Page 61 of Claiming His Mafia Princess

“Rufino, good to see you, man.”

Mas and Celso come say hello next, then Tuomo.

Tuomo grins at me. “Are we going to witness you giving dad any lectures tonight?” He chuckles.

“Oh stop. I don’t want any drama tonight.” I punch him in the shoulder, and he fakes an injury just as well as the soccer players do.

Nev and I walk through the house towards the living room. Mas hands us each a drink when we enter. Gin for me and whiskey for Nev.

My father is sitting on the sofa near the patio doors. He stands up, looking unsure about whether he can come over and say hello.

I let go of Nev’s hand, and he throws me an encouraging smile.

I walk right up to my father. Holding my head high. Smiling, but feeling weary in my heart.

“Dad.”

“Lila.” He says, nervous and tense.

“Here.” I hand him a pearl white envelope. The paper has a shimmer to it that catches the light when you move it. He doesn’t notice the shimmer as he stares down at the embossed outline of his name on the front. “What is this?”

“Open it.” I say, gesturing my hand towards it.

His jaw muscles clench and unclench as he works the top of the envelope free. Folding it back, he dips his fingers inside to grab the pieces of folded paper.

He slides it out and places it on top of the envelope, unfolding it, glancing up at me as his eyes catch mine. I see the thick tension running in the lines across his aged face.

He looks back down at the unfolded piece of paper and breathes a heavy sigh of relief.

You are invited to join us on our wedding day - to celebrate this special moment with us.

He swallows back his emotions and pulls me into his arms.

I lean against him, not hugging back, but also not pushing him away.

What he did still causes me a great deal of pain, but I need to let it go, and move on.

I need to be grateful for the good that came out of it rather than focusing on the trauma.

My dad lets me go and looks into my eyes.

“Thank you, sweetheart. I will be there.” He nods, then folds the paper back and slips it into his jacket pocket. Patting it once.

Sitting at the table, I look around at my brothers.

“Hey, guys, when is at least one of you going to get a girlfriend, so I don’t have to be the only woman at these things?” I huff in annoyance, lifting my hands in the air dramatically.

They all laugh.

“We have a bet that Mas will be the first to get a girl.” Celso says.

“Bullshit. When do I have time for women? I am not interested in that drama.” Mas shakes his head, adamant that he is not the type of man who falls in love.

Celso laughs and points at Tuomo. “The other twin then.” He states. Tuomo throws him a glare that might be sharper than daggers.

His icy stare has Celso shifting in his seat and then rolling his eyes.

Mas chuckles. “It’ll be Red.”

---