Back again!!!!
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Dante and the two other guards were waiting inside the Escalade when I was escorted outside by Dominic. He gave me a deep, bruising kiss before helping me into the backseat. Dominic nodded at Dante when I was safe and secure, and we drove off to our first destination. We pulled up to Damon's house first. I've never been to his place before, but from the view from the gate, it screams bachelor! It took a while before the gates opened, and we could drive up to the house. Damon's exterior was made entirely out of glass. I could see Damon standing in his living room shirtless, looking out the window. His house was completely black smooth stone. His stairs leading up to his front door were floating with LED lights beneath them to give them. Every corner of his house had cameras, and there were guards dressed in all black walking around the property. His house isn't nearly as big as Dominic's, but what misses in size makes up in design and architecture.
Juliana and Bambina came running out the front doors once Dante honked his horn. They didn't wait for the guard in the passenger seat to open the door to get in. Juliana slam opens the door and hopped right in with Bambina following. We drove off once Damon gave his nod of approval at the window...
Juliana sat in the very last row away from Bambina and me. She had a sulking facial expression with her arms cross and her attention at the window.
"What crawled up her ass?" I asked Bambina.
"Her new man. Damon is making her life a living hell and won't stop until she submits. It's quite entertaining." Bambina giggled.
"You think being held hostage is funny? Let's hook you up with another mafia monster and tell me if you like it!" Juliana hissed.
"Are you forgetting I was held captive for 4 years then shipped off to a man I hated?" I questioned.
"You like him now, so your past issues don't count!" Juliana retaliated.
"She was sulking the entire flight over here. But as much as she doesn't want to admit it, I heard moaning by Damon's bedroom." Bambina shared. Juliana gasped and smacked Bambina at the back of her head as punishment. I'm guessing Juliana didn't know Bambina was lurking.
"Oh really, is that behavior of someone who is being held captive?" I wondered sarcastically.
"Both of you go to hell."
We arrived at Raphael's estate a half-hour later. It was decided to have lunch at a restaurant near Raphael's home since he lives far out on the drive. When we drove up to the front door, Raphael stood outside and behind him was Cassia. Her head was done, but I could see a smile on her face as we pulled up. She looked better than before. A lot more energy, although she's hiding it. I hope my advice is doing her well. Raphael walked up to the side of the car to open the door. Bambina moved to the back row to make space for Cassia.
"Afternoon ladies, please make sure you have Cassia back in two hours." Raphael greeted politely. We all smiled and nodded in agreement.
Raphael moved to the side to let Cassia entered the car. He whispered something into her ear before kissing her on the head and closing the door. We drove away the moment Raphael stepped back.
As we got out of the estate, Cassia relaxed her shoulders, lifted her head and smiled widely.
"Hey Cassia, first off, you look amazing! Secondly, these are my friends Bambina, and the sulking one is Juliana." I greeted.
"Hello!" Cassia chirped.
"I see you're doing better than yesterday."
"I am! Raphael seemed pleased that I didn't make a scene and had been behaving, so he allowed me to sleep in my own room again."
"I'm guessing you don't like that goon," Juliana asked, suddenly more intrigued with the conversation.
"Like is not a word that can use in the same sentence as Raphael." Cassia shuddered.
"Well, this is your time to forget. You're with the girls, and it's time to have a good time!" Bambina chimed in.
We ended up at a nice roof patio restaurant near Raphael's home. We got a seat closest to the balcony so we could overlook the city as we drink mimosas. Dante and the other guards sat a few tables over to watch over us. The hostess sat us down and brought us a pitcher of peach mimosas and four champagne glasses.
"Cheers, ladies!" Juliana said. We lifted our full glasses to cheers one another before taking a large slip. A nice younger waiter came to our table to take our orders. After jotting them down, we waited for him to go back inside to finish our conversations.
"So Cassia, how much trouble have you caused for your goon?" Juliana pondered.
"I accidentally set the house on fire, if that counts as trouble." Cassia giggled.
"Accidently?! How does one do that by accident?" Bambina laughed
"I knocked over a candle trying to flee. It was really his fault. No one told him to take me!"
"When will these men learn! I'm going to teach a seminar on how to treat women because these men don't know anything!" I exclaimed.
"Make sure Damon has front row seats to that seminar." Juliana barked.
"Oh please, you love him!" Bambina laughed.
The waiter came around pushing a cart with our appetizers and yet another bottle of sangria wine. As he placed our meals on the table, I remember the critical news I had to share with my girls. Even though I met Cassia yesterday, I wanted her to be a part of my big day.
"I have some big news to share with you all! Dominic and I decided on a wedding date." I announced.
Bambina started to cough loudly as she choked on her drink. Juliana dropped her fork in shock, and Cassia looked surprised.
"You did what? After Dominic's mother insulted you to your face?!" Juliana screamed out.
"His mother did what?" Cassia and Bambina shouted in unison.
"Wow, there's a lot I need to share then. Dominic's mother came over yesterday to tell me she doesn't like me with her son and there are better options out there for him. I told Dominic about it, and he was livid, but it brought up the conversation on marriage. We decided we'll get married at the end of the month."
"You're kidding?!" Bambina wondered.
"Nope, I am beyond serious."
"You're giving yourself less than 4 weeks to plan a big wedding! Are you insane?" Juliana interjected.
"I know the timing is a little rush, but if we do it today, tomorrow, a month from now, or a year...I'm confident my feelings won't change."
"Have you started any planning?" Cassia asked.
"No, maybe we'll start planning tomorrow or tonight. You ladies will definitely be my bridesmaids. Juliana and Bambina can fight on who's going to be my maid of honour because I cannot choose."
"Oh, we'll definitely be fighting about that later!" Bambina snickered.
"You want me to be a bridesmaid?" Cassia whispered, shocked at my offer.
"Of course! You're a part of the Famgilia. Once we get a mafia man for Bambina, we can start a club!" I giggled.
"Oh, I would love a mafia man to throw me around a bit!" Bambina laughed.
The waiter came around to clear our tables before placing our main entrees in front of us. Drunk wouldn't be the word to describe us once we started eating. We had finish 3 bottles and two pitchers, and our voices could be heard throughout the restaurant. Dante came to our table to let us know it was time to drive Cassia back. Cassia groaned as we left the table, but it was a blessing in disguise. One more drink and Dante would've been carrying her out of the restaurant. Bambina and Juliana needed help walking out of the restaurant, so Dante and the other guards assisted. I was the only one who could walk out on their own, even though I was heavily drunk.
Cassia drank three water bottles in the car to help sober her up. Raphael was waiting outside on the main steps as we pulled up the estate. He seemed pleased as he saw our car pull up. We made it with twenty minutes to spare. He walked over to the car and opened the passenger door to help Cassia. The moment he opened the door, her mood went from bubbly and happy to sad and submissive. She offered her hand when Raphael extended him to help her. She waved goodbye before exiting out the car.
Bambina and Juliana were next to be dropped off. This time, Damon was waiting for us at the front steps with his arms crossed and a mischievous look on his face. Someone is standing behind him, wearing a tailored dark suit. He seems of importance, and if you looked closely, he had a striking resemblance to Damon. They must be related.
"Who is that hunk?" Bambina asked.
"Let's hope it's your very own mafia beast." Juliana snapped.
"I guess grouchy Juliana is back," I muttered.
Damon opened the car once we came to a stop.
"Ciao, Bella, you look adorable." Damon complimented me as he glared at Juliana.
"Ciao, Damon! Who's the man behind you?"
"That is my little brother, Lorenzo. He's here to meet my investment for the weekend."
"He's adorable! Is he single and mean?" Bambina asked.
"He's very single and tough-headed and means."
"OH YES, HE'S MINE!" Bambina screamed as she jumped out of the car and skipped towards Lorenzo. Juliana remained strapped in her seat. Damon didn't bother asking for permission; he unbuckled her seatbelt and moved his hands under her butt to lift her out of the car. Damon made sure to wrap her legs around his waist as he carried Juliana up the stairs.
Dante got me home within half an hour. Dominic was already by another escalade when we arrived. He shut the door with aggression before the car drove off. Dante exited the vehicle first to speak to Dominic before opening my car door. Dominic greeted me with a tight, comforting hug and a kiss on the forehead.
"Who was that?" I asked Dominic as he walked me up to our stairs.
"I had a quick meeting to handle. How was lunch?"
"It was fun! I told them about the wedding, they were shocked but overall happy."
"Who did you choose as a maid of honour?"
"Juliana and Bambina can fight about that because I can't choose. I'd rather they share the role."
"We need to start planning. Do you want to use the same party planner we used for our engagement?"
"Yes, that would be great!"
Dominic led me into our bedroom. I decided to change out of my shoes and slip into a comfortable flowing dress. Dominic waited on the couch as I changed. Once finished, I walked over to him and sat across his lap.
"Where would you like to get married?" Dominic asked.
"I'm not sure. I would like an evening wedding as the sun sets if we have an outdoor wedding. There needs to be a nice view overlooking some water or scenery. If we're inside, I want endless flowers and white drapes along with the ceiling."
"You've thought a lot about this."
"Every girl has grown up."
"Before we call the planner, we should discuss expectations of our marriage."
Dominic and I discuss the means of our marriage before our engagement party. I couldn't remember what his exact demands were; I remember being highly offended at the time. We should discuss expectations, so there is no confusion in the future.
"Of course. What are your expectations of me?" I asked, turning myself on his lap so my legs were on either side of him and my arms wrapped around his neck.
"There isn't much I expect that you don't already give me. I want you to be my equal and remember that I'm the man of the house, so you must respect my decisions. I do want children, but when and how many really depends on you. I'm not in any rush to start a family, but if it happens, so be it."
That doesn't seem so bad. Starting a family is ideal for me, and I'm pretty pleased Dominic isn't in any rush to start having kids any time soon. I want to enjoy the perks of marriage before we get consumed with children.
"Anything else?" Dominic's arms wrapped around my waist as I waited for him to finish.
"After you finish your project at work, I would like you to stay at home. If you want to start your own business, that's fine, but I don't want you working for anyone. I'll need you at home running the home aspect of our lifestyle. Hosting parties, meeting the wives, organizing events, maintaining the staff. Your role is to draw attention away from my work."
This isn't news to me. I knew working for someone bothered Dominic, so I'm comfortable officially quitting once the project is done.
"Okay, this sounds doable."
"Do you have expectations of me?" Dominic questioned.
"Yes, I do. No matter how busy you are, I won't date night at least once a week. We need to work extra hard since at this since many factors are breaking us apart. I want to be included in famiglia decisions. Just because you're the boss doesn't mean I'm going to blindly follow every demand."
"Anything else?" Dominic asked.
"Yes, about our famiglie. We are becoming a unit and creating our own famiglia, so I think we both should put this one before the ones we came from. What your mama said really shocked me and hurt me deeply. I don't want to feel like I'm fighting for your love and affection, but I'm also don't want to put you in a position of choosing sides. If one of us is wrong, we will correct each other, but if either famiglia is being blatantly rude, we need to put that person in their place."
Considering this whole ordeal was not my fault, and I never wanted the marriage at first, I couldn't believe I'm at war with Dominic's mother. War or not, it needs to be said that we would both protect each other from the attack of our outside famiglia. I want to show our children unity, and having our personal famiglia disrespect us doesn't show unity.
"I've dealt with my mama; you won't be hearing from her again, but, yes, I agree. Speaking of famiglia... have you spoken to your papa?"
I shifted uncomfortably in Dominic's lap.
"No, why?"
"Your mama and I speak every day. She's been telling me about your papa and the mess he's gotten himself into. Would you like to know what he's been up to?" Dominic hissed through his gritted teeth. I'm not surprised he and mama kept in contact with one another. Still, I am amazed mama hasn't told me anything about papa.
"What has he done?"
"Did you know he hired people to try to kidnap you and take you away from me?"
"Roberto told me he found documents in his office. He found a passport and birth certificate. I have no idea how he got his hands on that."
"I do. Your papa has made friends with my enemies. Their partnership began after our engagement party. He's dropped all of my allied associates as clients and started running with that scum of a crowd."
"Does mama know about this?"
"She knew your papa would do anything to get you back, but she doesn't know it's to this extent."
"Is that all?" There has to be more to the story. The grip Dominic has around my waist tells me he's withholding information.
"Your father acquired these documents a few weeks ago, after our engagement party when you were in Milian. Yet, he didn't visit you or contact you. I had a look into his financials. He's been withdrawing small amounts of either 2 or 4 thousand euros every week, and it's a lot more than what he usually draws out for his business. This is raising the alarm."
"Don't hurt my papa, Dominic. If anything, I'll talk to papa myself but give me a chance to fix it before you step in, please. He's my papa." I pleaded.
Dominic looked me in the eyes with his stoic eyes. His grips loosened on my hips as he drew circles on my skin with his smooth cold fingers. Moments passed, but he didn't give me an answer. I leaned in for a kiss to spark a reaction. His lips responded instantly to mine. I felt Dominic move his hands up my back towards the back of my head. I pulled away before he could grip me.
"Fine, I will give you time to fix it. Mark my words, love; if you don't fix it, I will."
"Thank you,"
"Alright, I have a few more meetings. I'll call the planner and book her to come in to help."