Arranged Mafia Marriage

Theresa

“Seven days?” I throw up my hands. “What was I thinking? Why did I have to suggest such a short time frame? And why did he agree to it?”

“He wasn’t going to say no; not when you challenged him in front of his brothers,” Cass says in a soothing voice.

“I only said seven days because I fully intended him to panic and say no.”

“But he didn’t?” Elsa stares at me with wide eyes.

Yeah, after I had pulled that stunt where I had suggested that Axel marry me in a week, and after he had agreed, I had walked out of there in a daze. I hadn’t even waited to see if Axel was okay. I had seen how pale he’d been, had noticed the lines etched around his mouth. I’d known he was in pain, and had wanted to help him, but honestly, after the stunt he’d pulled, where he’d basically used me as a bargaining chip with the Sovranos, I’d figured he deserved it. So, I had walked out of there and headed to my room, where I had promptly lost my shit. I had called Cass and insisted that she come down. Then I had dialed Karma’s number, but she hadn’t picked up, so I had called Elsa and insisted that she come over to see me after she closed the shop for the day.

Now, I glance at her. “Nope,” I shake my head, “he agreed.” I raise my shoulders. “Who’d have thought that?”

“So, you thought he’d balk at the fact that it was such a short timeline? That’s why you suggested it?” Cass leans back against the settee.

“I was positive that he’d turn me down.”

“So, you didn’t really think he would agree, huh?”

“I wasn’t sure,” I confess. “I mean, he had decided to use me as a negotiating tool in order to get a piece of the Sovranos’ profits, but I thought that if I crunched the timeline, it would scare him off.”

“And did it?” Elsa asks.

“Clearly, not.” I rake my fingers through my hair, then begin to pace. “But why would he agree? He could have said no.”

“Why would he say no, when he, clearly, wants a part of the power that the Sovranos wield?”

“He didn’t have to agree to marry me.” I raise a shoulder. “He is one of the Sovrano brothers. Eventually, he’d have gotten what he asked from them.”

“Maybe not quickly enough, though,” Cass murmurs. “You probably crunched his timeline by half with your proposal.”

“Argh,” I squeeze my eyes shut, “what possessed me to come up with that? I mean, I could have simply bedded the guy. Why did I have to propose to him?”

“Because you want to make sure that he never leaves you?”

“Clearly, I am still suffering from PTSD from Xander leaving me.” I lower my chin to my chest. “I think that’s why, when I found my control over the situation slipping, I blurted out the one thing I should have never voiced aloud.”

“Perhaps it’s good that you spoke your mind.” Cass rises to her feet. “This way, everyone knows where you stand.”

“But I have no idea where he stands.”

“He’s going to marry you, isn’t he?” Cass walks over to me. “He won’t go against the Sovranos. He’s given them his word on the wedding. And besides, as you said, he wants to have a say in the business. He won’t risk pissing them off.”

“But he doesn’t love me,” I slap my hand over my mouth. Did I say that out loud? Why the hell had I said that aloud?

Cass and Elsa stare at me.

“Forget I said that,” I squeeze my eyes shut. “Damn it, it’s so mortifying.”

“Are you in love with him?” Cass finally asks.

“Of course, not,” I open one eye, “I barely know him, how can I be in love with him?”

“She’s in love with him,” Elsa declares.

“You aren’t confusing him with Xander, are you?” Cass asks softly.

“No. Yes.” I shuffle my feet. “I don’t know, okay? I mean, rationally, I know he is not Xander. But then he’ll say or do something that’ll remind me of Xander. I mean, his accent is different, of course, and so is his build, but there is so much more about him that is so familiar. Then I have to remind myself that Xander is dead and that simply breaks my heart.” My features crumple.

“Oh, sweetie,” Cass closes the distance between us and hugs me. Footsteps sound, then Elsa hugs me from the other side. I sniffle as the tears run down my cheeks.

“Damn it, I am tired of being sad. I don’t want to spend all of my time mourning Xander. I need to let him go. Besides, he’d hate to see me cry over him. He’d want me to move on with my life. He’d want me to be happy.”

“And that’s what you are doing.” Cass leans back so she can see my face. “You’re fighting your way forward. Although, I admit, your methods are unconventional, but at the same time, I don’t blame you. If I were in your shoes, I’d probably do the same thing.”

“And you, Elsa?” I turn to her, “Now that you know exactly what kind of situation I’m in, what do you think?”

“I…” Elsa shakes her head, “honestly, I am still getting my head around it.” She walks over and sinks down into the seat. “I’m not really surprised that you’re a part of the Cosa Nostra.”

“You’re not?”

She shakes her head, “I mean, you managed to buy the space for the flower shop.”

“There are others who could have afforded it too.”

“Outright,” she reminds me. “You wouldn’t have been able to do that, unless you had help.”

“I am sorry, I sort of lied to you about that.”

“You know how bad of a liar you are; I wasn’t fooled for an instant.” She tosses her head. “And then, more recently, you had all of those people dropping you off and picking you up, and they had Mafia stamped all over their tailormade suits.”

“Who are we talking about?” A new voice says from the doorway.

I turn. “Karma,” I cry out, “you came!”

“Of course, I came.”

“But I didn’t leave you a message when I called.”

“I saw your missed call, then heard what had happened from Michael.”

“Ah,” I hunch my shoulders, “so you heard about my-”

“Upcoming nuptials, yes.” She grins and as she walks toward me and I can tell that she’s mentally taking measurements. “Figured you’d need my help with the dress.”

“Oh, my god!” I peer into her face, “Can you believe this? I am going to get married. I am. Going to. Get married.” I shake my head, “What the hell was I thinking when I proposed to him?”

“Holdonasecond,” Karma stares at me, “you proposed to him? YOU proposed to a Sovrano?”

“Yes?” I say tentatively.

Her gaze widens, “And he agreed?”Content © NôvelDrama.Org.

“Technically, he didn’t have a choice, but… Yes?” I venture.

She bursts into a laugh, “You have achieved the impossible, you know that?”

“No, not exactly.” I frown.

“The Sovranos have egos bigger than… than-”

“Their dicks?” Cass offers.

“Which are sizable,” Karma nods. “Also, how do you know about their dicks?” She furrows her forehead.

“Lucky guess?” Cass says in a droll voice. “I haven’t worked with them all these years without having some idea of their voracious appetites.”

“Hmm,” I scowl at her, “you mean to say, you haven’t seen Adrian’s-”

“Nope,” she makes a popping sound at the end of the word.

“I am sure that’s going to be remedied soon enough.” I waggle my eyebrows at her.

“Not happening,” she says in a firm tone, “and don’t try to change the topic.” She turns to Karma, “You were saying?”

“That you’ve set a record of sorts, by proposing. The Sovrano men are way too dominant to not want to take the lead in their wedding proposals, but you did it. You can be proud of that. Only,” she chews on her lower lip, “you need to be careful.”

“Careful?” I tilt my head, “How do you mean?”

“As you said, he didn’t have much of a choice but to agree to marry you. I am assuming the rest of the Sovrano brothers wouldn’t have let him walk away if he had said no?”

I shrug my shoulders, then nod. “I still don’t understand what you are getting at?”

“You hurt his ego, babe.” Karma touches my shoulder. “I one-hundred percent support what you did. Hell, it’s about time someone came along and took the brothers down a notch, but it’s not without consequences.”

“Hold on,” Elsa jumps up to her feet, “are you saying that he might hurt her?”

Karma turns to her, “You must be Elsa. I have heard so much about you from Theresa.”

“Oh, shoot, you guys haven’t met before, have you? Elsa meet Karma, Michael’s wife, and Karma, this is Elsa my life-saver who is also my friend.”

“I am her employee, actually,” Elsa laughs, “and it was Theresa who literally did save my life when she gave me this job. And hold on, isn’t Michael the Don of the Cosa Nostra?”

“Oh, so you’ve been reading up on the Sovranos?” I chuckle.

She shoots me a sideways glance, “I may be new to this city, but you can’t go a day without hearing all about the Sovranos and how the Don killed his father to take over his current position… Oops,” she firms her lips, “no offense meant.” She turns to Karma.

Karma raises a shoulder, “None taken.”

“So, it doesn’t bother you, uh, being married to a man who has killed?”

“Elsa.” I gape at her.

“It’s okay.” Karma’s lips kick up. “I am married to the Don of the Cosa Nostra, after all, and it does bother me. Except, I know that Michael is often in situations where, if he doesn’t make the first move, he won’t live to see the next day, and I love my husband too much for that to happen.”

“So, you turn a blind eye to what he does for a living?” Elsa asks.

“I embrace what he does.” Karma holds up her hands, “Being part of the Cosa Nostra is a part of Michael, as much as being a designer is in my DNA. I couldn’t ask him to leave it any more than I could give up working with fabrics. And it’s because I know Michael so well that I am confident Axel won’t hurt you physically.” Karma glances at me with a considering look on her face. “If he did, he’d have the rest of the Sovranos to answer to. No, he won’t do something that obvious.”

Elsa scowls at her. “Then? Do you think he’ll hurt her mentally or emotionally?”

“It’s possible,” Karma says slowly. “I reckon, he’ll get back at you in some form though. How and what? That, I don’t know, but you’d best watch out for it.”

“But she’s going to be marrying him.” Elsa folds her arms across her chest. “Doesn’t that put her in a vulnerable situation?”

“Possibly.” Karma holds my gaze, “Either way, you need to be on alert with him.”

“You are beginning to worry me, Karma,” I run my fingers through my hair. “I understand what you mean when you say I hurt his ego. It’s only after I blurted out the proposal that I realized what I had done, and it was too late by then. But surely, once we are married, he’ll come around?” I take in her features-the way her brow is pinched, the worried look on her face.

“You really think he’s going to get back at me for this, don’t you?”

“Yes,” she lowers her hand to her side, “but if you watch out for it, there’s no reason you can’t turn the tables on him.”

“Okay, stop,” I rub my temple, “you are beginning to give me a headache.”

“I know it’s a lot to take in, but if you are forewarned, you can use it to your advantage.”

“How do I do that?”

“Defeat him at his own game,” she replies.

“What game is that?”

“Whatever it is that he initiates with you.”

“That’s not very helpful,” I try to laugh but the sound comes out strained.

“I don’t know him very well,” Karma says in a soft voice, “not as well as you do.”

“Which isn’t saying much.” I twist my fingers. “How do I even begin to figure out what he’s up to?”

“Oh, if you pay close attention, I am sure you will see the signs, and once you know where his mind is at, I am sure you’ll find a way to keep ahead of him.”

“You have more confidence in me than I do.” I laugh uncertainly.

“You can do this,” Elsa says with vehemence. “If anyone can figure out a way to survive, it’s you.”

I turn to Cass, “What do you think, Cass? You’ve been silent all along.”

“I am worried.” Cass narrows her gaze on me, “I won’t bullshit you by saying otherwise, but I also know you are smart enough to beat him at his own game.”

I scowl, “So you do think that he’s going to try to get back at me, as well?”

“I would be surprised if he didn’t,” she admits. “But we have your back,” she turns to the other women, “don’t we?”

“You bet,” Elsa replies.

“We’re here in your corner,” Karma adds. “If he does anything, and I mean anything, to cause you grief, you pick up the phone and call me, and I’ll make sure Michael reins him in, okay?”

“Okay,” I blow out a breath.

“Good.” Karma tilts her head, “Now about that dress… What color were you thinking?”