flew back overnight from a meeting overseas.

He’d never laid a hand on me before. But my family’s situation kept getting worse. Seeing the anxiety and grief on my parents’ faces hurt more than any slap.

“Sofia didn’t do anything.” He hadn’t even slept with her yet. There was barely concealed rage in his eyes. “Don’t take your craziness out on her.”

My heart felt like it was about to burst out of my chest.

“She has a boyfriend. Are you trying to be the other man? Dante, don’t you have any shame at all?”

He just lit a cigarette and let out a bitter laugh. “The other man? Serena, I haven’t even managed to get there yet. I’m still trying.”

I just stared at him.