When the Rivals Attacked, My Don Husband Chose His Pregnant Mistress

Seven months pregnant. That was the night a rival family blew the Romano estate off its foundation. The east wing came down. One gap by the window — barely big enough to get through. I had both hands around my belly when I looked at my husband, Don Dante Romano, and said, "Get me out first." Gianna Ricci's eyes went glassy. "Valentina's carrying your child. Of course that matters more than my life." Dante's face went dark. "Her father took a bullet for mine — died shielding him. I swore I'd protect her for the rest of her life!" "You're the Donna of this family — the Don's wife. The family comes first." "You can't even see the bigger picture?" "What makes you think you deserve to be Donna?" He pulled Gianna out first. A second later the beam came down and sealed the only way out. Dante's voice came through the rubble, flat and cold. "Sit in there and think about what you did. My men will come for you." That wait lasted seven days. When the second collapse hit, my mother threw herself over me. This was the woman half the New York underworld knew better than to cross. Mrs. De Luca. And there she was, back arched over me, taking a support beam with her body so it wouldn't take mine. Blood came up with every cough, spattering across my face. She died in my arms. I got out a distress call on the family's emergency channel. I called Dante forty times. Nobody picked up. On the seventh day they dug me out. The rescue captain's eyes were red when he told me. "We got your signal day one. But Don Romano said the east wing was evacuated. He handed the fire department the wrong floor plans." "We were digging in the wrong place the whole time. We only found you today." I went cold all over. The tears came before I could stop them. My mother didn't have to die. A few yards away, Dante was down on one knee, tying Gianna's shoe. He saw me covered in blood and all he did was frown. "I just wanted to teach you a lesson. How was I supposed to know there'd be a second collapse?" "The punishment's over. I'll make it up to you." Dante Romano. We don't have a future anymore. …… "Valentina, I swear I didn't know it would be that bad." "Dante was just worried about me." Gianna looked at me with tears pooling in her eyes. I ignored her. When they carried my mother out, her body was still locked in the shape of shielding me. Her back was still arched over me, like a shield that had held until it broke. One of the rescue workers told me quietly that nearly every vertebra in her spine was broken. And she'd still been holding on when she died. Every second she held, my baby and I got another second. Claire Bennett got there and put her arms around me before she said a word. I looked at my mother's body and felt something crushing my chest like stone. I couldn't even cry. Gianna had gone white. She kept shrinking behind Dante. He put himself between her and the stretcher and turned to the workers. "Move the body. Quickly. Gianna's going to be frightened." I looked up at him, eyes burning. "Dante Romano. My mother is dead." He rubbed his forehead. "I know. Which is exactly why there's no reason to put Gianna through it twice." Something drove straight through my heart. I pushed myself upright and slapped him across the face as hard as I could. "Get out." Gianna threw herself in front of him, sobbing. "It's all my fault. Dante was afraid I'd fall apart. He stayed with me all night." Dante pulled her behind him immediately. His eyes went cold. "Your mother is dead. That's a fact." "There's no reason to take it out on Gianna." Even Claire leaned in and lowered her voice. "Valentina, don't do this." "Gianna's scared enough already. You don't have to push her over the edge." Gianna clutched his cuff. Her voice shook. "Dante, I'm scared." He wrapped an arm around her. "She's shaken up. She's not in a good place right now. I'm taking her out of here." "Take some time to calm down." She'd been at his side for five minutes and already his heart was breaking for her. It never crossed his mind how terrified I'd been — seven days and seven nights in that darkness. At the hospital, the doctor finished the exam and his face was grim. "There's still a heartbeat. But it's critical." "You need to transfer to a high-risk maternal center. Somewhere with better equipment. Soon." I hesitated. Then I decided to give Dante and me one more chance. I called the Romano family's private medical team and told them to arrange the transfer immediately. The voice on the other end said, "Donna, the Don froze your medical trust. We can't cover the private team or the transport." I just sat there. The De Lucas had money. Obviously. But after the wedding, my personal funds had been administered by the Romanos. My mother died with no warning. The De Luca family trust hadn't finished transferring to me. The only money I could still touch, Dante had locked. I called him. His voice was calm, like nothing in the world had happened. "I froze your accounts." "Gianna says you're too emotional right now. You need to calm down." Every word scraped out of my throat like broken glass. "The baby needs treatment now." I heard Gianna laugh on his end, soft and sweet. "Dante, see? What did I tell you? She crawls out of the rubble and the first thing she does is make up an excuse to ask for money." Dante let out a resigned sigh. "Valentina, don't use the baby as a weapon. Gianna already feels bad enough." I said nothing. His tone softened a little. "Apologize to Gianna. Tell her your mother's death wasn't her fault, and I'll release the money." I couldn't move. "What?" "You terrified her," Dante said. "She hasn't stopped crying. Don't make this harder for me." "It's fine." My voice came out level. Dante thought I'd finally fallen in line. He sounded relieved. "Valentina. See? Was that so hard?" I hung up and reached out to the old guard — the De Luca loyalists. They moved that night. But by the time the medical authorization finally came through, the baby was already gone. When the surgical lights came on over me, cold and white, I thought about the first year I was married to Dante. Back then I couldn't take pain at all. I'd stub a toe and curl up in his arms, whining and clinging to him for ages. Now a doctor was clearing out the child I couldn't keep, and I didn't feel anything. I actually laughed. Dante Romano. If loving you was an infection, I'm finally over it.