Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
When we eventually arrive home in the late afternoon, the house is lit up brightly, and the foyer is a riot of pale pink roses and baby’s breath. I wrinkle my nose at the cloying smell and nauseating abundance of pink.
“Ugh, could she be any more cliché?” Vienna grumbles as serving staff hurry through the house, taking boxes of glasses to the ballroom.
We trail after them and find an extravaganza of activity being directed by Stacey, who is dressed in a slinky pale pink dress, which is low cut, and her breasts are just about spilling out.
She actually looks really nice, but her behavior ruins the picture.
She’s belittling and bossing the staff around like she’s the lady of the house, and I see them shoot her some glares when she isn’t looking.
She catches sight of us and turns her wrath on us. “Where the fuck have you been? Our guests will be arriving any minute, and look at the state of you.” She scowls at Tristan with disgust. “Go get changed before you embarrass me.”
I step forward, ready to give her a taste of her own medicine, but Xavier’s hand on my arm stops me. “Take a breath, Tori. Two days. That’s how long you have to keep it together. Don’t risk Mario punishing you and not bringing your father here tomorrow,” he murmurs into my ear.
I scowl at him for being so reasonable but turn my back on the bitch and lead the others out of the ballroom. I hear her laughter trailing behind us.
“Oh, would you look at that? The great Victoria Russo brought to heel by a man. I swear that is the best wedding gift ever.”
I clench my fists tightly and picture her head exploding to keep myself calm. Two more days will be the mantra I live by for the next forty-eight hours.
We head upstairs and split up, all of us needing to shower and change before dinner. Thankfully the others give me some space, and I have a blissful half hour to myself. I stand in the shower and let my mind go blank as the hot water washes over me, taking all my worries down the drain with it.
When I finally shut the water off and dry my body and hair, I wrap my towel around me and go in search of something to wear. When I get to my closet, I find Vienna pushing coat hangers to the side as she rifles through my dresses.
“The best way to piss Stacey off is to outshine her,” she says, looking over her shoulder at me.
I barely hear what she’s saying, because she’s dressed in an emerald green sheathe that hugs her delicious curves from her neck to her hips before trailing off into a mermaid tail at the base.
Her hair cascades down her back in a pin straight waterfall of red. She looks absolutely stunning.
“Fuck me,” I mutter quietly and wipe the back of my hand across my mouth to make sure I’m not drooling. “You look gorgeous.”
She beams at me before returning her attention to my clothes. “Thanks. I figure psychological warfare is just as effective as the violent kind. Ah, this one.” She pulls something out and turns, holding it up for me.
It’s a blood-red dress with spaghetti straps and low neckline with a split in the side of the skirt that almost goes to my hip.
“If we have to watch Stacey put her hands all over Tristan tonight, then we are going to do it with grace and style. We are going to outshine that vapid bitch so no one will be looking at her.”
I grin at her fierce statement. “Sounds like a pretty good plan to me,” I tell her, dropping my towel and reaching for the dress. She hands it over and leans back against the dresser, watching as I slide the fabric over my naked body. I settle it into place and spin for her approval.
“Fucking perfect,” she murmurs, her eyes heated with desire.
“Hmm.” I tap my finger against my lip. “I think we can do better.” I move to the dresser and hip bump her over a little.
I pull open the top drawer, and her gasp of surprise makes me smile.
The top drawer is full of jewelry. Most of it belonged to my mother, things my dad gave her before we were born.
It’s a treasure trove of gold and gems. I don’t get a chance to wear any of it very often, but this is the perfect occasion.
I reach in, selecting a pair of emerald and diamond earrings and a matching ring set and pass them to Vienna.
“Here, these were my mom’s. They will go beautifully with your dress,” I tell her before returning my attention to the offerings.
“I can’t wear your mom’s jewelry,” she argues, and I press a finger to her lips, silencing her protests.
“You can and you will. I didn’t know her, but I hope she would be happy with me giving my girlfriend some of her things.” She shakes her head, but I interrupt her protests. “Besides, it’s not like I’m going to ever have children. You can give them to Addi when she grows up.”
“But Casey might have a girl. You could give them to her,” she argues, and I roll my eyes.
“Gio has his own stash of things to pass on to any children. It seems my mother had a penchant for shiny things, and my father indulged her… a lot.”
I reach for a long, silver chain with a ruby pendant on the end of it, slipping it over my head and settling it between my breasts. It’s perfectly located to draw everyone’s eye to it.
I watch Vienna finish fastening the earrings to her lobes and slipping the ring onto her finger with satisfaction. “I’ve never owned jewelry before. Thank you,” she murmurs quietly.
I scoff. “Well, those boys aren’t doing their job right. With your pale skin, you are the perfect canvas for it.”
“Mario keeps a very close eye on our finances. Frivolous spending is punished.”
“Yet another good reason to kill him,” I say lightly, digging around for a sky-high pair of heels to go with my outfit. I find my favorite pair of red-soled shoes and slip them onto my feet.
“Let me just do my hair and makeup, and we’ll be good to go. Are the boys ready?” I ask her, spritzing some perfume onto my skin before offering her the bottle. She takes it with a smile and does the same thing.
“You know our guys. They only have to put on a suit and they look amazing. Stacey’s grubby hands are going to be all over Tristan, and you’re going to have to stop me from slamming her head into the ice sculpture.”
I chuckle. “Don’t rely on me. I’m a bad influence, I might assist. Come on, keep me company while I finish up.” I grab her hand and drag her to my bathroom. She takes a seat on the closed lid of the toilet, and we chat about random things as I apply my makeup and dry my hair, leaving it tousled.
A knock on the door just as I turn off the hair dryer has us scrambling. Vienna rushes to open it as I toss the dryer into the bathroom cabinet and smooth my hands over my dress, checking my reflection one last time.
I look good, and I can’t wait to see Stacey’s face when Vienna and I outshine her in her stupid pale pink dress.
I follow Vienna and find the three boys standing in the corridor. Tristan is wearing a light gray suit with a pale pink shirt that matches Stacey’s dress. Xavier is wearing black on black, and Colton’s suit is charcoal with a black T-shirt beneath it.
“Don’t you look sharp?” I tell them as I run my gaze over each of them.
“But I think you’re missing something. Hang on.
” I hurry to Gio’s room and push the door open.
The air is slightly musty from being unlived in, but I flick on the light and move to his closet.
Pulling open a top drawer, I select what I want before returning to the others.
I hand out three pairs of cufflinks—rubies for Xavier, emeralds for Colton, and diamonds for Tristan.
“These were my dad’s. I’m sure he won’t mind if you three wear them tonight. ”
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that,” Colton mumbles but takes them, and Vienna and I help them fasten them in place.
“Pfft. Once he finds out you did everything for your daughter, he will have the utmost respect for you. Remember the Russo motto. Family and blood are everything. One thing I can tell you about my dad is that he does everything for his children.”
I tuck matching cloth squares into their suit pockets and step back, admiring the four of them together. “Damn, we definitely need to take a photo and send it to Sage. I’m sure he will appreciate new material for his spank bank.”
“Come on,” Tristan grumbles. “If we’re any later, Stacey will never let me hear the end of it. I’m going to need copious amounts of champagne to get through tonight.”
We start walking toward the staircase. “Do you think drinking around Stacey is such a good idea? I wouldn’t want her to slip anything into your drink,” I caution him, speaking from experience.
All four of their expressions turn dark. “Tori is right. Best stick to nonalcoholic tonight, and don’t drink anything you haven’t seen poured in front of you. I wouldn’t put it past her to slip you something so she can finally have her way with you,” Xavier agrees, sounding pissed.
Tristan groans but accepts that he’s going to stay sober tonight. He shudders. “I’d rather fuck a cactus than put my dick anywhere near her.”
The murmur from the ballroom reaches our ears, and we all put on our game faces. As soon as we enter, Stacey pounces on Tristan, hissing, “About fucking time. You made me look stupid. Come on, the priest is waiting.” She drags him away.
“Come on, we’re in the wedding party, so we need to be up there too.” Vienna tucks her arm into Colton’s, and Xavier holds his out for me. We trail after them, and I glare daggers into the back of Stacey’s head the whole time.
Once the rehearsal is over, the four of us stand off to the side and watch helplessly as Stacey drags Tristan around, simpering and smiling at all the invited guests.
Mario catches sight of us and looks annoyed at the fact that we are attempting to hide in the corner.
He waves us over, and we reach him at the same time Stacey and Tristan do.