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All five of the Vitales shot dagger eyes at me, annoyed with another interruption. I wasn’t winning the favor of any of the Mafia families tonight.
Salvatore sat at the head of the table, the champagne flute in his hand. He hadn’t gotten to finish his toast before I lost my shit. If he didn’t want to kill me before dinner, he probably did now.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Luciano,” I said to the Don. “I’m so clumsy.”
“Take a minute to gather yourself, Ava.” He snapped his fingers at the staff. “Dolce.”
I let out a sigh of relief.
The kitchen staff set the dessert dishes on the table. Then, the guests returned to talking amongst themselves as they layered their plates with sweet treats.
Dante didn’t make a move for the food. His golden-brown eyes narrowed into slits, his anger radiating off him in waves.
He hated me.
No surprise there.
Bossman gritted his teeth and curled his hand into a fist on the table as his eyes stripped me bare. Angelo gave me a sympathetic look.
Did he feel sorry for me?
I felt so fucking pathetic.
Nico leaned over Stefan to speak to me. “It’s not what you think,” he said in a hushed tone. “Mi dispiace, passerotta. Just let me explain.”
I gripped the knife in front of me, teeth clenched. “Don’t call me that. I never want to speak to you again.”
“Ava, please,” he whispered. “I know what you’re thinking—“
“No, you don’t,” I fired back, fighting the tears threatening to spill down my cheeks. “You have no idea what this feels like.” I shook my head and lowered my voice. “Sono un idiota.”
Nico sighed. “You’re not an idiot.”
Mr. Vitale glared at Nico, then aimed his hateful gaze at me. His wife pursed her lips, sitting beside Vittoria, who tipped up her nose at us. Carlo and Joey watched each of us with equal intensity. They knew something was going on with Nico and me.
I didn’t want to be on the shit list of a powerful Mafia family. It was bad enough I had to launder money for the Lucianos. God only knew what would happen to me if one of the Vitales decided I was a problem.
Or worse?
What if they told the Lucianos about my father’s loan? If the families were merging, wouldn’t they eventually have to share their outstanding debts? I wasn’t sure what this marriage entailed or how the merger worked.
Nico leaned over Stefan’s arm. “Give me five minutes to explain.”
I shook my head. “No, we’re done.”
Before I could stab him with the knife, Stefan gripped my wrist. “If you want to kill Pretty Boy, I’ll help you. But not here, okay?”
My entire body trembled, making it harder to maintain my grip on the knife.
Stefan took it from me, dropped it onto the table with a clang, and slid his arm behind my back.
I blew out a deep breath. “Did you know?”
He looked away.
They knew Nico was engaged to Vittoria Vitale and let me make an ass of myself.
“Hey, baby,” he whispered. “I know you’re mad. But it’s going to be okay.”
