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“Father…”
Father held his hands up, palms out. "No use speaking to me, you know how your mother is when she gets up a head of steam. It doesn't matter how powerful we think we are, your mother is, and always will be, the person who is actually in charge."
"That's fucking ridiculous. She has no right to dictate to me about anything, and certainly not my wedding. Matter of fact, I might just call the entire thing off and walk away from the famiglia. I never agreed to the ridiculous farce in the first place. It's your fucking problem, not mine. Mother can marry Nikita her fucking self if she likes her so much."
Father slammed his fist on the table causing glasses and dishes to rattle and me and the men to jump. He thrust a pointed finger at me, his face as red as a beetroot.
“If I ever hear you disrespect your mother again, you won’t need to leave the family business, I will strip you of it and you will be no one with nothing. Am I clear?”
“Yes, Sir.”
Considering my father was in the last months of his life, he looked stronger than I'd seen him for weeks. The man who had always stood proud had become frail and hunched over, but at the moment, he sat up straight in his chair, his eyes bright and alert.
"I love you, Son, but over time, I have indulged you and allowed you to become disrespectful and rude. I learned not to argue with your mother a very long time ago. Do you know why you probably believe I am weak when it comes to your mother?"
"I don't think you are weak, but I don't understand why you allow Mother to speak to us the way she does without consequences."
Father sighed and ran a bony, shaking hand over his thinning hair. "Your mother is the most intuitive person I know when it comes to judging people. She sees good whereas we only see evil. We live in a world of blackmail, and crime, and are always looking for ways to become stronger and beyond challenges. Sometimes, even the most powerful need a grounding influence, someone to remind us life isn't all bad. Your mother is our connection to reality, one we can't succeed without. You see her as having crossed a line, I see her as bringing us back into line. It's rare that she speaks as she did today...you know that, but when she does, it's with good reason."
“I still don’t think she should interfere. What she wants to plan is not what I want.”
“Do you know why she did?”
I shook my head.
“Would you like us to leave Enzo?” Gaetano sat forward in his chair as if he was about to stand.
“No. You are family and entitled to hear what I have to say.”
Father waited for Gaetano to settle back in his chair before providing an answer to the question he’d asked.
"Your mother has been exactly where Nikita is now. We were also an arranged marriage. It was one she didn't want but I did because our union joined the two most powerful mafia families in the city. I knew, as my father did, that there was no one to take control of the Fortunisa famiglia when your mother's father died. It was decided between the men that the two families would merge, and I would become Don. Your grandfather knew his family businesses, without a male heir, would endure a bitter fight for control and end up splintering into several hands. Back then, a woman could not be recognised as head of a famiglia, it's barely acceptable now. Marriage was a kind of back doorway of giving his daughter some say on her future."
"I'd never heard the story of how my parents had met. I hadn't really shown any interest, and when Mother had started speaking of their past, I'd always found an excuse to leave. I had grown up watching how very much in love they were and that was all that really mattered to a self-centred only child. "Mother was willing to marry you?"
"Fuck, no. She behaved exactly the same as Nikita. She hated that she couldn't step into her father's shoes. Lucia was very much in love with a boy from university, but her father said he would never be suitable. Nikita's fire reminds me of your mother at that age and today you saw not much has changed. Your mother knew every foul word in and out of the dictionary and I was called every one of them. Then, a wild rabbit she'd adopted died and everything between us changed. I love her more than life and would die for her if necessary. I worship the ground she walks on and respect her opinions. Your mother immediately saw a lot of herself in Nikita and understands her hurt and heartbreak. Your mother sees her as the daughter she craves, and like a lioness protects her cubs, she will fiercely protect her soon-to-be daughter-in-law."
"I still don't agree with her. The way she spoke to me in front of my brothers was humiliating."
Father shook his head. "She spoke to you while your brothers were in the room because she sees you all as her sons and treats you all no different. She needed all of you to be aware that Nikita was not at anyone's mercy." Father cut his eyes to the other men in the room who were listening closely.
"I agree with your father," Gaetano began. 'Your mother has always treated us as sons. Of course, the love she has for us is not the same as what she has for you, but it's damn close. You well know she doesn't hesitate to put any of us in our place regardless of who is around. Today is not the first time she's chewed you out in front of us and it won't be the last. You have no reason to feel humiliated. After all, she ripped us a new one too."
“I think it’s time I went home, Son. Your mother has taken my car, so I’ll need your driver to take me.”
I pushed to my feet. “Of course, Father.”
After sending a text to my on-duty driver—Alyssa, I helped Father outside and into the front seat where I knew he preferred to ride. After he was buckled in, I leaned over and kissed his forehead.
“Think about what I have said and if you truly don’t want this marriage, I will tell Ashe an alternative of a cash payment will be accepted.”
“Father, if word got around about you changing the terms of your agreement it would dishonour your name. Despite what I said earlier, I will marry Nikita and acknowledge her as my wife.”
Father nodded. "Please be patient with her, she's hurt by all of this too."
“I love you, Father.”
“I love you too, Son.”
