His Secretary Said She’d Never Met His Family—Then the Mafia Boss Found Her Photograph in Their Old Album

Six months later.

The city had entered an era of unprecedented peace.

The Moretti cartel had been dismantled, and Gabriel Costa ruled the financial and underground sectors with absolute authority.

Yet everything about Gabriel had changed.

The cold, ruthless don who once lived only for vengeance had found his heart.

On a warm spring evening, the private terrace of the Costa ancestral manor was decorated with thousands of white roses and glowing lanterns.

Tessa stood by the stone balustrade, wearing an emerald silk dress.

The harbor lights twinkled in the far distance.

Gabriel stepped out onto the terrace, holding two glasses of vintage champagne.

He handed one to her and wrapped his free arm securely around her waist.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked softly, kissing her temple.

“I was thinking about the night in the parking garage,” Tessa said, smiling up at him. “I thought my life was ending. I had no idea it was only just beginning.”

Gabriel set down his glass and turned her toward him.

He reached into his pocket and produced a velvet box.

He opened it to reveal a magnificent ring: a flawless rose-cut diamond set in platinum and rose gold, intricately engraved with a hawk and a blooming rose.

Gabriel sank onto one knee on the marble floor.

“Tessa,” Gabriel said, his deep voice filled with profound sincerity and love. “My family owed your mother a blood debt. But my heart owes you its very existence. I do not ask you to be my wife because of the past. I ask you because I cannot imagine a single breath of my future without you. Will you marry me?”

Tears of pure happiness filled Tessa’s eyes.

She threw her arms around his neck.

“Yes,” she whispered fiercely. “A thousand times, yes.”

Gabriel stood up, slid the ring onto her finger, and lifted her into his arms, claiming her lips in a passionate, eternal kiss under the starlit sky.