Sera #2
His eyes meet mine and I see he is pleasantly surprised. "You're not nervous?"
"No."
He studies me for a long moment. Then he smiles. Not the cold smile he gives his enemies. The real one. The one he saves for me.
"Then let's show them who you are."
We descend the staircase together.
The foyer is filled with people. Three families. Nero soldiers in their best suits. Morozov representatives, including Alexei himself who watches with those bright, calculating eyes. The Marinis, with Antonio at their head.
And Gemma. Already in her wedding dress. White lace and silk. Beautiful and tragic.
She sees us coming down the stairs and her face hardens.
I don't look away. Don't flinch. Just keep my hand on Adrian's arm and my head high.
This is my family now. For better or worse.
This is my world, and I know how to navigate it.
I remember what Bianca told me, months ago, in her office. Before everything went wrong.
"Use what you have. The baby. His desire. His guilt. That's power."
She was right. But also, wrong.
I am the soft place in a hard world. The reason Adrian fights harder. Kills faster. Protects fiercer.
That makes me powerful. And dangerous.
We reach the bottom of the stairs. The crowd parts around us.
Antonio Marini approaches first. Offers his hand to Adrian. They shake, and then his eyes move to me.
"Mrs. Nero. You look radiant."
"Thank you, Don Marini."
His gaze drops to Angelo, sleeping peacefully in Adrian's arms. "And the heir grows strong."
"He does."
There's approval in his eyes. I've given Adrian an heir. Secured the bloodline. Done my duty.
But it's more than duty.
Angelo is everything. My whole heart outside my body. The reason I wake up every morning and thank God I survived.
Other guests approach. Offer congratulations. Make small talk. I smile and respond appropriately, my hand still on Adrian's arm, keeping contact.
Anchoring us together.
Alexei Morozov watches from across the room. He doesn't approach. Just watches with that unsettling intensity.
I meet his gaze and don't look away.
Finally, Gemma approaches. Her maid of honor, some cousin I don't know, trails behind her.
"Adrian. Sera." Her voice is cold.
"Gemma." Adrian's voice is equally cold. "You look beautiful."
"Do I?" She laughs, bitter and sharp. "The bride always looks beautiful, even when she's walking to her execution."
"This isn't an execution—"
"Isn't it?" Her eyes are hard. "You sold me. Just like Bianca sold me. The only difference is you're calling it protection instead of power."
I bite my lip. I agreed not to defy Adrian in public, for Angelo's sake more than anything else, but this one…this is hard.
I want to tell her I understand. That I didn't choose this life either. That sometimes we do what we have to do to survive.
But I can't because I've met Saint, and I'm scared for her.
"I hope you're happy," Gemma says, and her voice breaks slightly. "I hope whatever you have with him is worth it. Because you're complicit in this. In all of it."
The words hit like a slap. She's right. I know she's right. Six months ago, I would have fought this. Would have begged Adrian to find another way.
But now I have Angelo. And the thought of doing anything that might destabilize Adrian's position, that might put my son at risk...
I've made my choice. And Gemma is paying for it.
She walks away before I can respond.
Adrian's jaw is tight. "She'll come around."
"Will she?"
"She has to." His voice is hard. Final. "She's a Nero. She'll do her duty."
I look at him. At the man I love. The father of my child. The Don who rules this family with an iron fist.
And I see both sides of him.
The one who holds our son like he's precious. Who makes love to me in the morning light. Who looks at me like I'm his entire world.
And the one who sacrificed his sister's happiness for an alliance. Who made Gabe suffer before sending him to prison. Who would kill anyone who threatened us without hesitation.
Both versions are real.
Both versions are mine.
"The ceremony is starting," Adrian says, noticing the guests moving toward the ballroom where the wedding will take place.
We follow, moving as one unit. Adrian carries Angelo. I keep my hand on his arm.
The picture of a perfect family.
From the outside, that's what we look like. The Don and his wife and their heir. Powerful. United. Untouchable.
From the inside, it's more complicated.
But then again, everything worth having is complicated.
We take our seats at the front. The Nero family. The place of honor.
The music starts. The guests quiet.
And Gemma walks down the aisle alone, and I feel tears prickle against my eyelashes. I want to run up and take her in my arms, spirit her away. Instead, I sit perfectly still watching complicity.
I watch. Bear witness. Acknowledge the cost of this life.
Saint is waiting at the altar. Tall, tattooed, dangerous looking. He watches Gemma approach with an expression I can't read.
They're strangers being forced into marriage.
Like Adrian and I were.
The ceremony proceeds. Traditional. Formal. The priest speaks about love and commitment and partnership.
Words that ring hollow when everyone in this room knows this marriage is about power, not love.
But maybe that's not entirely true.
I glance at Adrian. He's watching the ceremony, but his hand finds mine, lacing our fingers together.
We started as a business arrangement. A pregnancy trap. A forced marriage.
But we became something else.
Something real.
Maybe Gemma and Saint will find that too.
Maybe.
"I do," Gemma says when prompted. Her voice is steady. Strong.
A warrior accepting her fate.
"I do," Saint echoes.
And just like that, it's done.
The priest pronounces them husband and wife. They kiss, brief and perfunctory. The guests applaud.
A new alliance is sealed.
The Nero family grows stronger.
And Gemma Nero becomes Gemma Marini.
The question is whether the cost is worth it.
For me, it is. Because I got Adrian. Got Angelo. Got a life I never imagined I could have.
For Gemma...
I don't know yet.
Want to see what happens next? Check out Gemma and Saint’s story in: His to Tame