AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I hum. That’s either good for me, or really dangerous. I make a mental note to dig into Matteo later. What little information I have says he marches to the beat of his own drum, and hasn’t taken a place in the family business since their father died.
“Word is Danny wants to do business,” I say to Lorenzo. “You tell him he should have had the decency to come himself. It would have gotten him a much better deal. Now, he’ll be an idiot to turn down the pennies I’m going to offer him.” It’s mostly an idle threat, but I want to see how Lorenzo reacts. There’s a reason Danny sent him instead of attending himself.
Lorenzo scowls. “Watch yourself, Hunt. Danny can’t be everywhere at once, and he’s still cleaning up the mess of his old man getting killed.”
Ernesto Trentini went down in a fire fight in Las Vegas a few months ago and it left a power vacuum that his oldest son is desperately trying to fill. But if he’s not up for the job he should step aside. Which brings me back to Matteo. Just how well does he know my fiancée? I find myself jealous of a man I’ve never met. And it’s all my fault for not claiming her sooner.
“We’ll talk tomorrow,” I promise, putting a hand on Bellamy’s back.
Escorting her back to our table, I lean close to her ear. “Were you friends with Matteo Trentini the same way you were friends with Owen?” Her posture stiffens, and her expression becomes stony. “I won’t even justify that with an answer, asshole.”
I pull her chair out for her, and she shrugs my hand away from her shoulder as she sits. It’s not a good sign that she’s freezing me out the day before our wedding, but things will thaw between us eventually. Bending, I kiss her cheek, lingering until she glares. I trail a hand down her cheek and straighten. “I’ll be back. There’s something I need to take care of.”
Something tells me Owen didn’t leave the property, just the dining room, and I can’t go another second without confronting him.
Sure enough, I find him in the bar nursing a scotch.
“You are not to speak to my wife again.”
He lets out a mirthless laugh. “She’s not your wife yet, mate.”
“She will be in less than twenty-four hours. I appreciate that we were close growing up, so I’ll give you the respect of not beating the shit out of you or telling my family what you and Bellamy have done. But you can’t see her anymore. I’m sure you’ve been invited to the wedding, and it would look bad if you didn’t come. But you’re to leave as soon as the ceremony is over. You’ll get called away on business. I don’t want to see your face at the reception.”
Owen’s face twists into a sneer. “You’re a real piece of work, you know that? Thinking you can ignore her for years and then waltz in and claim her like she’s some kind of prize.”
I place a hand on his shoulder so people around us will think we’re just having a friendly chat.
“You know me better than that, Owen.”
“Do I? You abandoned her. Hell, you abandoned me. And I was there to console her when she didn’t understand why you wouldn’t take her calls or pay her the smallest amount of attention.”
There are things Owen doesn’t understand about my life. Things I’m not about to stand here and explain to him. So, I lean in close and reiterate the reason I came.
“Your friendship with Bellamy is done. Our families do business together, but that is the extent of our relationship. Am I clear?”
Owen doesn’t respond. Just empties his glass and slides off the barstool.
I let him go, but something tells me my former best friend will not give up so easily. I certainly wouldn’t if I were in his position.
Chapter five
Chapter 4
Bellamy
Standinginadressingroom in the cathedral, my hands tremble as I adjust my wedding gown. The dress was the one thing I cared about, and I spent hours with a designer getting it right. It’s so beautiful that it almost makes up for not getting to choose my groom. Almost.
It’s a soft, cream-colored silk fabric, with intricate ivory lace around the neckline and hem. The bodice is beaded and gives off a subtle shimmer when light hits it. The waist is fitted and hugs my curves perfectly before flaring out into a full skirt and short train.
Behind me, the door opens, and my future mother-in-law enters.
“There you are. I expected to find you with your bridesmaids.”
If you believe the movies, the bride and her bridesmaids are supposed to be drinking champagne in matching sweatpants while getting their hair and makeup done. But that sounds like torture to me. Not to mention the friends I wanted as bridesmaids couldn’t be invited to the wedding without raising questions, so aside from my two older sisters, I barely know the women in the room next door who will stand as witnesses for me as I walk down the aisle.
For someone who didn’t want a big wedding, my bridal party certainly is full.
“I just needed some quiet.”
