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“You have some nerve speaking to me like this, Santos. I’m your father. It’s not the other way around, remember?”
“Yes, I’m your son, but today things are going my way because I’ll be damned if my wife is fucking disrespected. Do you understand me?” I snarl at him, keeping my voice low but not too low. I need him to take me seriously, and right now, it’s go time. He’s going to keep walking all over me if I don’t drill my point into his head.
“Your wife is more important than your family, is that it?”
“I’ve said no such thing. My wife is my family, or do you not realize what a wife is?”
My father raises his brows and clears his throat. “It’s good to know where your loyalties lie.” Then he walks away without so much as another word, and I’m hoping he realizes he’s overreacting.
The reality is he has no idea where the fuck my loyalties lie.
Chapter Fourteen
Eset
Santos has been off speaking with his father for a few minutes when I notice Julio storming off. Santos swallows hard and walks back over to me. While he was chatting with his father, I was taking some solo shots with the photographer.
“Do you think that’s enough photographs?” I question the photographer, who nods immediately.
“Yes, we have so many. I’ll spend the rest of my time here today taking photos of your reception. I want you both to be able to look back on this day and smile,” she tells me, and I offer her a soft smile in return.
“Thank you. We both really appreciate that.” It’s my first time speaking for my husband, too, and it feels kind of nice. It feels natural, really.
The photographer walks away, and Santos comes up to me, sliding his arm around my waist in the process. “What happened with your father?” I question him, keeping my voice as quiet as a mere whisper.
He sighs heavily. “He told me Lu died, and then he was upset that Alejandro is here.”
I turn my head slightly to look at him, noticing there’s stress wearing on his face. “He has the audacity to bring that up today?” I’m speaking about both matters: his bitch’s head getting delivered to him and the fact his arch-nemesis is in attendance.
“He has the nerve to do whatever the hell he wants. I put him in his place and told him he needs to keep his cool today.”
I lick my lips and try to think about what the fuck I’m going to say to my husband, but I’m furious. His father has no self-control, and the more I know about Julio, the more I see it. He’s a loose end, and he’ll need to be handled. There isn’t going to be another way around it. Eventually, I’m going to have to tell Santos that we’ll need to deal with his father, but I’m not going to bring that up today.
Today we should be smiling. We should be happy. We should be joyous. Basically, I’ll hide anything that’s giving me an ounce of stress until tomorrow. We have hundreds of guests in attendance, and I don’t want them to see anything.
“He’ll keep his cool because he doesn’t have another option.” I smile as I speak because I know we have eyes on us.
“Exactly. He can act a selfish fool another time, but not on this day,” Santos confirms, and as he finishes speaking, his Great-Uncle Alejandro walks up with his Great-Aunt Sofia.
“Your wedding was so beautiful. I hope you have many, many years of happiness,” Sofia tells me, and her husband, Desmond, comes walking up with a cane beside her.
“Aye, the two of you will be blessed for many years to come. It’s a hard thing to find anyone these days,” Desmond chimes in, and I smile brightly.
“Thank you. I’m sure we can all agree that we’re to be kind to each other’s families,” I speak up, looking at each of them in the eye.
“Lass, today isn’t the time to be discussing business, but since you’re so adamant about working all of the time, yes, you have nothing to worry about from us. Alejandro spoke to me about the visit from a couple weeks back.”
I swallow hard, hoping Desmond keeps his voice low. “There will be another time when we can discuss that in further detail, without prying eyes and ears from others, one set in particular,” I state.
Alejandro chuckles lowly. “He’s so threatened by anything, it seems. I’m certain us merely congratulating the two of you on your union is enough for him to worry for ages.”
“It could be,” I suggest.
“There’s no doubt about it,” Santos says, obviously growing more irritated by the moment. I’m finally getting an idea of what it must’ve been like being his father’s child. Then I think about it, and Santos has been put in the backseat his entire life. His father isn’t much different than my mother. Hell, maybe it’ll help the two of us bond more. Maybe it even explains why we’re such a good match together and why we get along so well.
I’m caught thinking about the way he kissed me during our ceremony and how delicately he touched me. Even now, with his arm draped around my waist, it isn’t a dominating touch. It isn’t one that feels forceful in the slightest, and I need him to be patient with me… especially when we discuss providing heirs. There’s something I haven’t told Santos, and it’s going to be a shocker, I’m sure. I’m a little bit embarrassed to tell him, though I’m certain he’ll understand the culture and climate I grew up in. It’s not uncommon for Chechen women to remain virgins until they’re married, but in this day and age, I’m sure it might seem a little bit odd.
Out of nowhere, there’s a loud noise right against my ear, and the next thing I know, Santos’ body is covering my own, and we’re on the floor. “Stay down. Do not get up until I tell you!” Santos yells into my ear, but I don’t take it as if he’s being rude in the slightest. The warmth of his body is suddenly gone, and I’m doing as he says, staying on the floor.
