30. Liana
THIRTY
LIANA
T he next days in Boston were spent adjusting to my new life. I studied the layout of the city, learning the quickest route to escape should the need arise. Certain habits were hard to kick.
Although, so far there was nothing to run from.
My days were filled with running a business, updates from José on the search for The Mistress, and dreaded but necessary visits to Dr. Freud’s office. My nights were spent writhing under Giovanni’s strong body, moaning his name. But waking up in the morning to the view of the Atlantic Ocean was what broke my heart. It reminded me of my promise to Amara, and it gutted me that I hadn’t been successful in keeping it.
But I couldn’t dwell on all that. Instead, I took an extra minute to come to terms with meeting Giovanni’s family.For some reason I couldn’t grasp, he insisted that we pull that Band-Aid off and assured me they’d accept me.
Sad, really, since I’d grown up with the perception that my twin and I were the equivalent of mafia royalty and anyone would be lucky to have us.
And here I was now, worrying about such trivial things as meeting a family. I’d never worried much about customs, but he and his brother seemed so normal. I feared the rest of their family would be too, and they wouldn’t accept me. All my sins were bound to come haunting and take away the light that Giovanni had started to make me see.
Needing an extra minute to get my scrambled thoughts together, I glanced at my reflection in the mirror before exiting the bedroom, following the chatter of voices and laughter.
Earlier, I’d felt like a fraud in the soft pink dress that’d come with the boxes and boxes of clothes Giovanni’s men had delivered when we got to the city. The color and shape of it made me look like an innocent, vulnerable young woman. So I opted for a little black Chanel dress, feeling more confident and like myself in it.
My heels clicking against the marble foyer of Giovanni’s home, I made my way to the dining room, the happy voices getting nearer and nearer with each step.
I pushed the doors open and all eyes shifted to me at once.
I’d never had a problem with attention, but at this very moment, my skin prickled at being under the spotlight as I studied the family seated around the dining room table.
Giovanni was at the head of the table, his three-piece black suit molded to his muscles like he was born to wear it. His strong fingers that knew how to bring pleasure formed a steeple at his chin, both elbows on the table, and the sharp lines of his jaw dominated his face.
He smiled then winked, and some tightness in my chest loosened.
His brothers, Romeo and Cristiano, sat to his right, watching me with the calculating green gaze that reminded me of my husband. The man I recognized as Mateo Agosti sat by the smaller table beside a young woman, presumably his wife, and three children. On the other side of the table, Giovanni’s sister, Marissa, was seated beside her husband, the Boston Irish mobster, Declan O’Connor.
My mother’s training, and my habit of keeping up on who’s who and what’s what, was sure coming in handy now.
While Mateo Agosti’s body language was tense and cautious, Marissa’s and her husband’s were the complete opposite. Relaxed, but I wasn’t fooled to think that Declan wasn’t a force to be reckoned with.
Marissa offered a smile, waving at me a bit too enthusiastically, and I returned it, albeit awkwardly.
A petite woman with long brown hair and brown eyes stood up, then approached me as she held out her hand.Brianna Agosti. Mateo’s wife.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Liana,” she greeted as I shook her hand. “I always knew Giovanni would be swept off his feet and there’d be no delay in wedding preparations. I’m sorry we weren’t there.”
I flashed her a tight smile. “Likewise. It came as a surprise to me too.”
“Ah, another kidnapping. Those seem to be a go-to for these men.”
Her eyes, full of comical disapproval, flicked to Giovanni, who ignored her and patted the empty chair next to him. “Come sit with me, wife.”
I blushed as I made my way toward him, the display of affection setting me off-balance.
“Welcome to the family. We’re big and loud, but it’s mostly bark and no bite,” Marissa announced, grinning as I took a seat, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I had never been part of a big family.
It was supposed to be only Amara and me for the rest of our lives, but maybe this was my destiny. Dr. Freud was helping me see that this complication could turn out to be the best outcome for her. I only wished there was a way to see her and be a part of her life—no matter how small.
Silence fell on the dining table for a second too long, my mask firmly in place. I’d learned a long time ago that showing my tells was a sure way to have my weaknesses exploited, and again , Dr. Freud’s words rang in my ears. Trust .
She might’ve convinced me I needed to let my husband in, but extending that same courtesy to his family would take some time.
So, sealing my emotions tight, I waited for someone else to break the silence.
The Agosti siblings were unlike any I’d ever met—cheerful, optimistic, and downright happy. We would have probably never been friends if we met as children.
“Introduce your wife, brother.” It was Romeo who finally spoke. “Although she’s quite famous, we’ll pretend we’ve never heard of her.”
Everyone chuckled, but Giovanni held off on introductions when the staff chose that moment to appear, carrying in trays of food. They served the soup and the main course, some kind of filet, and when they left, Giovanni spoke up.
“Everyone, this is my wife, Liana.” A hand came to my knee underneath the table, and it was only then I realized it had been bouncing nervously. I instantly stilled, realizing that had never happened to me before. “Lia, you’ve met Romeo. Next to him is my other pain-in-the-ass brother, Cristiano”—the latter flipped him off, ignoring the soup and going straight for the meat—“my sister Marissa, my cousin Mateo Agosti and his wife, Brianna. And last but not least, my brother-in-law, Declan.”
“Don’t forget the children,” Brianna scolded softly. “Dante will never forgive you if you do.”
“Ah, yes. How silly of me.” Giovanni winked at his little cousins. “Emma, Dante, and Aspen, say hello to your new… cousin, auntie… whatever we are.”
The little ones waved, returning their attention to their food and eating while staring at the iPad. I couldn’t resist a chuckle, the little ones were always the easiest to deal with.
I cleared my throat, offering some resemblance of a smile. “It’s nice to meet you all.”
“So it’s true, you married Sofia Volkov’s daughter?” Cristiano cut in.
The corner of Giovanni’s lips tipped up. “It would appear so.”
“I have a question.” Cristiano paused with a forkful of steak halfway to his mouth. “Is it true your mother was a bit… pazza ? A parasite in the criminal world?”
I narrowed my eyes, images of all the ways I could make him suffer flashing through my mind. Or maybe I’d make it simple and just set him on fire.
“My mother was a product of her environment,” I said coldly.
“Cut the shit, Cristiano, or you can leave right now.” Giovanni’s lethal voice cut through the room like a whip.
Cristiano tried to justify himself. “But?—”
Marissa glared at her brother. “Be fucking nice. And so what if her mother was loca . You’re a pest and you don’t see anybody pointing it out. You know why? Because we have manners.”
Cristiano’s frightening expression turned on his sister. “Come on, though. Don’t tell me you’re okay with Giovanni marrying his uncle’s supposedly dead wife.”
Giovanni opened his mouth, probably to come to my defense, but I raised my palm, my gaze never straying from his youngest brother.
“I didn’t have much of a say in this marriage, nor the one to Santiago,” I said calmly, even though something inside me blazed. If he weren’t Giovanni’s brother, I’d fucking kill him right here and now. He’d be dead before dinner was served. “Not that it’s any of your business.”
“Stop it, Cristiano,” his sister warned in a hiss.
He ignored her.
“Then why marry Giovanni?” Cristiano’s right eye twitched. “To take back control of the Tijuana Cartel?”
“I have no intention of taking anything. And just so we’re clear, I never had control of the Tijuana Cartel.” The silence that overtook the dining room was awkward to say the least. “And what Giovanni and I do is for us to figure out. Our business, not yours. Are we clear?”
I felt my husband staring at my profile with pride. I could see his lips curled into a smile as he squeezed my thigh under the table with gentle support.
I released the breath I’d been holding since my mother was mentioned and all eyes turned my way. I never thought someone’s support would mean so much.
“Why play dead?” Mateo, who used to be the head of the Italian Boston mob, asked, a mild curiosity lacing his voice.
Giovanni pinned him down with a glare, but his cousin’s attention stayed firmly on me.
“It was safer to stay dead,” I stated calmly. “Due to the nature of the support I’d given to Perez Cortes, protecting my daughter…” My voice cracked, but I continued after swallowing hard. “Protecting my adoptive daughter was all that mattered to me. Besides, it was a pretty good revenge. I was everywhere, but no one could pin me down.”
I wouldn’t tell them that after two decades of being a prisoner, it felt intoxicating to be free, and I had no intention of ever being dragged back. I could finally write my own story.
Joke was on me though, because here I was.Although, it felt different this time. It felt different with Giovanni.
“I wonder if you rehearsed all these answers,” Cristiano asked as he resumed eating.
“Cristiano,” Giovanni warned.
“It’s suspicious, brother. Why can’t you see it?” He huffed, and I swore I heard him say, “You can do so much better than her, ” under his breath.
“Silence,” Giovanni growled, and the entire room went still. Well, everyone except Mateo, who continued eating and teasing his children as though it were just another Monday.
“I’m assuming you visited your mother, Cristiano.” Mateo’s attention fell on his cousin.
“That has nothing to?—”
“Answer my question,” he cut him off.
“Yes,” he gritted.
“What. Did. She. Say?”Mateo demanded to know.
“Probably something psychotic,” Romeo said, laughing under his breath but stopping when Mateo’s and Giovanni’s attention shifted to him.
Mateo refused to be steered off-course. “Your mother and her opinions do more harm than good. So let’s take them with a grain of salt.”
Cristiano released a mocking sound, but he didn’t say anything else. My jaw clenched, and I focused my gaze on a dot above him while my heart drummed. I hadn’t expected Giovanni's family to welcome me with open arms; that would’ve been foolish. Besides, my name alone aroused doubt in the criminal organizations.
But something about Cristiano’s hostility and apparent disapproval from Giovanni’s mother hurt.
I dug my memory for the Agosti family tree but fell short on Cristiano’s parents, probably because they had no prominent role as criminals. Giovanni Agosti as the heir to the Agosti Omertà and the Tijuana Cartel was hard to forget, but his family not so much.
In the hour or so that followed, the men mainly discussed sports and politics while I focused on my plate and only spoke when either Brianna or Marissa asked me a question. I waited and waited for the right moment to excuse myself, and the opportunity came when Giovanni took his cousin and brothers to discuss business in his office.
Once they disappeared, I was quick to leave and rush upstairs. It wasn’t until I was in the bedroom that I heaved a deep breath, taking a seat on the bed.
“Fuck, it’s easier to kill a person than deal with family,” I muttered to myself, my shoulders slumping.
I was accustomed to being unwanted, but insecurity was a new emotion. Inhaling a deep breath, I leaned my elbows on my knees, put my face into my hands, and closed my eyes while I pondered this evening’s events.
It would seem I wasn’t as immune to the need for acceptance as I thought I was. What if Giovanni ended up siding with Cristiano? He wasn’t exactly wrong to wish something better for his brother. I wouldn’t have wanted someone like me for my sibling either.
Huh, who knew? Looks like I did have a heart, and the thought of Giovanni with someone else was breaking it.
A knock sounded on the door, and I straightened up.
“Who is it?”
Marissa opened the door, and I spotted Brianna over her shoulder, who asked, “Can we please hang in here with you? Giovanni’s giving Cristiano hell.”
My eyebrow rose in surprise at the lame excuse. The men were in the office, so it wasn’t as if they were in the middle of their argument.
But rather than call them out on it, I heard myself say, “Sure.”
I stood up and led them to our bedroom’s small sitting area where the three of us sat in the leather armchairs. Silence dominated again while I waited for them to say something, anything.
Since neither of them did, I bit the bullet.
“I’m sure you know there are many more rooms in this house to escape Giovanni’s antics.”
Brianna cleared her throat. “We just wanted to see if you were okay.”
“I am.”
“My brother can be overly protective,” Marissa blurted.“But he’s just a big teddy bear. All bark, no bite.”
“We’re all just curious about you,” Brianna added. “You’re like a legend in these parts.”
I scoffed. “Hardly, considering everyone thought me dead.”
Marissa grinned. “It shows how badass you are.”
“Give Cristiano time. He’ll come around,” Brianna said. “He just takes a bit more time to get used to new people.”
I plastered on a smile rather than voice my hurt. “We have all the time in the world, because I’m not going anywhere.”
And I meant it too.
“Exactly what I wanted to hear.” Marissa relaxed in her seat. “So my brother really forced you to marry him?”
I nodded.
“These mobsters really need to get more creative,” Brianna muttered. “If any of them force my baby girl into a marriage one day, there’ll be hell to pay.”
Marissa exchanged a look with her sister-in-law.
“You were forced too?” I asked.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not sorry,” Brianna stated calmly, crossing her slim legs. “But it isn’t exactly the right way to go about it.”
“Well, my man didn’t force jack shit,” Marissa chimed in.
Brianna chuckled. “Probably because he’s scared of your crazy ass.”
A sad smile graced her lips. “Although, if he had, maybe we would have gotten together sooner.”
“Everything happens for a reason,” I said, which sounded so lame, but there was no retracting the words.
“You’re right,” Brianna agreed, her expression turning dreamy. “The main thing is that everything turned out for the best and Mateo sure makes me… happy.”
“And Declan is an insatiable beast.”
They chuckled and I smiled. Something about their openness drew me in, made me feel less alone. It was clear they loved their husbands and were happy, and here they were, sharing that with me ?
“Can I ask you something, Liana?” Brianna’s voice was low, hesitant.
“Sure.”
“Was your reason for staying hidden really about revenge?”
Marissa leaned over. “It's freaking brilliant if that was your plan.”
I shrugged. “When we first escaped, my main goal was surviving. But as I got back into business, I did enjoy taunting Santiago and Perez. Letting them think I was coming for them, so they were forced to live in fear every second of the day…”
Just like they made me and Amara live in fear.
Their lips parted at my answer.
“I wish we knew you when we had to get rid of that body,” Marissa muttered.
My eyebrows rose in surprise, not quite following. Brianna added, her tone hushed, “It’s a long story, but the gist of it is that my ex tried to kidnap my daughter. We killed him, then disposed of the body.”
My heart thumped. “Didn’t your husband help you?” I turned to look at Marissa. “Or yours?”
Brianna waved her hand. “It was a few years before I even met Mateo.”
“And Declan and I weren’t on speaking terms at the time.” Marissa shrugged. “Anyway, it was his cousin, so it would have been a bit tricky to ask him to help us get rid of the body.”
A shocked laugh escaped me.
I decided at that very moment that I liked these two. A lot.
And as we made plans to meet for lunch next week, I realized they might not be so different from me.