Sweet Lies, Deadly Love

As soon as I come of age, I become the secret lover of Luciano Carlotta, the future Don of his family.

The reason why I choose to be with him isn't to covet his money—it's because I love him.

To me, he's my savior who has rescued me from my sad, tragic life as an orphan. He even tells me lovingly that it's not my fault that my parents don't want me, and that he will be the one loving me from now on.

So, when Luciano wants me to give birth to his child, I say yes. But once the baby is born, I'm only allowed to visit him once per month.

Luciano explains, "I'm the future Don, Rosanna. My family wants me to marry a woman of a similar background and social standing. They still find it difficult to accept you at the moment. I have to keep their opinions of you in mind.

"Just wait for a little longer. Once I conquer the final turf and become the Don, I'll definitely marry you. Our son shall become my heir. Staying in the Carlotta family is the best option for him, you know."

Naturally, I believe Luciano's excuses. On sleepless nights, I just stare at photos of him and our son as I shed tears quietly.

One day, I receive great news from my best friend, Sofia Rossi. Apparently, she's about to get married.

"Rosanna, I'm getting engaged! My fiance is very handsome, and he loves me with all his heart, too! You must attend my wedding when the time comes!"

As I congratulate her, I tap on the photo that she's just sent me. But I find myself staring at Luciano's face instead.

It took a significant amount of control for me to stop my fingers from shaking as I typed out a reply, "He's your fiance, and he loves you very much? Are you sure about that?"

Sofia Rossi immediately sent me a questioning emoji. "He's the Don of the Carlotta family, and we were introduced to each other by our parents. Though we haven't known each other long, he's always been very gentlemanly whenever we met, so we've decided to proceed with the marriage alliance. Do you know him?"

Biting my lip, I answered, "No, I don't know him. I just thought he looked rather familiar…"

I hadn't expected Sofia to call me the moment she read my message.

"You gave me such a fright! I was even wondering if I had tied myself to a jerk!

"You know, Rosanna, though it hasn't been long since we were introduced to each other, he's genuinely so handsome and gentle, to the point that my family has nothing but praise for him! Since his parents also seem very satisfied with me, our families decided to become allies through this marriage.

"At first, I thought that a man like him must already have his heart set on someone else, so there was no way he would agree to the marriage. However, to my surprise, he immediately agreed to the proposal the day right after my family brought it up! I'm sure he must have fallen for me at first sight, just like I did with him!"

Luciano Carlotta had once told me that it was love at first sight with me too. He had even vowed that once he became the Don, I would be his one and only Donna. All I had to do was give him three more years. Once he had gathered enough power and influence, no one would be able to stop him from publicly marrying me.

Yet, three years had gone by, followed by another three years.

Today, six years after he had made that promise, he had gone behind my back and broken it.

On the other end of the line, Sofia spoke up once more, sounding confused. "Rosanna, are you still there? Why aren't you saying anything?"

A single tear plopped onto the back of my hand. I struggled to keep my voice from cracking as I answered, "Yeah, I'm still here. Your fiance truly is a great catch. Congratulations."

Hearing that, Sofia instantly burst into delighted giggles. "I'm so happy to receive your blessing! You have to come to our wedding next week, okay? Oh, I haven't met your boyfriend yet, so why don't you bring him along with you? I'll make sure to toss the bouquet to you. That way, the next pair to get married would be you two!"

Forcing back the tears threatening to fall from my eyes, I gazed at the nearby cabinet, where a photo of Luciano and our son was. In a barely perceptible voice, I said, "No need. I… I've broken up with him."

Since he had gone back on his promise, then the best way I could grant his wish was to leave him.