Page 7 of Cherished Union

“I. Wasn’t. Told,” I say, punctuating every word.

Rocco swings his gaze to Mama. “You didn’t tell her?”

Vivi, who’s dressed in a horrendous light green dress, smiles widely at me. “I think you look beautiful, Ade.”

“As do you, Vivi,” I reply with a smile. “You look like an elfish imp.”

Dario puts a fist to his mouth and coughs, trying to hide his amusement.

“She does not,” Mama hisses.

“Natalia, she does so,” Nonna says as she shuffles into the room, linking her arm through Elio’s. “You have such ugly taste. The poor bambina needs to wear dresses that are appropriate for her age.”

My nonna is the absolute shit. She doesn’t care what Mama or Papa say to her; she makes it known that she disagrees with them for the way they treat Vivi and I. My nonna is the OG mafia wife. Nonno was the boss before Papa. She knows how hard it is to be in this life and she wants her grandchildren to have a life they love.

Vivi just smiles. She hates the dresses Mama makes her wear but doesn’t say a word about them. She appreciates when Nonna tells Mama how hideous they really are.

“I’m not listening to this. Adelina, go upstairs and change right now,” Mama hisses at me.

“Into what exactly?” I question. “Anything I put on you’ll just have a problem with. You never told me what was happening today. Had you, I would have been prepared.”

“Ade,” Rocco warns, and I know he’s telling me to be quiet and not answer back. “Just go on upstairs and change.”

I grit my teeth, annoyed that I’m being spoken to as though I’m seven.

“Adelina,” Papa shouts, and I sigh. I don’t have time to change. Great, now I’ll never hear the end of it.

“Vivi is right,mia dolce bambina, sei bellissima.”

I grin at her. “Grazie, Nonna,” I kiss her cheek as I walk past her, toward my father’s office.

The moment I step into the room, he glares at me. The distaste in his eyes makes me shudder.

“Adelina,” Hayden says, his voice thick with a slight hint of an Irish accent. I turn my gaze from my disappointed father to the man I’m set to marry. His dark hair is long and tied at his nape, and his stubble covers his jaw and lips, making him look ruggedly handsome. His steely brown eyes hold a lot of anger, but also I see a glint of lust in them. “You look beautiful,” he tells me.

Heat spreads through my cheeks at his words. “Thank you,” I respond a little breathily. “You look handsome.” I give him a genuine smile, and I’m shocked when he returns it. Not only does it make him look even more gorgeous, my stomach fills with butterflies, a feeling I have never felt before.

“Adelina, you knew Hayden was coming today. You could have at least made an effort,” my father snarls at me, his fists clenched, and his eyes filled with anger.

“Aldo,” Hayden says in a bored voice. “If you’d excuse us,” he says, and my eyes widen.

No one tells my father what to do, but to my surprise, my father gets up from his chair and leaves Hayden and I alone in his office.

Once my father has left, I turn to Hayden, suddenly feeling self-conscious and very aware of how tall and imposing he is. He’s taller than I remember, standing at six-feet-four.

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a black velvet box. “This is yours,” he says thickly as he pulls out a beautiful engagement ring. It’s platinum gold, with a huge princess cut diamond in the center that’s surrounded by smaller ones, which then move onto the band. It’s so pretty.

“Thank you,” I tell him, my eyes wide as I stare at him while he places the ring on my finger. “It’s beautiful.”

“You don’t seem to be wanting this union. I assumed all Italian women born into this life would want this day?”

“I’m not most women, Hayden. I despise being a pawn in a power play. To be only considered useful for my looks.”

He nods, seemingly satisfied by my answer. “Then you’ll understand that I don’t want this union either.”

I nod. I’ve known that, just as Rocco and Jade don’t want theirs either.

“But we are getting married, and when we do, you’ll be moving to Indiana. What do you plan to do when you’re there?”

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