Chapter 15 - Dante #2
“I’ve got a better sense of humor.” I shrugged casually and led a very nervous Alisa to an empty chair. “Alisa and I got married almost two months ago.”
At this, Larissa gasped and clutched her brother’s arm. “Gastone… you were saying you thought… “
Gastone rose from his chair, sliding it back from the table. “Alisa? As in Alisa Montes? I thought she looked familiar.”
“Yes, that Alisa,” Caspian confirmed, taking his seat at the head of the table.
“What the fuck? You married Alisa Montes?” Federico’s voice screeched in shock. “Marc Montes’s daughter? Like the federal prosecutor?”
“What were you thinking?” “Have you lost your mind?” “Well, there’s reckless and then there’s suicidal!”
All around me, the room turned into uproar until Caspian bellowed at them all to shut up.
Alisa straightened beside me, and I saw her eyes narrow. “I’m right here, you know.”
Considering how nervous she was, she grew a thick skin pretty fucking fast.
“And we’re all very interested in why,” Luca added, leaning forward with a hiss.
“Guys,” Kate, Caspian’s wife, interrupted with a pointed look around the table. “We have a guest. Perhaps we could attempt civility before the interrogation?”
“Thank you, Kate.” I nodded gratefully. “And yes, I married Alisa. It’s a long story that involves an auction, a kidnapping, and her father being an even bigger piece of shit than we thought.”
“Dante!” Alisa hissed, but the damage was done.
“Auction?” Beatrice repeated. “Kidnapping? What the hell did you do, Dante?”
“Why do you assume I did something?” I protested.
“Because it’s you,” two of my brothers said in unison.
I couldn’t argue with that logic.
Caspian raised his hand, commanding silence. “Let’s eat while the food is hot. Dante can explain how he managed to secretly marry the daughter of one of our biggest threats over dinner.”
His tone was calm, but the look he gave me promised consequences. I’d seen that look before—right before someone got their kneecaps broken.
Servers appeared, bringing out platters of food. The smell of roasted meats, garlic, and herbs filled the air, momentarily distracting from the tension. Wine glasses were filled, bread was passed, and for a few minutes, we pretended everything was normal.
Then Giovanni broke the silence. “So, Alisa, how exactly did my brother convince you to marry him? Blackmail? Threats? Temporary insanity?”
“Gio,” Larissa warned her husband.
Alisa set down her fork. “Actually, I needed protection.”
“Protection from what?” Federico asked, suddenly interested.
She hesitated, glancing at me. I nodded slightly. These people were family. She could be honest around here.
“From whoever my father was planning to sell me to,” she said quietly.
The table went silent again. I watched their faces process what she’d said—shock, disbelief, then even more disbelief.
“Marc Montes was selling his own daughter?” Achille whistled low. “That’s cold, even for a fed.”
“He’s being blackmailed,” Alisa insisted, though I heard the doubt in her voice. “He wouldn’t do this unless someone was forcing his hand.”
“Or unless the price was right,” Luca suggested.
Alisa flinched. I shot him a warning look.
“What exactly did you hear?” Caspian asked, leaning forward. I knew what he was doing. Fishing for information.
The room fell silent as Alisa began to tell her story. Even now, when hearing it for the second time, I felt that same rage against her father as I’d done the first time around.
“Did he mention which family?” Caspian asked.
Alisa shook her head.
“Fuck,” Caspian hissed. “We’re going to have to find out all that we can about this. We have to dig into Marc Montes and see what trouble he’s brewing up. One thing’s clear—he’s as corrupt as they come.”
Alisa shook her head in protest. “I still can’t believe he would do this. He’s not corrupt. There has to be an explanation. I’m telling you, he’s being blackmailed.”
“Oh, honey,” Kate said softly, and I saw her own memories coming back to her. “Our families sometimes aren’t what we expect.”
“But… “ Alisa’s voice faded. “I’m quite certain… “
An uncomfortable silence fell over the table, and a few seconds passed, but then I cleared my throat. “Federico, I could use your help looking into this. Your contacts might know which families are pressuring Marc.”
Federico nodded slowly. “I’ve been hearing whispers about him for months. Nothing concrete, but enough to make me curious. I’ll help.”
“We’ll all help,” Caspian stated, his tone making it clear this wasn’t up for debate. “Alisa is family now, regardless of how it happened.” He fixed me with a hard stare. “Though we will discuss your actions later, brother.”
I raised my glass in acknowledgment, relief washing through me. Whatever Caspian thought of my decisions, he wouldn’t leave Alisa vulnerable.
“Now,” Elena clapped her hands, lightening the mood, “I think we’ve terrorized our new sister-in-law enough for one night. Beatrice, didn’t you make that chocolate hazelnut cake everyone’s been talking about?”
“I did,” Beatrice confirmed, standing. “I’ll get it.”
As the plates were cleared and conversation shifted to safer topics, I watched Alisa’s shoulders gradually relax.
I felt proud of how she’d handled herself and my family’s interrogation—with more grace than I’d expected.
When Beatrice returned with the cake, a towering creation of chocolate, hazelnut, and cream, Alisa’s eyes widened.
“That looks incredible,” she gushed.
Beatrice beamed. “It’s my own recipe. Took me six attempts to get the texture right.”
“She almost burned down my kitchen on attempt number four,” Elena added, earning a glare from her sister. “And that version had too much hazelnut extract. It overpowered the chocolate.”
“Backseat baker,” Beatrice muttered, cutting a generous slice for Alisa. “Ignore her. She thinks reading one cookbook makes her Julia Child.”
Alisa laughed as she took a bite and moaned. “Oh my god, Bea! This is divine. Seriously, I need this recipe.”
Bea? She called my sister Bea. I hadn’t realized she’d picked up on that.
“Family secret,” Beatrice teased, but I could see she was pleased. “But I might be persuaded to teach you.”
“I’d love that,” Alisa replied warmly.
“You have no idea what you just signed up for,” Elena stage-whispered to Alisa, and Alisa’s eyes burst wide open in mock fear.
I caught Caspian’s eye, and he, too, had been watching the girls. When he looked over at me, he gave me on single nod, as though to say you fucked up, but with a good one.