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“But you already told him we’re going to get married.”
“That’s because you are.”
I huff, plopping down onto my bed. “You should have talked with me about this.”
“I am.” He places his hands on his hips. “I don’t understand what the problem is. We all knew we’d have to marry someone for political gain. Emilia knew it when she married Marco. Gemma knew when it she married Viktor. Francesca knew it when she married Leo. I knew it when I married Nina.”
“That’s not fair. You got to see Nina before agreeing to marry her. And judging by how beautiful she is, it’s not surprising you said yes. This isn’t the same thing. I don’t even know what this man looks like.”
“Neither did Emilia, and look how happy she is.”
I deflate slightly. “True.” I play with my cross, rotating it between my fingers. It’s so worn down from years of me touching it. The gold is more like rust now. “But you should still have talked to me about it before agreeing to anything. How could you? You’re my brother. We were best friends.”
He sits beside me on the bed. “We’re still best friends.”
“Are we? You’ve barely spoken to me in the months since you’ve been back.”
“That’s because I’ve been?—”
“Busy,” I finish for him. “Yes, I know. That still doesn’t excuse how you’ve treated me more like a stranger than a best friend. I missed you for five years while you were in hiding. And now that I have you back, it doesn’t feel like you’re really back.”
Antonio sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. “Cecilia, I just don’t have time for this. I’m so busy with work. It hasn’t been easy, taking over where Franco left off. He left things a mess for me. Half of my men don’t respect me.”
“Then focus on the half who do.”
“It doesn’t work like that,” he snaps, dropping his hand. I flinch. “I need all my men to respect me and not see me as a little boy. I’m only twenty-three. Most of them are older than me. I have a lot to prove. I don’t need my favorite sister making things harder for me. I need you to marry Salvatore. It’s the only wayhe’ll agree to give me any funding. But you will get to meet him before marrying him. You might like him.” He doesn’t sound convinced.
“I might like him? I don’t know him. What does he look like?”
“You’ll see at the meeting.” Antonio won’t look at me. It’s like he’s keeping something from me.
“Why won’t you just tell me?”
“Because I’m your boss!” he shouts, standing up and making me jerk back. He instantly looks regretful. “Cecilia, I’m sorry. I just … This would all go easier if you’d just do as I tell you.”
I stand up, too. “You’re not dad, you know. And a good leader earns respect by being nice. Not by forcing others to do things against their will. That sounds a lot like Franco if you ask me.”
His face scrunches up in anger. “I am not Franco.”
“I know.” I nod at the pendant around his neck. I belonged to our father, and Mom gave it to Antonio at our father’s funeral. Antonio hasn’t taken it off since he was twelve. “But you need to learn to be like dad.”
Antonio stares at me for a long, hard minute before leaving. “You will meet with Salvatore later this week,” he calls out.
I shut my door behind him and fall back onto my bed. My world has just completely changed, and I didn’t have any say in it.
Yes, I’m angry Antonio would agree to marry me to a man with consulting me first. But I’m also upset because getting married means I’ll have to move out. Which means I won’t see Theo every day anymore.
My heart breaks at the thought.
I wasthe closest with Antonio growing up. We’d always pick fights with each other, but we’d also always made each other laugh the most.
He was my protector before Theo came along.
One time, when I was nine and he was eleven, my family went camping. It was our dad’s idea to bond as a family, but my mom hated it. She’s most definitely not the camping kind.
While Emilia looked uncomfortable, Francesca read, Gemma kept complaining about every little thing, and Mia slept in the motorhome, Antonio and I explored. Dad was so caught up with making a fire and Mom was busy trying to make dinner that they didn’t even notice us wander off.
“Let’s find a cave,” Antonio said, pushing a branch out of my way so I could walk forward.
