1. Nicolai
CHAPTER ONE
NICOLAI
I’m just stepping out of the shower when I receive a text on my burner that states, “ Finito .” Finished. It’s over. This one word should bring me peace, but it has the opposite effect. I know deep down inside it’s far from over. It’s just the beginning.
I add the burner phone to the bloody heap of clothes piled inside the trash bin.
Then, using my phone, I text Barrett and hit send.
Within minutes, he’s knocking on the door.
I grab the brass handle and pull it open.
I learned a long time ago not to trust whoever’s on the other side.
The person you thought it might be could very well be the one to put a bullet between your eyes.
“I need you to take the trash bin to the incinerator and dispose of everything inside. Once it’s destroyed, please report back to me and bring me a bottle of Blanton’s . ”
“Would you like the Original or Gold bottle, sir?”
“Bring me the Blue edition. After all, I am getting married tomorrow, and I feel like celebrating.” With a nod, he grabs the bin and leaves without another word.
While I wait for him to return, I walk over to the window and spot Luna strolling through the gardens.
Today she’s dressed in black, out of respect for her deceased husband.
Tomorrow, she’ll be adorned in white. Under the circumstances, it won’t be a formal wedding; she already had that with my brother.
But it will be legal, binding, and permanent.
Since it was an arranged marriage, I know there was no love lost between her and Giovanni.
Although every woman who enters this house knows her place, Luna couldn’t hold her tongue where my brother was concerned.
She hated him with a vengeance. She was an eighteen-year-old virgin.
The perfect rose to his prickly thorns. I suspect she’ll try to be the same with me, but it won’t take long for her to realize I’m not my brother.
I won’t tolerate disobedience. Here, blood is thicker than water, and she is expendable.
No one dares disrespect me and my family.
As if she knows I’m thinking about her, she glances up in the window and stares me down.
Little does she know that I don’t frighten easily.
That she’s the last person who could intimidate me.
I hold all the power in and out of our relationship, and the sooner she realizes that, the better off she’ll be.
It was around three years ago when I watched her marry my brother.
As they exchanged vows, I knew it was a dreadful mistake.
Luna had too much spirit for a man like Gio.
She stood there in that white dress, spine straight, eyes forward.
She didn’t look at anyone. And I stood at Gio’s side as his best man.
The suit, the ring, the empty smile, all of it felt wrong on me.
Everyone called it a union. I called it a life sentence.
She was handed over like an offering. A virgin bride for a man she couldn’t stand, it was just a transaction sealed with a signature and a priest's tired chant.
And I watched. I even applauded. Hell, I also made a toast to the bride and groom. Because that’s what tradition demands, that’s what loyalty costs.
Back then, Luna didn’t know she’d outlive my brother, that she’d outlast the vows. That possession would put her right back at this altar beside me.
And that she was always meant to be mine.
I remembered the study. Smelled the cigars, the expensive bourbon. And heard their voices clear as fuck, thinking they were alone. Uncle Marco’s low growl:
“Luna should be Nico’s girl. He will shape her into the perfect mafia wife. Gio will break her to keep her compliant.” My father’s reply was ice-cold. Dismissive.
“Sentiment, Marco. Gio insists on his bride being a virgin. Being that Giovanni is the eldest, it’s his choice.” Marco was pissed and didn’t back down.
“That’s bullshit. She was meant for Nico, and you know it.” Silence followed. Then my father’s final word.
“My decision stands. Gio will be married to Luna D’Angelo, and Nicolai will soon be engaged to Bianca Russo.”
Now? Gio’s dead. My father’s dead. And tomorrow, fate places her exactly where she was always meant to be, beside me.
Uncle Marco was the only one who ever fucking saw it. The only one who knew she was always meant to be mine. Too bad he’s dead too; he’d be the only one celebrating with all of us.
Shaking off the past, I bury myself in paperwork.
Not the best choice of words, but I’m desperate for the drink I ordered hours ago.
When there’s a sudden knock on my door, I angrily get up to answer it.
My annoyance dissipates when Barrett walks in carrying a tray of food, my bottle, and a crystal decanter filled with ice.
I’m such a callous bastard. He’s only doing his job, and I have no right to reprimand him for being late.
“Thank you, Barrett. I take it your task is complete?” He sets down the tray and, like a gentleman, pours me my first drink. The ice clinks inside the glass when I bring it to my parched lips. The amber liquid goes down smooth as velvet.
It’s a pity I’m celebrating my upcoming nuptials all alone.
“Task complete, sir. Is there anything else you need me to take care of?”
“That will be all for today. Get some rest and thank you for dinner. Goodnight, Barrett.”
“Goodnight, sir. I’ll be here first thing in the morning to help you get ready for the wedding.”
Reminding me that, by this time tomorrow, Luna will be mine in every way. The woman who once belonged to my brother is now bound to me.