Chapter 24
stephanie’s breath caught in her throat, her whole body tense. For a moment, she couldn’t calm down.
Her hands shook as she grabbed the phone. “Hello?”
“Miss Giovanni” The voice on the other end was unmistakable.
Stephanie’s face went blank, her eyes betraying the storm of emotions she was fighting to keep in check.
She forced herself to speak. “Yeah, it’s me.”
The guy went on, “Mr. Giovanni’s flight is arriving at Long Harbor at 8 PM tonight. He wants you to meet him at the airport.”
Stephanie’s heart skipped a beat.
She gripped the phone tighter, her palm sweating. “He… he’s coming to Long Harbor?”
The weight of this moment hit her all at once. He was finally coming, after all this time.
Just yesterday, she’d had swiped the wrong black card while shopping. She knew he’d find out, but she hadn’t expected it to blow up this fast.
The voice on the other end belonged to Elliot Grant, an assistant.
Polite, respectful on the surface–but everyone in Fiorenza feared him. Elliot had a way of making people shake in their boots.
And if Elliot could do that… well, Sebastian Giovanni? The man he assisted? He could do anything.
He was the man who’d raised Stephanie.
Elliot’s voice came again, cold as ever. “He also said you better have an explanation ready. Or…”
He didn’t need to finish. The silence said it all.
Stephanie shuddered.
She hung up, the motion casual, but inside, her mind was racing.
The afternoon felt like a blur. She couldn’t focus. Her thoughts kept drifting. Even during the meeting, she struggled to stay
present.
All she could think about was Sebastian.
He was the guy the Hart family was looking for–the one who raised her.
In Fiorenza, he didn’t just have power–he controlled everything. The legal world. The illegal world. He was the king of the underground.
Her mind flashed back to what happened three years ago, just before she left Fiorenza. Her eyes filled with tears.
Her work didn’t matter anymore. She was lost in her thoughts until the end of the day.
When the clock hit six, she stepped outside–and her phone started buzzing nonstop.
Still distracted, she answered, “Hello?”
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Chapter 24
Und you really block my by Cathie’s voice came through, furious, like she was about to explode.
Stephanie Based arowed at the busy street, answering flatly. “You think I was joking?
The only one who could joke with Carlins was Olivia
Stephanie never fe in with them. Always the high expectations, the endless judgment. Catlin was the worst–cold and harsh.
Hearing the coldnews in Stephanie’s voice, Catlin’s anger only flared up more.
She snapped, “You, you tell me, Allison is your best friend, right? You’re the one who sent her overseas, aren’t you?”
Stephanie let out a shon, cold laugh. “Yeah, I did. So what?”
There was a long silence on the other end. Catlin sounded stunned. “How could you..
She was so mad, her hands shook
She’d expected Stephanie to deny it. But instead, the just owned it, no hesitation.
It hit Catlin hard. It was clear now–Stephanie didn’t care about this family. Not one bit.
Catlin had already planned how to interrogate her, but Stephanie had just flat–out confirmed everything without hesitation.
Catlin gasped. “So, you admit it?”
Stephanie shrugged, almost like she couldn’t be bothered. “What’s the big deal? With everything going on between Olivia and me, you really think it’s surprising I’d cause a little chaos?”
She couldn’t stand Olivia’s games, the way she pulled strings behind the scenes.
Stephanie had no time for that kind of underhandedness. If she wanted something done, she’d do it straight up. No hiding.
Catlin was so stunned by Stephanie’s bluntness, she almost couldn’t catch her breath.
She couldn’t even find the words to express her anger anymore. All she could manage was repeating, “You… how could you…”
Stephanie cut her off, her voice sharp. “What, Catlin? You want me to bring Allison back so she can treat Olivia?”
The way Stephanie said “Catlin” made Catlin freeze.
It hit her all at once–since Stephanie came back to the Hart family, she’d never once called her “Mom.” In fact, she’d never addressed her formally at all.
And now, hearing Stephanie say it like that, it stung. It wasn’t out of any kind of affection or familiarity.
It was a deliberate choice–Stephanie didn’t want to show her even the slightest respect.
Unable to stop herself, Catlin snapped, “I’m your mother.”
Stephanie’s voice was cold as she shot back, “Do you really want to argue about something that pointless on the phone?”
The word “mom didn’t exist in Stephanie’s vocabulary. She had two options: call her Catlin, or Mrs. Hart.
Catlin’s eyes widened at how casually Stephanie spoke, like it didn’t even matter.
It was as if a weight had been sitting in her chest all this time–heavy and painful–and now it was finally sinking in.
After a few deep breaths, Catlin said, “Get Dr. Pierce back. I’ll unlock your credit card.”
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Chapter 24
It was reluctant, but it was the best she could offer. She didn’t know what else to do with Stephanie,
Stephanie immediately caught on to the real message: Allison would come back to fix Olivia’s mess, and only then would Catlin unlock the card. So, it all came back to Olivia.
Stephanie couldn’t help but laugh under her breath. “Six thousand dollars a month, and you think you can buy Olivia’s life?”
It was almost too ridiculous to believe,
The Hart family spent more than that on a single piece of jewelry for Olivia. Her monthly allowance was never less than a hundred grand.
When Stephanie first returned to the family, they gave her thirty thousand a month.
But then Olivia made a comment about her “luxury lifestyle” – “She’ll be spoiled” and Catlin decided that Stephanie should “learn how to manage money.”
So, they slashed her allowance to fifteen thousand a month.
And just like that, Olivia’s comment had completely changed the financial dynamic in the house.
Even with fifteen thousand, Olivia wasn’t satisfied. She later said, “Stefi doesn’t really have a social life, so she doesn’t need that much money.”
Catlin agreed and told Stephanie, “We offer everything for you at home. You and Olivia are different–you don’t need to socialize with other ladies. You don’t spend as much.”
Eventually, the allowance was cut down to 6 thousand.
And now, because of Olivia’s situation, Catlin had gone as far as freezing Stephanie’s credit card.
But what they didn’t know was that Stephanie couldn’t care less about the money.
Stephanie’s words just made Catlin’s blood boil. “You’re going too far,” Catlin hissed.
It was clear now–Stephanie wasn’t a daughter to her. She was the family’s punishment for all their past mistakes.
Catlin regretted ever bringing her back.
Desperate to fix Olivia’s mess, she decided to throw everything at the wall. “Fine, then! What do you want? Name your price!”
She thought it was a generous offer.
But the only thing she heard was the phone disconnecting. When she tried calling again, the number was blocked.
Catlin could feel herself about to explode. Her chest tightened, and she struggled to breathe.
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