BELLA’S POV
It had been a few days since Bella had left Luca’s house, since then she hadn’t heard from him, only his Sister and Mother had been reaching out to her, and before she knew it she was waking up on her big day. It was their wedding day today and she sat in her room on her bed as she had just been woken up and she could feel the nerves on every part of her body. She was scared and felt like she was being set up with this marriage because it was not going to work, the chances of it not working out felt very high because of Luca, After the time she had spent with Luca in his study and what he had said. she did not and was not planning on ever getting married just to divorce in her life, those have never been part of her dreams. She needed this to work, that would mean Luca had to at least even like her, because she had connected to him the very first time she saw him on their engagement, Its just him who doesn’t feel it. She had thought he was the most good looking and attractive Man she had come across and he had made her feel something the very first meeting when she had looked at at his face and looked in his beautiful eyes. but the type of Man Luca was they never move with their emotions in their lives he was just like her dad. But at least her Dad loved their Mother to this day and they had also choosen each other. This wedding was like doing something while knowing either way you are going to fail. Luca did not care about her, he thought she was a weak little woman. During the days that followed their study meeting at his house, she had felt like she needed to work on herself so he doesn't see her as weak as he did or the way he had thought of her to be a loose girl. She had continued to help plan the wedding and promised herself she was going to at least make Luca like her for her own sanity's sake. Otherwise this wedding should not even be happening. The thing was she did not want to disappoint her father, she loved him and if this is what the family needed she was going to make it happen for them. If she was about to live with this guy then they should at least be on good terms and the last time they spoke with each other was when she had stormed out of his office. After she had gotten home that day, from then to now they had not Met again, She knew he had once come over at their house yesterday with his brother Sebastian to meet up with her father for whatever business they had with each other but she did not have the guts nor the will to come down and face him. even if he was in her fathers home but also if he had wanted to speak with her He would have called for her but he never did. Her thoughts were then interrupted by A knock at the door and after telling them to come in the door opened to three of their house keepers and their stylist as they all rushed in with everyone carrying stuff about to get her ready for her wedding. She smiled at everyone and greeted them and then let them do their thing. They helped her get her everything bath, which made her Virgin self shy and embarrassed for other people to see her naked and touch her everywhere on her body as they helped her. They helped her Shave and wax her legs,Deep Moisturized her body with nice smelling products, brushed her hair and styled it beautifully, manicured and pedicured her nails and toes, they did her eyelashes, makeup,dressed her in her Beautiful wedding gown and high heels. After they were done getting her dressed she stood in front of the big floor mirror and looked at herself and she felt so beautiful because she had on the most beautiful wedding gown. she felt like she now matched enough to stand next to a guy like Luca,she looked like her own queen and that gave her strength and she felt like she could run any kingdom if she wanted to. Then all of a sudden her Mother, her Aunt and Cousins came into the room and they all looked at her with awe, they always told her she was the most gorgeous young woman, it was sometimes hard for her to believe them because she was always around them but looking at their faces now she felt confident and she also wanted her husband to be able to look at her and feel something for her, maybe then he would be open to treating her the best if he found her to be attractive too. she has to plan something in her head, so that after the wedding she has to make sure Luca likes her and notices her as his wife because she wasn't going to be another piece in his big house, she will need to make sure the marriage she is getting into works somehow. She looked at herself in her dress and with her small diamond shining crown and long veil on her head, she knew right then that she was going to try her best to play the part and be the badass Mafia queen that Luca thinks she can never be, no one was going to look down on her and make her feel weak in this life or the next if she can help it. This day has somewhat been a reality check for her and she was going to live her new life with everything she had in her. To new beginnings, new experiences and starting over by becoming a boss wife and Mafia wife to the most powerful Man. ❤️ **********Luca stood on the docks, the harbor’s stench mingling with the metallic tang of blood from all the men killed that night.The night was a chaos of gunfire and shouts, his men clashing with Petrov’s crew in a brutal dance of power. The shipment crates of weapons worth millions was secure, thanks to Bella’s intel from the Black Viper. But the victory was hollow. Some of his men lay by wounded, bullets in their bodies. The Petrov men had arrived before them and they had kind of been ambushed, but they were still stronger and defeated them. Dimitri had slipped away the usual coward bastard always is always run away.One of his men who was down face was pale as he growled, “We showed ‘em, boss.” Luca’s jaw clenched, his dark eyes scanning the shadows for Petrov.Dimitri will pay for everything. The bastard had slipped away, leaving a note scrawled on a crate: “Your heart is next.”The words burned, not because of the threat, but because of what they meant. Bella. She was Petrov’s target
The safe house was a fortress disguised as a rustic cabin, nestled in a dense pine forest an hour from the city. Its weathered wooden exterior belied the steel reinforced walls and bulletproof windows, a testament to Luca’s length for her safety. The air was sharp with the scent of pine and damp earth, but inside, it was sterile clean lines, minimal furniture, and the hum of a generator buried somewhere beneath the floor. Bella sat at the small desk in the upstairs bedroom, her fingers tracing the silver locket around her neck, its familiar weight a tether to her mother’s memory. “Strength is quiet, Bella,” her mother had said, years ago, when Bella was just a shy girl hiding behind her father’s desk. “It’s in your mind, not your fists.”Six hours ago, Nathan had escorted her here under Luca’s orders, his face grim as he relayed the command: “You will have to stay here until further notice.” The memory of Luca’s fury still stung his dark eyes blazing, his voice a cold blade slicing
Luca’s presence filled the manager’s office, the air crackling with his barely contained fury. His dark eyes locked onto Bella, sharp and unyielding, like a predator sizing up prey. The door slammed shut behind him, the sound echoing like a gunshot in the small space. Bella stood behind the desk, her hands gripping the edge, her sleek black blazer and pencil skirt a stark contrast to the vulnerable woman who’d confessed her love the night before. Her chin was lifted, but her blue eyes betrayed a flicker of fear beneath her defiance.“What the hell were you thinking?” Luca’s voice was low, a dangerous rumble that made the room feel smaller. He stepped closer, his broad frame looming, each word deliberate. “You went to the Black Viper, Petrov’s territory alone? After yesterday’s attack? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”Bella’s heart pounded, her shyness urging her to shrink, but the spark of anger from last night flared brighter. She straightened, meeting his gaze. “I was thi
Her still hands trembled, the echo of gunfire from the attack still ringing in her ears, the screech of tires and Carlo’s shouted “Get down!” replaying in her mind. Her black sundress, once a symbol of confidence during her spa day with Victoria, now felt like a flimsy shield, clinging to her curves and exposing her fragility. But it was the ache in her chest that drove her to the study. She needed Luca, needed his strength to ground her, to make her feel safe in a world that had just bared its teeth.She found him standing by his desk, the amber glow of a single lamp casting sharp shadows across his angular face. Maps and burner phones were scattered before him, a battlefield of strategy that seemed to consume him entirely. His broad shoulders were tense, his dark eyes fixed on a point she couldn’t see. He was a fortress, unyielding, and for a moment, her shyness urged her to retreat. But the terror of the attack, the weight of Petrov’s threat, pushed her forward. She needed him
The morning sun bathed the city in a golden glow, casting long shadows across the sleek curves of Victoria’s convertible as Bella slipped into the passenger seat. For the first time in weeks, her heart felt lighter, unshackled from the weight of Luca’s intense, conflicted gaze and the sting of his secrets. Her black sundress hugged her bombshell figure, the halter neckline accentuating her curves, but her shyness made her tug at the hem, self conscious despite Victoria’s insistence that she looked “like a goddess.” Despite the revelation of his past with Taylor or Anna and the chilling threat of Dimitri Petrov. Today, though, she craved escape a day to reclaim herself, away from the club’s chaos and Luca’s cold dominion.“So, mafia wife,” Victoria teased, her sunglasses glinting as she pulled onto the highway, the wind whipping her auburn hair. “What’s the plan? Spa day, shopping, or something totally reckless to make Luca jealous?”Bella laughed, her cheeks flushing as she tucked
The guest bedroom was her sanctuary, its pristine white linens and polished furniture a stark contrast to the chaos churning in Bella’s heart. She sat on the edge of the bed, her black dress now a crumpled reminder of the night’s failures. The fabric clung to her like a second skin, but it felt heavy, a costume for a role she wasn’t sure she could play anymore. The silence of the room was driving her crazy, broken only by the distant hum of the mansion’s air conditioning and the faint tick of a clock on the nightstand.It was well past midnight, and Bella’s mind refused to rest, replaying the night’s events like a broken record.She had dressed for Luca, hoping the dress would catch his eye, make him see her not just as a fixture in his dangerous world, but as the woman who could love him as his wife. But the club had been a whirlwind of tension,he Petrov situation, Sebastian’s careless revelation about Taylor, and Luca’s cold dismissal of her hurt.His words echoed in her mind “Yo