Nicole had never considered herself a villain.

She wasn’t reckless. She wasn’t stupid. Everything she did, she did with purpose. With strategy. With the long game in mind and right now? The long game was Luca.

He wasn’t in love with her, fine. He didn’t have to be. Men like Luca De Santis didn’t marry for love, anyway. They married for legacy. For business. For alignment. And Nicole had aligned herself with his world for almost six years. She knew his schedule, his temper, his ...