THE PARALYZED MAFIA BOSS HIRED THE PLUS-SIZE CAREGIVER EVERYONE MOCKED—THEN HE STOOD BEFORE THE ENTIRE CITY, CALLED HER HIS FUTURE WIFE, AND DESTROYED THE PEOPLE WHO TRIED TO BREAK HER

Three days after the engagement shook the city’s headlines, the media was in a frenzy. Front pages everywhere featured the stunning photo of Adrien standing up from his chair to propose to his plus-size caregiver.

While the public celebrated the fairy-tale romance, behind closed doors, a desperate alliance was forming in the dark.

In an abandoned warehouse near the docks, Victoria Sterling met secretly with Don Moretti—the ruthless, aging leader of the rival Moretti crime family.

"He humiliated me!" Victoria shrieked, pacing back and forth, her face pale and sunken from days of rage. "He chose that fat, vulgar servant over my family! My father’s stocks are dropping because Adrien cut off our bank ties!"

Don Moretti sat in a leather chair, puffing quietly on a heavy cigar. "Adrien Romano wiped out Marcus and secured his board. He is standing again. My family is losing millions every day he lives. What do you want, Lady Sterling?"

"I want her destroyed," Victoria spat, her eyes wild with madness. "If we hit Adrien, his guards will kill us. But the girl? She still visits her old neighborhood twice a week to feed stray animals and pay off her father’s remaining debts at the community clinic. She’s weak. She’s vulnerable."

Moretti smiled a dark, yellow-toothed grin. "If we capture his future bride, Adrien will walk straight into a trap to save her. He’s soft now. In love."

"Do it," Victoria whispered, dropping a thick leather envelope full of cash onto the table. "Make her suffer before you kill her."

That Thursday afternoon, despite Adrien’s insistence on sending a full security detail, Hannah visited the small suburban clinic where her late father had been cared for. She wanted to clear the last five thousand dollars of medical debt personally, using her own hard-earned savings rather than Adrien’s endless fortune. She wanted to close that painful chapter of her life as an independent woman.

As she stepped out of the clinic’s rear entrance into the quiet alleyway, a black van skidded around the corner, blocking her path.

Four heavy men in masks leaped out.

Hannah’s heart dropped. "Victor!" she shouted toward the street where her bodyguard was parked.

Before Victor’s car could accelerate down the alley, a heavy truck smashed directly into the side of his vehicle, trapping his guards inside a crumpled heap of metal.

Hannah turned to run back into the clinic, but a heavy arm clamped over her neck. A cloth soaked in sweet, chemical-smelling chloroform was slammed over her face.