Happily Ever After: The New Dawn Wedding

Chapter Thirteen

Ella

”Who the hell are you?” Ade asks. His growl is so loud not even the helicopter noise drowns it out.

What”s happening?

If Ade is acting this way, this can”t be good.

I hold on to his waist from behind, leaning my cheek against his back.

My heart is racing.

I didn”t see much before he shielded me behind his body. But I did spot other men in the chopper who weren”t our chef.

”Apologies for intruding on your special day. It is entirely rude of me,” a man says with an American accent. And by the way, he doesn”t sound the least bit remorseful.

”I saw an opportunity, and I took it,” he continues. ”Allow me to introduce myself. I am Niccolo Romero.”

Ade tenses.

Does that mean he knows this guy… or at least of him?

Niccolo Romero… I can”t say I”ve ever heard the name.

I hear two more sets of thuds from the helicopter… the other passengers jumping off, I presume.

”May I congratulate the bride?” the guy asks, and I stiffen.

He wants to talk to me?

Why would he want to talk to me?

”You may not,” Aiden replies coolly, widening his stance. From his tone, I can tell that his Green Beret emergency response training has kicked in. He”ll be observing everything, his mind working overtime on how to get us out of this mess.

”I understand you want to protect your lovely bride from me. It”s justified, given who I am. But there is no need. I come in peace.”

Yeah right. I don”t believe this guy for a second… and nor does Aiden.

”Your gun in my face suggests otherwise,” Ade deadpans, his tone so calm, I”m not sure if he”s even the slightest bit rattled.

Me, however? My heart is working double time with the adrenaline rushing through my veins.

Still, I step out from behind Aiden to face the man who clearly is here for me.

Why, I have no clue. But I”ll be damned if I cower from someone like him.

What did da always say? Feel the fear and do it anyway.

Aiden”s body goes rigid when I appear next to him. I get he wants to protect me, but we”re meant to face everything together, aren”t we? The good and the bad.

Ade”s jaw ticks, and I bet he wants to scold me and yank me back behind him, but he”s not taking his eyes off Niccolo and his men. One of them is holding the Reverend”s arm, his gun ready at hand, the other also pointing his weapon at us.

My heart surges into my throat, and I sway on my feet with the overwhelming fear I”m suddenly faced with. I want to grab Aiden”s hand, but I also don”t want to show any weakness. Plus, Ade might need it to defend us.

Taking a deep breath through my nose to make it less obvious how shit-scared I am, I study the lead intruder.

Niccolo Romero is surprisingly handsome. He looks to be in his early twenties, but there is a maturity about him that shouldn”t be there. Not yet anyway, if he was a typical twenty-something-year-old.

But something tells me he”s anything but typical.

An air of power and entitlement, even strict authority, surrounds him.

There”s something familiar about him, yet also not. I rack my brain, trying to remember all the faces I saw when I was with Tiero, but my mind comes up blank. I”m sure I have not met him before.

Clad in black denim jeans, well-worn leather boots, and a short-sleeved, dark T-shirt, he smiles at me in a way that”s arrogant and a tad condescending. I take an immediate dislike to him.

Then his eyes meet mine.

For a millisecond, my heart falters.

Hazel-brown eyes stare back at me.

My stomach somersaults.

I forget how to breathe and clasp Aiden”s arm in shock. My gaze races to my fiancé”s, but he doesn”t appear as taken aback as I am. Can”t he see it?

If he can, he has one hell of a poker face.

Niccolo”s eyes… they”re so much like…

The man in question grins at me. But there”s nothing genuine about it.

Shivers run down my spine, and my grip on Ade tightens.

”I can see why he was so taken with you. You”re a pretty little thing, aren”t you, Miss Ella Rose O”Neil?”

Is he talking about Tiero? And ”thing”? My dislike for this guy is growing with each word that”s coming out of his mouth.

I ignore his comment as much for Ade”s sake as for mine. Beside me, Ade”s hands clench into fists.

”Why are you here, Romero?” my fiancé asks through gritted teeth. ”Rumor has it you”re trying to establish yourself in Sicily. Chicago not big enough for your family?”

”Oh, Chicago is plenty big for my family, but I”m growing the business, my mother”s family business, to be more precise.”

He”s lowering his gun as he walks toward me, his gaze intense. I instinctively take a step closer to Ade who wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me close.

His eyes intently locked on me, he continues, ”After your deceased lover killed my grandfather and all his male descendants, his crown now falls to me. I”m making beautiful headway in bringing all of Sicily under my control, but for the icing on the cake, I need a little something.”

My head is spinning, trying to make sense of everything he”s saying. Tiero killed his grandfather… who was that? I”ve never heard the name Romero before. And from what I learned, Tiero killed a lot of people, all bad Ade assured me, after I disappeared. Apparently, he did a cleanse to rid himself of his enemies. Enemies who might also come after me. So who is Niccolo talking about?

”It”s silly, really. Archaic, if you asked me, but it seems I have to abide by these rules… at least if I want things to go easier for me. I mean, who wants to make more work for themselves than they have to, right?”

His gaze bounces between Ade and me before he continues. ”For me to take over De Marco”s empire. I need something… something that”s hidden right here on this island. But don”t worry, as soon as I have it, I will leave you to it. After all, today is a special day, is it not? So to speed things up, perhaps you can be of assistance?”

What?

His words sound polite… on the surface. His tone, however, suggests something else.

Taking over the De Marco empire? I”ll be damned if I help him do that.

”Who was your grandfather?” I ask, finally finding my voice.

His cool gaze lands on mine again, and that arrogant smile is back.

”Niccolo Molinaro. I”m named after him.”

The sheer mention of that name makes me gasp.

Molinaro. The man who tried to kidnap me—twice. The man who risked the life of his own daughter to lure me into a trap… quite successfully too. If it hadn”t been for Alonzo, I”d probably be dead now.

So this guy here is Mafia, and Molinaro”s only surviving heir? If that villain”s blood is running in this guy”s veins, God help us all.

”What makes you believe what you”re looking for is here?” Ade asks, ”De Marco had properties around the world. Why here?”

”Because I was told it is here.”

”By whom?” I ask.

Who would have known about the box in the cave? Because it is the only thing he could be talking about.

Who had that information? And who would give it away?

”Tsk, tsk, tsk.” Niccolo shakes his head. ”Now I can”t give away my sources, can I? Let”s just say I have no reason to doubt it. Now my question to you is, have you found a box of some sort here on this island?”

For the second time in a matter of minutes, my heart stutters in my chest.

Fuck!He”s after the papers we found yesterday.

What are the odds of someone turning up wanting what we found not even a day after?

Ade”s face is unreadable, giving nothing away when I glance up at him for guidance. But Niccolo doesn”t miss it and that infuriating smile is back.

”Ah, I see you know what I”m talking about. You found it.”

It”s not a question, but a statement. I”m doubly curious now to know what those papers mean.

As much as I don”t want him to take over what Tiero”s family built, I”m inclined to give it to Niccolo just to get rid of him. Really, do we have any other choice? I should tell him it”s at the bottom of the mud bath!

But will he be true to his word and leave once he has it? Or will he kill us anyway, pleased to have no witnesses? Nobody would find our bodies here for a long time, or perhaps he”ll feed us to the sharks. All of these options make my stomach drop.

”Now, shall we proceed to the main house? I believe there are two more wedding guests to join our little party. And if I had to guess, what I seek is exactly there, isn”t it? So let”s go.” Niccolo gestures like a Ma?tre-D to the quad bikes sitting at the edge of the helipad.

Rhia, Lex… how does he know about them?

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Now we”re putting them in danger too.

Oh God, oh God, oh God.

What are we going to do?