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“Trouble in paradise already?” She smiled at me.
“What do I do about her?” I ran a hand through my hair. “She’s so frustrating.”
I quickly caught her up on what Bria had done today.
“Well, technically she did follow your rules, but your father would have lost his mind if I did something like that.” She hid her smile behind her hand.
I glared at her.
“Although, it’s more of a modern world now, so I guess women are allowed a little more freedom. She is funny and I know she aggravates you, but I think she’s a good match. I think she’ll keep you on your toes for sure,” she said.
I dropped into the chair with a groan. “Well, that’s not what I wanted.”
“But isn’t it though?” she asked. Her gaze studied me, as she knew me better than anybody else. I wouldn’t be able to stand a yes-wife for long. I wanted too much passion. If I’d ended up marrying her sister, that would’ve ended in disaster.
“Look, she called for Carina and so more than likely will be with her. So just take a few minutes to calm down and realize that they’re all safe. They have more bodyguards than we do in the building at the moment.”
I gave myself a moment to pout, while my mother was the only person to witness me acting like a child. She was the only person I let my guard down with. Well, that was until Bria. I’d let her in and showed her more sides of me than even my mother knew about. My mother never actually witnessed my work before. She wouldn’t be able to handle my torture sessions. Bria did, and relished in it.
“Let’s carry on, we have a ring to find,” my mother said just as there was a knock at the door.
“Come in.” My mother waved to the ring man who had impeccable timing. Everybody in our world had impeccable timing.
He had several styles and custom options available. I didn’t want to pick out a ring that had already been worn by someone else. After a dozen minutes looking between all of the pieces and listening to Mom’s opinion, I finally chose one that I thought both of us would like as well as encompassing Bria’s character.
The ring man beamed. “Ah, yes, that will do perfectly. It will be ready in a few days in her size and I’ll deliver it to you.”
“Make sure you add all the extra sparkle we discussed.” I narrowed my gaze at him.
“Yes, sir, it’ll be taken care of. Have a good day and thank you for shopping with me.” He turned to leave.
I rose up out of my seat, determined to get the things accomplished today that I needed to before I went home to deal out Bria’s punishment. “Goodbye, Mother. Thanks for all your help and for helping to calm me down.” I gave my mother a quick peck on the cheek before leaving as well.
Her smile was too big, and she was taking too much enjoyment at observing me in my time of relationship crisis. That didn’t showcase much motherly love, in my opinion.
Stefano called Carina’s guard to verify that Bria was with them. When he got the confirmation that she was there we headed straight to their apartment. Throwing open the door without knocking, I let the fury that had been brewing inside me all day show through. That was until I saw Bria with her hair and makeup done. I stopped dead in my tracks as the air in my lungs was knocked out of me. She looked absolutely fucking stunning.
“Luciano, it’s bad luck for you to see me before the wedding.” She tried to turn away.
I continued looking at her. “No, actually it’s not. You’re not wearing the dress yet.” I grabbed Bria by the arm and began to drag her out the door. “But it’s bad fucking luck when you’re being fucking hunted by killers, to knock out your guard and sneak around,” I tossed back at the ladies. “We’re going to be leaving now, ladies. See you later.”
CHAPTER19
Bria
I laughedas he dragged me from the apartment. I knew that I was about to get punished, but every bit of today was worth it. I couldn’t remember having this much fun. Even though serious conversations were made, compromises were also created. I was in my element, and outsmarting Luciano was icing on the cake.
He needed to realize that I wasn’t just some hothouse flower that was going to wilt as soon as it went outside.
Stefano opened the door for us, and another soldier climbed into the front following from the apartment.
It was one of the bodyguards I’d chosen for myself, Kenny, but he didn’t even manage to introduce himself or even try to. The air was thick with tension.
Instead, Luciano turned to me and started going off on how stupid I was.
“Don’t you know how dangerous being out and about is right now? It could be one of the men we work with that’s pulling this shit. I told you to stay put. What if he shot you right in our house?”
“Well, I don’t do well with that and I don’t do great with orders either. Maybe we can have a conversation where you could communicate enough that I can understand why I should have stayed home? It felt like you were just trying to keep me from having a hand in the business again. I know I’m pushing your limits, but I won’t be anyone’s prisoner or puppet again. Not even yours. For years my father has shown me that that was not the way to go.”
