Page 165 of Broken Mafia Prince
I’ve protected my father enough. A man who has a long history of breaking my heart. My priorities have shifted now. I have to protect my child, and that means keeping myself safe.
“Let’s get out of here,” I tell him urgently. “I’ve been a bit terrified to leave everything I know, but this isn’t the world I want our kids to know. They deserve better.”
“And they’re going to get better,” he promises. “I think it’s time. I can’t risk anything bad happening to you—not now that I have you back. Our fake passports are ready. I’ll send you the coordinates where we’ll meet tomorrow. There’s a small chapel where we can get married before leaving. I have everything planned.”
My heart soars. It’s sooner than I expected, but after the back and forth and the anxiety of the past few weeks, it doesn’t feel soon enough. “Do I get to wear a wedding dress?”
“I’d love to see you in one, but you know I’d still marry you if you showed up in rags. I love you any way I get you, Giulia.”
“I love you, too. And I can’t wait to marry you.”
“I know it’s not the dream wedding that?—”
“My dream wedding is marrying you,” I blurt out. “I just want to be with you, I want to be yours.”
“You have no idea how much I want that, too. I’ve gotta go, but I’ll send you the coordinates and time,” he says. “I’ll call you with another secure line if I can, and if not, we’ll see each other at the venue.”
“Tomorrow can’t come fast enough.”
He chuckles, the sound making my body tingle. “We’ve waited so long. What’s a few more hours?”
After we hang up, I raise my head to see Isa staring at me expectantly. “Well?”
“We’re getting married tomorrow!” I exclaim, quickly slapping my palm over my mouth. I completely forgot that I’m still in my father’s house—he could be walking by and overhear me.
“Isn’t it too soon?” Isabella asks carefully. “I understand leaving Chicago, but getting married is a whole different type of commitment. He doesn’t even know about the baby yet. Don’t you think you need to tell him before you make a lifelong commitment?”
“Yes. I’ll tell him tomorrow when I see him, before the wedding. We love each other, and we want to spend the rest of our lives together amidst all of this mess.”
She offers me a strained smile. “If you’re happy, then I guess I’m happy for you, too.”
I peek up at her. “Really?”
Isa chuckles. “Yeah. Really. I still can’t believe you’re getting married before me. For someone who preferred being at the range to going on dates, you’re taking to this whole thing really easily.”
“If you know, you know.”
She snorts. “Yeah, I guess. I just worry that all of this might end badly.”
When I glance over at her, she has a strange expression on her face, and I wonder what else she’s thinking. The whole thing must seem extremely odd to her, so I decide a distraction is in order. “Wanna go dress shopping? I promise to let you use me as your personal dress-up doll.”
“Sure.”
It’s not my imagination that she doesn’t sound all that enthusiastic, but I ignore it. I know she’s worried about me, but I’m sure with time she’ll see that she has nothing to worry about, and I’m in perfectly safe hands with Raffaele.
By the time we get home, it’s almost midnight. Isa helps me pick the white dress I’ll wear and pack up a few clothes, and we try to sleep afterward. I’m buzzing with too much nervous energy to sleep, though. I end up on the balcony, a book in my hand.
I must have fallen asleep at some point, because the next thing I know, Isabella is tapping my shoulders, yawning.
“Did you sleep out here?” Concern wrinkles her forehead. “You’re going to catch a cold. You can’t afford to be careless about your health anymore.”
“I’m fine. I had a blanket.”
“Hmm.” She holds out my phone. “You got a text. It’s probably from Raffaele.”
“Thanks.” I grab the phone and unlock it, heart in my throat. Is he canceling?
It’s a different number from the one he called with yesterday, but it’s him. The text is simple.
