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Even though she wasn’t raised alongside us, she is our little sister after all.
And Alessandro is theDon.
Does she even understand what that means?
Our father raises an eyebrow at me, clearly surprised by the question.
We haven’t spoken much about her.
He leans back further into his chair, folding his arms across his chest as his eyes flicker to the side, thinking.
“Alessandro is a good man.” He says slowly, his voice much more firm now. “We have had our differences, but he hasalwaysstood in our corner. He has treated my daughter well, and he has been looking out for her since the moment she was sent away. And though he doesn’t say it directly, I know there’s something there between them. I see it in his actions. He loves her, in his own way, and he will protect her, like he always has. I trust him to keep her safe.”
I feel the weight of his words sitting heavily on my chest.
I look over at Mikhail again, knowing that we’re thinking the same thing.
Love.
It’s a powerful thing.
I look back to our father, and I realise that he’s waiting for our responses.
Mikhail nods first, breaking the silence.
“As long as she’s happy, we’ll have to accept it. It’s her life, after all, not ours.”
I nod, agreeing with him.
There’s no use in arguing against him.
Since Alessandro is already a part of her life, I’m sure she’ll have a good understanding of the type of man that he is.
And as long as he is good to her, that’s all that matters.
We all fall silent again, but it’s a comfortable silence now.
Soon after, we change the subject once more, now talking about business matters.
But for some reason, I can’t shake the thought of our little sister, of the love she will receive, and the life she will live.
And as we move on to other matters, I catch Mikhail’s gaze once more as a silent agreement passes between us.
We’ll protect them both, our sister, and our woman, exactly how we’ve promised to.
We took longer than we hoped for, but at least we’re home now.
The air inside feels different, like it always does after we’ve been away for some time.
As soon as Mikhail and I step through the doors, we’re hit with the wind of laughter, and that familiar melodic sound tugs at something deep inside me.
Chiara.
I glance over at my brother, and together, we both head towards the source of the sound without even uttering a word.
As we round the corner, I spot her.
She’s sitting with our father, laughing so freely beside our father that it makes something in my chest tighten.