Page 4 of His Tesoro

Mila’s face fell, her forehead creased with worry. “He better be.” Her voice was fierce.

As the older sister, I had always been protective of Mila, stepping in to take care of her when our parents ignored us and the nannies went home. But as my health issues grew more severe over the years, she had been the one protecting me.

“What about Dimi?” Mila asked. Our half-brother, Dimitri, lived a life shrouded in secrecy. Our father constantly sent him away to do his dirty work abroad, unable to stand his son’s presence for long. Dimi reminded him too much of his first wife. A woman, if the rumors were to be believed, he had actually loved.

I squeezed her hand. “I’m sure he knows. Maybe he’ll come for the wedding.” But my words lacked conviction. The wedding was two days from now. Dimi didn’t have a stable phone number, so we always had to wait until he reached out to us.

“Do you think Matteo knows about my—” I gestured my hand at my body.

Mila’s lips parted. “The Pakhan had to tell him, right? Matteo probably got tons of information on you before he agreed.” We’d stopped calling our father “papa” years ago. All he was to us, to anyone in his life, was the Pakhan.

I took a deep breath, relief filling my chest. “Yeah, of course.” A tiny thread of hopefulness joined my anxiety. Matteo must be a decent man if he was choosing to marry me as I was. Although… maybe an alliance with the Bratva was too good of an opportunity to pass up, even if that meant accepting a bride like me.

“I’m going to miss you,” Mila murmured.

I blinked to keep my tears from falling. Years of my father screaming at me to toughen up had done nothing to stop me from being deeply sensitive.

“Maybe he’ll let you visit,” I said.

“Yeah, maybe.”

Tears fell down my face as I pulled my little sister into my arms.

3

MATTEO

Romeo and I sat in the back of the car on the drive from the airport to the church. Two SUVs filled with my men flanked us on the road. Sienna had been enraged that I wouldn’t allow her to attend my wedding, but I didn’t trust the Russians enough to risk my sister’s safety.

I glanced at my watch. I had a meeting back in the city this evening to inspect a new shipment of weapons with Domenico, my enforcer, so this ceremony needed to be succinct.

“You might want to practice your smile,” Romeo said.

I met his gaze with a scowl.

“No, no, the opposite of that.”

“Fuck off. Why do I need to smile?”

“To make a good impression on your bride.”

Romeo just chuckled at my responding glare. Fucker. He was the only one, besides my sister, who interacted with me without even an edge of fear.

“I won’t hesitate to shoot you,” I said, looking out the window. He just snorted.

I didn’t need to put this woman at ease. She would live in my apartment and join me for events when we needed to keep up the appearance of a strong marriage. I wasn’t cruel—she would have access to money and whatever else she needed—but that was it. I refused to disrupt my life for her. Refused to do anything that would make it easy for her to gain an advantage over me.

We pulled up to the church on the north side of the city. Traditionally, Family weddings happened near my apartment in Manhattan, but Rustik said if the wedding was to be Catholic at our insistence, it would take place in Chicago at his. It was an inconvenience for me, and I was already dreading the two-hour plane ride back with my new wife.

Rustik Ivanov might’ve been my new ally, but I still despised him. He had shed plenty of Italian blood through the years, and we’d retaliated in kind. This alliance would take some getting used to.

Angelo, our driver and one of my most trusted soldiers, signaled that our men were in position. I exited the armored SUV and buttoned my jacket. I’d worn my standard black suit for the wedding. Business attire for a business event. My Glock pressed comfortingly against my back.

I checked my watch again as we entered the church. Two minutes until the ceremony.

“Cutting it close,” Romeo muttered.

“No need to linger,” I responded.

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