Natasha M. Forrest"Why?"Natasha, who had been waiting for her cue to leave, suddenly threw a vase with peach flowers at the girl trembling in the corner."Why is she here?"Natasha screamed at the girl. It wasn't really a question that the girl could answer, but that didn't matter."I-I'm sorry, she said she had to give you a present! It looked like she would give you a lot of money, so I let her i-in!"The girl trembled as she said this, but nothing could reach Natasha.“Hey! Do I look broke? Do you think I need that skank’s money?”“I-I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”The girl said as she trembled, but Natasha’s’ frustrated cry filled the room. It was clear to the girl that Natasha didn’t care about her state, so she began to crawl away."You are sure it was Olivia and Blair?"When Natasha asked this in a calmer voice, the girl relaxed and stopped crawling away."Y-yes… I-I’ve seen them o-n t-t-tv before—wait, no, please don't hit me!"The girl screamed, but Natasha's leg had already fall
"No!"My instinct kicked in, and I held my bodyguard's hand just before he could reveal his weapon.He could be arrested for having a concealed weapon, especially now that I plan on involving the police.He turned sharply to me, like a predator who had been interrupted during a hunt."There is no need for that, at least not now."I whisper to him, and he nods.He remains in front of me, continuing to block me from my former mother-in-law’s vicious glare and any of her future impromptu actions.Chaos had completely taken over the garden reception now.Even though it was night and growing colder by the second because we were outdoors, many clung to their jackets as opposed to rushing inside the lobby to watch what was happening between the James family and me."It's ruined."I mutter to the microphone as I stare at my heels, whose tips are now covered by stray dollops of mashed potatoes.The guard might have saved me, but my heels were not safe."What's ruined, you bitch!"Natasha screa
Addressing her as ‘Mrs James’ feels better than I thought. It feels as if I am gifting her the nightmare I lived for three years, thinking I was in love. You know what, I guess I’m happy. “Oh, right, I have to call Matteo.” I say to Blair as we exit the hospital, only for red and blue lights from two police cars parked outside the entrance to attract our attention. My gaze meets Vincent and his fatigued mother, who seem to be speaking to an officer. “Did you-”Blair begins, and rather than answer, I smile. “Wow, you are a crazy bitch.” She remarks. “I'll wait for you in the car.” I nod to her words, and she leaves. Vincent, leaving his mother with the police officer, dashes towards me. Instantly, my bodyguard stands in front of me and presses a hand to his chest to halt him once he is at least three steps from me. "You said you weren't pressing charges?" He asks, desperation lacing his voice to a nauseating degree, “I also said ‘in sickness and in health’, I say a lot of
Matteo D’Amico**A few minutes before the crash**Matteo shook the sudden emotions washing over him as he stood at the base of his brother's grave.He placed the flowers he held in his arms near the headrest before standing and staring at the unreal sight before him.Ten years had passed, and it still felt unreal.Christopher's hand squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.The woman who killed him was dead; even their entire family lineage had ended, but still, he didn't feel that it was enough.He would never put himself or allow Christoper to be in such a helpless predicament again.No good ever comes from trusting a woman that entirely, if only they had managed to convince him of that.He turned his gaze to Victoria; she smiled at him."You, okay?"She asked.Luca’s death had taught him one of the most important lessons in his life, which led to his breakup with Victoria. His death was the reason he could not be the one to marry someone he loved so dearly.“I’m-”Before he could finish
*Present*Matteo D’AmicoBy the time they went back home, he was covered in crimson from head to toe.A gunfight shouldn't have made him this bloody, but at some point, the rats were dropping bloodied bodies at them from above.To make matters worse, his gun had jammed at the worst possible time; whenever that happened to Luca, he had an odd streak of bad luck for a week.He hoped he wouldn’t have to do the ‘cleansing’ dance to get rid of the bad luck streak if it wasn’t just a coincidence—the dance was embarrassing.Still, they had cleaned up the place he loved most in the world.It was a shame that Christopher's first decision when he rose to his current position was to remove him from the ‘official’ crime family. But he was correct in saying his skills lay elsewhere. Matteo was good at making money, good at deals, and even better at blackmail, and the rich gave him a lot of material.After his shower, he went downstairs to meet with his brother and Victoria, who looked ready to hit
“What?” I didn’t ask so that they would repeat; I asked because it was the only thing I could say. The news sounds like a lie. Is this like the sort of game where they give me worse news in hopes that the bad news feels better? “Where can I see her?” “The family will be coming in to identify the body on-” Identify the body? The ringing in my head turns dangerously loud. Oh God, they are serious…oh… A deep sorrow cuts through my head, blurring my vision and filling my eyes with tears. A sob leaves my lips, doubling down the more I remember her face covered in blood and red and blue lights paired with the glassy look in her eyes. It's my fault...if I hadn't invited her to the wedding, if I hadn't invited her to a sleepover or if we had never been friends. "I had something of a crush towards you, so I always feel the need to put you first, protect you, but I’m scared, Olivia. I don’t want to die. I don’t want to put you before me; I have younger sisters who need me.” For some
Matteo D’AmicoVeronica’s voice was raised, and despite her lack of expression, he could tell how furious she was."I am only-"He tried to explain."Leave. Both of you, do whatever you will with Olivia's things at your house-""Wait, please!"Panic gripped him at her words, but to his plea, she shook her head adamantly."Go home, Mr D'Amico. There is no one here for you.""You can't kick me out. I left Italy for-""I will pay for your flight back. Waste no more resources on us.”Again, Veronica interrupted him as if she knew what he would say and did not wish for the conversation to take place.“If you would just give me a mom-”He stood abruptly, causing Veronica’s men to reach for their weapons, so he moved cautiously.“If you would give me a moment, I'd like to see her and make sure she is okay.”“She is fine.”He was growing tired of her cutting him off. It would be easy for him to use his connections or to barge in, but he wanted the mother of the woman he was fond of to think o
Matteo D’ Amico."That's what you did when I was with Veronica Lawson. You got in the way; you got in my way. Go home."Matteo said, using a tone he never thought he would use toward Victoria."What?"She repeated as if she genuinely could not comprehend what he said."If you are in Italy, you can take over for Christopher while he is here.""Take over for him while he grieves his mistress? What sort of wife do you peg me to be, Matteo?""His."He answered simply."You were the one who made me marry him.""What do you mean 'made you'? What in our break up said, ‘marry my brother’?""Hah! How dare you act as if…”She bit her lower lip.“I just wanted to be part of your family, and you wouldn’t let me in, so how... Anyway, I am not going to Italy."Her voice was low, and it trembled slightly as she spoke.He hated seeing her that way, but with his rising frustration, things didn't seem to be looking up for him mood-wise so he didn’t want to ‘deal with this’."Then can you wait for me in