Page 57 of Ruined in Vows

“Cut the sarcasm, asshole. Now let’s get this shit in motion. I have a wife and child to get home to,” he drawls, his tone serious with a hint of longing.

I know exactly how he is feeling, because I feel it too.

Being away from myprincipessathis last month has been hell. I can’t wait to get her back in my arms. To hold her. Love her. I glance down at my ring finger once more, gently rubbing over the blackA, a smile curving my lips, excitement stirring in my gut.

It’s time to go home.

Finally.

“Let’s do this, Nic. I also havemywoman to get back to.” Determination laces every word that leaves my mouth.

He huffs a laugh. “My sister is not yours until we figure out Riccardo’s involvement.”

Instead of the usual resentment I feel about that, I just smile wider.

“She has and always will be mine. The sooner we do this the better. I will await your signal,” I say, ending the call and making my way up to the bedroom to start my usual routine.

This whole charade feels pointless, but nothing can appear to be out of place.

Standing in front of the mirror, I grip the sink, staring at the man staring back at me.

Usually I see confusion and defeat.

Tonight, all I see is clarity and peace.

I see a man I can’t remember but somehow know it's who I used to be.

I see.

Dante Vitale.

Chapter 35

Allegra

Mamma, Ocean, Romeo, and I sit in the lounge, watching the little man play with his toys as we try to distract ourselves from what is currently happening in Las Vegas. My anxiety is in overdrive, heart beating out of control, as we await news from my brother or Dante.

If all goes as expected, today is the day we finally bring my man home.

After a couple of weeks of being back on the East Coast and speaking on the phone regularly, Dante decided he couldn’t keep up the charade of his fake marriage or be away from me.

Despite not regaining his memories, the more we spoke, the more Dante had small flashbacks of parts of our time together. It’s not ideal - I want more than anything for him to remember everything - but I’m realistic enough to know that it might never happen. It’s a working process, and hopefully when he comes home, the specialist doctor that Nico has recruited to work with Dante will help him further.

Honestly, I am grateful for the progress he is making, but it kills me to think he might never remember our whole story.

A hand, wrapping around mine, drags me from my erratic thoughts.

Glancing over, I find Mamma smiling softly at me. “Everything is going to work out, honey. Have faith.”

“What if something goes wrong?” I voice my concern.

“YourFratelloknows what he is doing,mia figlia,” she soothes, brushing my hair from my face.

“Mamma is right, Allegra. You know how calculated Nico is. He will have meticulously planned every part of the mission and have contingencies in place.” Ocean smiles, stroking small circles on her swollen stomach.

To say I was shocked that my brother would leave his wife to oversee this operation to extract Dante is an understatement. I knew it was happening, I just assumed he would send his best men instead of going himself. He rarely leaves Ocean or Romeo alone now. And if he does, it's only when he has business meetings in the city. They usually only last for a couple of hours at most, so even then he isn’t away long. With my sister-in-law being pregnant, and Nico missing her grow with his son, it’s clear he doesn’t want to miss a moment of it. While Ocean would call it overbearing, I call it cute. One word I never thought I would associate with my brother, but here we are. He is still the big scary mafia boss he has always been, but I have definitely seen a change in him. A softer side since Ocean came into his life.

Exhaling, I force a smile. “I know. But things can always go wrong, no matter how much you prepare for them.”

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