Marrying Vanessa – Chapter Three

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We finish the photos, in every configuration imaginable, and I change from my wedding dress into my reception dress. It’s still white with lavender accents, but it flows a bit easier and I don’t feel like every step risks me tripping over my own feet.

Of course, I don’t actually want to go to the reception. There are so many people I don’t recognize, friends of Giulio’s or important mob connections. Even worse, though, are the people I do know. My father’s old allies, ones who approach me to lament my father’s demise while congratulating me for marrying the son of the man who had him killed.

 I’ve managed to extricate myself from one such conversation— “Oh, Giulio is waving to me!”—when I notice Dr. Savage sitting at a table with a small blonde woman.

Stef.

I inhale sharply. Giulio and Damien hadn’t mentioned that they’d invited her. I still feel immense guilt about what happened to her, but at the same time… She looks healthy. Not necessarily happy, but she’s gained weight, there’s a pretty flush to her cheeks, and she isn’t being forced to strip down for the crowd.

She isn’t begging for someone to rescue her, even though I know that’s an impractical thought. No one would, even if she tried. 

I want to go to her, but I hesitate. What if she hates me? She doesn’t know I’m the reason she was sold—or at least, I don’t think she does—but she still went through terrible things because of me. I could easily avoid her, and no one would think less of me for it. I’m the bride, and I can’t possibly touch base with every single person there.

But I’d think less of me for it, and that’s what has me making my way through the crowd toward them. When I’m a few feet away, I feel like I’m going to panic and bolt, but I put on a smile and approach.

Stef looks up at me a little warily, though I think the smile on her lips is real. 

“Hey, Stef,” I say, equally uncertain.

She glances at Dr. Savage, who frowns but nods, then tells me, “Hi, Vanessa. The wedding was really nice.”

I don’t know what to make of the exchange. It was like she was asking for permission to speak to me, and while I know my gut is right, I don’t understand it even though there’s that stupid part of my brain that reminds me that Stef was sold to be a slave. Just because Savage brought her out into public doesn’t mean that’s changed, even if he did dress her up nicely and put a gorgeous necklace around her throat. 

“Thank you. You look lovely,” I tell her. “I especially love your necklace.”

Stef’s cheeks turn scarlet, and she mumbles something that might be a thanks. I don’t know what I’ve done to embarrass her, but I feel second-hand embarrassment even without knowing the cause.

Savage puts his arm across Stef’s shoulders and glares at me. “Is there a reason you’re here?”

It’s my wedding, I want to say, but Savage’s tone has me shrinking back a bit. I shouldn’t be so intimidated by him, given that he’s the one who helped deliver Pandora, but he’s such a harsh man.

“May I…” Stef mumbles quietly. “Um, I’d like to talk to Vanessa on my own, Sir. If you think that’s all right.”

There’s a weight to the way she says sir that makes my hackles rise. “Please,” I say anyway. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to my friend in a really long time.” 

Savage meets Stef’s eyes for a brief moment before nodding. “Fine. No more than ten minutes. If I suspect anything, I’ll interrupt.”

I bristle and want to snap at him, but Stef smiles and nods. “Thank you, Sir.”

She gets up from her chair, although for a moment it looks like Savage doesn’t want to let her go. Finally she’s free of him, and the two of us head a little bit away from him. 

If it were up to me, we’d have gone across the reception courtyard and well out of sight, but she stops barely ten feet away and turns to me.

“Um, congrats,” Stef says with an awkward little laugh. “Giulio is… well, I guess he’s not the worst person I’ve met.”

My heart aches at that, because I know she has met people worse than Giulio—probably people worse than the Romanos, even, and I shudder as I remember the feeling of that whip on my back—

“He’s not,” I say, though I nearly stumble over the words. “And he loves me. And Pandora.” 

Stef’s smile seems a little more genuine when she says, “Let me guess. Giulio named her.” 

I let out a little laugh, though I keep looking back at Savage—who’s outright glaring at me like I’m doing something wrong. “We tried to talk him out of it, but it didn’t really work that well.” 

“Yeah. I remember how he is.” Stef lowers her eyes and fidgets with her hands. “I guess. You’re probably wondering how I’m doing. I remember that you always cared. You were… you were the only person who cared.”

My heart aches for her, and I want to pull her into my arms and just hug her until it makes everything else go away. “I’ve missed you,” I say honestly. “I wish I could just… take you home with me.”

Stef’s smile freezes on her lips, and she gives a quick shake of her head. “No! No. I mean… Things are good. They’re better.”

“But he’s—”

“He’s good to me,” she interrupts me. “Better than anyone’s been to me in a long time.”

That doesn’t really convince me that he’s good for her, but there’s not a whole lot I can do. Things have really changed between me and Giulio, but even so, I’d be wary of trying to beg him to get Stef back from Savage.

I don’t think he’d even try, and that makes me resent Giulio just a little—which is not a feeling I want to have on my wedding day. 

“I’m glad,” I say. I offer out a hand, and she takes it. I squeeze gently, then throw caution to the wind and pull her close into a fierce hug. There’s so much I want to say, but all of it seems like it would make things worse.

You deserve all of the best things.

Please let me help you.

When we pull away from each other, there are tears in Stef’s eyes. She wipes them with the back of her hand. “Oh. I didn’t think just seeing you would make me this emotional. Hunter says you’re the worst thing that happened to me, but…” Stef smiles awkwardly. “I think you helped me a lot, too. I might still be at Ntimacy if not for you.”

I try not to wince, thinking about all the ways she’d suffered because of me. My whipping girl, the person who’d taken all the punishments for the mistakes I’d made. Giulio had said that if I cooperated, she’d never know it was my fault she got sold, and paranoia races through me as I wonder if she knows.

“Are you happy?” I ask softly, unable to keep myself from asking the question. 

Instead of instantly responding, Stef considers for a moment before she nods. “I am. Much happier than I ever was at Ntimacy. Hunter, he’s…” She glances at him and offers him a tiny smile, which he doesn’t return as he glares daggers at me. “He cares.”

“I’m really glad,” I tell her, and I mean it. 

Savage taps his watch, then gets up and stalks over to us. He puts his arm around Stef and pulls her close. “You’re done,” he states flatly. 

“We weren’t,” I snap back, but Stef holds up her hand.

“It’s fine. I think Giulio wants you for something anyway,” Stef says, pointing toward the large open space.

The dance space, where Giulio is standing all alone in the center. 

The music suddenly stops, and somebody taps on a mic. “All right. I think you all know what time it is!” the DJ announces. “Let’s all gather for the bride and groom’s first dance today!”

I glance back at Stef and Savage, but all of her attention is back on him. “I’ll see you later,” I say, hoping the words aren’t a lie, then I hurry to join Giulio. 

I feel a little shy, knowing everyone’s eyes are on us. I don’t know who started this tradition, but I wish they hadn’t. I’ve never been a great dancer, and doing it in front of everyone is a little mortifying. 

At least Damien and Slayer had helped me practice. Giulio had refused, and I wonder if in the end, I’m going to be the better dancer out of us.

Giulio puts one hand on my waist and twines his other hand with mine. He’s grinning widely. “You ready, Mama? Don’t trip over my feet.”

“You’re the one who wouldn’t practice dancing,” I grumble. 

I’m ready for some romantic ballad to come on, but of course, that’s not what Giulio has chosen. 

His grin has only gotten bigger, if that’s even possible, as the opening notes to some K-pop song start to play in the venue space.

I stare at him in disbelief. “Really? K-pop?”

Giulio laughs as he begins leading the dance. “K-rock, please. It’s alternative rock! Like you like! But in another language.”

I roll my eyes, but I can’t suppress my smile. If this is the worst Giulio has planned for this reception, I’m just amused. And the beat of the song means it doesn’t matter how we dance, really. It isn’t a waltz or tango that we need to nail perfectly.

“You should dip me,” Giulio says as we dance closer to the edge of the dance space. “We’re the same height, anyway.”

“I’m not dipping you,” I hiss. “We’re the same height, but you’re still heavier!”

“Oh, fine.” Giulio winks at me… and immediately shifts his weight so that I’m the one being forced backward. I yelp and cling to him while I’m dipped halfway to the floor.

The crowd claps for us, as if we’d perfectly choreographed this.

It feels more like a train wreck, but I can’t help but laugh anyway. This is one of the things where I really do love Giulio despite all of his flaws, when he’s carefree and teasing.

When the song ends, we both take a bow, and the rest of the wedding party takes that as their cue to join us on the dance floor. I let out a breath of relief as things are no longer focused on us, but Slayer taps my shoulder.

“Hey, Ness. Can I have this dance?” he asks, smiling widely. Damien is standing next to him, staring at me just as intensely.

Maybe I should let Damien have the second dance? He’s the one who organized most of this, and I know just how much it all means to him.

“Damien!” Giulio goes to clap him on the shoulder. “Here, dance with me, so we can set a great example to all these conservative mafia bosses.”

“Do you mean, you want to paint a target on your back?” Damien answers, but he takes Giulio’s hand with a small shake of his head.

I hope they aren’t actually going to paint a target on their backs, but it does mean all attention is now on them, and Slayer and I can dance without nearly as many eyes on us.

“Nice ceremony,” Slayer says. “Gotta say, it feels weird not to have my ring on now.”

My heart clenches at that, and I want to lean in to kiss him. “No sulking,” I say lightly, but I touch his cheek in the reassurance I can offer in public. “You know it’ll be back on this evening, and everything will be all of us again.”

“Yeah,” Slayer says. He squeezes me in a hug and smiles at me. “I’m not upset, Ness. Besides, it’s a good thing. That Corvi is watching like a hawk, and your sister isn’t much better. Last thing we need is for them to put the pieces together. I think big sis would freak.”

I wince. He has no idea. Lucia would probably try to drag me from the place whether I wanted to go or not if she knew I was bound to three men—and for the first time, I feel a touch of resentment of that, because it’s not her place to try to define my life. “Yeah, but let’s not talk about them,” I say. 

“You’re right,” Slayer says, holding me to him. “Let’s talk about how beautiful you look, and if you ever tell Giulio I said he looked hot, I will deny it to my dying breath.”

I can’t help but laugh at that, and while I miss a step in the dance, Slayer scoops me up and makes it look intentional. “Where’d you learn to dance, anyway?” I ask curiously. Damien knowing how to dance just makes sense, and Giulio knowing how to dance to his k-pop and k-rock and whatever other kind of club music makes sense, but Slayer? 

He laughs. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” he teases me. “Maybe I’ll tell you later, when you can kiss me to thank me for it.”

I roll my eyes. “You’re an ass,” I tell him.

“Your husband’s a bigger ass,” Slayer says smugly. “Too bad for you, you’re still stuck with both of us.” He glances aside at where Damien and Giulio are dancing—much to the obvious displeasure of many of the mafia men. “All three of us,” he amends.

My eyes find Victor Corvi in the crowd, and I wonder what he thinks of the way Damien and Giulio are dancing together. Angelo was pretending to be gay when he worked for Giulio’s father, so I can’t imagine Victor is too homophobic, but it’s hard to tell when his expression is unreadable. 

I scan the crowd, looking for my sister, but she’s dancing with someone else, someone I don’t recognize—from the Benton contingent, maybe. They’re getting awfully close, but Victor seems unbothered. 

I wonder, not for the first time, about their dynamic. 

But this is my wedding, and I can figure out what’s going on with Lucia on another day. It’s selfish, maybe, but I want to enjoy what’s meant to be my special day. 

“You’re trying to avoid answering my question,” I accuse Slayer when my eyes return to him.

His own eyes crinkle up with amusement. “I’ll tell you later,” he says.

I’m about to protest, but the song ends and Damien is right there, waiting for his turn at a dance. 

He places his hand around my waist and begins leading me around the dance floor. I spot Elena dancing with Slayer now, and Giulio has Pandora in his arms while he twirls her around.

“I invited my family,” Damien says quietly. “I knew they wouldn’t come. It would have been strange. But I asked my sister to be my plus one, and said they were all welcome if they wanted a grand meal for free.” He lowers his gaze a bit. “Mia texted back to tell me it was creepy that I knew her new phone number.”

I sigh, shaking my head as a little bit of anger flares within me. “It’s not fair of them,” I say fiercely. I want to kiss the pain away, but even if my sister wasn’t there, we’re still surrounded by mafia men and women who really don’t need that kind of information presented to them. “I’m sorry, Damien.” I cup his cheek in my hand and consider kissing him anyway. 

He kisses my hand briefly. “It’s been twenty years. I should give up. And I have you, and Giulio, and Pandora now. There’s no reason I should still care about them.”

“They’re your family,” I say. “It makes sense that you care about them. I mean…” I bite my lip, thinking of how easily my mother traded me for her own freedom. “I love my mother, even if she did… what she did.” I shrug uncomfortably. “And things with my father were complicated.” 

To put it lightly. Lucia had always been the Daddy’s girl, and even that had been limited in how much influence she’d had on his life. 

“You’re my family now,” Damien says. “And—”

Suddenly Pandora starts wailing, audible even over the music. We both startle and look over in her direction. Slayer and Giulio are both attempting to calm her down, but she’s not having it.

“I guess I should…” I say, but Damien shakes his head. 

“No, I’ll take care of it. Just enjoy your wedding day. You could dance with your sister.” Damien heads over to Pandora, and she immediately reaches out for him. I don’t think she prefers him over Slayer or Giulio, but he is the one who tends to comfort her the most when she’s crying.

I turn to try to find Lucia in the crowd, only to run right into Victor Corvi. He smiles at me. “May I have this dance, Mrs. Pavone?” 

I stare at him like a deer in the headlights for a moment, but then nod, letting him take my hand and put his other on my waist. I don’t know what to say to him, and I glance toward where Damien’s gone—but they’re all focused on Pandora, and I can’t find Lucia in the crowd either. 

I can’t deny that Victor is a handsome man. I understand how somebody might be attracted to him. But he’s so… cold. Hard to read. Not like Damien, who doesn’t show his emotions much but I know just how intensely he feels things. 

“The wedding was quite lovely. A far cry from the traditional vows Emilio Pavone had chosen. But I think we’ve all learned that Giulio is very different from his father,” Victor says as he guides me around the dance floor.

“Thank god for that,” I mutter, not even meaning to say the words. Victor gives me a sharp smile, and I flush. “I mean… Yes. He is very different, in a good way.” 

“I don’t think I ever got a good explanation on who Mr. Graham is, by the way.” Victor twirls me once, sending my body reeling along with my mind. “He lives with all of you, now? He’s your… bodyguard?”

My cheeks flush. It’s like Victor sees right through me, and I don’t know what to say. All I’ve rehearsed is that yes, he’s my bodyguard, but it doesn’t seem like this man is going to accept that much. I don’t know why it matters; I shouldn’t care about satisfying his curiosity. I lift my head a little. “Yes,” I say firmly. “After everything that… happened, we decided I should have a bodyguard close at hand at all times.” 

“Like Angelo, I suppose,” Victor says, and there’s a hint of amusement in his voice that I don’t understand. “Anyway. What questions do you have for me, Vanessa?”

I want to stare at him, but he keeps dancing, far more deftly than I’m capable of after my last-minute lessons with Damien and Slayer. “What do you have on my sister?” I find myself asking. “Why does she stay with you?” 

His eyebrows rise in surprise. “Why do you assume I have something on her? Does Lucia seem unhappy to you?”

“You kidnapped her,” I point out, aware of just how much of a hypocrite I sound like. “And—” I shake my head, not sure I really want to know the answers to the questions I have. “She’s not like she was before. She’s more…” I bite my lip, trying to figure out how to put the changes into words. “She’s harder. Colder. Is that because of you?” 

“Perhaps it’s because of you,” Victor answers with a terrible smile. “After all, she went through so much to protect you.”

His words send a lance of cold down my spine, and I miss a step. Then another. I trip, and Victor sweeps me up again as though he hasn’t just spoken words that could destroy my entire worldview. “It’s not… It’s not like that,” I protest weakly. “And I never asked her to.” I know that’s a weak defense, and a stupid one. Lucia was always protective of me, and I don’t find it hard to believe that she’d do anything for me. 

“Regardless, I believe your sister has always been a calculating, ambitious woman. I would not love her if she weren’t,” Victor answers.

Love. Do I believe he loves Lucia?

But then, does anybody believe Giulio loves me?

Before I can think of a reply, I see Giulio and Lucia coming toward us. Giulio has an arm casually draped around Lucia’s waist, and she keeps giving him annoyed looks even while he grins. He’s obviously enjoying her discomfort, and he doesn’t let her go until they’re right up on us. 

“Yo, Corvi! I’m returning big sis to you.” Giulio kisses Lucia on the cheek. It’s strange watching him bend down to do it, when I’m used to watching him kiss people who are the same height or taller. 

Lucia sneers with obvious disgust. “You aren’t returning me. I never wanted to dance with you in the first place.”

Giulio laughs. “But you did! Did you glean some information from me?” He shakes his head and extends a hand to me. “Bitch sis thinks she can manipulate me into revealing all.”

“Don’t call her that,” I plead with Giulio as I take his hand, but my eyes are on Lucia.

Lucia shrugs, not even looking remotely repentant as she steps into Victor’s personal space and relaxes against him as he puts an arm around her. He might love her, but does she love him? Or is it that calculation, that ambition, that pulls her into his sphere of influence? 

Giulio twists his head to look at something past us. “Huh. Guerra and your twinky boy toy are dancing together.”

Lucia’s lips twitch, and she turns her head to look. I follow their gazes and find Angelo Guerra dancing with the man Lucia had been dancing with earlier. Angelo looks pleased as punch, while the twinky boy toy doesn’t look nearly as amused. 

“He has a name,” Lucia says. “Santino. Or Saint, if you prefer.”

“No, I like how constipated he looks when I call him a twink,” Giulio answers. “Seriously, those are nice piercings. You think he has more under the suit?”

Victor snorts. “You can ask Angelo. I’m sure he’ll tell you.”

Giulio looks like he thinks that might be a great idea, but I really don’t want to cause a scene. 

“Look, they’re starting to bring out the food,” I say, pointing over to the tables. “Let’s take a seat. I’m sure Damien and Slayer have long speeches planned.”

“No way. I told them both they were only allowed to talk for half an hour max.” Giulio waits for my horrified expression before bursting out laughing. “Who do you take me for? Five minutes is all I gave them, and I told them I would start to heckle if they went on too long.”

I swat his arm, all too aware of the way Lucia’s watching me. “Tell them to save the toasts for after we eat. I’m starving.” 

We head toward the tables, and I gasp when Giulio squeezes my ass along the way. “Eat lots,” he whispers into my ear. “Because you’re going to need your energy later.”

From the way Slayer and Damien are looking at me, I have no doubt of that. 

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