Page 18 of The Vatican
“Luca, Francisco will be good to you,” Uncle Luca insisted.
I choked out an angry laugh. “Oh, just what every girl wants; a man who will treat her right because his daddy told him he better.”
“Saveria, you know better than that,” Dad bit out, clearing not knowing how to handle my spiraling emotions.
I shook my head. “You guys have spent my entire life showing me what unconditional love is, only to saddle me with a husband who’s just doing his duty. Francisco doesn’t love me. He tolerates me on the best of days. Why would you guys do this to me?” I could hear the hysteria bubbling up in my voice. “Why would you…subject me to a marriage where my husband is probably going to spend all his time at The fucking Sapphire?!”
“Saveria, that’s enough!” Dad yelled. “You’re being unfair.”
My watery eyes nearly popped out of my head. “I’mbeing unfair? Are you serious, right now?” None of the men commented. “If this is such a great idea, and Francisco is such a fucking catch, why not tell me? Why keep it a secret?”
“Saveria, we will only tolerate your disrespect for so long,” Dad remarked, rather than answer my questions. “You will watch how you speak to us.”
I was in-fucking-furiated.
“You spent my entire life lying to me and manipulating me for a desired outcome that you three decided on years ago, and you want to talk tomeabout disrespect?”
“Luca-”
“Don’t,” I snarled, hurt and betrayal squeezing every chamber of my heart.
The problem with all this was that I knew Francisco was serious when he said it’d be him or no one. He’d kill anyone who got in the way of what he wanted. He was a Benetti, after all. If his mind was set on having me, and he had the backing of our families, I was done for.
I looked at my dad, and my heart felt like it was being shattered into a million pieces. “You won’t be walking me down the aisle.” His chest caved. “There will be no wedding.”
“Ria-”
I shut Uncle Ciro down. “There’ll be a marriage, but no wedding,” I clarified. “Tell His Highness, when he’s ready, we can get married here.” I didn’t bother to soften the resentment in my eyes. “After all, this where you guys shake hands on all your business deals, right?”
My dad stepped towards me. “Saveria, I know you’re angry-”
“You wish I was angry, Dad,” I corrected him. “I’m not angry. I’m past angry.” I glance at all of them. “You men run this organization on the principles of loyalty and family, but what you did to me was the complete opposite.” The tears started running out of control down my face. “I’ve never felt so betrayed by anyone in all my life.” Each man looked like he’d been sucker punched, but I didn’t care.
They didn’t deserve my mercy.
I turned to walk out of the office, but I wasn’t done shredding my relationship with my family. I turned in the doorway and said, “I will never forgive you for this. Oh, and you guys can tell your wives they no longer need to pretend to give a shit about me, when it’s clear that all any of you care about is what’s best foryou.” I slammed the door behind me.
Once I made it to the reception area of Uncle Luca’s floor, Mica stepped in line with me as I entered the elevator. I stabbed the button for the bottom floor and started wiping at my tears.
“Ria-”
“Don’t, Mica,” I cried out brokenly. “I’m barely hanging on by a thread here. Please…just don’t.”
“What do you need from me?” Mica’s been with me since I was fifteen. He was only ten years older than me, but he was an old soul. He was also ruthless as hell. It’s why he’d been assigned to me.
“Did you know?” I whispered, afraid of the answer.
“Everyone knew, Ria,” he admitted sadly. “Everyone but you.”
I stared at the elevator doors. “I’m such a fool.”
“Ria, I don’t necessarily agree with how this was played out, but…come on, Ria. You had to have known,” Mica said. “On some unconscious level, you had to have known what you were being groomed for. If you were never going to become Boss, what else could you become but Francisco’s wife?”
I hated how he made sense.
I hated how it seemed so obvious now.
I hated how they took my chance at love away from me.
