Page 149 of Baby Surprise for my Brother's Best Friend

Eva leans forward, her voice a shade colder than ice. "I ran the truth. I even have corroborating information. From the woman you impregnated. The public deserves to know who you really are."

My stomach lurches for a second, hearing Sophie twisted into her accusations.

Did Sophie actually talk to her?

No. I know her. I trust her. I trust her with my fucking life.

I lean forward, voice low and lethal. "You left out the part where you’re emotionally compromised. Where you have your little vendetta going against me."

Her jaw ticks. A crack in the façade.

I don't let her recover.

"This isn’t about journalism. This is about my family. About my home. About something personal."

I toss another thin file onto the table. Travel records, emails, photos. Proof that cuts deeper than any article.

"You visited our Tuscan estate last year claiming we had stolen from you. And when the courts gave us reason, you raised hell at a private event and got kicked off the property. Ring a bell?"

I swipe to the video on my tablet, security footage showing Eva, red-faced and screaming, being escorted out by guards.

The publisher shifts uncomfortably. The lead attorney stiffens.

Eva’s face drains of color, but her mouth stays twisted into a sneer as the video recording plays.

"Spectacle. The only spectacle here is your family, and your refusal to acknowledge what’s rightfully mine."

Her gaze flicks to the publisher as the video continues.

"My grandfather’s name was on that land title too. You think you can erase that? Erase me?"

The publisher narrows his eyes. "What the fuck, Eva?"

"They’re lying like they always do. That's bullshit."

"No," the lead attorney says sharply. "It’s conflict of interest. You used your position here to try to settle a personal vendetta."

Silence slices the room wide open.

And for the first time, Eva doesn’t look so invincible.

She bolts up from her chair, hands planted on the polished glass table.

"You think this is about some article? Your family destroyed mine. My grandfather worked those vineyards! My father lost everything! And you—" She jabs a finger toward me, eyes wild now. "—you get to reap the rewards of the Salvatore-Valentina deal like you earned it?"

Her voice rises, unhinged. "You all walk around like royalty with your money, women, and legacy. Now I’m stripping you bare the same way you stripped him."

The publisher leans back in his chair, jaw slack. "Jesus Christ, Eva..."

"I want you to feel powerless. To watch everything slip through your fingers. Like my family did. LikeIdid."

The room is dead silent except for the sound of her rapid, unsteady breathing.

The publisher finally speaks, slow and tight. "I was unaware of any of this. This isn’t just unethical, it’s actionable. Legally. You’ve exposed us to serious liability. You’re done here.”

He turns to the security guards waiting just outside. “Escort her out.”

Eva screams, lunging toward me as the guards step in. "You don’t get a happy ending, Alessio! You don’t get to be the hero! I’ll destroy you. I’ll destroy all of you!"

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