Arranged Mafia Marriage

Theresa

He wipes the grin off of his face. “Of course, not.”

“Good. And for the record, I do know that you and Cass have a thing going on.”

His features firm. He narrows his gaze on me in the mirror, then returns his attention to the road.

I chuckle. “You do like her, don’t you?”

No response. Not that I was expecting one. Still, I wouldn’t have expected Adrian to turn out to be this chatty. I figure I might be able to get some information from him while he’s still in a mood to talk to me… A mood which seems to have evaporated since I mentioned Cass.

“I spoke to her before I got in the car,” I continue. “She seemed fine, in case you were wondering. Not that you asked me or anything. I mean, I am sure you speak to her whenever you go to see Michael. I mean-” I hit the back of my head against the headrest, “now I am putting my foot in my mouth, right? Are you taking the long way to the shop or what?” I laugh nervously.

Almost immediately, the car slows to a stop. I glance up and find we are at our destination. Finally. “Oh, here we are. Thanks for the ride,” I push open the door and jump out before Adrian can come around to get it for me. I tap on the window on the passenger side and he lowers it.

“I can find my way back.”

He stares at me.

I blow out a breath, “No seriously, I have lived in this town my entire life. I should be able to find my way back without any problem.”

He merely holds my gaze.

“Fine,” I throw up my hands, “I’ll be done by five.”

“I’ll be here.”

I turn around and enter the The Tilted Tulip. When I glance back, the car is only just pulling away. So, he waited until he was sure I was safely inside. Was it Axel who told him to do so? Doesn’t matter.

I draw in a breath and the scent of roses, lilies, and hibiscus envelops me. I drag the scent of the flowers into my lungs and my muscles immediately relax. It’s always been this way. I walk into my shop and I feel instantly calmer. This is my space, my little heaven that I have carved out in the middle of the craziness that is life. I may come from the Mafia, and when I am with the Sovranos I often end up falling into the stereotype of a meek woman, but I had managed to give shape to my dream. I had found a way to open this flower shop, hadn’t I? This is my baby, this business, and it means so much to me. Yet one look at a wounded Axel, and I had dropped everything to be by his side. That man has the ability to make me forget my priorities. Not to mention, when he asks me to do something, I seem unable to refuse him. It’s like his dominance completely overpowers me, and pushes everything else out of my mind.

I approach the counter and Elsa glances up.

“Theresa!” she exclaims. “Finally-I have been so worried about you.”

She comes around the counter and throws her arms about me. “The last time you messaged me was from the hospital when you said an emergency had come up and that you might not be able to come into the shop for a few weeks. Then you seemed to vanish off the face of the earth. I texted you so many times. Did you get my messages?”

“I did.” I bite the inside of my cheek. “I am so sorry I didn’t reply to them.” I hug her back. “It’s just, I knew the business was in safe hands, so I could focus on what needed to be done and not worry about the shop. I owe you a big thank you Elsa. If you hadn’t been here to take over of all the day-to-day operations of the shop, I would have never managed to take so much time off.”

Elsa blushes, “I was only doing my job.”

“No,” I shake my head, “on the contrary, you went above and beyond what anyone else would have done. You treat this business as if it is your own, and I want you to know how much I appreciate you. In fact, I want you to take over the day-to-day running of the shop from now on.”

“What?” Her gaze widens, what are you saying?”

“Effective immediately, I am promoting you to General Manager of the shop.”

“OMG!” Her gaze widens.

“I’m also putting you on salary and raising your salary by twenty-five percent.”

“Oh, vow!” She blinks rapidly, “Really? Are you sure? Not that I can’t do with the extra money but I have to ask.”

“I am sure!” I smile, “You deserve it, Elsa. It’s because you are so capable and so dedicated that I could stay away and not worry about the business going into decline.” I step back, and take her hands in mine, “How can I ever repay you for what you did?”

“By telling me what’s going on.”All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

“Umm,” I release her hands, “I was uh, busy. That’s all.”

“It’s a man, isn’t it?”

It’s my turn to blush.

She chuckles, “Knew it!” Then she pauses and peers into my face, “Were you with a Sovrano?”

I hesitate.

“Well?” She tilts her head, “So, you were with a Sovrano?”

“Not quite.” I brush past her and into the back of the shop. I toss my bag onto the table pushed up against the window, then head over to the small kitchen alcove. I top up the espresso maker and set it on the stove.

“Now you have me really curious.” Elsa comes up to stand next to me. “Is everything okay, Theresa?”

“I am fine,” I turn to face her, “everything is fine.”

“I called your family and they told me that you have moved in with the Sovranos.”

“Not with the Sovranos; with a Sovrano.”

Her gaze widens. “So, you are living with one of the mob?”

“You know my family is connected to the Sovranos, right? My father is their gardener, and my mother used to clean their home, before my brother was born.”

She nods.

“So, when I needed the money to buy this place, Xander loaned it to me.”

“Hmm,” she taps her toe on the ground. “You were in love with Xander, so I’m not surprised that you accepted the loan from him. But Xander was one of the Sovranos, so technically, that made his money mob money.”

“He made the money from selling his paintings, so technically, it’s not mob money, but yeah, I know what you mean. It wasn’t a big deal for me, to be honest. I figured I’d end up married to him eventually, and anyway, the Cosa Nostra is part of life here.”

“R-i-g-h-t,” she purses her lips.

“You cool with that? It’s not something I thought to mention earlier. But it isn’t exactly something I could bring up in everyday conversation.”

“I am new to Sicily, so yeah, the Cosa Nostra is more of a concept for me. It’s just, you know… Common sense dictates that one should steer clear of any mob involvement, that’s all.”

“So, you are okay with it?”

“I need this job, I enjoy working with you, so yeah, I am fine. Besides, you are the only friend I have in Palermo, so you ain’t getting rid of me that easily,” she grins.

“Oh, thank god,” I throw my arms around her and hug her, “I really value our friendship too.”

She pats my shoulder.

I pull back, “I know you’re not all that enamored with the Sovranos, but I did go to the same school as them, and I’ve known them all my life. They are very much like family to me.”

“And now you’ve hooked up with one of them.” She lowers her arms to her sides.

“I haven’t.” I step back. “I am simply staying under the same roof as Axel, until the uh, danger passes.”

“Danger?” She pales. “Are you in danger? Is that why you’re hurt?” She gestures to the bandage at my temple.

Shit, I’d forgotten about that.

The espresso pot begins to boil and I raise it off the stove and pour out the fragrant brew into two cups.

“Here,” I hand one to her, then grab a biscotti from the jar and walk over to take my seat behind the table. Elsa drops down into the seat in front of me.

“So,” she takes a sip of espresso from her cup, “how did you get hurt?”

“I uh, there was an intruder-”

“An intruder?” Her eyes bug out. “Are you okay? Were you robbed?”

“He broke into Axel’s hospital room.”

“Axel?” She frowns. “So, he was the emergency, the reason you were incommunicado for the last few weeks?”

I nod.

“He’s also one of the Sovranos, I take it?”

“He is.” I shift in my seat. Why can’t I get comfortable?.

“Why were you in his hospital room?”

“I was uh, watching over him while he was in a coma.”

“He was in a coma,” she says the words slowly, “and you were watching over him?”

“Yeah.” I blow out a breath, “The thing is, Axel looks like Xander.”

“Hold on; back up.” She places her cup back in its saucer. “So, this Axel guy looks like your ex-crush?”

“He’s also Xander’s triplet.”

“Holy shit,” she opens and shuts her mouth, “is it too early to drink something stronger?”

“It’s barely 9. 30 am,” I say dryly. “Oh, and by the way, he took a bullet for me.”

“Wait, what?” She gapes at me, “Someone shot at you?”

“Not me, per se. It was intended for one of the Sovranos, but I got in the way.”

“And he stepped in front of you? Is he in love with you?”

“He didn’t know who I was. I think it was instinct that had him placing himself between me and the bullet.”

“Instinct, eh?” Her forehead creases.

“The bullet grazed his temple. He suffered significant blood loss, so the doctors had to induce a coma to help him heal.”

“Wow,” She leans a hip against the counter. “So, he was in a coma for the last two weeks and you were with him?”

I nod.

“But he’s better now?”

“Yes,” I drain my espresso and place the cup back in its saucer, “and now you know everything.”

“Not everything.”

I crunch down the biscotti, “Sure, you do.”

“You mean, you and this Axel didn’t,” she places the fingertips of both hands against each other.

My cheeks heat. “No, we, didn’t,” I mutter. “For heaven’s sake, the man was unconscious until two days ago.”

“But he’s recovering quickly?”

“Very quickly,” I murmur.

“Enough for the two of you to have done some hanky-panky, while he was prone on the bed.”

I spring up from my seat. “I think I heard the bell of the shop door. Did someone just walk in? You know, we need to have someone at the front counter at all times, right? We can’t afford to be seen as unprofessional.”

“Hmph,” she rises to her feet, “I can take a hint. If you don’t want to talk about it, you just have to tell me; no need to invent excuses.

She turns to leave and I call out, “Really, Elsa, there’s nothing more to it.”

She raises a finger over her shoulder, “You know you can’t lie to save your life, right? I am going to get it out of you, one way or the other, Mother Theresa.”

“Ugh, don’t call me that, please.”

“You can’t blame me. You are too good-natured, too much of a do-gooder, and you can’t lie for shit… If the shoe fits…” She chuckles as she walks out of the office. I slump back in my chair. She’s right. You’d think running my own business would have made me savvy enough to pull off a lie? But that’s not the case. I’ve managed to stay honest about most things so I’ve never needed to lie. Plus, I know I’d never be able to pull a fast one on anyone. So I try my best to stay honest. But I can’t talk about what happened with Axel to anyone. It’s too soon.

Later in the evening, I walk inside the house. I locked up at 5 pm and rode home with Adrian. Walking up the staircase, I pass the floor on which his room is located and hesitate. Do I dare go in and check on him? What happens if he uses some of his stupid mind-magic on me again? But I want to see how he’s doing. I can just peek in and not actually enter. That would be okay, right? Yeah, I can totally just pop my head around the door, check him out, make sure he’s okay, and then run off, and he won’t know it.

Mind made up, I head down the corridor, peeking into the first doorway to find the room is set up with the physiotherapy equipment that Sheena had mentioned to me. The next door is shut. I push it open and find it’s a bedroom. The shower is running in the bathroom so whoever is staying here… Sheena probably, is in the shower.

The door to the third is half open. I peek inside, then step through and walk across the floor of what seems to be a living room, and to the half-open door on its other side. I glance around the door and see him. He leans against the pillows on his bed, wearing a shirt and a pair of sweats.

The dressing around his head has been replaced by a smaller plaster.

His eyes are shut, but his face seems to have regained some of its color, for he’s not as pale as he was in the hospital. His eyes are shut, the dark lashes an inky curve against his cheekbones. His chest rises and falls, his hands folded over his stomach. He’s definitely asleep. I step inside the room, and reaching the bed, I stand over him.

At this proximity, I can smell that dark scent of his. Heat from his big body reaches out to me. A shiver runs down my spine. His t-shirt clings to his shoulders and outlines every ridge of his pecs, before it stretches across his concave stomach. The sweatpants ride low enough on his hips that I can make out the trail of hair that disappears inside the waistband. The fabric at the crotch is tented though… Hmm… Is he aroused in his sleep? Or is that just his general state?

I glance at his face again. His eyelids are closed, his breathing steady.

He’s still on painkillers, right? Surely, he must be. He’s definitely out of it. I reach down and palm the tented fabric. The warmth singes the skin of my palm. I press down and I swear, his dick seems to thicken. Goosebumps pop on my skin. My nipples tighten. I trace the outline of his length through the cloth and my core clenches. Jesus Christ, the man is packing all right. My mouth waters. I want to taste him. I really, really want to drag my tongue across his shaft and find out if he tastes as dangerous as he smells. I lean over and rub my cheek against the thickness.

A shudder grips him. I glance up and find his blue gaze is fixed on mine.