the wedding

“And do you, Rylee Winters, accept Julian Salvatore to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

Everyone held their breaths. Rylee’s face was covered with a veil, and Julian Salvatore—the Mafia Leader, or the Boss as he was typically referred to—stood with a very bored look on his face. He was handsome, of course, but everyone knew this marriage was a business deal. He wasn’t even looking at Rylee. What’s the point of having such a good-looking face and body when you’re such a jerk?

Rylee was Evelyn's elder sister. They both shared the same green eyes and black hair, thanks to their mother who decided to run away right after Evelyn was born. That was the only thing that was similar between them.

Rylee was an absolute rebel and excellent at singing. She also disliked her dark hair, so she would always dye it blonde. She was a bar singer and often kept away from home. Evelyn, on the other hand, was good at studying, so she pursued college with the little money they had, and worked as a waitress at the same bar as Rylee to pay her bills.

Rylee was an excellent student as well, but she loved singing more. Their father never pressured them to do anything until a truth dawned upon them.

Their family owed a lot of debt to the Mafia Leader’s father, Abraham Salvatore. Their father worked at one of the construction sites owned by him, and when he needed money to buy a bigger house and fund Evelyn's middle school, he begged for money from Abraham Salvatore. Though a Mafia boss, Abraham Salvatore was a good-hearted man until he decided to step down and hand his business to his son. The one Rylee was supposed to marry.

Julian's men had barged into their house and threatened to end their family if they didn't repay the debt, which was two million dollars. It wasn’t much for the Mafia and his men, but for them, it was a lot.

Rylee and Evelyn had been paying the debt off with whatever they could, but it had been more than five years now. Evelyn's college was over.

So to settle the debt, their dad offered Rylee to marry Julian Salvatore.

Without even knowing who Rylee was, the offer was accepted. Julian was thirty, Rylee was twenty-five, so the age gap didn’t seem much. Rylee, however, did not want to get married. She had plans, and more importantly, she had a boyfriend.

It took a lot of convincing just to get her to say yes. But finally, she accepted it and walked down the aisle happily…until the vows.

“Come on, Rylee, just say yes,” Evelyn whispered as she sat a few feet away from them.

She held her breath as she saw Rylee rip the veil off. The guests gasped. There weren’t many—it was an intimate wedding, just like the Boss wanted.

“No!” shouted Rylee.

Their father, who was sitting next to Evelyn, abruptly stood up. “Rylee!” he exclaimed.

Rylee's green eyes focused on their father and then back at Julian.

“I don’t like him! I can’t marry him!” she shouted. The church went silent. There was no movement until Rylee spoke again. She then threw the veil on the ground and looked at the crowd.

“I have a boyfriend, and I cannot marry this man just because my father failed to pay the debt. I’d rather die than marry this man!”

Rylee looked panicked, but there were tears in her eyes. Evelyn could tell she had been trying not to cry for a long time.

“Well, let me make it easy for you then,” said Julian as his cold gray eyes finally settled on Rylee.

A man dressed in all black pointed a gun at Rylee. Without any thought, Evelyn jumped up and ran towards her, blocking her from the man. Rylee crouched behind her.

“Please, stop,” Evelyn raised her hand towards the gun.

The crowd gasped, and she could hear her father's voice calling out to her.

Steel gray eyes found hers, and she could feel the adrenaline in her body. Her heart was pumping loudly, and she was scared of the gun pointing at her just three feet away. But she gulped the fear down and looked at Julian straight in the eye.

“Please, sir. Don’t do this.”

Julian Salvatore had absolutely no expression on his face, as if he was made from marble. After a few seconds, he uttered three words. He then raised his hand in a gesture, his eyes still on hers, and the man with the gun backed away.

“Who are you?” His deep voice boomed across the silent church.

“I—I’m Evelyn Winters, Rylee’s sister. Sir, please don’t hurt her. She’s merely just a little nervous,” Evelyn turned to Rylee who was still crouched, clutching her dress. “Aren’t you, Rylee?”

Rylee nodded but didn’t look Evelyn in the eye. “She’s just nervous with all the people here.”

Evelyn hoped she could buy some time to convince Rylee to get through with this.

She looked at the crowd, who were not surprised that there were guns. It looked like they were ready to leave at any moment. The families seated there were also Mafia families and partners of Julian and whatever business he ran.

“Leave us,” said Julian.

Evelyn was going to ask for some privacy with Rylee, to make her understand how important this was, and now they were left standing in an empty church, with just the three of them, her father, the priest, and Julian’s bodyguards.

“Rylee, get up,” Evelyn whispered. “Please.”

Rylee slowly got up, her face all sweaty and her makeup melted onto her cheeks. Her blonde hair was a mess. She stepped out of her shoes, and Evelyn gave her a questioning look.

“They’re uncomfortable,” she whispered.

Even though they were whispering, Evelyn could tell that their words could be heard even by the bodyguard who stood near the door.

Rylee cleared her throat. “I’m uncomfortable that your men are here. Ask them to leave and go outside through the main gate and stay there until the ceremony is complete.”

Evelyn was terrified that Rylee was so blunt in ordering the biggest Mafia like that.

“Please,” Evelyn added softly.

Julian frowned and looked at Rylee. He then nodded his head, and all six of his men left. Rylee smiled and looked at Evelyn, then at their father, and when her eyes landed on Julian, her expression changed. She looked angry.

“I will never marry you.”

Evelyn looked at Rylee in shock. “Rylee, what are you—”

Before she could utter another word, Rylee pushed her hard towards Julian and ran away through the side doors of the church.

Evelyn bumped against Julian’s expensive tuxedo, and surprisingly, he held her against him to prevent her fall. His perfume was expensive, she could tell, and his body chiseled against her palms that were pressed onto his abdomen.

She quickly backed away from his embrace and looked at the door through which her sister had run.

“Rylee, no!” she screamed, but Rylee was fast. She quickly turned around and pleaded with Julian.

“Please. Please ask them not to shoot! Please.” Tears began to form in her eyes, and they fell on her pastel blue dress. “I—I’m so sorry. Please don’t hurt her.”

Julian began to speak when a thud interrupted him. Their father fell to the ground, fainting.

“Dad!” Evelyn ran over to him, tears now continuously flowing from her eyes. She shook him, but there was no response. “Dad, please!”

She was a total mess. Her sister had run away from a wedding that was supposed to clear their debt. Her father had fainted on the ground, and she was alone with the most feared Mafia in the country.