Page 3 of Vows of a Mobster

“No,” I answered curtly.

Thankfully, at least Angelica had enough fucking sense to book the private box. We made our way to it, my two men trailing behind. I bet Antonio was pissing his pants, trying to stifle his laughter.

“Hi there,” Angelica was greeting the couple next door to us enthusiastically. She was desperate to be seen with me. Why in the fucking hell did women always want more?

I took my seat, tuning out Angelica and ignoring the couple next door that curiously gawked over my way. I glanced at the brochure laid out in front of me to see what in the hell was playing tonight? I hoped it was the shortest version of whatever the fuck was coming on.

* * *

Giselle, a romantic ballet, a tragic love story of a beautiful young peasant girl who falls for the flirtations of the deceitful and disguised nobleman. When all is revealed, the fragile Giselle dies of heartbreak.

* * *

I groaned inwardly.Shit!And it consisted of two damn acts.

The lights dimmed, which forced Angelica and everyone else to take their seats. The stage was lit, and I focused my eyes on it although my mind was anywhere but here.

A young woman came onto the stage, her body slim, almost frail looking. But I knew it was deceiving. Ballerinas’ bodies were strong and slim, their balance and grace unparalleled. It was impossible to see her face from here, but something about her captivated me. The only clear feature was her dark hair pulled into a tight ballerina bun.

Her white ballerina dress covered her upper body snuggly and draped down from her waist in loose silky strands that would allow her to move once she began.

The music started off and once she started dancing, everything and everyone faded. I didn’t hear the music, I didn’t sense anything, only this young woman moving gracefully across the stage. She took my breath away. She was dancing… no, better term was floating, her arms and legs moving in perfect harmony. The look on her face was serene, the one of euphoria and happiness. I sensed the smile on her lips, more than I saw it. It wasn’t meant for anyone. It was the sort of smile that a person wears when they love what they are doing, or are in love. A true, deep love.

A spell was thrown on me because I couldn’t tear my gaze away from her form. She was dancing just for me, everyone else in this fancy theater forgotten.

The lights came on and I blinked.Shit, is it over already?

“Did you like that?” Angelica purred from her seat, rubbing my leg.

I stood up, my eyes searching out the woman on the stage. But she was gone already. The other dancers were bowing, but she wasn’t there. Why wasn’t she there? She was the star of the show. Honestly, I never even noticed any of the other dancers on the stage till just this moment. Did they even have a part in it?

“Let’s go,” I barked out, suddenly more agitated than when we first arrived.

As we descended the marble stairs, I saw my cousin Giovanni. He caught my eye at the same time.

“Mateo?” He seemed surprised, actually shocked. I didn’t blame him. This wasn’t my kind of scene regularly. But it wasn’t Giovanni’s either.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him.

His eyes went to Antonio, then frowned when he saw Angelica. She gave him a wide flirtatious smile. She was trying to make me jealous but it didn’t work. It would never work. If anything, it was my confirmation that our arrangement wouldn’t last very long at all.

“Picking up a friend,” he replied, short. It meant he didn’t want us to know who this friend was, but I would bet it was a girl.

“Giovanni, you’re here,” a soft woman’s voice exclaimed from somewhere downstairs, underneath us.

Giovanni’s face immediately lit up and his eyes forgot our group as they searched out the woman. I couldn’t see who the voice belonged to, the figure out of my line of sight, but something about it intrigued me.

“Of course,” Giovanni smiled widely. “Would I ever miss it?”

“Maybe,” she teased him jokingly. A soft chuckle followed, and damn it, I was jealous of my young cousin. Whoever his friend was, at least she didn’t seem to have any expectations. “C’mon, I want to show you some stuff.”

Giovanni lifted his head. “Laters,” he announced to us in his young way and went after his friend.

“Well, that boy is infatuated with someone,” Angelica sneered, her voice snobby and cold.

Fuck, I have to get rid of Angelica.

One week later