Filed to story: Bound by Honor (Aria & Luca) Drama Story
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t worry. Aria is my wife on paper, but that’s all.” I had closed off my fucking emotions in the last three weeks, and I had absolutely no intention of changing that. I had more important things to worry about-like bringing down Dante and the Outfit with him. It wasn’t something I could manage in a few weeks or months, and certainly not as long as my actions were still fueled by fury. I needed to make a plan that would guarantee our success once and for all.
Movement near the door attracted my attention and I turned my head toward it, and a sledgehammer of emotions smashed into me.
Aria, all slender grace and long blonde hair, stood between her sisters. My eyes lingered on the dark shadows under her eyes, on the way her cheekbones had sharpened, on the way her dress hung from her body. Guilt crashed down on me but I squashed it. I had no reason to be guilty. She was the one who had betrayed me.
“Only on paper, that’s all, my ass,” Matteo muttered.
I tore my gaze away from Aria, steeling myself. I went over to the dining room table and took my usual seat. Matteo took his seat across from me, regarding me like I was about to lose my shit. If he didn’t stop the constant hovering soon, I would lose my shit on him.
After a moment of hesitation, Aria sank down beside me, and her sweet flowery scent flooded my nose.
She didn’t touch me, and I didn’t reach for her either.
Gianna sat across from me with a look of complete hatred. I stared back at her, giving her the full force of my Capo scowl, and eventually she looked away. I was done being tolerant. I was Capo, and I’d fucking act like one.
When Romero and Lily had taken their seats as well, Marianna came in with our food. She pursed her lips at me but didn’t say anything. We ate in silence for a while. Aria had barely touched her food, nor drunk any of her wine. Her hands shook as she held her fork.
I wouldn’t let her manipulate me into feeling guilty.
ARIA
Shortly after dinner, I had to excuse myself and stumbled into one of the guest bathrooms to throw up. Romero joined me a few minutes later. I was kneeling on the floor, arms propped up on the closed toilet lid and cheek resting on them.
Romero crouched beside me, voice soft. “Tell him, Aria.”
“He will think I want to use the pregnancy as a way to guilt him back to me. I won’t do that. I want him to return to me out of love, Romero.” My voice broke and tears sprang into my eyes.
Romero regarded me silently. This time he didn’t tell me Luca would come around. He straightened and held out his hand. I let him pull me to my feet and washed my hands and rinsed my mouth.
Holding my head high, I returned to the living and dining area but only found Lily and Gianna, huddling close together on the sofa.
“They went into the lounge to drink Scotch,” Gianna muttered.
“Oh,” I said quietly.
Despite my tiredness I stayed in the living room for as long as possible, hoping Luca would join us, but he didn’t and eventually I walked up to our bedroom and lay down. I wasn’t sure how much later it was when I heard the creak of the door. Turning around, my eyes found Luca’s tall form, and hope swelled in my chest.
“Luca?” I whispered.
He didn’t say anything, and I turned on the light. He was rummaging in the drawers and pulled out sweatpants before he turned to leave.
“Aren’t you going to stay?” I asked, hating how my voice shook.
His shoulders tensed under his shirt. He didn’t turn around as he spoke in a hard voice. “No. But I can fuck you if that’s what you want?”
I sucked in a shaky breath. “Don’t do this.”
Without another word, he left and after a moment, I turned off the lights with trembling fingers.
The next time he spoke to me was during breakfast the next morning, to inform me that we would be required to attend Senator Parker’s Sylvester party together. He returned to New York after that. chapter 20
ARIA
“Do me a favor and don’t go,” Gianna pleaded. We’d been looking for new dresses for the party for close to two hours, and my nausea was becoming increasingly worse. I knew Gianna and Lily worried, but I couldn’t tell them. Luca was supposed to find out first, but how was that ever going to happen?
I browsed through the display of dresses. “It would raise questions if Luca went alone.”
“Aria, please.”
I glanced over my shoulder at my sister. Something in her voice worried me. “What aren’t you telling me?”
Gianna moved closer to me. “Matteo mentioned that Grace will be there.”
My fingers on the dress tightened. “I thought she was in England.”
“She was. She’s married to some rich English businessman but she will attend the party.”
I swallowed. “I can handle her.”
Gianna gripped my arm. “Aria this will get ugly. Don’t go. Please.”
I forced a smile. “Don’t worry about me.” I pulled out an elegant cream-colored floor-length dress, moved into the changing room and put it on. It was form-fitting with a low back. I scanned my stomach. Was it obvious that I was pregnant? Gianna poked her head in and I stiffened, but she only whistled. “Take that. You look breathtaking. Let Luca see what he is losing.”