Page 13 of Arranged

My dad isn’t here.

Everything that’s happened to our family in the past seven years has stemmed from the killing of my dad and uncle by our rival family, the Cicariellos. After that, Leo took over as the head of the family from his father, and my brothers and cousins all stepped up into new roles as well. My uncles decided to step aside and let Leo run the businesses, knowing it was time for the younger generation to take over.

I’m not privy to the ins and outs of everything they do, but I do know that our family is the one every organization wants a piece of and tries to take down. Especially in the last few years.

Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath, and open them again to look at the woman staring back at me.

You can do this.

You’re strong.

You will survive this.

He doesn’t own you.

You have the power.

I check my watch again and sigh. Six more minutes.

There’s a knock at my bedroom door. “Mia, are you almost ready?” my mom asks.

I roll my eyes. I’m the one in this place that has kept track of everything since my dad died, so she should know I’m well aware of what time it is. But of course, I don’t dare tell my mom everything I truly wish to.

Grabbing my purse, I open my bedroom door and look my mother in the eye. “I’m ready.”

She peruses me from head to toe and back. “Good choice.” She nods, appreciating the relatively modest black dress I chose to wear with sheer pantyhose and black heels. “Although, I think a little color would have been nice.”

“I thought black was quite fitting seeing as it’s a funeral of sorts I’m walking into, don’t you think?”

“Don’t be so dramatic, Mia,” she says harshly, surprising me. “You’re meeting your husband, not burying him.”

Regret seeps into me, and I kiss my mom’s cheek as I pass her. “Sorry, mom.”

“Mmhmm,” she hums. “You know, if your father were alive, he’d be proud of you.”

I turn around so fast, a wave of dizziness hits me, and I blink rapidly to get myself under control. I’m so sick of being the peacekeeper in this house that I find myself being brutally honest for once. “If dad were here, and I was in this same situation, I wouldn’t want him to be proud of me. I’d be mad as hell at him. Don’t try and tell me how he’d feel if he were here again. You should concern yourself with what you’re going to do when I’m not living here anymore.”

“I think I’ll survive,” she spits back, a fire in her eyes I haven’t seen in a long time. She really has no idea how much I’ve done for her since my dad died. Or, if she does, she doesn’t see it as significant enough to make an impact on her life when I’m gone.

I’m once again reminded that I’m simply an afterthought to everyone in my immediate family.

Fine.

Just fine.

Nico can deal with her from now on.

Without saying another word, I walk out of the apartment that’s felt like a chain around my ankle for the past few years, keeping me on a short leash. And now, as I rattle the chain, I feel it loosen its grip as the elevator descends and I inch closer to the next chain waiting to tether me in place – Santino Antonucci.

Closing my eyes, I let my mind wander to my sexy stranger, and my body tingles, almost like I can still feel his warm breath against my ear telling me everything he wants to do to me.

His parting words,I’ll find you again, my little butterfly, ring in my ears as the elevator dings and the doors slide open on the third floor. I know they’re all here, waiting for me, but my feet remain planted.

Do you think your husband would mind sharing you?

I’ll find you again, my little butterfly.

There will be no sharing and there will be no more seeing.

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