“And if the Maid of Honor is wound up so tight she wants me to cause a scene at said wedding, does that make you a threat, too?”
When I behold her fury, I can’t help but be reminded of our tumultuous teenage years, forced together as the unwilling children of our mafioso parents. Our hatred for one another has never quite managed to mature into anything more than contempt.
This is why I’m not surprised when Mia hisses back: “Listen here,princeling,if anything goes wrong today, I will personally see to it that your balls become permanently detached from your body. Do I make myself clear?”
I do wince this time. Not at her threat, though I don’t doubt she’d make good on it. I wince instead at the nickname she’s been using since she discovered it was a point of irritation for me. It’s a button she likes to press to remind me that I am somehow beneath her.
In many ways, I wish the Prince’s Hand, the organization my parents ran through the backrooms of casinos throughout New York City, had died with them.
Instead, I must live on each day, knowing that their killers have likely warped my inheritance beyond recognition.
I’ve made a point never to cross the Brooklyn Bridge and set foot in New York City while the Natali family remains in control of the Prince’s Hand. Revenge is never too far from my thoughts.
But my fury does not extend to the woman before me, despite her petty attempts to rile me up. “Been thinking about my balls, have you,mio caro?”
I don’t wince when Mia moves, quick as lightning. She presses something cool, hard, andsharpinto my neck. How she kept her knife concealed in her flowing rouge bridesmaid dress, I don’t really want to know.
“Give me one good reason, Teo Vitale.”
Ting, ting, ting.
We simultaneously turn to see Rocco, now standing at the head table, with a glass in hand. He’s directing a very pointed look at the both of us.
He clears his throat, and we scatter to opposite ends of the table, dutifully taking our chairs next to the rest of the wedding party. Around us, the happy chattering of the reception fades to near silence as everyone stares expectantly at the don.
“Friends,” Rocco begins, his voice relentlessly strong and commanding despite the occasion. “Please allow me to introduce, for the first time, Mrs. Cassandra Moretti!”
Beside him, Cas flushes a perfect shade of pink as the room erupts in applause. Rocco adopts the most heart-wrenching look of awe and pride as he gazes lovingly down at his wife. I can feel my smile straining at the sight.
Rocco has been my brother in everything but blood since I arrived on his doorstep seventeen years ago, orphaned and alone. I’m happy that he found love, happy that he is clearly so irrevocably happy about it.
And yet…there’s that darker side of me that yearns to snatch it away from him, to claim something of it as my own.
But that’s the thing about brothers, I suppose. We always want what the other has.
“I want to thank so many of you for joining us here today,” Rocco continues when the noise dies down. “I appreciate that it has been an unsteady time for the Guild as of late. But we hope that today will be cause for a multitude of celebrations.”
Despite my previous dismissal, I instantly lock eyes with Alessandro in the crowd, hoping my expression alone is enough to stop him from heckling anyone. I watch with no small amount of satisfaction as Alessandro slides further down his chair.
“As many of you know, in a few short months, Cas and I will be expecting a baby boy.”
This is met with another, far louder round of applause.
“And so, it is my privilege to announce that, in preparation for his arrival, I will be taking a sabbatical. Indefinitely.”
All sound is immediately sucked out of the room. It’s as if somehow we’d all been launched into space without warning, with nothing to tether us back to reality.
“Rocco,” I hiss desperately. “What are you talking about?”
But he doesn’t acknowledge me. It’s Cas who reaches over to give my hand a comforting squeeze, but something glows in her eyes that tells me she knew this was coming.
“My father’s legacy is not one I care to repeat. He was neither a good don nor a good father, although an attempt was made at both achievements. And now, the time has come for me to choose which I will be.”
As Rocco breathes, you can hear a pin drop.
“The Guild deserves a leader who will be able to put them first, and I can no longer make that claim in good conscience. Myheart will forever belong to my wife and my son, and I will not risk their safety to protect yours.”
A murmur begins to break out at the back of the room, but Rocco raises his hand to silence them.
