"I'll make sure everything runs smoothly in the kitchen. Our chef is preparing a feast for tonight," Mom said enthusiastically. Both Alessio and his partner turned a tight-lipped smile to my mother.
Did the man ever really smile with his eyes and heart? I waited until they all disappeared from sight before rushing downstairs and slipping into the library, which was right next to the office. I leaned my ear against the communicating door to listen to the conversation.
"This union will be good for you and me," Dad said.
"Have you told Gianna about the bond yet?"
Hearing my name for the first time in Alessio's deep voice made my heart quicken. I would hear him say it for the rest of my life. Dad cleared his throat. Even without seeing him, I knew he felt uncomfortable.
"Yes, last night."
"How did he react?"
"Gianna is aware that it is an honor to marry an Underboss." I rolled my eyes. I really wanted to see their faces.
"That doesn't answer my question, Felix," Alessio reminded my father with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"She will not become just my wife. I need a mother for my children. You realize that, don't you?"
"Gianna is a very caring and responsible woman."
The word did not leave Dad's lips easily, and it took me a moment to realize that he was referring to me. I still did not feel like a woman.
"Sometimes she watched over her brother's child and had fun." I had played with my brother's baby for a few minutes when they came to visit, but I had never changed a diaper or fed a baby.
"I can assure you that Gianna will satisfy you." My cheeks grew hot.
There was a moment of silence.
Had Alessio and his partner misunderstood Dad's words as I had? Dad cleared his throat again.
"Have you told Luca yet?"
"Last night, after our call, yes.
" They started discussing an upcoming meeting with the Chief, which made me isolate myself for a while, losing myself in my thoughts.
"I need to call home. And Faro and I would like to relax a bit before dinner. We've had a long day," Alessio said.
"Of course. Why don't you go ahead through that door? The library is quiet. We still have an hour before you introduce my daughter." I staggered away from the door when footsteps echoed behind it.
The handle jerked and I quickly rushed behind one of the shelves, pressing myself against it. I cast a glance toward the door. Alessio and Faro walked in. Dad gave them another fake smile, then closed the door, locking me in with them.
How was I going to get out of the library and upstairs with Alessio and his partner around?
"And then what?" Faro asked.
Alessio moved farther into the room and closer to me. He frowned, but some of the vigilance was gone.
"Extenuating. Mrs. Rizzo in particular. I hope her daughter doesn't take care of her." I tightened my lips in indignation. Mom was exhausting, it's true, but her words rubbed me the wrong way.
"Have you seen a picture of her?"
Faro picked up one of the frames from the coffee table, giggling. Peeking through the crack in the books, my eyes widened in horror. He showed it to Alessio.
I was nine years old in that picture and smiled broadly, showing the device. Two small sunflowers were attached to the sides of my pigtails and I was dressed in a polka-dot dress with red rubber boots.
Dad liked that picture of me and had refused to take it down despite Mom's nagging.
Now I wished he had listened to her.
"Fuck you, Faro. Put it down," Alessio said abruptly, making me wince.
"I feel like a fucking pedophile watching that child." Faro put down the frame. "She's a cute little girl. It could have been worse....
"I sincerely hope she got rid of that braces and those horrible bangs." My hand flew to the bangs. A mixture of anger and mortification swept over me. "It works for the schoolgirl look," Faro said.
"I don't want to fuck a damn schoolgirl." I gasped and my elbow collided with a book.
It fell into the shelf. Oh no. Silence descended on the room. I looked around frantically for an escape route. Lowering my head, I tried to squeeze into the next hallway.
Too late. A shadow fell over me and I collided with a hard body. I stumbled back into the shelf. The tailbone hit the hard wood, making me cry out in pain.
My head lifted, my cheeks flamed.
"I'm sorry, sir," I blurted out. To hell with my righteous politeness. Alessio stared at me, looking grim. Then realization settled over his features. As far as first impressions go, it could have gone smoother.
Alessio
"I'm sorry, sir."
I lowered my gaze to the girl in front of me. She was looking at me with huge blue eyes and half-closed lips. Then I realized who the girl was. Gianna Rizzo, my future wife.
I stayed and watched. Beside me, Faro was holding back laughter, but I wasn't even remotely fucking amused. The woman, the girl, who would become my wife in less than three months had just called me
"sir."
My eyes rested on her body, observing her bare feet, slender legs, ugly denim dress, and the floral atrocity she wore as a top.
Finally, my eyes rested on her face. She still had bangs, but the rest of her hair was long and wavy, flowing down her bare shoulders. She looked up when I didn't make a move to let it pass and stiffened, obviously surprised by my unwavering attention. I must admit that the bangs didn't look so bad.
She was very pretty. A lovely girl. That was the problem. Dressed as she was, she looked like a teenager, not a woman, certainly not a wife and mother. She touched her bangs with trembling fingers, a blush snaked across her cheeks. She must have heard everything we said.
I sighed. This was a bad idea. I knew it from the beginning, but things had been agreed upon and now there was no turning back. She would become my wife and hopefully never call me sir again. She dropped her hand and straightened up.
"Excuse me, sir, I don't mean to offend you, but you shouldn't be alone with me unsupervised, much less be so close to me."
Faro gave me a look that made it clear he was about to piss himself. I squinted my eyes toward Gianna without flinching, but I had to admit that I liked the fact that she stood up to me despite the power I held.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Yes, you are the sub-chief of Philadelphia, but I am under my father's rule, not yours, and even if I were, honor forbids me to be alone with a man to whom I am not married."
"That's true," I said quietly.
"But in less than four months you will be my wife."
She tilted her chin upward, trying to look taller. Her performance was impressive, but her trembling fingers and wide eyes betrayed her fear.
"The way I see it ... you spied on us. We had a confidential conversation that you broke into without permission," I said in a low voice. He looked away.
"I was in the library when you came in and you scared me." Faro laughed beside me. I shushed him with a look and let out a sigh. I had no patience for drama. For weeks I had hardly slept a night. The maids took most of the work off my hands, but Simona's crying woke me up anyway. I needed a mother for my children, not another child to take care of.
"Faro, can you give us a moment?"
Gianna looked at me uncertainly, still backing into that shelf. I moved away from her, giving her the proper space. Faro stepped out and closed the door.
"This is inappropriate," she said in her soft voice.
"I want to have a word with you. Later, your parents will be around and we won't have time to talk."
"My mother will talk about everything. It's exhausting like this." Was she teasing me? Her face was curious and cautious.
"It was not meant for your ears." I nodded toward the chairs. "Do you want to talk to me?"
He tilted his head as if trying to understand me.
"Certainly." I waited for him to sit down before taking my seat. She crossed her legs, then smoothed her bangs again, but blushed when she saw me looking at her. Her nose twitched.
"I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell my mother-"
"Don't call me sir," I growled. She winced, stunned. "What should I call you?"
"How about calling me Alessio? I will soon be your husband." She took a sharp breath.
"November."
"Yes. Once you turn eighteen."
"Does it make a difference? How can a few more months make me a good wife when I'm not now?"
"Either way you are too young, but I will feel more comfortable marrying you when you are officially of age."
He tightened his lips and shook his head. "I have two small children who need care. Daniel is two, almost three, and Simona will be ten months old when we get married."
"Can you show me the pictures?" she asked, surprising me. I pulled out my phone and showed her my background: a photo taken shortly before Gaia's death, but she was not in it.
Daniele was cradling his four-month-old sister in his arms. I looked at Gianna's face. Her expression softened and she smiled, a sincere and spontaneous smile.
Not like the smiles I was used to from the women in our circles. This, too, showed how young he was.
Not yet tired and guarded.
"They are lovely. And how cute he's holding her." She smiled at me, then got serious.
"I'm sorry for your loss. I..."
"I don't want to talk about my dead wife," I interrupted. She nodded quickly and bit her lip. Damn, why did she have to look pretty and innocent.
There were so many teenage girls who put enough makeup on their faces to add ten years to their real age, not Gianna. She looked like she was seventeen, and would miraculously be no older than four months when she turned eighteen.
I should have asked her mother to put a lot of makeup on her face for the wedding day.
She pulled her hair behind one ear, revealing a sunflower earring.
"Do you always dress like that?" I nodded at her attire. She lowered her gaze to her body with a slight frown.
"I like the clothes." The blush on her cheeks darkened when she looked at me.
"I like clothes, too," I said. "Elegant clothes, suitable for a woman. I expect you to dress more elegantly in the future. You have to convey a certain image on the outside. If you give me your measurements, I will send someone to buy you a new wardrobe." She stared at him.
"Understand?" I asked her when she remained silent. She blinked and then nodded.
"Good," I said.
"There won't be an official engagement party. I don't have time for that, and I don't want us to be seen together in public before you come of age."
"Will I meet your children before we get married? Or see your mansion?"
"No. We won't see each other until November, and you will meet Daniele and Simona the day after our wedding."
"Don't you think it would be nice if we got to know each other before we get married?"
"I don't see how that matters," I said abruptly. He looked away.
"Is there anything else you expect from me other than a wardrobe change?"
I thought about asking her to go on the pill because I didn't want any more children, but I couldn't bring myself to talk about it with a girl her age, which was ridiculous considering I was supposed to take her to bed on my wedding night.
I stood up.
"No. Now you should probably leave before your parents realize we were left alone." She stood up and looked at me for a moment, clasping her elbows between her palms. She turned and left without another word. After she had left, Faro re-entered. He raised his eyebrows.
"What did you say? The girl looked like she was going to cry." My eyebrows twitched.
"Nothing."
"I doubt it, but if you say so."