A three-year-old girl destroyed the birthday cake of one of New York’s most feared mafia boss’s sons—and for several terrifying seconds, everyone thought my daughter had just made the worst mistake of her life. Then Lily pointed toward the kitchen and whispered, “A man touched Ethan’s cake,” and Dominic Moretti’s fury turned into something far more frightening.

At midnight, the basement level of the Westchester estate was dead quiet.

I had tried to sleep, but the anxiety coiled tightly in my stomach kept me awake. I had walked down to the private kitchen in the master wing to warm a glass of milk when I saw Marcus standing by the elevator, holding a thick leather folder.

"Is everything alright, Marcus?" I asked softly.

Marcus looked up, his expression grim. "Mr. Moretti is finishing the questioning down below. You shouldn't be up, Maya."

"Is it someone from the staff?"

Marcus hesitated, then sighed softly. "It's Thomas. The senior house manager you worked with for four years."

My breath hitched. "Thomas? No... that's impossible. Thomas has been with the family for a decade! He brought Ethan his birthday presents every year!"

"People change when they owe thirty million dollars to the Valenti family," Marcus said bitterly. "The Valentis have been trying to take over our shipping territory in Brooklyn for six months. They found Thomas's weakness."

Before I could process the betrayal, the elevator doors slid open with a soft chime.

Dominic stepped out. His suit jacket was off, his tie loosened, and his knuckles were slightly red. He looked up, his dark eyes meeting mine instantly.

"Maya," he said, stepping out of the elevator. "What are you doing up?"

"I... I couldn't sleep," I stammered, looking at his hands. "Is it true? Was it Thomas?"

Dominic signaled for Marcus to leave us. Once Marcus walked down the corridor, Dominic stepped closer to me, his presence overwhelming the quiet hallway.

"Thomas brought the man into the house through the service bay," Dominic said quietly. "He was paid two hundred thousand dollars to disable the cold room camera for six minutes."

Tears pricked my eyes. "I trusted him. He helped me organize Lily's second birthday party!"

"People are fragile, Maya," Dominic said softly, reaching out to cup the back of my neck, his thumb caressing my skin with unexpected comfort. "They break under pressure. But you didn't break. You ran toward danger to save my son."

I looked up into his dark, intense eyes, feeling a strange, intoxicating heat rising between us.

"What's going to happen to Thomas?" I whispered.

"He's being handed over to the authorities," Dominic said smoothly, though the cold glint in his eyes suggested Thomas would face a much worse punishment before any police car arrived. "The house is clean now, Maya. The rat has been removed."

"Is it really over?"