Page 89 of Third Degree

“How could you not tell me that Daphne got married toyour dad!”

He laughed this time and gave her a little kiss.

“I was sworn to secrecy. I told them I wouldn’t lie to you, so if you asked, then I would tell you the truth, but—”

“Why would I ask if my friend was fucking your dad?!” Tatum barked at him.

“Ew!” Chels interrupted, and I cracked a little smile.

I looked over at the door that led to the yard and saw Elio there, standing like a god in the night. When he saw me, he gave me a little twist of his lips.

“I don’t like to think about that,” Julian murmured to Tatum, who was quite uncomfortable.

“Ugh. Well, now we are neighbors and practically living with each other, so you’ll just have to deal with it.”

She playfully stuck her tongue out at Julian, then came over to give me a hug.

“Welcome to the family,” she said, casting a glance at Elio, who was beginning to walk back. She smiled briefly before releasing me and shifting her gaze between us. “But I swear to God, if you guys make me call you my mother-in-law, I will fucking vomit.” A pregnant pause hung in the air before we all erupted in laughter.

“Let’s celebrate!” Chelsea exclaimed, turning toward the doors to the garden, where my husband appeared. “Elio, go make us some drinks.”

“With pleasure.” Elio obliged, heading to pour shots of tequila for all of us at the corner bar.

Chelsea stepped over to grab us each a shot before toasting.“Cheers to making me feel horribly single now that two of my friends are married!”

We all laughed.

“Cheers to the new Marchettis!” Maeve corrected.

That night, we enjoyed snacks prepared by Margarita as we gathered around, engaging in lighthearted conversations until exhaustion set in and it was well into the night. Throughout the evening, I remained seated beside Elio.

“Okay, Daph, we should get going,” Tatum reminded me.

I had completely forgotten to correct them about my name, but Elio gave my thigh a supportive squeeze, his hand resting there.

“Wait,” I began. “There’s one more thing.”

Tatum sat back down.

“When I moved out here, I wanted to escape a life that held me back. I didn’t want to be known as the Mafia princess, so I started using my middle name.”

“Oh, fuck, another surprise,” Chelsea blurted out, having indulged in a few too many tequilas. Maeve shot her a warning glance.

“My first name is Gianna, and my middle name is Daphne.”

“Do you want us to call you Gianna?” Maeve asked.

“I know it’s hard to switch names once you’ve already gotten used to one, so I respond to either obviously, but…” I trailed off.

“She prefers Gianna,” Elio simply stated, as though it were an undeniable fact.

“Then we’ll call her that.” Maeve looked at our friends for confirmation, and they all agreed.

“Thank you, guys. It means a lot.”

Our blood family and chosen family soon departed, leaving just Elio and me in the living room. After he closed the door, I rushed toward him, and he swiftly lifted me up.

Mid-chuckle, he glanced down at me. “What was that for?”

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