James.The joy of marriage and taking care of the kids in general made my heart lighter, but I also needed to focus on the darker things. At the moment, I was looking over a report for the family business and frowning very deeply. "I know you have been taking care of most things, Giovani, while I've taken on the family man role. But we're still in danger," I said, letting out a sigh. At the moment, we were meeting not at a casual restaurant, but in a private room in my compound. Two cups of coffee sat on the mahogany table in front of us, along with scones on small plates we nibbled on as we spoke. There were organized papers next to both of us, as well, though most of what we spoke of, we typed on a laptop. My cousin gave me a nod, letting out a soft sigh and reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. He said, "Times have been rather tough, James. With a lot of pressure from the fuzz, the value of bribes has only gone up. A pain in the rear, really." I n
Becca.The compound was abuzz with the upcoming wedding. I was glad the move from the larger to the smaller compound went so smoothly. The kids didn't even notice the change; Alessandro and Dahlia were as happy as ever. The only one who wasn't too delighted for us was my father, but there wasn't much I could do about it. James said he'd talk to him again, though I doubted it would make a big difference. Thankfully, my stepmother seemed to be fully on my side. At that moment, I was sitting on our couch and trying to stop myself from the overwhelming excitement that overcame me. Today, I'd be bridal gown shopping with my stepmother and Sophia. Sophia was going to make an amazing maid of honor. She was so good when it came to fashion and decor. Soon, security sent me a message saying the two women had arrived. When I went to the front lobby area, I was swept into the arms of my stepmother, who held me there tightly. "I'm so happy for you!" she exclaimed, her voice k
Becca."I think this hall would be wonderful," I said to James, giving a happy smile. At the moment, we were going over wedding plans. We were rounding even more things out, which was beyond exciting. Everyone was adjusting to the move well, too. I'd jumped at the suggestion of a smaller compound. I didn't mind the downgrade in size. What was more important was that fewer eyes would be on us. We'd have another baby soon, and less stress would be wonderful. I could settle down as a mother. Still, James was acting a tad distant, causing me to tilt my head. "What do you think?" I asked, causing him to snap his attention to me. He furrowed his brow, no doubt embarrassed, and gave a sheepish grin. He scanned the page on my screen. I turned to study him for a moment, asking softly, "Is everything okay?" As stressed as I was about him being the Don, I learned to work with him as opposed to getting so angry. That never helped the situation, after all. Took a while, but b
Allegra.Spinning to show off my latest outfit on the catwalk, I felt so alive. My hair flowed down my back, and I felt like I was on top of the world. My heart pounded, and my smile was simply radiant. Cheers rang out from either end of the catwalk as I set yet another trend. When the show was over, I met with my boss, who couldn't stop showering me with praise. "You're KILLING it, Allegra," he said, his voice dripping with awe. I nodded in agreement, beaming at him. "Thank you for giving me this chance. I'm glad you didn't end up regretting it given some of the restrictions that come with me," I said, still cursing the fact that I was banned from the United States. It made many things inconvenient, but here I was, happy anyway. "Are you kidding?" he said with a laugh. "No regrets, none whatsoever! You're a star, Allegra, I can't emphasize that enough. Top of the line, of a perfect stock, you have so much enthusiasm you bring to the catwalk that it radiates from
James."All is well, James," Giovani said, looking over the list he made on his phone. He glanced up to give me a reassuring smile, but I wasn't buying it. Something was wrong. I reached up and ran my fingers through my hair, letting out a sigh. "You're sure? I have noticed a lot of odd going-ons lately," I said. Giovani tilted his head as if confused by this. At the moment, we were sitting at our kitchen table in the compound. Giovani took a long sip from his coffee and nodded. "I am," he said, giving me a smile. "I have yet to let you down, James, and I don't intend on starting anytime soon," he said. He leaned back in his chair and then asked, "What odd going-ons, then?""The feeling of being watched, which I suppose I should get used to. I caught people in dark clothing staring from the distance, however, before scurrying off like rats," I said, a frown plastered on my face at the memory of that. Becca had been around when that happened, and I'd ap
James.'There he is, being an asshole again,' I thought to myself, my jaw clenched as I watched the new butler, Sylvio, scurry about and set things up. Becca and I were currently at the hall where the wedding would be taking place. She'd hired a butler who was no less than a pain in my side. He favored little underhanded insults he thought would go over my head. "Oh, you're the groom. Beg my pardon, sir. I just assumed you were the father of the bride," he'd said. Comments like that drove me nuts. At the moment, he was setting up some tablecloths and carrying some chairs over while I oversaw that everything would be going well. I leaned against the wall, my eyes narrowed as I observed, annoyed that he did his job well. Giovani was also here, always one to help out during times like this. "Friend of yours, then?" I asked, my tone a bit tired. Giovani chuckled in response, though it wasn't a kind one as he looked at the butler through narrowed eyes. "Yeah, I
James."I'm surprised to see someone so young and vibrant with someone so set in his ways," Sylvio, the butler was saying to Becca around the corner. I listened to the conversation while gritting my teeth. Wedding prep had been going phenomenally aside from this bastard and his piss-poor attitude toward me. Now, he was clearly coming on to Becca. At the moment, I was setting up some art pieces I wanted to be displayed in the halls when I overheard this entire conversation. I wondered if I should butt in, but I told myself that Becca could handle it. This was very true; I heard her laugh as if the man was joking. "Oh, he's not like that at all!" Becca said cheerfully. "James is a family man. Sure, we had our conflicts in the past. I went back and forth for a bit. But we are very much in love and happy." I smiled to myself, feeling my heart warm at her words. Not that I had any worries otherwise, of course. This butler, however, seemed to think she needed to be wit
Becca."Mama! Mama! Mama!" Dahlia said, crawling over to me and sitting on her bum. She had a little dog plush in her hand and was waving it at me. I smiled at her and took the plush, hugging it close. Then, I leaned down and left a soft kiss on her forehead. At the moment, I was visiting the kids. The night before the wedding had been pretty exciting. I wasn't sure what was up with James, though, and felt a little bit worried. He was so stressed; I wished I could ease some of that from him. Weddings could be a lot, though. I made the plush dance in front of my daughter, smiling at her and giggling right along with her keeling laughter. She tumbled about and kept playing, eventually joined by Alessandro. My family was so beautiful, I felt tears in my eyes. Tears that slowly crawled down my cheeks from sheer happiness. James and I were going to be married tomorrow, I realized for the fifth time in the last few minutes. My heart was bursting with hope for the futur