The Donna Who Bought Out Family and Love for $100 Million Chapter 04

The Donna Who Bought Out Family and Love for $100 Million Chapter 04

Cassian seized the man by the collar and roared, “Why would she sell the house? How could she do it

without telling me?”

The man gave Cassian a contemptuous once-over.

“With the way you immediately accused her of cheating, it’s no wonder she sold the place without telling

you.”

With that, he slammed the door in Cassian’s face.

Cassian stood frozen on the doorstep, unable to believe what he had just heard.

He pulled out his phone to message Evelina, only to discover that she had blocked him. His hands shook as

he called her, but every call went unanswered.

The unease inside him grew stronger by the second.

Fighting down his anger and agitation, he called his aide.

“Find Evelina. I don’t care what it takes. Do it now.”

Palermo, Sicily.

I lounged beneath an umbrella on Mondello Beach, soaking up the sun.

Levon Marcelli-the young man I had rescued from the psychiatric hospital-approached with a tall,

powerfully built man.

“Evelina, this is my older brother. He wanted to thank you in person for bringing me home.”

During the trip, I had learned the broad outline of what had happened to Levon.

The Marcelli Family was one of Sicily’s most powerful crime dynasties, controlling the island’s ports and a

vast shipping empire. Don Marcelli also had numerous children.

Three years earlier, Levon had fallen into a severe depression and been sent to New York to recover. One of

his half-brothers, determined to eliminate him as a rival in the succession, bribed his caretaker and had him

committed instead.

Don Marcelli had lost all faith in him. With Levon kept under strict control, he had no way to contact his own

people.

That changed when he met me.

I set down my drink and studied the two brothers.

Levon’s black hair was tousled, and a trace of youthful defiance still burned in his blue eyes. Ronan, by contrast, had stern, chiseled features, thin lips set in a hard line, and a calm gaze that carried the quiet

pressure of a man accustomed to command.

Ronan held out his hand.

“Ms. Marenno, I’m Ronan Marcelli. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for bringing Levon home.”

“Evelina Marenno,” I said as I shook his hand.

Ronan’s expression relaxed into a smile.

“A beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”

He took the jewelry bag Levon was carrying and offered it to me.

“I acquired this pink diamond necklace at an auction a few days ago. It’s for you, Ms. Marenno-a small

token of my gratitude. I hope you’ll accept it.”

The solemn way he presented the gift almost made me laugh.

Despite their similar features, Ronan and Levon could not have been more different. Levon was restless and

flamboyant, while Ronan was mature and measured, down to the meticulous way he spoke.

Just as I reached for the gift, every instinct in me went on alert-the same instincts that had saved me

countless times.

Without betraying my alarm, I scanned the beach. A man in sunglasses was walking straight toward us from

behind Ronan.

The day was sweltering, and most of the beachgoers wore bikinis or swim trunks. The man, however, was

dressed in an oversized dark shirt.

His hand began to rise.

“Watch out!”

I instinctively yanked Ronan toward me.

Two gunshots cracked across the beach, sending people screaming and running in every direction.

Ronan reacted immediately. He pulled me against him as we dodged aside, drawing a gun from inside his

jacket with his free hand.

“Don’t be afraid.”

He covered my eyes with one hand.

A muffled burst of gunfire followed, then even louder screams.

Ronan lowered his weapon and spoke softly beside me.

“It’s over.”

The Marcelli Family’s guards quickly subdued the attacker.

Ronan looked at me, heat blazing in his eyes.

“Ms. Marenno, you saved my brother once, and now you’ve saved me.”

“I, Ronan Marcelli, owe you my life. Whatever you need from me, you have only to ask.”

The polished courtesy he wore like a mask seemed to fall away. His gaze was fierce and unrestrained.

A faint scent of pine drifted past me, and his broad frame all but enveloped me.

Uncomfortable beneath his intense gaze, I looked away and pulled free of his arms.

“We should deal with the aftermath first.”

Ronan took my hand, bent over it, and brushed a light kiss across my knuckles.

“Very well. As Ms. Marenno commands.”

New York.

For three agonizing days, Cassian heard nothing about Evelina.

His aide had confirmed that she had never boarded the flight to Switzerland. But he still could not determine

where she had gone.

She had booked herself onto flights departing throughout those three days, burying her real route among a

maze of false itineraries.

His eyes bloodshot, Cassian slammed his fist into the desk.

Regret clawed through him.

How had this happened?

She had agreed. Ten million dollars, and everything between them would be settled.

How could she take his ten million and disappear?

Only when Evelina vanished completely from his world did Cassian realize how much her presence mattered

to him.

He had only acted indifferent because he had always been certain she would remain right where he left her.

Amid his panic, an impossible thought surfaced.

If he had not divorced her, if he had not let Nerina move into their home, if he had not forced her to change

her name… would she still be here?

Bitterness filled him.

He had been such a fool.

He knew better than anyone how deeply Evelina hated the woman who had destroyed her family. How could

he have let her walk away so easily?

The child was only a bastard, and Nerina herself was nothing more than Don Caradonna’s illegitimate

daughter.

How had he managed to shatter Evelina’s heart for the sake of the two of them?

His hands trembling, he picked up the photograph on his desk.

Evelina smiled gently at him from the picture, just as she had before.

How had they come to this?

“Cassian, are you in there?” Nerina called from outside the door.

Of course. This was all Nerina and her family’s fault.

If he took care of everyone who had hurt Evelina, would she come back to him?

Cassian stared at the door, murder in his eyes.