- ARES SEIDON >
A small number of gowns and tuxedos catch my sight as the doors open.
As soon as we walk in, the chatter in the room dies down. Ironically, it is as silent as a graveyard.
Barely visible to the public eye, I feel her slightly tense. I know she hates having the spotlight on her. Now she has a whole disapproving family awaiting her to meet her.
I squeeze her waist, momentarily letting her go and grabbing us both champagne from the server's tray. "Remember what I told you. The Torronos can see intimidation from a mile away. They practically feel fear radiating off their victims."
She stiffly nods, looking around with a siren gaze. Her makeup brightly highlighted the mismatched dark green and hazel iris' in her eyes. Her lips were glossed with the outlines of the dark shade.
I spot the Don in the center with wine in his hand, speaking with his parents.
My hand grasps Tatu's waist, pulling her with me as I make my way to the Don. Once we reach him, he holds out his hand for her to take.
"Mother, father. Meet my daughter, Tatuyanna." Angelos has the deepest stoic expression etched onto her soft features.
The previous Don, Vincenzo Torrono. And his wife, Angela Torrono sent their granddaughter a distasteful gaze. Looking at her as if she valued less than a piece of dust under their custom-made shoes.
Angela gives her a once over, her hazel eyes halting at her granddaughter's chest. Her face flamed red with anger as she began seething. "You gave her our family emblem!"
Angelos protectively shields the necklace, with a slight glare.
"I thought I knew you better, son. I hoped the rumors were false. I thought I taught you better, only for you to bring a whore's spawn into our family." Vincenzo barks, glaring daggers at his son.
I watch as two sets of mismatched colored eyes, narrow to slits while their jaws clench, clearly controlling their anger.
"I'd suggest you watch your mouth when speaking about my mother." Angelos grits, seemingly unaffected by their hateful gazes.
"She was a doctor, not a whore."
Angela sneers. "And what stops a doctor from being a whore, child?" Angela asks, elegantly sipping her champagne.
"Maybe the same thing that stops a grandparent from assassinating their own granddaughter?" Angelos bites back, tilting her head with a curious gaze.
"Don't get smart with us, girl. We will never accept you as our own. You don't deserve our name."
Angelos flashes a wide sarcastic grin. "Too late grandpa, my birth certificate has been renewed years ago. I'm an official Torrono. I guess having the family emblem wasn't clear enough for you."
"Be grateful you didn't die that night. The least you could do is serve us for sparing your life for our son's sake." Angela spat arrogantly.
The Don sighs. "Mother, father, don't speak to her that way. And we spoke about this–" Angelos steps forward silencing her father as she speaks. "That should be a reminder for you to know that you will never get rid of me easily,"
"Trust us, child. If we wanted you dead, you would be dead."
The glint in her eyes dies out. I watch as the confidence in her gets slowly wrenched out of her demeanor.
"In all honesty, I'd rather be an orphan than have you as my grandparents. My father is more than enough. I don't need a toxic family."
The Don's parents attempt to show nonchalance, as they walked away with their pride fractured.
Their determination to break her down failed and she ended up calling them out.
Their ego should be completely shattered. No one ever talked back to these two people. During their reign, they were the most feared and had no mercy nor sympathy while they made people respect them and fear them.
They became Gods in the eyes of the underworld. Building a name for their family and having the determination to keep that name clean and prestigious.
"Do you think I killed their ego too much?" I look down to see her slight frown as if she was worried about them.
"They'll be fine. The previous capo and his wife used to be mass murderers in their time. The cruelest vipors in the game. I'm surprised you got off unscathed."
Her frown deepens.
"They might just warm up to you. Also, you got through the worst of the family. You can relax now."
She scoffs. "Okay, I need a drink if I'm going to deal with less of the evil." Her hand runs down my chest to my abdomen, gently urging me to turn around and follow her to the bar.
I look up and instantly lock the piercing green eyes of uncle Leonardo, Lorenzo, and Luca. They were vultures, waiting for their meal. But I'm not dumb enough to take her straight into their trap of chastisement. "Uncles twelve o clock. They're triplets, but don't talk about that. They have a mutual hatred for the fact that they were born on the same day."
She stifles a giggle. "Why?"
I shrug. "Just don't point it out when you find yourself talking to them. They don't really talk much so we're just going to walk the other way." We walk passed them toward the bar. "Why don't I just go over there, and tell them shit."
A scoff of derision gets stuck in my throat. "Are you bipolar? You were scared to confront these people less than an hour ago."
Tatuyanna huffs, playing with the stone of her diamond necklace. "I was just startled, this is the real me, okay? I fear nobody . . . maybe my dad . . . and drowning." She cringes.
"Then learn to swim,"
"Try getting me in the water first. That's the real issue." She grumbles.
I clamp down on my jaw. This brat really pisses me off. "Cousins three o'clock,"
The two approaching are less venomous—or more reasonable to talk to—than the other two. She's lucky she gets a less hostile welcome.
"Ares."
Heathe Torrono. Twenty-four and his sister twenty-three. He gives me a nod, resulting in me doing the same to him and his sister.
His attention is instantly pulled by the gorgeous woman beside me.
"You must be our . . . so-called cousin."
He stretches his hand out for her to shake. His tone had a slight edge to it, but it was nothing Angel couldn't handle.
She hesitantly looks at his hand before giving in. "Tatuyanna." She says never to leave eye contact.
"Heathe." He smirks, bringing her hand close to his lips, and giving it a slight peck. "It's nice to meet the woman that caused the havoc present in our family. Don't take offense to this but I didn't think you would be this much of a smoke show. With how my family described your existence, you aren't how I imagined your appearance."
He's not wrong. Even though he worded his thoughts like a dumbfuck, Angel's beauty rivals every woman at this party.
From the moment I saw her, and the entire trip to this cursed party, I struggle with keeping my eyes away from her perfect round tits to her fat ass. Her small waist in that dress—fuck–was she always this attractive?
No matter how ethereal she looks, I need to make sure she's comfortable around me. I'm good with women, but she's not women.
She's Angelos.
"I can see why the capo kept his princess locked up for all these years. She didn't even need a dragon for protecting 'cause he hired a whole military-trained troop to protect her."
I notice her jaw clamped shut. She's annoyed. "Impressive. I expect no less from our diligent uncle."
Tatuyanna slightly wrenched her hand out of his grasp, glaring at his satiated smirk.
Her attention was directed to her second cousin. Heathe's sister, who gives her a small smile and elegantly reaches out and shakes her hand.
"I'm Fiorella. I certainly never thought my uncle would stoop low enough to have a child in a temporary lust-driven relationship." Fiorella's smirk is filled with malice as she aims to put pressure on a wound that healed six years ago.
Tatuyanna's eyebrow twitched. Something she does unconsciously when she gets pissed off.
I silently watch, making sure I'm prepared to catch her before her fists start flying. Knowing Angel, she wouldn't think twice. As I'm waiting for her outburst, I realize it's not coming.
My eyebrows raise in shock. She's actually calm.
Or so I thought because Fiorella suddenly winces. I look down and notice Angel never left Fiorella's hand. Tightly gripping it until her knuckles turned ghost-white.
It was a warning.
"Not a path you want to go." Tatuyanna calmly says in a warning tone, face dangerously emotionless. "If you wish to see the consequences of your words, continue. I won't be responsible for the outcome though."
Fiorella doesn't shrink back. She doesn't cower away. Her smirk just deepens, while her brother watches the exchange with amusement.
"If it isn't the whore's spawn."
Two shadows come forward standing next to Heathe and Fiorella. Great. I was hoping we would deal with these two later than we had to. The two greatest assholes in the family, Valentino and his sister Vanessa. The younger cousins were twins at age Twenty.
Tatuyanna lets go of Fiorella's hand and cross her arms over her chest as she glares at the four people that gazed at her as if she was below them.
"If you're all just going to insult her, you should shut the fuck up. She didn't come here to get attacked,"
Their eyes snap to me, not only them but I feel Angel's eyes on the side of my face for a more time than necessary.
"Ares, you're one of us. Do you know she used to be poor? Why are you defending her?" Vanessa throws her hands up in frustration.
"One of you? What the fuck? Is this some kind of cult?" Angel semi-yelled with a deep frown on her features. "Don't talk down on us." Valentino steps forward threateningly, making me thrust a hand in front of her protectively.
"Ares, I can protect myself. I don't fear spoiled, rich, and entitled assholes." She spat, looking directly at Valentino who shoots daggers back at her.
"Entitled?" Vanessa seethes clenching her fists. "You should watch your fucking mouth! You're only protection is that emblem on your chest. If I could, I would end your pathetic life right here and now."
Angel's expression dies out. "Listen, you don't scare me. If you think you could end my life before I send you to hell, your champagne has to be spiked 'cause you're sprouting shit, sweetheart."
Vanessa looks like she's about to lose her shit, getting ready to attack. "I'm sure your mother had fun spiking my uncle's—"
A fist flies before I could stop it. Crimson starts pouring out of Vanessa's nose.
This girl has to be the most violent person I've ever encountered. It makes me wonder how the Don was when he was growing up. Before this turns into a boxing match, I pull the human hellfire by her waist while Valentino grasps his sister, trying to calm her down.
"What's going on here?"
All of us look beside us, only to be met with aunt Valentina's worried gaze and aunt Lizana's immediate glare, with all of Angel's uncles trailing behind them.
"Mother, we need to get this illegitimate spawn out of the premises immediately. She's done nothing but ruin our family name and insult us."
Lizana sends Tatuyanna an accusive glare. "What?" Aunt Valentina fumes while Angel didn't seem to be intimidated by the large group of people that had their attention now.
"Vanessa, your nose! Go get that cleaned up. God, you're bleeding all over your dress." Valentina sneers in disgust. Valentino takes his sister to get her nose cleaned. I heard a fuckin' crack, she needs it fixed not cleaned. Tatuyanna goes hard on those boxing sessions, I'm not surprised.
"Listen, aunt Valentina, that never happened. All that happened was a small banter between us young adults." I say, trying to de-escalate the situation.
Silence engulfs them all. I can tell she's torn between trusting me or her daughter when she placed their trust in me more.
Through my peripheral, I see Tatuyanna sigh.
"La famiglia prima di qualsiasi cosa o chiunque altro," [family before anything or anyone else]
A handful of bitter gazes instantly drop, emotion draining their faces. Shit, I was caught off-guard too.
"Family before it all." Her gaze is piercing.
"What your family stood by for so many years. Just because I was born as a product of temporary love, I can't be a part of the family? Just because you were all products of rich bachelors and bachelorettes in the mafia, you think you're better than me?"
"Well . . ." Aunt Valentina shifts uncomfortably, thinking of an excuse. "That- that's . . ." Her niece, Fiorella stutters all over her words, while uncle Luca, uncle Leonardo, and uncle Lorenzo have a distinct frown on their faces.
Everyone here portrays shock.
Speechless.
Unable to defend their arguments. Feeling entitled because of the prestigious family name and adopting the mentality that if you aren't raised just as they were, you can't be one of them.
It's ridiculously stupid. Our society still deals with this kind of inequality. Even inside your own blood family, you struggle to get accepted.
"Wake up. There's more to life than your high status and your riches. No matter where your blood ends up, your support should be unconditional. I couldn't give a flying fuck if you decided to accept me or not,"
They all don't make eye contact, looking anywhere far from the truth. They were so focused on the benefits, drowning in the respect and power given to them, they forgot what their family stood for.
"I just want to enlighten you; your reputation and money won't matter when you're on your deathbed,"
She turns around, grasping the long tail of her dress, and looks to the side, revealing her perfect side profile. "Your family will." She says walking away and leaving them in their broken pride.
I reluctantly follow her into a dark hallway, watching as she starts to hyperventilate, leaning her trembling hand against the wall.
"Hey, hey. You're okay." I grasp her shoulders, trying to meet her gaze. "You're okay," I repeat as our eyes finally met. She takes a couple of breaths in and a couple of deep breaths out.
"Did I do okay? I don't know why I'm having an anxiety attack. I just ruined my badass exit." She says, disappointed. Leaning her head against my chest.
I embrace her. "You did great," I mumble, sighing out of relief, knowing today didn't go as disastrous as I predicted it would. Sure, a nose was broken, but at least no one died tonight.
"We should go home. This was enough activity for one day." I say, watching her pull away. "For how well you handled things today," She looks at me questioningly. "I'll. . . bake you a bagel," I murmur the last part, looking away and glaring at the wall beside her as humiliation settled.
"A bagel?" I nod, never meeting eye contact. "You'll really make one specifically for me?"
I sigh. "Yeah, but don't fuckin' get used to it," I grumble, burying my hands in my pockets. A giggle resounds in the hallway. "Fine, but we should stop by the gym first." She says.
"I need to get rid of this pent-up anger, and the gym does the trick." She smiles up at me mischievously. "Who knows, I might just lift heavier weight than you tonight."
I scoff. "You shouldn't overestimate yourself, Angelos."
She steps up, challengingly gazing up at me.
"You shouldn't underestimate me, diavolos." My eyebrows shot up, my jaw clenched while my chest filled with a weird strong sensation that made me forget how to breathe.
I was caught staring at her dumbfounded. What the fuck was that feeling just now?
She leaves me no reprieve as she continues. "What's wrong diavolos? Is it really that shocking for me to learn a little bit of Greek after Italian courses?" She raises her perfectly shaped eyebrow in challenge.
God, she's so beautiful. Never have I been teased so powerfully in my language, enough for me to be this speechless, and she hasn't even spoken a full sentence.
Ignoring her, I walk away knowing she would follow behind. I can't let her see that she managed to get me slightly flustered.
By the silent amused chuckle behind me, I know she already did. I didn't realize it these past years, but I think I'm growing soft.
Especially for her.
Random memories flood my mind, like when I took her to get a tattoo done.
•||FLASHBACK||•
"I'm not a coward, Ares. I'm going to get that tattoo." She says, stubbornly holding her chin high. "Dad has a million tatts. I want some too."
I shrug, parking in front of a tattoo shop. "Do whatever you want. Just pray about your pain tolerance." I say, getting out of the car and meeting her halfway into the place.
Her eyes were wide as soon as we entered. It was huge. There could be more or less fifty poeple in here. Half getting tattoos, half performing the tattoos. "Wow."
"Why's he staring at me like that?" She asks, clutching her purse tightly before curling her arm around my arm. I follow her gaze and see a man, eyes lustful and penetrative.
"Should I kill him?" My hand already reaches for my gun. "No, don't. I'm not uncomfortable. He's just weird." She murmurs, pulling me far from him.
No use. I already have his features memorized.
"Hi, do you have a client anytime soon?" She asks a female tattoo artist, who was busy cleaning her equipment. Once the woman looks up, recognition flashes and I instantly mirror it. "Diamond?"
"No way. Ares?" Diamond stands and gives me a hug. Familiar arms fully tatted reaching around my neck. "Been a long minute." She chuckles.
"Too long." She replies. Diamond's eyes move beside me. "Is this your girlfriend?" She asks.
"Something like that." I pull a grin, slightly pushing this introvert forward. "This is Tatuyanna."
Diamond smiles. "Nice to meet you, I'm Diamond." Before they shake hands, Tatuyanna side eyes me. "I can assist you."
Angel sits, paying for the tattoo and signing some things before describing her desired design. "Do you want him to stay for this? You'll have to take your button-down off."
I already turned to leave, but a hand stops me. "No. He stays." She replies but her gaze stays on me.
That was an order.
I almost break out into a full on grin. Instead, a single corner rises. I know her intentions. She just doesn't want to be left alone.
I find it amusing how she forgets I'm a man too.
She unbuttons her shirt, placing it beside her, followed by her bra. She covers her chest with an arm, laying on her stomach. "You better not be getting ideas, Seidon." Diamond says, mischief in her expression.
Too late.
I sit in front of Angelos. Her gaze finds mine. "Why are you smiling at me like that?" She asks, her chin supported by her fist.
Her curls were barely tamed in a high bun, a few strands falling freely and framing her face.
I decide to play with a single strand. "No real reason."
Diamond begins and Angel's eyes almost bulge out of their sockets. She then months 'help.' A look of panic in her wide eyes.
I chuckle, shaking my head. 'You wanted this'
"What are you laughing for, Seidon?" Diamond asks, her focus on Tatuyanna's back. "I think I left my stove on, I think I need to go home and make sure."
I move to stand but her hand shoots out to grab mine. 'If you leave now, I swear to everything, I'll kill you in your sleep.' She glares at me.
If I pull out my phone and take a picture of this insanely gorgeous expression, would it piss her off?
"You're not leaving? What about your stove?" I hold back a laugh. "No, I think I'll just buy another house."
After an hour and a half, we're done. As my eyes landed on her back, I didn't think she could get more attractive. It may be a few words but it must mean alot to her.
I know exactly the inspiration behind this tattoo. "We're done?" She looks at me with hope, melting into relief once I nod. "We're done."
•||FLASHBACK||•
~~~
Hi everybody!
Hopefully, you all had a good week.
Personally, I can't say. This week flew by way too quickly for my liking.
Anyways, thanks so much for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter. <3
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