Page 27 of Secret Mafia Daddy

I shove a handful of fifties at him. “Be the witness for my wedding, and I’ll give you another hundred.”

“Hundred and fifty,” the man rasps, and he smells like street and cheap booze but he’s standing, so he’ll do.

“Fine,” I manage through gritted teeth, hauling him up the steps. “I’m Angelo, and you are?”

“Fred,” he says easily, smiling at Catarina. “Are you the bride?”

She nods. “That’s me,” she says weakly, looking Fred up and down.

“This is Fred, he’s my new best friend, my best man even, can we get married now?” I say to the officiant, and she sighs as if I’ve ruined her whole day before she gestures us into a small courtroom.

Fred sits down in the front, whooping, as the officiant gathers herself.

She talks as if she’s underwater, and so slowly that it physically pains me, but we finally get through the I dos and I realize that I haven’t bought her a ring.

I know which ring I’d always thought I’d give my future wife, but my father has it, and well... I don’t want anything to do with my father.

“I’ll buy you any ring you want,” I say to her in a whisper, just before leaning down to kiss her, deeply, putting my arms around her lower back and pressing her to me. I can feel the swell of her ass just below my palms and I want to move my hands lower, but Catarina pulls away, blushing.

“You’re married,” the officiant says flatly.

“Thanks a lot, Rachel.”

“Raquel,” she drawls, and I grab Catarina and get the hell out of there. Fred follows.

“What about my two hundred?” he asks.

“One-fifty,” I answer, and he just stares at me with faded blue eyes, and I groan and press two hundreds into his hand. He grins and walks, albeit unsteadily, down the steps.

“That was...something,” Catarina complains.

“So, it wasn’t perfect,” I say, staring after Fred who had taken all the cash I had on me. “But we’ll have a real wedding soon for your parents.”

Catarina bites her lip. “And a ring?”

“Let’s go,” I tell her, ushering her down the street to a local jewelry store – one that pays protection to Dante.

She looks at all the rings but there’s no real spark in her eye. She finally picks one out, a single carat, and I look at it and frown.

It will do for now as a placeholder, but I’ll have to fix that soon.

12

CATARINA

As soon as the wedding itself is done, we’re off, out of the courthouse like it’s on fire, Angelo pulling me along.

I don’t know why I feel disappointed. It’s not like I want this, but I thought there’d be some kind of fanfare, at least.

Angelo just wants to get back to Chelsea, which would be cute if he was any other man. A man with a different life.

I guess it is still kind of cute.

We return to Dante and Mia’s and pick up Chelsea, and I have to quickly say my goodbyes because Angelo is on the move.

“Why are you always in such a rush?” I complain.

“Because I want to spend every moment I have with my little girl,” he shoots back. “Not like I got the opportunity before this.”

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