Page 10 of Dangerous Deception

The pictures don’t do her justice, and I haven’t even seen her face yet. She’s escorted by her father, a portly man with a thick mustache that takes over most of his face. He pats her hand as she grasps his elbow and together, they slowly walk toward me. Pascal’s gray suit is as muted as the rest of him, and he quickly fades into the background.

I watch Adelina’s every step like a hawk. She flows down the aisle like she’s walking on air, and it’s difficult to decipher each step. With one hand holding onto her father, the other clasps a small bouquet of orange roses and the petals tremble slightly with each step she takes.

She’s nervous. Her body language betrays that in a second, and I don’t blame her. She must be aware of how her family’s future now rests on her shoulders, and that’s a weight I’m familiar with. Years ago, my family were nothing but feral attack dogs for the Italian Mafia. Easily expendable. Now I have the power, and other people bark for me.

The music swells once more and then tapers away as Adelina and Pascal reach me. I breathe in. The floral scent of the room is suddenly mingled with a sweeter scent that drags me right back to a childhood candy shop.

Pascal flashes me an over-eager smile. “Mr. Varricchio.”

I say nothing. My full attention is on Adelina, but she doesn’t speak. Despite the tilt of her head, it’s difficult to tell whethershe’s looking at me or beyond, but it hardly matters. I hold out my hand, and she slides her lace-clad fingers into my grasp.

My attention stays on her for the entire ceremony. The officiant marrying us gives a generic speech about love and acceptance, but the words barely resonate with me. I’m too caught up in watching her, intrigued by the sweetness of her scent and the way in which she hasn’t moved a muscle since she took my hand. She’s almost like a porcelain doll.

We recite vows that hold no personal value, vocalizing the contract that will bind us together, and after I’ve said everything that is required of me, it’s Adelina’s turn. Her head shifts direction away from me, and when she speaks, I realize it’s the first time I’m hearing her voice.

She speaks softly and carefully, enunciating each word as if they hold some sort of importance to her. It’s not until she gets to the end that I realize what she’s doing. She’s not carefully reciting these vows because they’re important to her. She’s repeating them like one would carefully go over the lines of a contract.

It’s subtle, but it’s becoming abundantly clear that there’s defiance in her heart too.

“Rings?” asks the officiant after the vows complete.

Vito steps up to my shoulder and holds out the two simple gold bands purchased for today. I take Adelina’s hand in my own and raise it so I have a full view of her delicate, lace-wrapped fingers. “If the ring’s too big,” I say as I slide it into place, “we’ll resize it.”

By fate or some stroke of luck, the ring slides easily onto Adelina’s finger and remains there. Then we switch, and her delicate yet firm touch takes hold of my hand and shoves the ring on. It’s subtle, but there’s a fraction of force behind the movement, and something hot stirs in my gut.

She doesn’t like me.

And she isn’t going to hide it.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife,” states the officiant with a wide smile, completely oblivious to the historical marriage she’s just created between Adelina and myself. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Adelina’s head tilts back to me, and we stare at one another—or rather, I stare at where I think her eyes are behind the veil.

This is the moment. The moment where she could embarrass me or kill me, depending on how she’s feeling. Her hands fall away from mine and the room is completely silent while I grasp the end of her veil and slowly lift it over her head.

A pair of stunning blue eyes, shining like glass, stare at me from dark lashes. Thick, ruby-red lips press together, and my breath catches in my throat. I knew she was beautiful from her pictures, but reality hits a little differently.

She’s like staring into the face of a siren, holding the very ocean she emerged from in her gorgeous eyes. She blinks slowly, and her eyes flutter, betraying her nerves. Adelina is clearly a woman who tries to remain in control of herself, but the subtle signs are there.

The room holds its breath as I reach for her face and cup the side of her neck. My thumb runs along the soft line of her jaw, and two of my fingers trace over the smooth skin behind her ear. Her lips press together once more, and as I guide her closer for that kiss, I expect to feel resistance.

There is none.

I close the inches between us and breathe deeply, soaking up the sweetness of her perfume. This close, I detect something warm like chocolate mingling with the scent. She smells as divine as she looks. Something hot twists in my gut. I look in her eyes, then down to her lips, then back up to her eyes. She doesn’t look away.

Suddenly, her soft breath ghosts over my skin, and a shudder rolls down my spine. Her eyes flutter closed and her lips part a fraction. I step close and slide my other hand around her waist, which causes her eyes to fly back open. Then, as I press my palm flat against her hot back and pull her close, I lean down and kiss her.

Mrs. Adelina Varricchio.

Welcome to my world.

5

ADELINA

You’ve done it now, Adelina. You’re married.

The ring sits heavily on my finger as if trying to weigh down my entire hand. Despite my lack of expectation, seeing such a simple old band in Raffaele’s hand was a surprise. For a man with his kind of reputation, I did spend the morning wondering if he would get me something utterly extravagant. Part of me is disappointed, but I can’t pinpoint exactly why. This is a business transaction, after all, and there’s no love or feeling shared between us.

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