Page 134 of Vows of a Mobster

He grinned. “I thought so too.”

My fingers traced his slight stubble of a beard, then moved to his lips, lingering there. They were soft, curved with determination. He was breathtakingly beautiful. He looked like he was in his late thirties instead of his late forties. His appearance was so hard, strong, and dominating, but also protective. Nobody would ever compare to him and these feelings that grew on their own, whether I wanted them to or not… I knew they wouldn’t go away.

“It feels right to me,” he murmured against my thumb, taking a little nip at it. “Does it feel right to you, amore?”

“Yes,” I whispered and my fate was sealed.

* * *

Mateo and Antonio left for the office later that morning, leaving Marissa barking orders at everyone in an effort to make things happen for the engagement dinner and the wedding. She was bossing someone over the phone, giving them very precise measurements of how she wanted tables set up at the restaurant.

“She’s going way overboard,” I muttered under my breath so only Daphne would hear me. She has been doing this all day and it was nearly four in the afternoon.

She just rolled her eyes and retorted, “You think? How many people are going to show up for a wedding that is in two days?”

“There’ll be hundreds of people coming,” Marissa growled at both of us.

Daphne nudged me, mouthingshe’s crazy,and we both giggled.

“Mommy, will we live here forever now?” Emma’s voice pulled both Daphne and my attention to her little form. She was a tiny bit pale but felt so much better.

“Yes,” I answered her. “But we’ll still be visiting our cottage.”

She grinned, happy at that response.

“No, no,” Marissa was growling over the phone. “I said the entire terrace. The whole place should be reserved only for our party.”

“I can’t take this anymore,” I mumbled under my breath. “I’m going to get some fresh air.”

Marissa was taking this whole engagement and wedding a bit too far. She wanted it to be this grand affair, like it was in the works for months. I told her a small wedding was perfectly fine. For all I cared, it could have been just Mateo, Emma and I, with Marissa, Daphne, and Antonio as witnesses. That would have been fine by me.

“You know she loves doing this.” Daphne trailed behind me, while Emma skipped around us.

“I know,” I told her on exhale. “But she’s going a bit overboard. She has been on the phone from the moment Mateo told her we are getting married. She’s acting like a bridezilla and she’s not even the bride!”

We shared a glance and chuckled. “Can you imagine how she’ll be when she gets married?” Daphne asked jokingly.

“Good God, it is actually scaring me,” I admitted, teasing. “Hope she selects you for maid of honor because I can’t handle that kind of pressure.”

“Is that why you decided no maid of honor for you?” she questioned me.

I stopped and turned to her. “No, it was because I wanted both of you to be it. I love you both equally and can’t choose.” She smiled but I knew she understood. “Besides, I just want people I love there. As long as you both are there, I consider you both my maids of honor.”

“Brianna.” A man’s voice had my head whipping around.

“Marcus.” I was surprised to see him. I even felt a bit bad since I haven’t spoken to him since that morning in Mateo’s office. “How are you?”

He didn’t look that great. The rounded bump on his forehead was only highlighted by the deep purple and black bruise that seemed to make a trail to his grotesquely swollen eye. The dark bruise had begun to fade to the sickly yellow beneath his eye signaling that the healing process had begun. While he may have been physically well built, he didn't strike me as the type to get into a confrontation, much less an actual fight.

“I wanted to talk to you.” He glanced at Daphne. “Alone.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Daphne responded. I frowned at that. She never usually answered for me.

“It’s fine, Daphne. Do you mind taking Emma to the playground please?”

She gave me a look, clearly telling me she didn’t agree, but what harm could it do to talk to Marcus? After all, he gave me a job when I needed it so I owed him that much.

“I’ll be right behind you, Daphne.” I looked at her pointedly.