“This… This can’t be right,” Emma said slowly, trying to remember to breathe so she didn’t faint.
“This isn’t right.” Antonio kept his eyes pinned on her, watching her sway. He reminded Emma of a panther just before he pounced. “It is right. I can show you your birth certificate, your mother’s and my father’s marriage certificate, and even your grandparents’ birth and marriage certificate, if you’d like.” Emma’s head spun. This was insane. She was just an orphan. A nobody! Spots flashed around the edges of her vision.
“Put your head between your knees, if you’re going to faint,” Antonio said calmly. It was his voice of unconcerned coolness that snapped Emma back. She sat up and glared at the man who had literally turned her world upside down. In one day, he had completely destroyed everything she knew about herself. “So why now?” she demanded, her voice stronger . “Why are you telling me this all now?””
Antonio nodded, clearly glad to be getting back on track. “The Cavalli Family and the Del Marco Clan have been at war for a long time. And even as our businesses change into something more representable, we have had a lot of blood lost between us. But Frank Cavalli, head of the Family, has reached out to me.” Antonio paused. “He wants to create an alliance.” Although she was still reeling from all the recent revelations, it wasn’t lost on Emma how huge an alliance like that would be. It could mean less gang wars, less violence, less battles over territories.
“ This is something that I would like very much to happen. It’ll help bring the Del Marco Clan forward into the future and away from the old days of our past.” Antonio leaned back a little in his seat. “But old organizations such as ours are all still quite traditional and can only see an agreement as truly solidified through old rituals.” Rituals? “What the hell are you talking about?” Emma asked, feeling reckless and brave. It didn’t matter if this was Antonio Del Marco, head of the Del Marco Clan. In one fell swoop, she had learned about her long lost mother and her death all in the same conversation.
Antonio’s lips twitched, his eyes gleaming like steel. “Marriage,” he said simply. “We like to see big alliances consummated with marriages between the two families.” Emma stared at him. “You’re going to marry someone,” she said. “Well, the Cavalli Family has three children, all sons,” Antonio explained. “They want marriage but not just any kind.
They are traditional, as I said.” His lips twitched again. How can the man even think of being amused when he had shaken her entire past like an etch-a-sketch? Emma quietly began to fume. “So what?” Emma said before realization smacked her across the face. “You want me to marry someone?”“Not just someone,” Antonio corrected. “David Cavalli, second son and heir to the Cavalli Family.” Emma stood up. “I want to go back home.”
“I am Antonio Del Marco,” he said in a quiet voice that demanded she listen to him with every fiber of her being. “I am the head of one of the most brutal mafias in west coast history and now you know that I also happen to be your older stepbrother.”
Antonio took another step, closing the small distance between the two of them. Emma tried her best not to flinch as he neared. “So yes, I do expect you to do as I say and marry someone, even a ‘mob stranger,’ just because I say so.” He stood only mere inches away from her. Looking down he pierced her with his fiery gaze.
“Because you are now Emma Del Marco, daughter of the Del Marco Clan, and that means you fall under my rule, my command.” Without thinking , Emma swung her hand back and aimed for his face. He caught her wrist with ease, his large hand wrapping completely around her arm and holding her captive. Ignoring her pulls to get away, he leaned down and added, “So as my younger sister and a member of the Del Marco Clan, I suggest you recognize the responsibilities you have to your family and learn to accept your position.”
A few chapters later
“Are we dancing?” Emma asked in shock, her voice almost cracking at the thought. Pulling her to him , Antonio wrapped his strong arm around her lower back, capturing her hand in his. As the orchestra played a soft, lilting song, Antonio smoothly led her around the dance floor. “Yes, we’re dancing,” he whispered in her ear. With the chandeliers glowing above them and the sconces lit around them, the whole ballroom felt like a huge, beautiful fantasy. She could hear the swish of her full skirts as they slowly danced. Looking at her wrist, the sparkles of the diamonds caught the light, making the stones glint and wink at her. Emma followed the line of her wrist up to her hand which was currently swallowed up by Antonio’s bigger, stronger one. She looked up, suddenly feeling quite shy.
Who was Antonio Del Marco? The man who had destroyed her life in his office that day? The man who had watched over her and had created a trust in her name? Or the man here, who stood so charming and tall over this crowd of society’s best? “What are you thinking about?” Antonio asked, his gray eyes nearly charcoal in the dim glowing lights of the ballroom .
He effortlessly led her around the dance floor, his strong arms guiding her swiftly and smoothly. Emma swallowed. She thought about making some kind of offhand joke about the food the rich eat for dinner or a remark about how itchy her dress was.
But instead she said softly, “I’m wondering if this is all real.” Antonio’s gaze blazed something hot. His arms tightened about her. She could see something like longing and regret shadowing his eyes. For the first time, she felt like she could see behind the mask of coolness he wore. She felt like she was meeting Antonio Del Marco for the first time. “Me too,” he said quietly, his voice thick with unsaid emotions. He held her tightly. Emma thought about the donations to her schools, the sudden reveal of her trust fund by the Grants. “Me too.” His voice seemed to echo through her chest.
But before they could drift into the next song, Antonio’s head snapped up. His back straightened and his whole body stiffened. Emma tried to turn around but it was hard to do while dancing. “What? What is it?” she asked. When Antonio looked down, the mask had fallen back into place. He smiled but it didn’t reach his cool gray eyes. “It’s time,” he said. “The Cavallis are here. Let’s introduce you.” And with a small flourish , he took her smoothly off the dance floor. Emma followed him, her hand tucked into Antonio’s.
His grip was tight on hers as if he knew she would bolt if given the chance.
Emma took a deep breath. She was about to meet her fiancé.
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