Velvet Crown of Lies

Valentina Cruz is master of seduction with no past, no real name. She’s conned princes, diplomats, billionaires—then successfully vanished without a trace. Now targeting her newest mark? Adriano De Luca— For six months, she’ll play the perfect bride to Adriano De Luca—Milan’s most feared mafia heir, known popularly as The Widowmaker - before she completes her plan then vanishes. Adriano lives by a brutal rule: kill for less than a lie. When Valentina steps into his world under a fake name and a flawless seduction plan, she becomes the one game he refuses to lose. But beneath the heat and shadows, something else stirs—he knows her face. From a past soaked in blood. This was supposed to be her final con. One last, dangerous game. “You taste like a lie,” he said. “You kiss like a man bored with the truth,” she whispered.