Chapter 267 OH, YES WAY.

Chapter 267 OH, YES WAY.
\~~~RAINA.

“Alessia…”
“Viktor…”

Luciano and I spoke at the exact same time, our voices cutting through the breeze as we broke apart. We turned our heads in unison, staring down the sandy shoreline where the two of us had definitely not expected any company.

“A renewal without us? That stings as fuck,” Viktor called out, his booming voice easily carrying over the sound of the crashing waves as they began closing the distance between us.

“Guys!” I exclaimed, completely and utterly surprised.
My mind spun as I watched them walk across the sand. I had literally just spoken to Alessia on the phone yesterday, and she hadn't dropped a single hint, a single cue, or even a stutter that would suggest they were planning on catching a flight, let alone crashing our private anniversary trip.

“They are so sneaky,” Alessia said, looking up at Viktor with a bright, knowing grin. They both chuckled together, entirely proud of themselves for pulling off the ultimate ambush, as they finally reached the flower archway where we stood.

“Am I seeing wrongly?” Luciano asked, his deep voice laced with a mixture of disbelief and a rare, genuine amusement. 

He looked at me, and then the couple, his arms crossing over his chest as he shook his head.
“I should be asking you the same,” I muttered, smacking my lips as the reality of their sudden appearance finally washed over me. The shock melted right into pure joy. “Oh, guys!”

I groaned happily, completely abandoning my husband at the altar, and rushed straight toward Alessia.

“Oh, my God!” We collided, laughing as we wrapped our arms around each other and hugged tightly. Or, at least, as tightly as we possibly could.

The moment we embraced, Alessia’s rounded belly stood as a firm, undeniable barrier between us. I pulled back slightly, my hands automatically dropping to her waist as I stared down in awe. Her stomach had grown significantly bigger since the last time I saw her. It was a beautiful, unmistakable bump now, round and perfect beneath her sundress.
“Your belly!” I exclaimed, my eyes widening

“She’s growing so fast,” Alessia said, looking down at her bump with a soft, glowing smile, shaking her head in mock disbelief.

My breath caught. “She?!”

“We checked the gender,” Alessia beamed, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “It’s a girl, Raina. We’re having a little girl.”

The jubilation instantly erupted on the beach. I squealed, hugging her all over again, completely mindful of the precious cargo this time. 

Behind us, Viktor stepped up to Luciano, clapping a heavy hand onto my husband’s shoulder.

Viktor looked Luciano up and down, taking in the tailored charcoal suit, the flower arch, and the sheer look of soft, domestic contentment that Luciano hadn't quite wiped off his face yet.

“Look at you,” Viktor teased, his lips curling into a wicked smirk. “You look like you’ve been demoted from mafia boss to full-time bodyguard husband. What happened to the ruthless Moretti?”

Luciano didn't even flinch. He simply cut a sideways glance at Viktor, a faint, dangerous but amused smirk playing on his lips. “He has gotten so cocky,” Luciano noted, turning his attention toward Alessia. 

“What have you done to him, Sis? He used to know his place.”

“Marriage happened, Luciano. You should try it sometime. Oh, wait, sorry. You're a year in,” Viktor laughed, gesturing toward the beautiful white dress I was wearing.

The conversation flowed effortlessly from there, packed with lighthearted banter, laughter, and the kind of easy comfort that only existed between people who considered each other family. 

Alessia clapped her hands finally, “Okay, I love this. But I am starving. Can we move before I faint?”
“Pregnancy appetite,” Viktor muttered.

“Say that again,” Alessia warned.

“Nothing,” he said quickly.

We moved toward the beach setup a few minutes later. And when I say setup, I mean soft chaos.

There was a small table under a shaded canopy, white flowers everywhere, and soft music playing from somewhere I couldn’t see. Food was arranged beautifully, and the drinks were chilled perfectly against the midday heat.

But as we all sat down and began to relax, Luciano didn't stop the habit he had come up with over the last few days.

He couldn't seem to stop touching me. It wasn't an aggressive, possessive display for our guests but was entirely subconscious, fluid, and constant.

When I reached for a serving spoon, his hand was suddenly on my waist, his thumb rubbing small circles through the silk of my gown. When the ocean breeze picked up, blowing a stray strand of hair across my face, his fingers were immediately there, gently tucking it behind my ear and lingering to check if my skin felt cold. Every few minutes, he would lean down, his dark eyes searching mine, silently checking to see if I was okay sitting on the low cushions or if I needed a proper chair.

I went to reach for the glass of red wine that had been poured for me earlier, completely out of habit, but before my fingers could even touch the stem, Luciano smoothly intercepted it. 

In one seamless, calculated motion, he swiped the wine glass completely out of my reach and replaced it with a tall, chilled glass of fresh fruit juice.

I paused, staring at the juice, then glanced up at him. Luciano didn't say a word. He just offered me a brief, steady look before taking a sip of his own drink, his hand returning to rest comfortably on the small of my back.

Across the table, Viktor was in the middle of chewing a piece of grilled meat when he caught the entire exchange. He watched Luciano’s hyper-vigilant, and protective movements, then looked over at me, a highly amused, knowing grin spreading across his face.

“Look at this,” Viktor teased, pointing a fork in our direction. 

“You two are acting like you just got married for the very first time. The doting, the hovering, and honestly, anyone who didn’t know any better would think you two are expecting your own…”

Viktor stopped dead in his tracks. The words died right in his throat.

Beside him, Alessia froze. She dropped her fork onto her plate with a sharp clatter, her eyebrows shooting straight up into her hairline as her gaze locked entirely onto me.

The silence that fell over the table was sudden, heavy, and absolutely deafening.

“Wait…” Alessia whispered, her eyes darting from my face, down to the glass of juice, and then back up to Luciano’s hand, which was still resting protectively against my back. 

“Are you two…”

She didn't even finish the sentence. She couldn't.

I instantly froze, my muscles locking up as a flush of heat hit my cheeks. 

I tried to keep my expression entirely blank, but the sudden deer-in-the-headlights look in my eyes gave me away before I could even open my mouth to lie.

Viktor and Alessia’s jaws dropped simultaneously. In perfect unison, they both slammed their palms over their mouths, their eyes widening to the size of saucers as they stared at us in absolute shock.

“No way!” they exclaimed.

Oh, yes way, I'm gonna be a mummy.