Page 54 of Romi

All my Love

Romi xxx

After rereading the final words, I clutched the note to my chest and closed my eyes in relief.

Romi really did love me.

And he was right, of course. We couldn’t run. At least not yet. Now that I had calmed down, I was able to think more rationally, and I knew the best thing to do was get this arranged marriage called off, somehow.

“Trust Romi and your family, dear,” Nonna said, taking my hands in hers and kissing me lightly on the forehead.

“We all love you, including Miki.”

I huffed and pouted; it didn’t feel that way.

“Things are difficult right now, and Miki thought he was doing the right thing for our family and the alliance. When all of these attacks are over, and he has prevailed, he will be more amenable to listening to you. So will Glowacki. These agreements are not easily broken, but Janusz Glowacki’s not an unreasonable man; I am sure another arrangement can be found. Running is not the answer; we will find a way,” she told me, squeezing my hands.

Squeezing hers back, I nodded, desperately wanting to believe her.

“Now freshen up and come downstairs. The Glowacki’s are here and are joining us for dinner. Why don’t you speak to Dariusz when you get the chance and see what he thinks of this arrangement? Maybe he will be against it too, and you will have an ally in getting Miki and Janusz to call it off?” she said, smiling.

My eyes lit up at the prospect. Why hadn’t I thought of that?

“Great idea, Nonna. I’ll do just that,” I said, hugging her tightly.

A short while later, I headed downstairs to our large living room, where all our guests had congregated.

The minute I stepped inside the room, Miki pulled me into a corner.

“Why were you crying before?” he asked.

Really?

“You know why! I do not want to marry Dariusz,” I seethed, glaring at the young man who seemed entirely oblivious to me and our predicament.

“He hasn’t been informed yet,” Miki said, and I turned my gaze back to him.

“So, you just made this arrangement, the two of you, without consulting either of us?” I asked, my voice rising sharply.

“Keep your voice down. Glowacki will tell him soon,” Miki said, pulling me further away from the others.

“You will do what needs to be done for the family and the alliance, Sonia. Just like the rest of us have to do things to keep this family safe, so do you!” he stated firmly before his eyes softened, and he continued more gently, “It may not seem so right now, but I do want you to be happy. Dariusz is a good man, Sonia; I am sure a marriage between you both will work out well; otherwise, I would never have allowed such an arrangement.”

It didn’t matter how good a man Dariusz was; he wasn’t the man I wanted. My heart belonged to another.

I would not give Romi up, no matter what. I lifted my chin and glared at my infuriating brother.

“I am not doing it. Find an alternative!” I said between clenched teeth, just barely holding back from screaming at him and smacking him upside the head until he saw the error of his ways.

Oh, I so wanted to do that, but I held my emotions in check. Attacking Miki, especially in front of our guests, would not only be disrespectful to him as pakhan but also completely undermine his authority at a time when he needed to appear fully in control. So, instead, I bit my tongue and turned away in disgust. I heard him sigh heavily as I made my way over to join Gracie, my head held high. Nothing would make me marry against my will, and the sooner he understood that, the better.

My eyes scanned the room, searching for the love of my life. Relief flooded me when I saw him standing with Ash and Daniel, staring at me. The minute our eyes met, his lips lifted in a slight smile, and he winked at me. Suddenly, everything was right with my world again—well, for that brief second, anyway.

The stolen glances we shared throughout dinner helped to heal my wounded heart, and I felt so much calmer afterwards. I even managed to eat a few bites.

Not long after, Glowacki and his son Daniel left with Ash to go to the C to be ready for the lab attack tomorrow. As expected, Romi remained here with Dariusz. Unfortunately, he was busy and surrounded by people, so we couldn’t manage to snatch any more alone time, and the evening dragged by

However, when he went off to stage another pretend attack on one of Glowacki’s businesses, I finally managed to corner Dariusz. I was aware he’d had a private chat with his dad and brother before they had left for the C, so I figured he had to know about the situation by now.

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