Page 294 of Hate Mates

I breathe, concentrating on putting myself together.

The knock on the door startles me again.

When it opens, Gustavo is standing there. "Game on."

Dario steps out and offers me his hand. Just three days ago, I would have shoved him out of the way and gone in on myown. Now, I take his hand and smile up at him like a newlywed should.

He leans closer and whispers against my lips, "Stay close to me, always."

We move three steps and I stop abruptly, staring at the building in front of us. "Is that a church?"

A half smile hangs on Dario's lips. "Can't get any more neutral than this."

There are men milling about the front, all in their familia's colors, chatting with each other like they're socializing. We quickly climb the steps of the Romanesque revival building and are ushered in by a man from La Sombra, with the signature hat that shades half his face.

Before the altar, there's a table set with the sixPadres de La Alianza. All turn to look at Dario and me, but my eyes zero in on Ludovico who smiles, like a benign father and not the pimp he's tried to be since my mother died.

"So the two of you created this mess. Tell me why?" La Sombra asks in his grave voice.

"We met a few times and fell in love," Dario says.

His eyes meet mine, and he squeezes my hand in a reassuring gesture meant for our audience. I smile, not too wide, just enough to make the point.

"Why not come to me like a man and ask for Soledad's hand?" Ludovico's tone is soft and calm, but I know him well. The minute we're alone, he would slap me across the room and punish me. That's why I choose my words carefully, but I need to make a point.

"Es mi culpa," I say. "I didn't want to disappoint you. You wanted another type of alliance..."

His eyes go cold. "When did you two supposedly fall in love, Soledad? From my understanding, you couldn't stand theCorderito."

The little lamb, he calls him. Dario tenses next to me.

"I think all that animosity was part of us liking each other. Even though we fought, I couldn't keep my thoughts from him. When he confessed he felt the same at La Muerte's masquerade ball..." My gaze drifts to Dario's again. The smile lights up his face.Has he always been this beautiful?I look away and clear my throat. "Anyway, that's how it happened."

Ludovico rolls his eyes. "How exactly did you feed this romance? There were no text messages or calls between you."

I've always known he monitors my calls and texts. "We saw each other at the library, sometimes at church, or the museum. We both have a shared admiration for the work of Hayez."

Dario let's go of my hand to bring his arm around my waist. The warmth of his body is comforting in ways I don't want to think about but welcome with every tremor shaking my insides.

La Muerte taps the table, his skull tattoo peeking from his sleeve. "I think we heard enough. Go back outside."

The panic begins to bubble up on my throat. I have so many questions.Are they going to send me back?Is it too late to mention we've consummated the marriage?I can't go back.

Dario leads me away, and I hold back my comments for the moment we are alone again. As we descend the church steps, he stops and whispers in my ear, "You're not going back. No one is going to take you from me."

My gaze snaps to meet his. His eyes are earnest. I squeeze his hand.

He looks around and nods to Gustavo who stands in front of our ride. "Let's get inside the car."

We cross the courtyard and almost reach the car when someone calls out my name.

The edge and tone, along with my racing heart, have me spinning toward my sister. MaTe stands in front of us. HerTainaface, as I call it, is set in a look I've never seen before.She's beauty and light, but her bronze features, an homage to our ancestors, is practically boiling. She's wearing a blue fitted dress and heels that are not her style but so painfully familiar.Mami's clothes. But it's the gun in her hand that makes my pulse quicken.

"MaTe, come with us." I extend my hand.

"I'm not going anywhere with you,traidora," she says and spits on the floor in a way that is so Ludovico it breaks my heart.

She called me a traitor.

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