Page 26 of His Son's Ex

Halsey presses a hand over her mouth. “Jesus Christ. I can’t believe that just happened. That was insane.”

I stare out the window as the city lights zoom by, my thoughts on one person.

Dante.

Is he okay?

A wave of longing swells in my chest, mixing with the lingering adrenaline.

Halsey nudges me. “You alright?”

I exhale slowly. “I don’t know. One minute I was having a good time, proud of myself for sticking it out, the next, I’m running from bullets.”

She gives my hand a squeeze. “That’s their world, Eva. Luca. Dante. The whole damn Bellacino empire.”

I stay silent the rest of the way, watching the blur of Manhattan out the window.

CHAPTER 5

DANTE

The ballroom smells like smoke and panic.

Glass litters the floor. Blood smears the gold trim. Security ushers guests out like broken chess pieces, heads low, lips tight.

My men are already restoring order—fast, efficient, silent.

And I stand in the eye of it all—still. Watchful. Ready.

Because tonight wasn’t just a wedding.

It was a test.

And someone failed.

Then I hear him.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Luca says behind me, voice taut. Controlled. But cracking.

I don’t turn. Not yet.

“You humiliated Sarah,” he adds, footsteps scraping closer.

“In front of everyone. On our wedding day.”

Now I turn.

His tie’s crooked. His eyes wild. The posture of a boy trying to wear a man’s crown.

“Sarah humiliated herself,” I say, voice low but lethal. “I reminded the room who the fuck we are.”

His jaw tightens. “She panicked. Eva showing up?—”

“She insulted a guest,” I cut in, my tone like a blade. “She publicly degraded a woman who never said a word to her. On our turf. In front of the Five Families. That wasn’t panic, Luca. That was weakness. And weakness is an invitation to bleed.”

He flinches.

“She’s my wife.”