Arranged Mafia Marriage

Seb

I push the car door open and step out onto the driveway in front of my house. My knees tremble, but they don’t give way, thank fuck. I refused to leave the hospital in a wheelchair. Even though I’m still weak, I insisted on walking out on my own two feet, albeit with Massimo and Luca’s help.

A stony-faced Luca told me that he and Michael had spoken, and he’d agreed to back down on holding Elsa under house arrest in her apartment. Apparently, the women had staged an intervention on behalf of Elsa, and asked that she be allowed to move back in with me.

Now she’s in there, in my home, waiting for me.

I can’t wait to see her which is why I’d insisted on being discharged from the hospital. While the wound is painful, it’s not life-threatening, and the doctors agreed to let me go.

Massimo drove me back to my home, while Luca said that he and the others would be coming by to catch up with me soon. Something I wasn’t looking forward to. For the first time, I didn’t want my brothers with me.

I appreciate that they’re looking out for me, and while I’ll always defend Elsa to them, the truth is, I need to understand the motivation behind her actions. Did she not believe I’d keep my word to her? Did she not trust me enough when I promised I would help her get full custody of her daughter? Is she… I pause halfway up the path to my home. Is she still in love with that stronzo, Fabio? Is that why she colluded with him?

Next to me, Massimo pauses. I refused to let him help me, but he insists on walking me to my door. Like I’m a fucking weakling. “You okay, fratello?” he murmurs.

“Why the hell wouldn’t I be?”

“You don’t have to hide your disappointment from me.” He grips my shoulder. “I know you’re a stubborn bastardo-hell, we all are. But to find out your wife has been colluding with someone else behind your back… It’s got to hurt.”

“You know nothing,” I reply through gritted teeth.

“I know that you would have done anything for her. I know that you’re in love with her.”

I whip my head around in his direction. My shoulder protests, but I ignore it.

“You married her, didn’t you? You may have fooled the others with your talk of doing it to honor your promise to Nonna. You may have even fooled yourself. But I’ve seen the way you look at her. I’ve noticed how you can’t take your gaze off of her. You want to protect her and her child. It’s natural. It’s why you want her to move back in with you; so you can get to the bottom of what actually happened.”

“That’s no secret.” I shake off his hand. “As for the rest… Yeah, it hurts, but she’s my wife. I believe in her. My instincts couldn’t have been completely wrong. There’s a reason for what she did, and I’m going to find out what it is. She would not have knowingly harmed me.”

“I agree.”

I narrow my gaze on him. “You do?”

“We all do. We may have our differences of opinion, but one thing we all agree on is that family comes first. We’d do anything to protect what is ours, so on some level, we understand why she did what she did.” He chuckles. “And that includes that stronzo, Luca.”

“I may have made a mistake, giving up my title of Capo. Not because it’s what I want, but now that Luca’s Capo, he feels like he gets to make decisions for the rest of us. It’s why he’s doing his best to control what happens with Elsa. It’s why he’s so opposed to having Elsa stay with me.”

“He’s watching out for you.” Massimo’s lips quirk. “Sure, he has a pigheaded way of showing it, but underneath all that bluster, you know he’s loyal to us.”

“That may be the only thing he has going for him.” I rub the back of my neck. “Still, I can’t believe he insisted on Elsa moving back to her place, and then he put her under virtual house arrest.”

“He did allow her to be with her daughter,” Massimo points out. “And once he realized his mistake moved her back in to your home.”

“It’s the only reason I haven’t taken a gun to the coglione’s head.” I turn and begin to walk toward my front door.

“He was only watching out for you. You can’t blame him for being careful.”

“You, too?” I stiffen. “I thought you were in my corner.”

“We’re all in your corner,” he says in a low voice, “but you have to admit, the fact that she wasn’t shot, while everyone else on that patio was injured, is suspicious.”Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

“I know how it looks, but I swear she isn’t guilty of what happened,” I retort.

“I believe you…” He shuffles his feet. “But I would be remiss if I didn’t tell you to watch your back.”

“She’s my wife.” I glare at him. “Do you understand that?”

“And wives have killed their husband’s for less.” He tilts his head. “I’m not saying she’s responsible for what happened, but she admitted to colluding with her ex. Regardless of what you wish were the case, it doesn’t exactly exonerate her from what happened.”

“The fact that she admitted to it should show that she’s ready to repent for what happened.”

“And if you had died-?”

“I didn’t,” I point out.

“What if she admitted to being guilty to lull us into complacency?”

I scowl. “You’re not going to stop until you hold her responsible for what happened, are you?”

“Not at all.” He rolls his shoulders. “I want to believe her. If it turns out she really had no idea that minchione, Fabio, would come after you, then no one will be happier than me.”

“But-”

“But,” he blows out a breath, “it still doesn’t negate the fact that she was in cahoots with her ex. I’m just not sure if she’s as innocent as she claims to be, fratello.”

“And I have no doubt that there’s an honest explanation for everything.” I set my lips.

“You’re her husband. Of course you believe her.” His lips kick up. “I wouldn’t have expected anything less from you. All I am saying is, stay on guard.”

The door to the house opens, and I turn toward it.