My breath misted as it left my lips. Even my thick coat could not protect me from Chicago winter. Snow crunched under my boots as I followed my mother down the sidewalk toward the ‘brick building, which housed the most luxurious wedding store in the Midwest. Umberto followed me closely, my constant shadow. Another soldier of my father’s formed the rear guard, behind my sisters.
Revolving brass doors let us into the well-lit interior of the store, and the owner and her two sales clerks immediately welcomed us. “Happy birthday, Mrs. Scuderi,” she said in her cadenced voice.
I forced a smile. My 18th birthday was supposed to be a day of celebration. Instead it just meant that I was another step closer to marriage with Luca. I had not seen him since that night he had cut off Raphael’s finger. He had sent me expensive jewelry for my birthdays, Christmas vacations, Valentine’s Day, and the anniversary of our engagement, but these were our contacts over the past thirty months. I had seen pictures of him with other women on the Internet, but even those would end today when our engagement would be leaked to the press. At least in public he would no longer flaunt his whores.
I didn’t delude myself into thinking he wasn’t still sleeping with them. And I didn’t care. As long as he had other women to fuck, hopefully he wouldn’t think of me that way.
“It’s only six months until your wedding, if I’m correctly informed?” said the store owner. He was the only person who seemed excited. No surprise, really, he would make a lot of money today.
The wedding that marked the ultimate union between the Chicago and New York mobs was to be a splendid event. Money was irrelevant.
I tilted my head. 166 days before I had to trade one gilded cage for another. Gianna gave me a look that let me know what she thought about the matter, but she kept her mouth shut. At sixteen and a half, Gianna had finally learned to contain her outbursts, mostly.
The store owner led us into the dressing room. Umberto and the other remained outside the drawn curtains. Lily and Gianna dropped onto the luxurious white couch while Mother began to browse through the wedding dresses on display. I remained in the center of the room. The sight of all the white tulle, silk, thin fabric, brocade, and what it represented clutched my throat. Soon I would be a married woman . Quotes about love decorated the walls of the dressing room; they seemed a provocation considering the harsh reality that was my life. What was love but a stupid dream?
I could feel the eyes of the store owner and her sales clerks on me, and I straightened my shoulders before reaching my mother. No one could know that I was not the happy bride-to-be, but a pawn in a power game. Finally, the store owner came up to us and showed us her most expensive dresses.
“What kind of dress would your future husband prefer?” she asked politely.
“The naked one,” said Gianna, and my mother gave her a dirty look. I blushed, but the store owner laughed as if it was all too delicious.
“There’s time for that on the wedding night, don’t you think?” She winked.
I took the most expensive dress in the collection, a brocade dream; the bodice was embroidered with pearls and silver threads forming a delicate floral pattern. “Those are platinum threads,” said the store owner. This explained the price. “I think your groom will be pleased with your choice.”
Then she knew him better than I did. Luca was as much a stranger to me today as he had been almost three years ago.
*** The wedding was to take place in the vast gardens of the Vitiello mansion in the Hamptons.
Everyone was already buzzing with preparations. I had not yet set foot in the house or even on the premises, but my mother was keeping me up to date, not that I had asked her to.
By the time my family had arrived in New York a few hours ago, my sisters and I had huddled together in our suite at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Manhattan. Salvatore Vitiello had proposed that we live in one of the villa’s many rooms until the wedding, scheduled for five days from now, but my father had refused. Three years of tentative cooperation and they still didn’t trust each other. I was happy. I did not want to set foot in the villa until it was necessary.
My father had agreed to let me share a suite with Lily and Gianna, so he and mother had a suite to themselves. Of course, a bodyguard was stationed in front of each of the three doors to our suite.
“Do we really have to attend the bachelorette party tomorrow?” asked Lily, her bare legs swinging on the back of the sofa. Mother always said that Nabokov must have had Liliana in mind when he wrote Lolita. While Gianna provoked with her words, Lily used her body for that. She had turned fourteen in April, a child who used her uncertain curves to arouse the enthusiasm of everyone around us.
She resembled teenage model Thylane Blondeau, except her hair was a little lighter and she had no space between her front teeth.
It worried me. I knew that it was her way of rebelling against the gilded cage that was our life, but while Dad’s soldiers regarded her as amused, there were others out there who might want to misunderstand him.
“Of course we must,” murmured Gianna. “Aria is the happy bride, remember?”
Lily huffed. “Sure.” She sat down abruptly. “I’m bored. Let’s go shopping.”
Umberto was not enthusiastic about the proposal, even with another of my father’s bodyguards by his side, he argued that it was almost impossible to keep us under control. Eventually he gave in, as he always had.
*** We were shopping at a store selling sexy rocker clothes that Lily desperately wanted to try on when I got a message from Luca. It was the first time he had contacted me directly, and for a long time I could only stare at my screen. Gianna peeked over my shoulder into the locker room.
“‘See you at your hotel at six o’clock. Luca.” How nice of him to ask me.”
“What does he want?” I whispered. I hoped I wouldn’t have to see him until August 10, our wedding day.
“There’s only one way to find out,” Gianna said, checking her reflection.
*** I was nervous. I hadn’t seen Luca in a long time. I smoothed my hair, then straightened my shirt. Gianna had convinced me to wear the black skinny jeans I had bought today. Now I wondered if something that drew less attention to my body might be better. I still had fifteen minutes before Luca wanted to meet me. I didn’t even know where yet. I thought he would call me once he arrived and ask me to come down to the lobby.
“Stop fiddling,” Gianna said from her seat on the couch, reading a magazine.
“I really don’t think this outfit is a good idea.”
“E. It’s easy to manipulate men. Lily is fourteen and she’s already figured it out. Dad always says we’re the weaker sex because we don’t carry guns around. We have our weapons, Aria, and you’re going to have to start using them. If you want to survive marriage to that man, you will have to use your body to manipulate him. Men, even cold-hearted bastards like them, have a weakness hanging between their legs.
I didn’t think Luca could be manipulated so easily. He didn’t seem like someone who ever lost control unless he wanted to, and I wasn’t really sure I wanted him to notice my body like that.
A jolt jerked me up and my gaze flew to the clock. It was still too early for Luca, and he wasn’t really going up to our suite, was he?
Lily ran out of her bedroom before Gianna and I could even move. She was wearing her rocker-chic outfit, tight leather pants and a tight black T-shirt. She thought she looked so grown up.
Gianna and I thought she looked like a 14-year-old trying too hard.
She opened the door, sticking out her hips, trying to look sexy. Gianna moaned but I paid her no attention.
“Hello Luca,” Lily said. I moved closer so I could see Luca. He was staring at Lily, obviously trying to figure out who she was. Behind him were Matteo, Romero, and Caesar. Wow, he had brought his entourage. Where was Umberto?
“You are Liliana, the younger sister,” Luca said, ignoring Lily’s flirtatious expression.
Lily frowned, “I’m not that young.”
“Yes, you are,” I said firmly, approaching her and putting my hands on her shoulders. She was only a couple of inches smaller than me. “Go to Gianna.”
Lily looked at me incredulously but then bolted.
My pulse quickened as I turned toward Luca. Her gaze lingered on my legs, then slowly moved up to my face. There wasn’t that look in his eyes the last time I had seen him. And I suddenly realized it was a lack. “I didn’t know we were meeting in my suite,” I said, then realized I should have said hello, or at least tried to seem less rude.
“Will you let me in?”
I hesitated, then stepped back and let the men pass me by. Only Caesar remained outside. He closed the door even though I would have preferred to keep it ajar.
Matthew approached Gianna, who immediately sat down and gave him her naughtiest look. Lily obviously smiled at him. “May I see your gun?”
Matteo smiled at her but before she could answer, I said. “No, you can’t.”
I could feel Luca’s eyes on me, lingering on my legs and butt again. Gianna gave me an “I told you so” look. She wanted me to use my body; the problem was that I preferred Luca to ignore my body because everything else terrified me.
“You shouldn’t be here alone with us,” Gianna murmured. “It’s not appropriate.” I almost huffed. As if Gianna gave a damn about appropriateness.
Luca squinted his eyes. “Where is Umberto? Shouldn’t he be guarding this door?”
“He’s probably on a bathroom or cigarette break,” I said, shrugging.
“Does it happen often that he leaves you unprotected?”
“Oh, all the time,” Gianna said mockingly. “You see, Lily, Aria and I sneak out every weekend because we have a bet on who can pick up the most guys.” Lily gave her squeaky laugh.
“I want to have a word with you, Aria,” Luca said, fixing me with his cold stare.
Gianna got up from the sofa and came toward us. “I was kidding, for God’s sake!” she said trying to get between Luca and me, but Matteo grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Lily watched everything with wide eyes, and Romero stood against the door, pretending it didn’t concern him.
“Let me go or I’ll break your fingers,” Gianna growled. Matteo raised his hands with a broad smile.
“Come on,” Luca said, touching my lower back with his hand. I swallowed a gasp. If he noticed, he didn’t comment. “Where’s your bedroom?”
My heart pounded as I nodded toward the door on the left. Luca led me in that direction, ignoring Gianna’s protests. “I’m going to call our father! You can’t do that.
We entered my bedroom and Luca closed the door. I couldn’t help but be afraid. Gianna shouldn’t have said those things. The moment Luca confronted me, I said, “Gianna was joking. I haven’t even kissed anyone yet, I swear. At the admission, heat rose in my face, but I didn’t want Luca to be upset about something I hadn’t even done.
Luca’s gray eyes held me back with their intensity. “I know.”
My lips parted. “OH. Then why are you angry?”
“Do I seem angry?”
I decided not to answer.
He smiled. “You don’t know me very well.”
“It’s not my fault,” I muttered.
He touched my chin and I turned into a pillar of salt. “You’re like a wayward doe in the clutches of a wolf.” Little did he know how close this came to what I thought of him. “I’m not going to mistreat you.”
I must have looked doubtful because he gave a small laugh, lowering his head to mine.
“What are you doing?” I whispered nervously.
“I won’t take you if that’s what you’re worried about. I can wait a few more days.
After all, I waited three years.
I couldn’t believe he said that. Of course, I knew what was expected of a wedding night, but I had almost convinced myself that Luke was not interested in me in that way. “Last time you called me a baby .”
“But you’re not a baby anymore,” Luca said with a predatory smirk. His lips were less than an inch from mine. “You’re making this really difficult. I can’t kiss you if you look at me like that.”
“Then maybe I should give you that look on our wedding night,” I challenged.
“Then maybe I’ll have to take you from behind so I don’t have to see it.”
My face fell and I stumbled, slamming my back against the wall.
Luca shook his head. “Relax. I was joking,” he said quietly. “I’m not a monster.”
“Aren’t you?”
His expression hardened, and he straightened up, straightening to his full height again. I regretted my words, even though they were the truth. “I wanted to discuss the matter of your protection with you,” he said in a formal, emotionless voice. “Once you move into my penthouse after the wedding, Caesar and Romero will be responsible for your safety. But I want Romero by your side until then.”
“I have Umberto,” I protested, but he shook his head. “Apparently, he’s taking too many bathroom breaks. Romero won’t leave your side from now on.”
“Will he also watch me while I shower?”
“If I want him to.”
I lifted my chin, trying to quell my anger. “Would you let another man see me naked? You really have to trust that Romero won’t take advantage of the situation.
Luca’s eyes flamed. “Romero is loyal.” He approached. “Don’t worry, I’ll be the only man to see you naked. I can’t wait.” His eyes traveled down my body.