2. Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Serena
A fter coming back home to be closer to my family, I've been helping with the planning of Gio and Everly's wedding. They're already married, but he wants to give her a proper ceremony. My brother is the least patient man I've ever met when it comes to tying himself to his wife.
He’s tried to bribe me to move the ceremony up, and even attempted to influence his wife to have the event sooner.
My mother Val and I have been planning this wedding for months. Today is the day we finally get to watch them get married. We've hired the best caterers money could buy. The menu consists of steak and seafood, with chicken as another option for guests. I've made sure the food is all set up and taken delivery of the flowers. The red and black decorations look stunning, and the photographers are in place. Everything is gorgeous and looks like a dream with the white fabric draped from the ceiling.
The subtle choice of lighting casts a warm glow on the room. A gentle breeze rustles through the colorful flower arrangements outside the open doors, releasing a sweet floral scent into the air. The sound of soft music fills the atmosphere, creating a serene ambiance. Excitement and anticipation buzz among the guests as they take their seats, eagerly awaiting the ceremony to begin. My heart swells with pride and joy, knowing that all our hard work has culminated in this beautiful moment.
My sister-in-law, Everly, is my best friend, and since Marcello's girl, Sam, came into the family, she's been added to our trio. It's been such a relief to come home and have them to lean on, even though they have no idea what my life was like before.
Everly and Sam make my life so much fuller, and I'm grateful that my brothers found them. My mom loves them as if they are her actual daughters. We have spent hundreds of hours getting ready for this wedding. We visited tons of different venues until we found the perfect place that brought tears to Everly's eyes.
The amount of food tasting, cake tasting, dress fittings, and shopping that we've done over the last few months is mind-blowing. Hours spent scoping out bridal magazines and the internet for the perfect centerpieces and décor. Even coming up with the wedding colors was an entire event in itself, and the girls and I loved every second of the planning.
We finally agreed on the red and black color scheme. Everly loves red peonies, and we have those in the centerpieces and throughout the venue. There is a flower arch at the altar filled with them, and there are huge columns covered in peonies outside the doors of the venue.
It’s my responsibility to do a final walkthrough of the entire venue, including the reception hall, ensuring everything is perfect for my brother and his bride.
Making my way in to check on Gio, I spot Marcello, and as expected, he is dressed in a stupid black robe with a white stole that has hummingbirds on it.
Approaching him, I can’t help but smirk as I say, "Marcello, you didn't need to dress like that."
He looks like a real wedding officiant, like a member of the church clergy. We both know the gates of Hell would open and swallow him whole if he tried to enter a church. My brother has a gift for torture and murder that most people would find disturbing. Our father taught him how to funnel that energy, and now he’s the family’s top enforcer. His reputation is known far and wide and people often look away and shudder in fear when he walks by them, but to me, he's just my big brother.
The things Marcello went through as a child made him who he is today. My parents adopted him and without the guidance of my father, Marcello would have turned into a mass murderer and probably spent his life behind bars, or worse, gotten the death penalty. Underneath his need to kill is a sweet, loving brother who will do anything to protect our family. He's loyal to a fault. If someone tries to hurt us, the darkness in him takes over and the sweet jokester turns into the grim reaper.
"Hey, sis, you might not take your job seriously, but I do. If I'm going to be at my brother's wedding, I'm going to be useful. Besides, I performed a quickie wedding for a friend and his girl and wanted to look the part." His mouth widens with a grin. If Marcello wasn't my brother, he would scare the hell out of me.
"How's Gio holding up?" I ask.
"He's nervous, even though the nutbag already kidnapped her and forced her to marry him once, now all of a sudden, he loses his balls. Like Everly isn't going to show up." He scoffs with a roll of his eyes. "I would just go kidnap her and bring her back to the altar. I don't know why our brother is being so ridiculous. He's kidnapped, married, impregnated, and tattooed the woman against her will. She's not going anywhere."
With my eyebrows drawing together, I let him know that's not going to happen. "Marcello, you and Gio ran roughshod over those girls before, but now they have me as a best friend, and you forget I grew up with you assholes. I won’t allow you to mess up this wedding for Everly." I smack playfully at his chest.
He throws his hands up in surrender and pretends to pout, only it looks more like a grimace. "I'll only kidnap her if she tries to run. Scout's honor." To emphasize his point, he raises three fingers in the scout's honor sign.
"You were never a boy scout. Far from it." As a broad grin stretches across his face, I can't help but let out a giggle. I love my family. They might not be conventional, but I know we would all do anything for each other. We love each other hardcore.
Not able to stop myself, I smile as I walk off to the bride's suite where Everly's getting ready. Entering the suite unnoticed, I watch from the door as Everly puts the finishing touches to her look. She's chosen to wear a red sleeveless V-neck dress that fits her body like she was poured into it. My sister-in-law opted for the court train, instead of a longer chapel train, and there is a black lace overlay on the skirt. It's beautiful, elegant and suits her perfectly.
My mother helped put her hair into a half updo. The bottom half is hanging around her shoulders in ringlet curls. There are tiny pieces of baby's breath weaved into the hairstyle. Her makeup looks almost natural but enhances her beauty.
Tearing my gaze away from my sister-in-law, I spot my mother holding Amelia, Gio and Everly’s daughter.
"Baby girl, come see Auntie Sena." Amelia can't say Serena, so she calls me Sena. I make grabby hands, and my mother passes her to me without fuss. Kissing her chubby little cheeks, I squeeze her tight, inhaling her unique baby scent. I’m so blessed to have beautiful nieces and nephews.
Marcello has two twin boys named Luca and Matteo, and Amelia gives them a run for their money. This girl is going to be a handful when she gets older. Hopefully, she won't be the only girl in the family, because having two older cousins who are overprotective is going to be much like having two older brothers. No guys wanted to date me in high school because they were terrified of my brothers.
"I'm here to check on the bride. You sure you don't want to leave my asshole brother at the altar?"
With a snicker, Everly grins at me. "Never. That man may be an asshole, but he's my asshole."
Mom is standing behind Everly, putting the finishing touches on her hair before asking, "How does she look?"
"Everly's always gorgeous, and today she's more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. Gio is going to lose his mind."
Some people might be shocked she opted for a red and black wedding dress, but it's perfect for her. The corresponding black suit paired with a red tie that Gio's wearing compliments her dress and the venue’s decor.
Everly's eyes appear glazed with wetness as she smiles at me. "Thank you, Serena. One of the best things about marrying Gio is his family. I'm lucky to be part of it and love you both as much as I love him. I'm so glad Amelia gets to grow up in this family instead of one like I had."
Reaching over and taking Everly's hands, I fight the tears threatening to fall at her words. "You were always worthy of having people who love you, Ev. Remember, they were the problem, not you. We are going to break that cycle and make sure Amelia never knows what it's like to feel unloved."
"Your overbearing brother has already started that. He said when she goes to school, if anyone bullies her, he will put a hit out on them. Can you imagine Gio and Marcello putting a hit on a five-year-old's head?"
The image her words conjure is hilarious. Hilarious but scary, because I can see those two bozos doing it. As dangerous as my brothers are, they are both pranksters. They always try to make everyone in the family laugh. Outsiders just see the stoic and deadly side of them, but we see the jokes and laughter, and most importantly, the love.
As the music begins, it signals that we all need to line up ready for the ceremony. My dad, Alto, comes to the door to get Everly. He's walking her down the aisle since her father was a piece of shit who tried to sell her to pay for his gambling debt.
My father walks over and takes Everly's hand. "I want you to know you are my daughter and this family will protect you as one of our own. You never have to worry about anything and can come to me anytime. I'm going to do whatever I can for you. You've given me a beautiful granddaughter, and I love you like you are one of my own children." He leans in and hugs my now crying sister-in-law. "Let's go get you married."
They walk out to the lobby, waiting for the cue to walk down the aisle where my brother is waiting. As a wedding planner and a bridesmaid, my job is to encourage Amelia, my niece, to throw flowers as she walks down the aisle. She’s a toddler, so I’m expecting a challenge.
As the wedding march begins, I get Amelia about halfway down the aisle before she throws the basket of flowers on the floor and runs to jump into her father's arms. The wedding guests giggle at her cuteness.
My next task is to get Marcello's twin boys to cooperate. I place the ring on the pillow they are carrying. We opted for a pillow that's a little larger than the traditional, so each boy can hold on to one end as they walk down. However, Luca and Matteo can barely walk and decide pretty quickly that they don't want to share the pillow with each other.
Luca jerks the pillow out of Matteo's hands and almost falls backward. While he’s off balance, Matteo comes up and shoves his brother. Luca falls, and Matteo grabs the pillow and races down the aisle to his waiting father. As I watch him run away, I spot Gio and Marcello laughing at the twin's antics.
It warms my heart that my family doesn’t get angry or upset that the children aren’t perfect at playing their roles. Some people would; whereas we cherish self-expression and love unconditionally. A twinge of envy washes over me every time I see my brothers and sisters-in-law with their kids—I don't think I'll ever have something like that. I may have given up on my dream of becoming a mother, but I vow to always love and lavish attention on my nieces and nephews.
In the event I am forced to marry a monster, I secretly take birth control pills, determined to maintain control over my body. My husband will expect me to produce an heir, but being on birth control will buy me some time. Although I won’t be allowed to choose my husband, I can choose not to get pregnant until I'm ready or at all.
The ceremony goes off without a hitch, and afterwards, we are ushered into the grand hall for the reception. Despite being a beautiful day, I’m exhausted. It's been difficult and time-consuming to keep the city's five mafia families apart and ensure everyone at each table gets along. One wrong move, and it would have been a bloodbath. On top of that, I've kept all the caterers and servers on schedule.
As soon as the cake is cut and everyone makes their way onto the dance floor, it's time for me to relax.
Heading outside for some fresh air, a mafia associate approaches me, wrapping his arm around my waist and touching my cheek. He's obviously had too much to drink.
"Serena, come on, let's dance."
Stiffening at his advances, I try to push him away and put distance between us, but he continues to grope me. "I'm sorry, Shawn. I have things I need to do. Maybe next time."
"Ah, come on. You never go out with me when I ask. We could be so good together. Maybe I should make a deal with your brothers to marry you."
As soon as I wriggle free from Shawn's grip, I bolt from the reception hall, the music fading behind me. There's a beautiful gazebo used for outdoor weddings in the grounds, so I head there, determined to take in the moonlight and quiet for a bit.