Luca Vitiello by Cora Reilly

CHAPTER 8

I took a long time, showering and wanking like a goddamn teenage boy. With a gorgeous woman in my bed all night, I really shouldn’t be suffering from blue balls, and yet here I was. Slinging a towel around my waist, I stepped out of the bathroom.

Aria perched on the stool in front of her vanity, blond hair trailing down her back and using whatever women used to accentuate their eyes—not that Aria needed it. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw me. They trailed the length of me, fascination reflecting on her face. Stifling a groan at her innocent appraisal, I stalked toward the wardrobe and grabbed a few clothes. Knowing she was still watching, I let my towel fall to the ground. She sucked in a breath and my cock gave a fucking twitch, imagining how she was blushing. When I’d put on briefs and pants, I turned. As expected, Aria’s cheeks were flushed. She pretended to be busy inspecting her nails, but she wasn’t fooling me. She was too embarrassed to face me.

It was something new for me. I didn’t have experience with a girl like her. The women of my past had been straightforward with their demands and practiced in their advances. Aria wasn’t, and I wasn’t entirely sure how to handle her.

Taking the guns from the table, I began strapping them to my holsters as I did every day, as I’d done for as long as I could remember.

“Do you ever go anywhere without guns?” Aria asked quietly, turning around in her stool to face me. She was wearing some sort of long dress with a golden belt and golden sandals, reminding me of an Egyptian princess even if her hair didn’t match the image. It was still strange to think that she was really mine, that she would be mine until the very end. This wasn’t for one night or a few weeks of mindless pleasure. This wasn’t no-strings-attached. This was forever, for both of us. She was my responsibility from this day on. Remembering how my father had failed his wives, both my mother and now Nina, it seemed like a fucking impossible challenge.

“Not if I can avoid it. Do you know how to shoot a gun or use a knife?”

“No. My father doesn’t think women should get involved in fights.”

“Sometimes fights come to you. The Bratva and the Triad don’t distinguish between men and women.” The Triad had laid low. Most of their territories had been claimed by the Bratva, so they were the ones we were worried about.

Aria tilted her head. “So you’ve never killed a woman?”

“I didn’t say that.” Aria didn’t need to know how the Bratva had almost gotten me. It wasn’t something I wanted people to know.

Aria rose from the chair, smoothing the long dress out. I was glad she’d chosen something floor-length. It made things easier. People might suspect I’d left my marks on her upper thighs. “Good choice. The dress covers your legs.”

“Someone could lift the skirt and inspect my thighs.”

I had seen the way many men had leered at her yesterday when they thought I wasn’t paying attention. “Someone tries to touch you, they lose their hand.”

Aria’s eyes widened in shock. She’d have to get used to my possessiveness. “Come on.” I led her out into the hallway and closer to the main hall. A few male guests were still in the lobby, but the majority of voices came from the dining room.

Aria stiffened. “Are they all waiting to see a bloody sheet?” Her skin turned red.

“Many of them, especially the women. The men might hope for dirty details; others might hope to talk about business, ask a favor, or get on my good side.”

Aria made no move to descend the stairs, so I nudged her forward gently. We walked down close together and I had to slow my steps considerably to adapt to her shorter legs. I’d never walked hand-in-hand with a woman, so this was something new.

Romero greeted us with a smile. “How are you?” he asked Aria and then looked like he wanted to swallow his tongue.

Asking a bride that kind of question after her first night was definitely inappropriate. I chuckled, but my mood dropped when the gathered men sent me winks and grins. Everyone thought I’d spent the night banging my stunning wife. Aria surprised me when she pressed closer to me. It took me a second to realize she was seeking protection from their attention. I wrapped my arm around her waist and sent them a warning look. They averted their eyes.

“Matteo and the rest of your family are in the dining room,” Romero said.

“Poring over the sheets?”

“As if they could read them like tea leaves,” Romero confirmed, then gave Aria an apologetic look.

“Come.” I led Aria toward the dining room despite her tension. The presentation of the sheets was something we couldn’t evade. Everyone was waiting for us and fell silent when we entered. My father, the Famiglia Underbosses, the Cavallaros and Scuderi had gathered around the dining table. Most of the high-ranking Outfit men had already left with their families this morning to return to their respective territories.

Aria squirmed under the attention. Soon she’d have to face the women who looked like famished dogs with their sights set on a piece of meat. Father nodded toward me with a look in his eyes that made me want to push Aria behind me. Thankfully, Matteo chose that moment to walk up to us, looking a mess with bags under his eyes and stubble. For him, that was the equivalent of a stylish meltdown.

“You look like shit,” I told him as he sipped on his espresso.

Matteo’s eyes darted from me to Aria. “My tenth espresso and I’m still not awake. Drank too much last night.”

“You were trashed. I’d have had your tongue cut out for some of the things you said to Aria if you weren’t my brother.”

Matteo gave Aria a grin. “I hope Luca didn’t do half of the things I suggested.”

Aria blushed furiously and leaned into me once more. I stroked her side in reassurance. She didn’t have to be wary of my brother. She twitched, giving me a surprised look. To be honest, I wasn’t sure why I’d felt the need to console her at all.

“Quite a work of art you presented us,” Matteo said, nodding in the direction of the bloody sheets, causing Aria to stiffen in my embrace.

I searched Matteo’s face, not sure if he suspected I had spared Aria. It couldn’t be because of the sheets, because if something about them looked fake, he would have warned me.

Matteo’s eyes held a knowing gleam. The asshole could read me too well. Father and Fiore waved at us to come over to them. Stifling a groan, I indicated Matteo that I’d have to move to the table. Matteo smiled but didn’t move an inch, obviously not in the mood to talk to them.

Aria followed me toward the table. Her face reflected anxiety, and I could only hope that she’d be able to keep up the charade. The men rose. Father’s leer made me want to drag Aria right back out, but that wasn’t an option.

Scuderi spread his arms and I reluctantly released Aria so he could embrace her. I couldn’t hear what he said, but Aria didn’t look happy about it. Fiore smiled and shook my hand. “It seems you are still satisfied with our choice for you.”

I nodded. I knew this was only the beginning. The moment Aria was out of earshot, the men would try to extract details of my night with her.

Father put a hand on my shoulder before he gave Aria and me his false benevolent smile. “I hope we can expect small Vitiellos soon.”

Aria’s eyes widened a tad before she could mask her shock. I had absolutely no intention of having kids anytime soon—not as long as my father was in power. He wasn’t that old yet, only in his mid-fifties, but I hoped he’d find an end soon. “I want to enjoy Aria alone for a long while. And with the Bratva closing in, I wouldn’t want to have children to worry over.”

Father gave me a knowing smile, thinking I wanted to fuck my young wife in peace for a while. “Yes, yes, of course. Understandable.”

“I hear the Bratva sent a new Pakhan into your territory,” I said to Fiore, wanting the topic of my wife off the table.

Fiore nodded then looked at Dante who frowned. “Yes, Grigory Mikhailov. We’re still trying to check his background. He used to work directly under the Pakhan in Yekaterinburg, and now he’s taking over everything in Chicago. Unpredictable und brutal. They call him Stalin.”

Aria peered up at me and I loosened my hold on her. This wasn’t anything she needed to worry about. The women were throwing eager glances her way, anyway. She quickly walked away and toward them, stopping beside her mother and sister.

“Can’t take your eyes off your wife?” Father asked with a chuckle.

I only smiled coldly. The less I said the better. Nina pointed at the sheets and giggling rose among the women. Only Aria looked like she wanted to be swallowed whole by the ground.

Scuderi turned to us. “I must say I find your tradition of the bloody sheets enlightening.”

“Maybe it’s a tradition you’d like to reintroduce once you’re Capo,” Father said to Dante who stood with his hands shoved into his pockets, looking completely uninterested. His cautious blue eyes settled on my father. “I prefer to focus on the future and not look for traditions of the past.”

“That’s good to hear,” Fiore said pointedly to his son.

My father gave me a look. He, too, had noticed the tension between the Cavallaro men. Obviously Fiore was unhappy about Dante. I could only assume it had something to do with the fact that Dante still hadn’t married even though his wife had been dead for years.

“What about you, Luca? Are you thinking of changing the old traditions once you’re Capo?” Dante asked.

I smirked. “The Famiglia is built on tradition,” I said, then nodded toward my father with faked respect. “I’m not going to be Capo for a long time. My father is strong and I trust in his leadership.”

Father’s answering smile made me want to take my words back and end him right here and there.

Dante nodded, but his eyes held calculation.

Peace between us had an expiry date.

“Don’t hold back on us, Luca,” Durant said. “Tell us more about your first night with your beautiful wife.”

“I must say I would have expected more blood considering your size and hers,” Uncle Gottardo said with a cackle and a wink. There was something in his eyes that made me consider crushing his throat like I had his son’s. Dante’s mouth curled in disgust. Scuderi, on the other hand, didn’t seem to care that someone spoke like that about his daughter. If I ever had a daughter, I’d cut off anyone’s head who dared to talk that way about her.

Every man looked toward Aria then at me. I didn’t bother masking my anger and possessiveness. If my civil mask led to those kinds of questions, I’d rather drop it before my uncles got more blood than they bargained for. “I’m feared among my enemies and my soldiers. I don’t need to claim my wife without preparation so she bleeds more to gain anyone’s respect, Uncle.”

These words were already more than I wanted to share even if nothing had happened between Aria and me. Father laughed, but his gaze was assessing. I’d have to be on my toes. Where had Matteo gone? Was he sleeping off his intoxication in a quiet room?

From the corner of my eye, I saw Liliana and Fabiano slip into the room. Neither was supposed to attend the gathering.

“Why’s there blood on the sheets? Has someone been killed?” Fabiano bellowed, pointing at the sheets with wide eyes.

The men around me began laughing, except for Dante and me. We glanced at each other. We would never like each other, but maybe we could establish a base of respect to keep up the peace for a few years.

Suddenly, Aria rushed out of the room with her arm around her sister Liliana.

I excused myself to check on my wife, not liking her out of my sight. Romero leaned beside the closed door of the guest bathroom, and I relaxed. “Aria and Liliana are inside,” he said.

“What’s the matter?”

“Liliana looked sick.”

The door swung open and Aria slipped out, quickly closing the door before we could catch a glimpse inside. “Is your sister okay?”

Aria tugged a strand of hair behind her ear, glancing between Romero and me with obvious nervousness. I had to remind myself again that this was new for Aria, that this was one of the first times she was alone in the presence of men that didn’t belong to her family. “The sheets made her queasy,” she said with a small shrug.

Romero’s expression darkened. “They shouldn’t allow young girls to witness something like that. It’ll only scare them.” Romero sent me an apologetic look, but I didn’t care if he criticized that particular tradition. I didn’t much care for it either, but it was one of the traditions that would be the hardest to abolish.

“You are right.”

“Lily needs some tea,” Aria said, glancing at me, and I realized she was unsure if she was allowed to go into the kitchen and prepare one.

“I can get it for her and stay with her so you can return to your guests,” Romero said.

Aria’s smile was hesitant. “That’s nice, but Lily doesn’t want you to see her.”

I frowned, wondering what had happened. Romero really wasn’t someone who scared females. He was one of the few soldiers with his talent who could hide his violence almost completely. “Is she scared of me?”

Aria laughed. “You sound like that isn’t a possibility. You are a soldier of the mafia. What’s not to be scared of?” She glanced toward the closed bathroom door before she continued in a whisper. “But that’s not it. Lily has a major crush on you and doesn’t want you to see her like that.”

I gave Romero an amused look. “Romero, you still got it. Capturing the hearts of fourteen-year-old girls left and right.” Romero shook his head, obviously uncomfortable with the whole thing. I turned to my wife who was still smiling, looking relaxed and almost happy. I knew my words would change that. “But we have to return. The women will be mortally offended if you don’t give them all of your attention.”

“I’ll take care of Lily,” Gianna said.

Looking over my shoulder, I found Aria’s sister and brother heading our way. The redhead pointedly ignored me, but the midget gave me his best death glare.

I led Aria back into the dining room. The men had by then gathered around the sheets while the women flocked around the table. I reluctantly released Aria so she could head back to the harpies.

The men laughed at something Durant said. It was probably for the best that I hadn’t heard it.

“There’s the lucky bridegroom,” Father intoned, holding out a glass of scotch to me. I took it reluctantly. Judging from the way he and his brothers smiled, they’d probably enjoyed more than one already. Only Scuderi, Dante and Fiore looked sober, which didn’t come as a surprise considering they were in our territory.

Gottardo’s beetle eyes held challenge when I stopped beside him. “So Luca, won’t you at least tell us how many rounds you managed last night? Won’t you share at least that piece of information with us?”

Durant smiled in a way that made me want to slice my blades from one fucking corner of his mouth to the other to see how much wider his fucking grin could get.

“I don’t share, ever, not even the tiniest fucking bit of my wife,” I snarled. My father and his brothers were disgusting pieces of shit. The same sadistic streak stained their blood. Sometimes I worried it ran in my veins as well and was only waiting to show its full potential. I was cruel and pitiless, but not like my father. Not yet.

Father shook his head with a bellowing laugh, but the laughter didn’t extend to his eyes. They were vigilant and suspicious, and for a moment I worried he’d seen through the charade I was playing. But my father was always suspicious because he had reason to be. There was no one he trusted, and rightfully so. Everyone hated and feared him. That wasn’t the base for trust. Not that I had many people I trusted, definitely not without reservations. Matteo had my trust and Romero to some degree, but everyone else could be an enemy disguised as an ally.

“Oh ho, quite possessive of your gorgeous young bride,” Durant cackled. “Considering her beauty and your possessive streak, I’m surprised you agreed to wait three years before marrying her.” His fucking beetle eyes latched onto Aria as she talked to the other women, and something in them made me want to stick my blade into his eyeball before shoving the fucking thing down his throat so he could choke on the slimy globe.

“I like my women of age,” I gritted out. I could feel my blood pressure rising, my fury burning away at my self-control. I took a sip from the scotch even if it was too early for hard liquor and glanced toward my wife. She was smiling, but blatant embarrassment shone on her face and her cheeks were dusted pink. I could imagine too well what the women were talking about. Her eyes darted to me as if she noticed my attention and, for a brief moment, a small conspiratorial smile tugged at her lips, a moment without her usual wariness and submissive fear, a glimpse at her true persona when she was around people she trusted. It was a side of her I wanted to see more of.

“I still remember my first night with Criminella,” Durant said with a twisted grin.

After that, they all launched into stories of their own wedding nights.

My mood was on the verge of homicidal when the ordeal was finally over and most of the guests had left. I touched Aria’s back as I led her out of the dining room and up to our bedroom to pack. She was quiet and tense at my side, and I wasn’t sure if it was because of the presentation of the sheets or because of something else.

We had almost reached our bedroom when my brother made an appearance. I scowled at him. I could have used his help at the presentation, though knowing his temper, especially when he had a headache from last night, it was probably for the best that he’d taken off.

“You two lovebirds will have to postpone your mating session. I need to have a word with you, Luca,” he drawled, looking inexplicably cheery all of a sudden. Not a good sign. Aria cast her gaze up to me with obvious uncertainty, again asking me silently what to do. “Go ahead. Check if the maids packed all your stuff. I’ll be back soon.”

She didn’t need to be told twice and rushed into our bedroom. She wasn’t comfortable around my brother, or me for that matter, and I wasn’t entirely sure it was only because we were men.

Matteo grinned like a wolf. “The sheets were fake, weren’t they? My big bad brother spared his little virgin bride.”

I got into his face, narrowing my eyes at him. “Keep your fucking voice down.” We were alone in the corridor, but that could change at any point and then I’d have a lot of explaining to do.

Matteo cocked his head. “What happened? Did you have too much to drink and couldn’t get it up?”

“Fuck off. As if alcohol ever stopped me,” I muttered. When Matteo and I had partied the nights away, we’d always ended the evening banging a girl.

“Then what?” he asked, honestly curious as if it were incomprehensible that I could hold back.

The memory of Aria’s blank fear of me and her hopeless tears flashed before my eyes. “She started crying,” I admitted, my eyes darting to my forearm for a second. Matteo picked up on it of course and shoved the knife holder to the side, revealing my wound. I wrenched my arm out of his grip and repositioned the leather holder.

“You cut yourself,” he said, searching my face. Matteo was the person who knew me best and yet he was surprised. His mouth twitched, then he shook his head with another chuckle.

“I knew it. I told Gianna last night that she didn’t need to worry about Aria. You have a soft spot for damsels in distress.”

That was bullshit. I’d never felt the urge to hold back for anyone. “I don’t—” I began when his words registered fully. “You were alone with Gianna?”

Matteo nodded with a smile I didn’t like one bit. He motioned for me to follow him away from the bedroom. I doubted Aria was behind the door spying on us.

“I kissed her, and she tastes even better than she looks.”

“I can’t fucking believe you got more action than me in my own fucking wedding night.”

Matteo ran a hand through his hair. “The ladies can’t resist my charm.”

Did he really think this funny? I grabbed his shoulders. “This isn’t a joking matter, Matteo. The Outfit won’t find it funny if you go around deflowering their girls.” Father would have to make amends to the Outfit if that happened, and I wasn’t sure if these amends wouldn’t include having Matteo handed over to Scuderi for disembodiment. Or maybe Father would order me to dish out the expected punishment and kill my brother. I’d kill Father and every fucker who wanted to kill Matteo, but it would lead to all of us losing our lives.

“I didn’t deflower anyone. I kissed her,” Matteo interrupted my thoughts.

“Yeah, as if that’s ever the end of it.” I had noticed the way Matteo watched the redhead, but I had hoped he’d be more sensible than actually pursuing her.

“I want to deflower her. But I’m not an idiot.”

The facts were speaking a different language. Kissing a woman he wasn’t married to, especially from the Outfit, was the biggest kind of idiocy imaginable. If Gianna told anyone, we’d be doomed. The only thing stopping her was probably that she’d be ruined as well.

“I want to marry her.”

I froze. “Tell me you’re kidding.”

“I’m not. That’s why I need your help. Father won’t talk to Scuderi on my behalf if he thinks I want Gianna for any other reason than spite or revenge. You know him.”

“So what do you want me to do?”

“Help me convince him that she hates me and insulted me and that I want to marry her to make her miserable.”

“Isn’t that the truth? The girl can’t stand you, and you want her because of it. How is that any different from the story we’re going to tell Father?”

“I don’t want to make her miserable.”

“The end result might be the same. That girl is going to drive you insane, you realize that, don’t you? I’m really not sure if I want her in New York.”

“You’ll deal with it. And Aria will be happy to have her sister with her.”

He had a point, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted them to be together often. Gianna’s influence wouldn’t make my marriage to Aria less difficult. It would be hard enough to make it work. I didn’t need additional complications. “You really think you thought that through, don’t you?” I said.

“I did. And Father will choose some bitch that’ll make me miserable for me soon enough.”

“So you rather choose your own bitch who’ll make you miserable.”

He shoved my hand away, looking pissed. “Gianna isn’t a bitch.”

“You want to hit me because of her.”

“I want to hit you for a lot of reasons.”

Matteo was serious. I could tell how much this meant to him so, even if I considered it a bad idea, I knew I’d have to help him. As his first born, Father valued my word more than Matteo’s. I could only hope this wouldn’t come to bite Matteo and me in the ass.

After Father promised to talk to Fiore and Rocco about Gianna, he asked me to stay for a private conversation. Matteo mouthed ‘good luck’ before he left Father’s office.

I crossed my arms in front of my chest, waiting for my father to speak. He regarded me closely, and for a moment I wondered if he suspected the sheets were fake, but if this were that kind of conversation, he wouldn’t have been alone with me. The surveillance cameras wouldn’t save his life.

“Now that you’re married, you might want to consider moving into the mansion with me and Nina. After all, it’s our family’s home.”

“That’s a gracious offer,” I bit out, even when the words left a bitter taste in my mouth. “But like I said, this early in my marriage I want to enjoy my wife as much as possible, wherever I want, whenever I want.”

Father nodded with a dark laugh, leaning forward. “I don’t care if you do that in the mansion.”

As if I didn’t know that. But I would never live under the same roof as my father again, especially not with Aria.

Picking up on my reluctance, Father said, “I didn’t expect you to be this possessive of your wife. It’s a new side of you.” He leaned back. “Very well. Stay in your penthouse for now.” He tapped his fingers against the desk, making me wait to see if he was going to say anything else.

He nodded. “That’s all.”

I turned on my heel and stalked out, feeling my vein throb in my temple. Every day it became harder to have my father tell me what to do, to bear his presence.

Matteo and I loaded our luggage into my car since Matteo was riding his Kawasaki back home. Then I waited for Aria to say goodbye to her siblings. She was clinging to Gianna. “You’d think she’s on her way to jail and not to live with you,” Matteo murmured, then winked. “I suppose there isn’t much of a difference.”

I ignored him and tried to stifle my impatience. I wanted to get back to New York. For one because I didn’t want to spend any more time under the same roof as Father, and because I had a meeting to attend. Business had rested these last three days and, at the current time, that was too long.

Scuderi seemed to lose his patience at the same time as I did.

“Gianna, for Christ’s sake! Do I have to come get you?”

Aria finally came toward me, looking like she’d been gutted. “Chicago isn’t the end of the world,” I told her. Her sisters could come visit occasionally.

Aria shook her head, biting her lip as if she were trying to force back tears. “It might as well be. I’ve never been separated from my sisters and brother. They were my whole world.”

Matteo and I had never been separated for long either, but I still didn’t get why she was so emotional over it. “We should leave. I have a meeting tonight.”

I held the door open for Aria and she got in. Closing it, I jogged around the car.

“I’ll be behind you,” Matteo said, then headed for a motorcycle.

I slipped behind the steering wheel and revved the engine. Matteo was already racing down the driveway like a madman.

“No bodyguard?” Aria asked as she fastened her belt.

“I don’t need bodyguards. Romero is for you. And this car doesn’t exactly have room for additional passengers.”

Aria didn’t say anything, only stared out of the window. Looking at the miserable face of my wife, I wondered how life with her would be. I’d never shared my apartment. I had come and gone as I pleased, but now there would always be someone around.

It would be difficult to pretend 24/7. Aria would see my true self if she wanted to or not. I wondered if she’d be able to bear it. She seemed so fragile and innocent. What if my darkness was too much for her?