Page 94 of Mafia Daddy's Christmas Bride

The woman who made Roman smile. The woman he loved so deeply that her death turned him into the hardened man I married.

What would she think of this arrangement?

Of my sleeping in her bed, wearing her husband's ring, trying to mother her daughter?

Elena looks at me directly. "That's why everyone was shocked when he agreed to marry you. We all thought he'd never let another woman close again."

I swallow hard. "I’m not close to him. Besides, it wasn't his choice. Or mine."

"He could have refused. Taken the consequences." She smiles. “He must have seen something in you worth saving.”

This tells me two things. She knows why we married and, well, the second… I’m not sure what that means. I can’t imagine that Roman sees anything in me but a traitor.

"He doesn't trust me," I admit.

Elena shrugs. "Trust is earned in our world, not given. Emilia had years to build that with him." She leans forward, her voice softening. "Don't compare yourself to a ghost, Isabella. You'll never win that battle."

I nod knowing she’s right. I’ll never be Emilia. Roman will never love me, not even a little bit.

"I shouldn’t tell you this, but I heard Dom and Marco talking the other day, and Marco was expressing concern that Roman was getting too attached to you."

I practically snort. “He’d be wrong about that.”

"He's worried Roman's feelings for you might cloud his judgment when it comes to La Corona business."

I stare at her, unable to form a response. Roman, having feelings for me? The same man who'd looked at me with such cold fury that I was sure I wouldn’t survive the night?

“You can assure Marco that Roman’s loyalties are firmly with him and La Corona. Should the time come that I—” I stop myself from ruining the day by discussing my own assassination.

Her eyes soften in sympathy. “There are rules these men live by, Isabella. I know it’s not the life you wanted, but if you toe the line, you can live safely under Roman and Marco’s protection. And of all the men to be tied to, marrying the only one who’s shown he knows how to love isn’t such a bad thing.”

There was a time I’d have believed that. That time is gone, but I don’t say that. “You’re right.”

Elena tilts her head, studying me. "Could you love him, Isabella? If things were different?"

The question catches me off guard. My mind flashes to Roman's gentleness with Angelica, his unexpected kindness in giving me space to design, the way his touch made me feel alive for the first time in years.

"There was a moment," I admit, even as I don’t want to, "when something passed between us that felt… real." I shake my head, angry at my own vulnerability. "But what does it matter? I'm not free to choose. Neither is he."

"We're never truly free in this life," Elena says. "The question is whether we can find happiness within our constraints."

"How can I be happy with a man who holds all the power?" I challenge. "Roman decides whether I live or die. He controls every aspect of my existence." I look at Elena, willing her tounderstand even as I know I’m doing myself more harm if she reports my words to La Corona. "Roman makes sure I know that he's the enforcer and my life exists now only because he allows it."

Elena's eyes widen slightly, but she doesn't seem surprised. "Has he hurt you?"

I shake my head. "Not physically. The worst part is, I can't even hate him for it. He's protecting his family, his daughter. In his position, I might do the same."

Elena watches me with knowing eyes. “Look, I know how scary Roman can be, but I still stand by my statement that of all the men in our world, he’s the one who knows love. If there was something there, you can build on it if you truly want to.”

She means if I become subservient and give up the pieces of myself that make me.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

She grins. "We should meet for lunch sometime. Gabriella, you know, Don Monti’s daughter, we get together every now and then. You’re in the family now. You might as well join in the fun."

A friendship with Elena could be exactly what I need. A connection to someone who understands the plight of women in La Corona.

Clearly, she moves freely through this world, respected as Dominic's cousin. If anyone could help me find a path to some semblance of freedom, it might be her.