Chapter 9 - A New Sanctuary
Two weeks passed.
The news of Mark Tanner’s arrest and the collapse of the Moretti syndicate dominated the front pages of the Manhattan newspapers. My name was never mentioned in the articles, protected entirely by Dante’s iron control over the press.
I had returned to my apartment on Astoria Boulevard—not to live there, but to pack my belongings. Dante had purchased a beautiful brownstone townhouse overlooking Prospect Park in Brooklyn, registering the deed entirely under my name.
It was a sanctuary—safe, sunlit, with a small garden in the back where a child could play on warm summer mornings.
As I taped up the last cardboard box in my old living room, a knock sounded at the open door.
Dante stepped inside, wearing a charcoal wool sweater and trousers, looking relaxed and strikingly handsome in the soft afternoon light.
“Need help with the heavy lifting?” he asked, a small smile touching his lips.
“I think your men have handled most of it,” I chuckled, gesturing to the four security guards who had spent the last two hours carrying my furniture down to the moving van.
I sat down on the rolled-up rug, looking up at him.
“The lie is over now, Dante,” I said softly, looking down at the sapphire ring still resting on my finger. “Mark is in prison. Moretti is ruined. You don't need to pretend to be my betrothed anymore.”
I reached up to take off the ring, but Dante stepped forward, reaching down to cover my hand with his warm fingers, stopping me.
“What if it wasn't a lie, Eliza?” he asked quietly.
I looked up into his pale blue eyes, my heart skipping a sudden, erratic beat. “What do you mean?”
“I brought you into my world to protect my interests,” Dante confessed, his voice dropping into a deep, honest register. “But over the last two weeks, watching your strength, your courage, and your loyalty... I realized that my world is empty without you.”
May you like
He knelt down beside me, holding my hand firmly in his.
“I know this child is not biologically mine,” Dante continued softly, resting his hand gently over mine against my stomach. “But if you will let me, I will protect this baby with my life. I will be a father to this child, and I will be the husband you truly deserve.”
