Page 3 of Vow of Desire

“Thank you.” I share a kiss on each cheek with Aurora. “You look stunning. Really.”

Aurora blushes a little as she runs her hands down her blue dress. “Thank you, Luciana.” Only a few years older than me and yet, Aurora seems much more mature. Much more womanly. She’s a married woman who isn’t bound by her father, unlike me.

I notice the other mafia men and women glancing in Gabriel’s direction. As the head of the mafia, he tends to get noticed a lot.

My father walks over to us. “Gabriel.” His tone is tight. Normally, when he greets Gabriel, he greets him like an old friend but today there’s an iciness to the air I don’t understand.

“Rocco.” Gabriel’s eyes flick to mine and back to my father’s. “Does she not know?”

I frown. Know what?

My father stands in front of me. “No. She does not. I am waiting for the right time to tell her. So don’t ruin this for me.”

“You are running out of time, Rocco. He’s here. She’s going to find out.”

“Who’s here?” I ask. “What don’t I know?”

My father, Gabriel, and Aurora all stare at me with a guilty expression. What in the world is going on?

At that moment, a man approaches us. A man, probably in his early thirties, with dark hair and the perfect five o’clock shadow. Tall. Broad shouldered. Handsome. He looks like he stepped out of the pages of a romance novel.

I feel my tongue get stuck in my throat.

“Hello, Gabriel,” the man says. “I came. I did as you said. Now, where is she? It’s time I met the woman who will be my wife.”

Gabriel’s shoulders tense. “Now is not the time, Matteo.”

“I promised to not go to war with you again. You went back on your word the first time by promising me one woman. Don’t go back on your word again.”

I feel like this man is speaking in riddles for how little I am understanding.

“I am not going back on my word,” Gabriel snaps. “But this party is not the right time to announce this.”

“I think it’s the perfect time. You invited me. I want to meet the woman who will be my wife. It’s only fair.”

“You should go,” my father spits out. The weight in my stomach grows. Something about all of this isn’t right.

Matteo turns his eyes onto my father. “And you are?”

“Rocco Santori. Show some respect. This is my house. It’s my daughter –,” he cuts himself off.

Matteo’s eyes light up. “Ah. So you’re Rocco. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” He holds his hand out. “Where is your daughter? I want to meet her.”

My father pointedly does not take Matteo’s hand. Gabriel clears his throat and begrudgingly, my father shakes Matteo’s hand after a long moment.

“I didn’t agree with this,” my father says. “I don’t want this.”

“And yet, it’s happening,” Gabriel says. “For peace. You know you have to do this, Rocco. It has to happen.”

“I am not giving my daughter away to be sacrificed for peace.”

My spine tenses. “What are you talking about?”

Everyone sets their eyes onto me.

“Is this Luciana?” Matteo asks.

It’s like the air completely evaporates, making it hard for me to breathe.