Page 6 of Forced Innocent Bride By the Bratva

“Three days! Are you kidding me?” she snapped.

“In my defense, I did tell you not to freak out,” I said, sipping my latte. I needed that right now.

“Bullshit.” She dropped into the backrest of her chair. “Hold on a minute, how come I didn’t hear about this on social media or something?”

“Like I said, we didn’t want something loud and elaborate,” I explained, “although a few bloggers did somehow get their hands on the information.”

She folded her arms across her chest, watching me with raised eyebrows, her mock frown settling perfectly on her face.

“Come on, don’t look at me like that,” I pleaded.

“Why? So you don’t feel guilty? So you don’t feel bad about not telling me sooner?”

“I literally just bumped into you,” I said, gesturing in her direction, my tone defensive.

“Maybe.” She shrugged her shoulders. “But you could’ve called…or texted….”

My own guilt gnawed at me like an empty pit in my stomach. “Shit, I’m a terrible person. I’m sorry. You’re right; I should’ve reached out.”

“Mm-hmm.” She just sat there, arms still crossed, her eyes fixed on me.

I resorted to a bit of emotional blackmail, playing the sympathy card. I put on my best sad face and puppy-dog eyes, which I knew she couldn’t ignore.

“No. Nuh-uh.” She shook her head. “You don’t get to do that.”

Still, I was relentless, beaming my most pitiful look at her, and I’d keep this up until she budged.

“This isn’t fair,” she grumbled, her expression softening by the second. “You’re guilt-tripping me. Stop it!”

I refused, making even bigger pleading eyes. She was breaking; I could see it. I could see the slight crack in her countenance, and it was only a matter of now before she’d give in.

“Dang it!” she groaned, quietly slamming a hand on the table. “You manipulative little devil,” she cussed, her lips pressing together to suppress the smile threatening to break free.

“You know you can’t stay mad at me,” I teased, chuckling slightly.

“I hate that I can’t,” she admitted, struggling not to give in to the laughter lingering on her lips.

However, she could only hold it in for so long. Alessia’s resolve was short-lived as my infectious laughter soon won her over, and she found herself swept up in the hilarity.

She lowered her head, her body shuddering as she laughed in silence, embarrassed at how quickly I was able to coax her into forgiving my shortcomings. “You’re an annoying little demon; you know that, right?”

“But you love me that way,” I said, my eyes shining with mirth.

“That’s the only luck you have right now,” she said, raising her head to meet my gaze, her lips twitching at the corners.

“So, you’ll be there, right?” I asked, a hint of skepticism creeping into my tone.

She heaved a heavy sigh. “Three days is such a short time, and I have a lot on my plate at the moment.” She paused for a while, then said, “But I’ll try to be there. Ihaveto be there.”

“Hey, no pressure, okay? The time frame is a little short, and you have exams around the corner—I get it. So, if it’s not going to be convenient for you, I’ll understand.”

“Would you use that as an excuse not to show up atmywedding? Nice try, but no,” she objected.

I laughed. “Why do you have to see everything as manipulation if it comes from me?”

“Can you blame me?” She raised an eyebrow, smiling. Alessia exhaled sharply. “I’ll try to be there, Scarlett. No promises, but I’ll try,” she concluded with a soft tone and even softer expression.

“Thanks, Alessia,” I said, my lips curling into a simple smile.

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