492 "The Billionaire Who Discarded Me Over a Lie: How the Coldest Man in Chicago Froze When He Saw Two Pairs of His Unmistakable Eyes Across a Crowded Restaurant"

By Thursday afternoon, the quiet routine of our lives had resumed on the surface, but underneath, everything felt fragile and exposed.

I sat at the kitchen island, reviewing quarterly financial statements for a local boutique design firm I did freelance accounting for, while Leo and Maya played quietly with their building blocks in the corner of the living room.

My phone buzzed on the counter.

An incoming call from an unknown, unlisted number.

I hesitated, thinking it might be Luca ignoring my boundary, but I slid my thumb across the screen anyway.

"Hello?"

"Nia Moretti. Or should I say, Miss Carter?"

A sharp, smooth, undeniably arrogant voice echoed through the speaker. My blood ran cold. I knew that voice. I had heard it at high-society galas years ago, standing just over Luca’s shoulder.

"Julian Vance," I said, my voice dropping into a tense whisper.

"Ah, I'm flattered you remember," Julian chuckled softly on the other end of the line. "Though considering how intimately you used to know Moretti Global's internal ledgers, I suppose remembering names is the least of your talents."

"What do you want, Julian? How did you get this number?"

"My dear, when a billionaire like Luca Moretti suddenly fires his legal team, kicks his society wife out of his penthouse, and spends his Tuesday evening staking out a modest apartment in Lincoln Park, people in my position tend to ask questions," Julian said, his tone dripping with venomous amusement. "And when those questions lead to the discovery of two secret heirs that Luca managed to hide away for four years... well, it paints a very interesting picture."

My heart hammered against my ribs. "If you think you can use my children to get to Luca or Moretti Global, you are out of your mind. I will go to the federal authorities—"

"You won't go anywhere, Nia," Julian interrupted, his voice turning ice-cold. "Because right now, you and those twins are sitting on a powder keg. Luca is vulnerable. He’s distracted, he’s emotional, and his corporate board is already panicking over his erratic behavior. If a hostile takeover were to happen—say, if a major block of voting shares suddenly shifted hands—Luca wouldn't even see it coming until his empire was ashes."

"Leave us out of your corporate games," I hissed.

"Oh, you're already in the game, my dear," Julian laughed darkly. "Expect a visitor this afternoon. We should talk about how much peace of mind is worth to a mother."

The line went dead with a sharp click.

I lowered the phone slowly, my hands trembling. Julian Vance was a shark who smelled blood in the water. If he decided to target my children to break Luca, he wouldn't hesitate to use every dirty trick in the corporate playbook.

I looked over at Leo and Maya, who were laughing as a tower of blocks crashed to the carpet.