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He Gave Me $2.50. I Took His Empire

NovelShort new Completed

Billionaire Mafia CEO Hot

Chapters (4)

第1章

At the Moretti Family's annual banquet, I drew the winning token at the exact same moment as my boyfriend's new consigliere, Tania Fox. Neal Gilbert stepped forward with an easy smile and claimed there had been a mistake in the draw. He ordered one of his men to bring out two identical black velvet boxes. "One contains the real prize," he announced. "The other doesn't. We'll leave it to luck." Tania smiled. I said nothing. We opened the boxes at the same time. Mine held two worthless casino chips. Tania's held the keys to a brand-new armored Ferrari. Applause erupted through the ballroom. But everyone there had seen what happened. The moment Neal handed us the boxes, his fingers shifted. He had deliberately placed the box with the Ferrari keys into Tania's hands. The looks around me changed instantly. Some amused. Some mocking. Others simply waiting to see whether the Don's girlfriend would make a scene after being humiliated in front of half the city's underworld. My phone vibrated. Neal. [Babe, you're my woman. If I gave you the grand prize in front of everyone, the other Families would say the draw was fixed.] Another message followed. [Giving it to Tania keeps people from questioning me. You understand, right?] I stared at the screen. Then I laughed. He was right. There was no reason to make things difficult for him. Just then, another message appeared on my phone. It was from the Romano Family, the Morettis' biggest rival. They had been trying to recruit me for months. [Our offer still stands.] My thumb hovered over the message for barely a second. Then I replied. [When do I start?] If Neal cared so much about avoiding suspicion, I was happy to help. I was done working for his Family. And as for my boyfriend? He had no idea that the woman he'd just humiliated in front of everyone was also the reason the Moretti empire was still making money. Once I walked away, bankruptcy would be the least of his problems. …… "Serves her right. She walks around like she owns the Moretti Family just because she's sleeping with the Don. Look at her now." "At least Don Gilbert knows who deserves to be rewarded. Tania's always been good to us." "Exactly. Ivy acts like she's already the Donna, but clearly she's not the woman he actually favors." The whispers followed one after another, each word sharp enough to cut. Tania stood beside Neal, clutching the keys to the armored Ferrari. Triumph gleamed in her eyes, though she tried hard to hide it. Then she lightly tugged at Neal's sleeve. "Don Gilbert, is this really all right?" Her voice was soft, almost hesitant. "Ivy is your woman, after all. Maybe I should give the keys to her." Neal rested a hand on her shoulder, his touch unexpectedly gentle. Then he looked at me. The warmth vanished from his expression. "Ivy, look how considerate Tania is. Would it kill you to show a little grace?" "The boxes were identical. It came down to luck. Are you really going to fight with someone who only joined the Family three months ago over a car?" I stared at him. Then I smiled. "Luck?" My voice cut through the murmurs around us. "Neal, do you think everyone in this room is blind?" "When you handed us those boxes, you switched them. Everyone standing here saw exactly what you did." His expression stiffened for a fraction of a second. Then that familiar, practiced smile returned. "Ivy, it's just a car. I'll buy you ten if that's what you want." His voice softened, but the impatience underneath it was impossible to miss. "There's no reason to humiliate Tania over something this small. If I handed the prize directly to my own woman, the other Families would say the draw was fixed. And if you keep making a scene, they'll think you're throwing my name around to get whatever you want." Throwing his name around. After everything I had done for the Moretti Family. My fingers trembled. Five years of swallowed anger finally broke loose. I pulled out my phone, opened the notice I'd received from the Family accountant that afternoon, and held the screen in front of him. "Fine, Don Gilbert." "If the raffle was luck, explain this." "Was my year-end cut luck too?" The number on the screen was almost insulting. $2.50. For a moment, the entire ballroom went silent. Then everyone erupted. "Two dollars and fifty cents?" "She's the underboss. She's second only to the Don, and that's her year-end cut?" "That's impossible. I'm just a soldier and I got five thousand." "You didn't hear? Tania's only been with the Family for three months, and she got twenty thousand." Twenty thousand. My head snapped toward Neal. Five years. I had given five years of my life to this Family. Back when the Morettis barely controlled three blocks, I had stood beside Neal and helped him claw his way into half the city's rackets. More than half the deals that built the Moretti empire had passed through my hands. I negotiated alliances. I secured routes. I brought powerful men to the table when Neal couldn't even get through their doors. And now, as the Moretti underboss, my year-end cut was two dollars and fifty cents. Tania had been here ninety days. She walked away with twenty thousand. The irony nearly made me laugh. For the first time that night, panic flashed across Neal's face. Only for a second. Then he shoved my phone away and turned sharply toward the watching crowd. "Enough!"

第2章

"Tania has only been with the Family for three months, and she already secured us a ten-million-dollar contract. That's a serious contribution. She earned every cent of that twenty thousand." Neal's voice carried across the ballroom. "As for Ivy, our so-called underboss, she's been disappearing whenever she pleases and neglecting Family business. She's setting a terrible example. Frankly, she's lucky she got anything at all." Laughter broke out around me. "So that's why her cut was pathetic. She doesn't actually do anything." "Everyone knows she only became underboss because she's the Don's woman. Now she can't even be bothered to handle Family business. She never deserved the position." Their words crashed over me. Blood rushed to my head, and my ears began to ring. My phone vibrated. A message from Neal. [Ivy, don't make a scene. Tania brought in a major deal. The Family needs people like her.] Another followed. [The year-end cut was her idea. Let it go this once. I'll make it up to you privately.] Her idea? I stared at the screen, and something inside me went cold. So this humiliation had been Tania's idea all along. Fine. If Neal didn't care about my dignity, why should I keep protecting his? "Neal." My voice cut through the ballroom. "Are you really going to stand there and tell everyone that Tania secured that ten-million-dollar contract?" The room fell silent. Neal's expression darkened. "Ivy. Enough." "No." I tightened my grip on the microphone. "It isn't enough." "That ten-million-dollar contract? I spent three nights putting the terms together. I made eight trips across the city to meet with the Vitale representatives. I spent an entire month negotiating before they finally agreed to sign." I turned toward Tania. "Her contribution?" "She put the Family seal on the paperwork after everything was finished." A cold laugh escaped me. "And you're calling that a serious contribution?" Neal's jaw tightened. I didn't stop. "And all those times I supposedly disappeared from Family business?" "I was meeting our partners. Negotiating with our allies. Securing the connections that kept Moretti money flowing." The ballroom erupted. "No way." "I thought Ivy was just the Don's pretty girlfriend." "You're saying she negotiated the Vitale contract?" Every word cut deeper than I wanted to admit. But I couldn't blame them for doubting me. For five years, I had let Neal take credit for every alliance I secured and every deal I brought to the table. I wanted the other Families to respect him. I wanted them to see him as the man who had transformed the Morettis into one of the most powerful Families in the city. So I stayed in the shadows. And eventually, everyone began believing exactly what Neal had allowed them to believe. That I was nothing more than the Don's woman. A pretty face who had slept her way into the underboss's chair. I had never corrected them. Because I loved him. But I was done staying silent. A soft sob suddenly broke through the murmurs. Tania covered her mouth, tears filling her eyes. "Don Gilbert, I'm sorry. This is all my fault." She hurriedly pulled a bank card from her purse and held it toward me with trembling fingers. "I'll give the twenty thousand back to Ivy right now. Please don't fight because of me. I couldn't bear knowing I came between the two of you." I looked at the card. Then at her. I knocked it from her hand. "Drop the act, Tania." The card hit the marble floor. "You think twenty thousand dollars makes this disappear?" I stepped closer. "Do I look like I'm begging you for money?" Her lips trembled. I held her gaze. "That ten-million-dollar contract carries a ten-percent broker's cut." The room quieted again. "That's one million dollars." I tilted my head. "So tell me, Tania." "When exactly were you planning to give me back my million?" Her face drained of color. She opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Then her body swayed. Her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed. "Tania!" Neal lunged forward and caught her before she hit the floor. He pulled her against his chest as though she might break in his arms. Then he looked up at me. There was nothing but fury in his eyes. "Ivy, you've gone too far." His voice was ice-cold. "You know Tania was born with a heart condition, and you still pushed her until she collapsed?" His arms tightened around her. "I can't believe I ever trusted you."

第3章

Watching Neal cradle Tania so carefully brought back a memory I would rather have forgotten. Two years ago, I had stayed awake for two nights straight to secure one of the biggest deals the Moretti Family had ever landed. By the time I returned to the estate, I could barely stand. My blood sugar crashed in the middle of Neal's study, and I collapsed right in front of him. He didn't even reach out to catch me. Because there were other Family members in the room. Because he wanted to "avoid suspicion." He simply watched as my forehead struck the corner of his desk. The scar was still hidden beneath my bangs. And now? Tania pretended to faint, and he held her like she was something precious. Around us, sympathy quickly turned into accusations. "Ivy, Tania practically begged you to stop. Why did you have to push her that far?" "Exactly. It's just credit for one deal. Is it really worth all this? You're obviously jealous of her." I swept my gaze across the ballroom. These people could twist right and wrong without hesitation as long as it pleased their Don. Then I noticed something. Tania's eyelids fluttered. The corner of her mouth lifted almost imperceptibly against Neal's chest. She was awake. "Don't let her fool you." I looked straight at her. "She's not unconscious. She's acting." The words had barely left my mouth when Neal's hand came down. Slap. My head snapped to the side. Burning pain spread across my cheek, and within seconds, I could feel it beginning to swell. I slowly turned back. Neal stared at me, his face twisted with rage. "Ivy, shut your mouth." His voice echoed through the ballroom. "Apologize to Tania right now, or I'll strip you of your position as underboss." Something inside my chest broke. I looked at the man I had loved for five years. Then, strangely, the pain began to disappear. "Neal." I met his eyes. "Are you sure you want to choose her side?" Something in my expression seemed to humiliate him. His face darkened. He turned toward the Family accountant and several of his capos. "Effective immediately, Ivy Pruitt is no longer underboss." The room went still. Neal wasn't finished. "Starting tomorrow, she works downstairs with the servants. Cleaning floors, washing dishes, scrubbing bathrooms. Whatever needs doing." Laughter erupted around me. Some didn't even bother hiding their delight. The Moretti underboss. Reduced to scrubbing toilets. I should have been humiliated. Instead, I started laughing. I laughed until tears filled my eyes. Five years. I had given Neal five years of my life. When the Moretti Family had been drowning in debt, I had poured the inheritance my parents left me into keeping it alive. I had helped him build this empire from almost nothing. Deal by deal. Alliance by alliance. And this was how he repaid me. By ordering me to scrub his floors. What a joke. I turned toward the doors. Neal immediately followed. He caught up with me before I reached the hallway and lowered his voice beside my ear. "Ivy, just apologize." I kept walking. "I'm trying to protect you." His voice became softer. "It's only a month. I'll have you work downstairs for a month, just for appearances. Once everyone forgets about tonight, I'll put you back where you belong." I stopped. For appearances. Avoid suspicion. It was always the same excuse. Every time he took something from me. Every time he humiliated me. Every time he expected me to swallow another injustice. All because he needed to "avoid suspicion." I turned and looked at him. "Neal, I don't need your protection." He frowned. "I quit." For the first time that night, Neal looked genuinely stunned. "What?" I didn't answer. I turned around and walked out of the Moretti estate without looking back. Behind me came whispers. Laughter. Insults. I didn't care anymore. My phone vibrated in my hand. A message from the Romano Family appeared on the screen. [Ms. Pruitt, welcome to the Romano Family.] [Effective immediately, you will take charge of our legitimate operations and answer directly to Don Romano. You will have full authority over all negotiations and business affairs.] I stared at the message. Slowly, I smiled. [Looking forward to working together.] I had barely reached my car when my phone rang. Paddy Finch. Don Romano's consigliere. "I knew you'd finally come around, Ms. Pruitt." There was satisfaction in his voice. "I've told you for years that wasting your abilities on Gilbert for the sake of a man would get you nowhere." I opened the car door. Paddy continued. "With you handling negotiations, I have no doubt we can secure the Runhao Group contract." My hand paused. "The five-hundred-million-dollar one?" "The very same." He chuckled. "You'll have the full backing of the Romano Family." My smile deepened. Five hundred million dollars. The Runhao Group contract. Oh, I knew that deal very well.

第4章

That was the deal Neal had been desperate to secure for months. He had mentioned it constantly, boasting that once the five-hundred-million-dollar contract was signed, the Moretti Family would finally have enough legitimate business to expand its influence across the East Coast. What he didn't know was that Malcolm Lambert, the head of the Lambert Consortium, was my mentor. Malcolm had always valued my abilities. In fact, the Lambert Consortium had been interested in working with me from the beginning. I had originally planned to bring the contract to the Morettis as a gift to Neal when he finally proposed. But now, everything had changed. Without me, Neal and Tania didn't stand a chance of securing that deal. And without the Lambert contract, the Moretti empire Neal was so proud of wasn't nearly as stable as he believed. By the time I returned home, the adrenaline had worn off. I stood in front of the bathroom mirror and stared at the handprint across my cheek. The tears I had held back all night finally fell. My phone kept vibrating. The Moretti Family group chat showed more than ninety-nine unread messages. I opened it. My blood went cold. The chat was flooded with videos from the hospital. Every one of them showed Neal taking care of Tania. In one, he gently wiped her face. In another, he carefully tucked the blanket around her. Then, encouraged by several people standing around the bed, Neal lowered his head and pressed a tender kiss to Tania's forehead. The comments underneath came one after another. [They're perfect together.] [Don Gilbert treats her so well. I'm jealous.] I stared at the screen, my fingers trembling. For years, Neal had refused to show me even the smallest sign of affection whenever other members of the Family were around. He wouldn't sit beside me at formal dinners. He wouldn't arrive at Family gatherings with me. Sometimes, he wouldn't even get into the same car if too many people were watching. His excuse was always the same. He was the Don. I was his underboss. We had to keep our relationship separate from Family business. Because of that, people whispered behind my back for years. They called me desperate. A gold digger. A woman who had used the Don's bed to climb into the underboss's chair. Neal knew. He never defended me. And now he was openly holding Tania in his arms and kissing her forehead in front of everyone. So all those rules about keeping business separate from our relationship had never really been rules. They had only ever applied to me. Whatever attachment I still had to Neal disappeared in that moment. I deleted every message between us. Then I blocked his number. His private account. Everything. Finally, I opened our chat one last time. My fingers hovered over the screen. For five years, I had imagined countless versions of our future. In the end, all I sent him were four words. [Neal, we're done.] I stared at the message for a second. Then I hit send.