Page 55 of Mila: The Godfather

Unusual Proposal

RIAGAN

“She gave up heaven to love a man like me.” – R

As a young lad who was raised the way that my father and all the men around me did, I knew what a gun was way before I learned to ride a bike. I also never quite believed in fairytales. Never gave one single thought about magic either. None of that had any room in my life, not while I was being raised to be the future leader of the OSullivan clan.

I learned hard lessons before anything else, so yes, beauty is something I knew very little of. Until I stumbled upon a tiny fairy-like creature with butterflies in her hair on a cold autumn night. If I’m being honest, that was the day I started to give a shit about someone other than myself.

I remember the night as if it was yesterday.

The garden.

The sweet air.

Her.

A night much like this one.

The beach mansion didn’t come with a garden, not one of this magnitude, at least. It had small bushes of exotic plants surrounding the pool area, but that was the extent of it. Nothing intricate or of this magnitude. Until years ago when I had the back area turned into a garden for reasons I didn’t quite understand. I just knew that it was what this place was missing to truly feel like a home away from home.

Now, I’m glad I listened to my gut and added the garden because the image in front of me is the reason why a man, who has taken many lives and has lied and cheated most of his life, believes in magic.

Believes in something more than chaos and blood.

Mila walks in front of me, looking in every direction with wonder in her eyes. Those blue eyes of hers shine with not only curiosity but giddiness. And while she takes in the beauty before her, I admire the beauty in front of me. As much as this garden is my pride and joy, it doesn’t hold a candle to her.

“This is…” she whispers, and at the same time she spins in a circle with a smile on her pretty face. “I have never seen anything more beautiful. Is this real?”

“Neither have I,” I whisper softly, knowing she can’t hear me, not with the sound of the waves in the background and her so far away. I take the opportunity and walk closer to her, where she’s too busy looking at the tropical hibiscus.

I stand there as the sun sets and watch her while she gets lost in the world she’s most comfortable in. Where there’s only magic, beauty, and well, plants.

One thing I learned long ago was that Mila Areya Parisi is obsessed with gardening.

Plants, animals and baked goods, to be precise.

This I know.

And the look on her face is worth the hundreds of thousands I dropped on this garden.

It wasn’t cheap, but money has never been an issue. Not for me.

It took me a while to find the person who could bring to life the vision I had for the garden.

A Caribbean paradise.

The designer worked tirelessly alongside the landscape architect, and created a paved seating area surrounded by lush foliage and also built an outdoor lounge space. Atmospheric spotlighting and clever planting make the caribbean garden look like a tropical paradise at night. I only had one suggestion for the designer, and that was for her to make the garden look like something straight out of a fairytale book. For that, she added patio lights and colorful plants. Exotic ones, such as Orchids and Birds of Paradise, and many more. There’s also a koi pond to add a water feature of some shit like that the lady said when she explained her landscaping plans and design. There’s a stone path that leads to the pool with plants and ivy over it that makes it look almost like a jungle.

It is truly beautiful, and by the look on Mila’s face, I know she agrees with me.

After a moment of silence she turns to me with excitement brightening her eyes. “Riagan…”

The way she says my name… so pretty. So fucking sweet. It makes me wonder if she would sound the same when I enter her body. When I claim her as mine. Fuck. Clearing my thoughts and my dirty fucking mind, I speak up. “Yes?”

“I doubted you.”

Frowning, I step closer to where she’s standing, but not too close that it might overwhelm her. “You doubted me?”

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