Page 68 of Bratva Bride

She flushed with embarrassment, her face turning red as she realised she was referring to other women on my wedding day. In front of my new wife.

"Of course. Of course." She waved a hand in the air and moved in front of Illayana. She ran her eyes up and down her body briefly before stepping forward and enveloping her in a tight hug. "My dear, you are even more beautiful than my boys described."

Illayana shifted her gaze to the floor. She always seemed to get uncomfortable whenever anyone paid her a compliment.

"Thank you, Mrs De Luca."

"Oh please, none of that nonsense. Call me Isabella."

Illayana smiled, joy seeming to radiate off her in waves.

I felt something pull on my slacks and I looked down to see Lucian tugging on my pants, trying to gain my attention. I crouched down to his height and watched as he placed his little hands on either side of my head and turned it to the side so he could whisper in my ear.

"Can I give her the present now?" He cupped a hand around his mouth in an attempt to keep the conversation between us but unfortunately for him, his voice didn't get that memo.

My eyes darted to Illayana, who was watching us intently. Her face was soft, filled with an emotion that I couldn't quite place.

I tousled his hair and gave him a little nudge in her direction. "Go ahead."

He scowled at me and tried to fix his hair first, patting it down and smoothing it over until he was satisfied before moving to stand in front of Illayana. She immediately lowered herself to his height, not caring at all that her dress could get dirty.

Lucian bit his lip nervously as he reached into his little suit jacket and pulled out her blade. "I'm Lucian," he whispered shyly, looking down at his feet.

Illayana gripped his chin lightly and forced him to look back up at her. She smiled broadly, her face lighting up with happiness. "Hi Lucian. I'm Illayana. It's so nice to meet you. I've always wanted a little brother."

He smiled, showing his missing two front teeth. The nervousness seemed to fade from him as he offered her the knife. Frowning, she reached forward and took her blade. She held it up in the air, admiring it. Recognition flashed on her face.

"This is beautiful, little one. Is it for me?"

Lucian’s bright blue eyes connected with mine first, as if searching for approval. I nodded in encouragement. He smiled at her, nodding enthusiastically.

"Thank you, Lucian. I love it. I'll carry it with me wherever I go." She twirled it between her fingers a few times before she took out the blade in her ankle holster and replaced it with that one. She tossed the knife into the air, the blade landing in her palm, before offering the hilt to Lucian.

"For me?" he breathed in shock.

Just before his little fingers were able to wrap around the hilt, she pulled it back slightly out of reach. "For you, little one. But it's very sharp and could hurt someone if you don't know how to use it properly." She tilted her head to the side, studying him. "Do you?"

He stood up straighter, trying to make himself seem older than his nine years. "Yes. I can hit the target board when we practice," he said proudly.

She smiled affectionately and handed the knife over. "That's good. Maybe one day we can practice together. You can show me some moves."

"Okay!" He smiled broadly before grasping the knife and running off to show our parents. Vin gave us both a wink before chasing after him.

Theodora was nowhere to be seen and I could only guess she'd gotten herself into trouble and was in timeout. Something our mother loved to do to us whenever we misbehaved. She'd stick us in a corner with a bodyguard watching over us. If we tried to move, the guard had permission to put us back in place.

"Your little brother is so fucking cute," Illayana commented.

"And he bloody knows it, too."

Another group of people made their way over to us and I stiffened. Illayana noticed the change in me and her brows furrowed.

Shit.

Gabriella and her parents were standing in front of us. Of course, I knew they would be here. Gabriella’s father was one of our Capos after all. But still, I wasn’t looking forward to seeing her. Her reaction when she found out I wouldn’t be marrying her was quite the tantrum, so I heard. She swore. She threw things. She screeched at the top of her lungs. Which was quite unexpected, I admit. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think she had that behaviour in her. But from what several of my men told me, she had a dark, venomous side that emerged when she found out I wasn’t going to marry her.

Turns out, she thought the right of being married to the future head of the Cosa Nostra was hers, considering she had put her life on hold for six years waiting for me.

“Congratulations, Arturo,” she said sweetly, showing none of the venom that I heard she possessed. Her brown hair was done up nicely in an elegant updo, her brown eyes staring daggers at my new wife. It didn’t slip past me that she was wearing a stunning white floor-length gown, either.

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