AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“This time tomorrow, you’ll be my husband, so I thought I’d see how it sounded.”
“Good night,amore, I love you.”
“I love you too.” I hung up the phone and drifted off, feeling ready for tomorrow and anything that followed it.
* * *
The giggling and laughter from down the stairs on the lower corridor woke me up. I knew the girls and my mother were excited as was my father, but he wouldn’t admit it as much as they did. I threw my legs over the side of the bed before I pulled on my robe.
“Anastacia, are you awake?” My father’s voice came from the other side of the door, he was never usually around at this time, but I guess today was different.
“Come in,” I called as I stood to welcome him.
“There’s my flower.” He smiled as he pushed open the door before it closed softly behind him.
“Morning, Papa.” I welcomed his embrace as his warmth and aftershave enveloped me, the spicy notes tickling my nostrils.
“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked, his voice calm.
“Well, I don’t want to run for the hills,” I joked as his arms dropped to his side so he could get a good look at me.
“You look like someone who is head over heels in love, so I doubt you’d want to.”
“Lorenzo would hunt me down if I did.” I laughed as did he. His laughter filled my bedroom, and it was a sound I loved to hear. He may have been a ruthless man, known for having no heart by everyone who crossed his path, but with his family, he was the opposite.
It was fair to say we might have had a little hiccup when I discovered he’d promised me to Lorenzo, but nobody’s prepared to hear that on the day they turn eighteen, are they?
“That’s true, I’ve never seen that man with anything but a scowl on his face, but yesterday all I saw was a man that would die to protect my daughter and until then I had my doubts, strong ones, but seeing how he would burn the world for you filled me with hope that you’ll be as loved and protected as you deserve to be, as much if not more than I have done.” My father looked close to tears, and it may have been the first time I’d ever seen him this emotional. “Do you believe he can love and protect you?”
“Originally, no,” I breathed.
“And now?” His brows knitted with worry as if I was about to turn his world upside down.
“And now, I have no doubts.” I smiled as my hand went directly up to the necklace Lorenzo had gifted me. I hadn’t taken it off since he placed it around my neck.
“That’s new.” My father arched his brow as the left side of his lips turned up into a smirk.
“Lorenzo gave it to me the other evening.” I blushed.
“I figured as much, it’s either a possessive thing to show the world you’re his or another reason I can’t put my finger on.”
“You don’t need to know the reason, just know it wasn’t a possessive one.” I smiled as I headed towards the bathroom.
“I’ll take that as my cue to leave. I’ll see you later when you’re ready.” He was halfway out the door when he paused. “I’m so incredibly proud of you, Anastacia, how you’ve taken this on for your family even though you didn’t want to.” He didn’t turn to face me, he couldn’t. I could hear his breath catch in his throat as he left me standing alone in the threshold of the ensuite.
After my shower, I entered the bedroom to see my dress was now hanging up high enough to not even brush the floor.Mama.We honestly picked a stunning dress, it was white with a champagne lining underneath, every time the light invaded the room each individual crystal sparkled, the detail was unmatched, everything about it was breathtaking from the lace to the Basque detail around the bust and rib area. It had delicate straps, ones you couldn’t even hang the dress up with incase they snapped under the weight of the material, although everyone preferred the pure white dress I tried on there was something about this one I fell in love with, the way it molded my body, the way it fell to the floor perfectly, the way I could imagine myself walking down the aisle in it and the way I could imagine saying‘I do’in it.
“Anastacia, are you decent?”
“Yes, Mama.”
My mother swanned into the room with a tray brimmed with juice, pancakes, fruit, yoghurt, and anything else it could hold. Her eyes shone with the same happiness her smile did, today was a big deal for her and although she never said much about this whole arrangement, I knew she wanted only the best for me. Her and Carmella weren’t the ones who bound Lorenzo and I together, they wanted us to meet one another the old-fashioned way, hoping we would fall in love without the heaviness of the expectations.
“Carmella called. She is with Lorenzo, and between me and you, she said he’s like a kid on Christmas morning; he can’t wait to sayI do.”Her smile was incredibly wide at this point, it reminded me of the Cheshire cat. She eyed me suspiciously as I started giggling. “Did I say something funny?”
“No, I was just thinking about how immensely happy you look.” She placed the tray down on the bed and joined me to admire the dress. “You really did pick perfectly; you went with your heart like you always have done.”
“Thank you, Mama.”
