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“They also know you tried to ruin her life because you wanted to be Mrs. Lorenzo so badly.” Laura states an obvious truth, “I don’t think he or her will ever forgive you for that. Sorry cousin, but you cooked your goose with that one.”
I know what I did was selfish, and I do feel slightly bad about it. The whole thing backfired anyway because she somehow still ended up with him.
They can’t understand. It had been in talks for months that my father wanted me to marry him, and that it would strengthen the family ties. No one ever gave any thought to his legal secretary, the one woman who he had the darkest history with. The Kings believed he needed time to adjust, then he and I would get engaged after an appropriate length of time had passed. He was supposed to be mine and my so-called ‘best friend’ stole that from me.
“I told my best friend the truth, I was trying to protect her.” I know my intentions were not good. I was jealous and angry and wanted to break them up so I stood a chance. “You would have done the same if your friend was in that position.” I try make it sound like I did the right thing, even if my intentions weren’t good, she needed to know the truth. My motives don’t matter, the fact was Vanessa had to find out.
“I probably wouldn’t have,” Laura says, “there are some things you should just let go. You wanted him to leave her, and it backfired.” She is as blunt as they come, and she is annoyed to be missing the almost royal wedding. It’s hard to explain, but I know I was wrong. I just won’t admit that to any of them.
“You at least have a boyfriend from a good family, and the promise of a wedding,” I sigh, “without Lorenzo on the table there is no one my father can marry me to that will help us, so I am going to be a spinster or a cat lady, only I am allergic to cats.”
She giggles, knowing how much I want a wedding and a husband, my own Familia. It’s what I have always wanted, unlike Vanessa who wanted a career above all else and who disliked the thought of having children.
“Don’t be so dramatic, Lucia, I am sure they will ally with new families, and you will be married to some suitable Don.” She rolls her eyes, her relationship was arranged when they were babies, it just so happens she liked him, and they work together. My family is in disgrace thanks to me, so any suitable Don will probably be a cave troll or look like Quasimodo. “Let’s just go have lunch, and shop and forget about the Agliotti wedding for an afternoon,” she says tossing a dress at me, so that I will hurry up and get dressed. “Versace is unpacking their summer collection, we should go there first.” Laura lives a life like me, where nothing is out of reach. We shop and look pretty — that’s the job.
“I want new sandals and a swimsuit. We are going to the villa on Capri next weekend. I can’t go in my old one, everyone has seen it.” We get ready for a normal day out. My driver is waiting outside, and I pull on my Prada sunglasses to shield my face from the press and the UV rays that might cause crow’s feet. “Maybe we should leave early, be out of the city when the wedding is happening.” I mull over just getting away. Our home on the island is vacant so I can go anytime I want, and the weather is gorgeous this time of year. I won’t have to listen to them all gossiping if I go.
“I will come with you. It’s not like there is anything exciting happening here until fashion week,” Laura says, and we would come back before then. “Luca can come after the wedding if he wants. I could use a tan and some island cocktails.” It sounds even better when she says that.
We shop all afternoon and enjoy lunch at the beach club. The champagne goes straight to my head, the sun and bubbles making me vivacious and slightly giddy. It’s good to get out of the house and away from my father’s silent treatment. I wish he would just yell already. This is worse — it’s the disappointment part. I let him down, and until now I was his darling.
It hurts me to think my actions have made him this angry, he has never ignored me before. “We better go, it’s almost dinner time,” Laura says, and she is right. “Unless you want to go to the club tonight?” she asks checking her phone, I know that means her man, Luca, is going. Home to the silent treatment or a party — it’s not a hard choice.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
We change clothes in the car, into outfits we bought earlier and help one another fix our hair and makeup. When we arrive at the club we go straight to the door and the rope is lifted for us despite there being a line down the block and around the corner. Luca calls us from the VIP section, and the thumping music and free booze almost makes me forget all my problems.
At least, that is until my security drags me out saying my father is looking for me — I’m not sure looking for me is better than ignoring me but I am too drunk to care. When we get home my father is busy in his study with my two eldest brothers, Sebastien and Benito. I am told to wait, like a child outside the principal’s office. I can hear them having a heated debate.
“We can remove them, one at a time,” my brother Sebastien says, “don’t go for Lorenzo first, that would just cause problems, but if we remove all those around him, when he is alone and exposed it will be easy to turn those left to join us.” They are always plotting someone’s downfall, it’s actually pathetic.
“The Pitelli boss is easiest, we have reason to attack. He is always alone. It won’t be a hard hit to execute,” Benito says and my father mumbles something under his breath. They have a hundred-year feud with the Pitelli family, and I am sure none of them could tell you why. We just hate them, that’s how it is.
“You two know what to do. If there’s an opportunity, take it,” my father says dismissing the boys, and I have sobered up enough to know I am next, and he is not in a good mood - at all.
“Lucia,” he barks for me to come in, and I ball my hands into fists, bracing for his anger. Although I haven’t done anything today that should upset him. “Where have you been all day?”
“I went out with Laura, why?”
He glares at me, squinting to see if I am lying. The man can smell a lie, and I wouldn’t dare lie to him.
“You always galivanting,” he says sitting down behind the enormous mahogany desk. “It doesn’t look right, you need to behave.” I have nothing else to do, what does he expect me to do? Sit at home?
“I am not galivanting, Papa,” I defend myself, “we went to lunch and to buy things for summer. I want to go to Capri, get away from this whole wedding fiasco.”
My father folds his arms and looks at me. Thinking, which makes me nervous.
“Not going to that wedding is the least of your worries. You are lucky Lorenzo let you live,” my father says through gritted teeth, “you have a problem. You like to stick your pretty little nose where it doesn’t belong.” I have had the lecture on meddling before. “I hope you learned a lesson, eh?”
“I was not meddling. She was my friend and she deserved to know the truth,” I keep my lie going.
“Lucia, you have no friends. You are a jealous little cow, and you did that out of pure malice. I love you, but I know you and you are never nice.” His words stab like a knife, no one believes I would do anything nice. That hurts me. “Go to Capri, where you can stay out of trouble, and I cannot see your face for a while. At least then I can calm down. Right now, I still want to throttle you.”
My father never stays angry this long, and I have a feeling there is more to his mood. But it is best if I get of his sight until this dark phase passes.
***
Laura and I are on the sundeck of the family villa in Capri, scrolling through our social media and hitting refresh every five seconds hoping to get a glimpse of the wedding that is happening today. I want a reason to criticize her dress or point out some flaw in her big day. But there’s nothing. They have kept the celebration offline, and the press have been kept away.
