Page 119 of Vicious Intentions
My hand clasps at my chest, my heart threatening to jump out of it.
He said it. He really said it.
“I love you too,” I say a bit overexcitedly. “So much. So very much,caro mio. And I will love you for the rest of my days. No matter what the future brings.”
I hear him let out a strangled breath, as if my vow of love hurts him more than it heals him. But I suppose I understand why he’s apprehensive. Not only because our love is doomed from the start, with me being a Romano and Raffaele a Donato, but also because by this time tomorrow, the old Salvatore mansion will be filled to the brim with Outfit families. If any of my father’s men sees us together, Raffaele is as good as dead.
It was selfish of me to want to see him. I see that now. But my heart couldn’t wait another day. And if he’s still set on coming, then neither is his.
“We’ll be safe, my love,” I promise softly. “I’ll make sure no one sees me going into the woods tomorrow. I promise you that everything will be okay. And we’ll finally be together.”
“That’s all I want, sweetheart. All I want is for you to be mine.”
“I am yours. Always.”
“Cazzo,”he mutters under his breath, but I catch it all the same.
My eyebrows furrow, unhappy that he’s not sharing the same excitement I am. But then again, he’s probably seen his fair share of blood and cruelty when dealing with enemies that dared sneak into his turf uninvited. I can only imagine what other horrors he must face on a daily basis.
It isn’t fair that he should have such a life. Especially since he never wanted it in the first place. I blame his older brother, Matteo, for that.
“I… I should go. There are still a lot of things I need to double-check for tomorrow.”
“Okay,” I reply, a little saddened that he’s cutting our call short.
“Goodnight,vita mia.”
“Good night,caro mio. I love you.”
“And I love you. More than you will ever know.” And with that, he hangs up.
I fall back on my bed, staring at the ceiling above, wondering why this call sounded so… final. It’s almost as if he were saying goodbye.
“He’s just nervous. Cautious,” I tell myself, shaking my head. “That’s all this is. Just nerves.”
Which is to be expected. I should be just as nervous. He’s putting his life on the line for me, after all. I just have to make sure no one figures out our plans. Raffaele has visited me twice before, and no one was ever the wiser. We can pull it off again. Ijust need to be vigilant and make sure no one notices my absence from the party tomorrow. That shouldn’t be hard to do. I hope.
The Salvatore mansion is alive by the time the early evening settles in. Lights glow from every window, spilling gold across the grounds. Music hums through the halls, blending with laughter, chatter, and the clink of glasses. The air feels thick with celebration, heavy with decadent perfumes, expensive cologne, and a sea of red roses, my mother’s favorite.
Just as I expected, everyone who is anyone in our city is in attendance. A mixture of Chicago’s elite and Outfit families fills the rooms, their presence stretching from the grand foyer to the gardens outside, where men in tailored suits and women draped in silk and diamonds glide with practiced ease. Every corner of the house hums with laughter and conversation, as business is set aside in favor of celebration. All for my parents and their twenty-five years of marriage.
If there was ever a milestone worth celebrating, it’s this one. Because on this joyous day twenty-five years ago, my mother married not only my father, Vincent, but later returned here, to this very mansion, in secret, to repeat those same vows with my other fathers, Giovanni and Dominic.
Only the walls of this mansion witnessed the vow four best friends made to one another, promising to love and cherish each other, and build a family they could be proud of.
Of course, no one here knows that, or what our family is truly celebrating. Aside from their respective partners, only mysiblings and I know the truth that today marks the anniversary of our parents’ happily ever after.
With this image of love blooming in my chest, I ready myself to find my own small speck of happiness with the man I love, even if only for an hour or two.
I stand at the bottom of the staircase for a moment, taking it all in as I prepare to make my move. My siblings are scattered throughout the mansion, but none of them are watching me. Not tonight. Not when they’re wrapped up in their own little worlds. I suppose a night like this has them reminiscing about their own marriage vows.
I first find Jude and his wife, Mina, standing near the bar. He has his arm around her waist, his attention completely fixed on her as she laughs at something one of her twin cousins just said. He barely acknowledges the Crane duo, his focus solely on her.
I smile as my eyes scan the living room in search of my next sibling. It doesn’t take long before I spot Lucky tucked into a quiet corner with Frankie, their heads close together, as if the rest of the room didn’t exist. As if nothing else mattered, except the way they look at each other while Frankie feeds him one of the new desserts she made especially for this party.
I let out a soft giggle as I search for my rascal of a brother’s twin. My smile widens when I find Enzo on the makeshift dance floor, Alejandro clinging to him as they sway slowly to the music drifting through the air, completely lost in each other.
Just a few steps away, I find Marcello and his wife, Isobel, who looks just as distracted. His usual sharp awareness is softened as he hangs on every word she says while continuing her conversation with her former college professor, Jane Montgomery.
