Chapter 61 - Marco

I watched from a distance as Angela finished getting dressed in our closet, slipping into a dress that hugged her body perfectly. She had finally gained some weight back, and the nights had become calmer. But whenever she woke up from nightmares, I was there, and when I wasn’t, she knew exactly where to find me to make me keep my promise—I’d always make her forget by calling out my name.

The past two months had been turbulent with all the twists and turns: Filippo’s father vanishing, the Japanese attacking and encroaching on Cosa Nostra territory, making our efforts to reclaim territories even harder. Nothing was settled yet, but we’d finally found a week of calm to hold Nero and Svetlana’s wedding.

The Russians were growing impatient with the wait, especially since their troops were aiding us in the territorial takeover. But everything would be resolved in a few hours.

“Everything okay, Angel?” I asked, noticing her taking deep breaths in front of the mirror.

“I already told you, you can go downstairs. I’m going to stop by Lana’s room first,” she replied, but she didn’t stop breathing deeply, as if trying to steady herself. That was odd—it had been a while since she’d had anxiety attacks.

“What are you feeling?” I asked more directly, stepping into the closet and standing behind her. Our eyes met in the mirror, and she stared at me for a long second, her brown irises sparkling with that wild glint only she had. “No use trying to hide it from me.”

“You know me too well,” Angel said, smiling and rolling her eyes. “It’s not a big deal—I woke up a bit nauseous today, and even Giovanna’s pancakes didn’t sit well with me.”

I kissed her hair, careful not to mess up her perfect makeup, then stepped away to the bathroom, grabbing an anti-nausea pill from our stash of meds.

“Here, take this. I’ll go downstairs and have them make you some tea,” I said, offering her the pill, but Angel turned to me, shaking her head.

“I don’t think that’ll help.”

“This is a great remedy, and the tea will help too,” I insisted, knowing it would be a long day and feeling nauseous through the whole wedding would be awful. But Angela placed her hands on her stomach, cradling it in a strange way that left me confused for a moment. “What do you mean… are you pregnant?”

She bit her lower lip and took a step toward me as I tried to process her refusal to take the pill and her hands gliding over her belly. Was Angel really pregnant?

“I think I am. I’ve been feeling like this for a few days, especially in the mornings. I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t think it was a big deal, but now the more I think about it, the more certain I am.”

“We’ve never used protection, and I know you’re not on any birth control,” I stated the obvious, stepping closer and wrapping my hands around her waist. “It’s almost strange it hasn’t happened before.”

“I know, we’ve never been careful. It was bound to happen eventually,” she murmured, not sounding the least bit excited or even remotely happy about the news.

I couldn’t help but think this might be because of everything that had happened to her—watching her parents die, being separated from her siblings, being kidnapped and abused.

“Yes, it was going to happen sooner or later. But how do you feel about it? If there’s really a baby in there, what do you want to do?” I asked, sliding my hands over her flat stomach, knowing she might not want a child now and that I’d have to respect her choice—I’d never force her to go through with anything.

“No doubt I’d prefer it came later than now. Nothing is favorable for a child’s arrival—we’re in the middle of conflicts, still forming alliances, and trying to reclaim everything that was Cosa Nostra’s,” she said, making my heart tighten and my hopes of having a child fade. “It’s a time when both of us should be completely focused. But I’ve thought about it so much these past few days, and I believe it’s also a blessing. After everything we’ve been through, a baby now feels like a breath of hope.”

I couldn’t hold back my smile and pulled her to me, kissing her forehead several times before kissing her lips. Angel was definitely the only person who could take me from hell to heaven in seconds.

“We’ll do this together, and no son of a bitch will ruin this moment,” I promised her, knowing I’d keep that vow even if it was the last thing I did in life. “It’ll be great news for the whole family—another reason to celebrate.”

“Hold on, we need to be sure first before announcing to everyone that there’s a mini Marco in here,” she stopped me, but the image of a tiny version of her was etched in my mind.

“There better be a baby in there already, but just to be sure, I’ll spend the night increasing our chances,” I declared, sliding my hand to her ass and pulling her toward me.

My mouth found hers quickly, and without ceremony, I slipped my tongue inside, tangling with hers in a promise of what I’d do to her later.

I pushed her against the wall when a sigh escaped her lips, spurring me on even more. I didn’t want to delay the wedding any further, but I also wasn’t eager to leave her.

I squeezed her ass, hearing a small moan echo, going straight to my cock, which twitched inside my pants. Fuck, how I wished we weren’t wearing so many clothes right now—it’d be so much easier to take her against that wall.

“No way, I can’t go through with this!” Nero burst in, already rambling, making me pull away from Angel quickly. “I can’t get married.”

“Yes, you can, and you will. Don’t come with this bullshit now—pull yourself together and go downstairs!” I snapped, adjusting my erection in my pants, but Angela stepped in front of me, giving me a reprimanding look.

“What happened, Nero? Why are you saying this all of a sudden?”

“I can’t marry someone I can barely even talk to—she doesn’t seem to understand anything in English or Italian. Do you know how hard that is? There has to be another way, another way to make this deal work, because I can’t marry her.”

Angel rubbed her hands up and down his arms, trying to calm him, while all I wanted was to punch him to make him man up and stop with this desperation.

“Unfortunately, you know there’s no other way. A man’s word is as important as this deal, and you gave yours,” she said with an admirable calm and composure, starting to get Nero to stop pacing like a madman. “As for talking, Lana understands English very well and is learning Italian—I’ve been giving her lessons. But I think you should make an effort too and start taking an interest in the things she likes.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because that’s what a woman expects, mafia or not. It’s not just one who has to be committed—both have to show interest in what the other likes. You have to make an effort to make it work.”

He shook his head, and I crossed my arms, leaning against the wall and letting Angel handle him. She was definitely much calmer and more patient for this.

“See? I’m not cut out for this. I’ve never wanted to be with someone beyond one night, and I never had to try for that.”

“But things are going to change now. In a few hours, you’ll be a married man, and you need to change for her,” Angela said, touching his face like he was a child, not a man older than her. “I know you two haven’t had enough time to get to know each other or live together like Marco and I did to build a bond before the wedding. But you’ll do fine—you’ve always made everyone love you. You just have to act that way with her and try to give her what she needs.”

“It’s hard when she barely talks to me—how am I supposed to know what she needs?”

“You have to ask and observe, focus on her. You’ll figure out what she needs and when she needs it. You grew up with a woman—I have faith in you,” she said, glancing at me sideways before looking back at him. “Another very important thing: Lana has never been with another man, hasn’t even been kissed, so be patient and gentle. For God’s sake, don’t scare her tonight.”

I had no idea the bride was as innocent as Angel was when we met. I was lucky to have spent a long time with her at home, teaching her a few things. Nero was definitely going to struggle tonight, trying to be calm and do things right.

“I’ve never been with a virgin, fuck. Patience isn’t one of my virtues, but I’ll try to control myself,” he said, shaking his head and stepping away from Angel, resuming his impatient pacing.

“I know there’s something else bothering you—you wouldn’t come here just for that,” I said bluntly, catching his attention. “Spit it out!”

“What if I can’t protect her?” Nero muttered, making me shift from my position as a lump formed in my throat. “I couldn’t handle going through what you did. I don’t… I don’t even know how to take care of myself, let alone protect a woman. You and Frank were always the protective, stronger ones, and look what happened.”

I heard my little angel sniffle and step away from him, giving me space, but I didn’t dare look at her in that moment—I knew I’d find her crying, and I wouldn’t be able to handle it.

“You rebuild,” I said, grabbing his face with both hands and looking deep into his eyes. “You take everything you have, combine it with the pain and fear of losing someone you love, and you turn into someone stronger. Someone worthy of Svetlana.”

“Did you manage that? Did you become stronger for Angela?”

“I’m getting stronger—for her and for our son,” I said, even knowing she might scold me, and his surprised gaze sought her out. “You’ll manage too. Your wife is special, even if you’re a fucked-up jerk, so become someone who deserves her.”

“It’s a daily task,” Angel said, stepping closer and wrapping her hands around my arm. “From both sides. That’s what marriage is.”