*Tallon*
“I have to admit, I never thought this day would co.” The older man in front of raised one of the fancy glasses filled with simple ice water, slouching comfortably in the leather chair across from the desk, a smile on his lips despite the creases around his eyes and the gray that was slowly overtaking the black in his thin curls.
“You an getting married or finally settling the feud with the Russians? And here I thought you had faith in ,” I snorted, sending him a grin.
Giovani had certainly aged in these years. But unlike how stressed and cold he was as the Don, this version of him was relaxed and open—happy.
I was a bit jealous.
“Of course, I did. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have left the family to you, Tallon.” He smiled, the lines around his eyes curling and despite his age, even I had to admit he still looked handso. “I’m proud to see how well you’ve both handled the family. It was a shock for both and your father to hear that you’d managed to settle the feud, but even more so to hear you finally wanted to settle down.”
“Here, here,” Alessandro agreed, rolling his eyes as I sent him a glare from where he sat in the chair opposite from Giovani.
The study was empty except for us. Dahlia and Olivia had arrived, beaming and still full of life as they had practically kidnapped my fiancée for a shopping trip.
Natalia had been nervous to et them, but I was glad they were as accepting as they were. No one had brought up the past or her family, thankfully, and I trusted that they wouldn’t.
But that didn’t stop Natalia from being anxious. But I had to admit, it had been adorable watching her nose crinkle as she ranted about her worries to right before they arrived, her blue eyes swimming as she told how much she wanted to be liked.
I knew they already liked her. After all, she was the woman I loved.
“Yeah, well.” I smiled at my brother and cousin, thinking of my beautiful, soon-to-be wife.
From that very first day I’d seen her when she fell into my arms, when I saw her beautiful blue eyes reflected in mine, I knew she was the one. I had probably fallen for her right then and there and though I couldn’t put a na to it, from the beginning, I’d always been hers.
She’d captured my heart and soul without any effort, and she hadn’t even realized it. Despite everything else, all the lies and troubles with her family, the hurt and anger we’d directed toward each other, I knew I wouldn’t change it for a thing.
Because at the end of the day, she was finally going to be mine—my beautiful, gorgeous wife.
But putting all of that into words was too difficult. Instead, I looked at my brother, who’d been by my side through all of this, and Giovani, who loved soone just as deeply as I loved Natalia, and told them quite honestly, “I love her.”
Gio smirked, a flash of understanding in his eyes, and I knew that he understood. He knew exactly how I felt toward Natalia because he’d been there too.
“Please.” Alessandro couldn’t help but cut through the mont with the snark he was known for, a grin on the edges of his mouth as he sipped his glass of whiskey in the opposite chair. “Gio’s just making excuses. He just ant he never thought he’d get old. I told you that you would be too old for Olivia, and I was right.”
“I may be old, but I still have more than enough energy to satisfy my wife,” Gio retorted smoothly, crossing his arms with a smug look. “Besides, you’re one to talk. I can see a few grays already popping up. Soon you’ll be as old as , and then we’ll talk.”
Despite their exchange sounding rather harsh, neither Alessandro nor Giovani had any anger or bite to their words. The two just smirked at one another, neither backing down for a mont.
And what fifteen years ago would’ve driven Alessandro nuts or sent a flying fist straight at the wall or the older man’s jaw, now ant nothing to my older brother as he finally relaxed, shrugging with a hint of respect in his face.
“Bastard.” Alessandro just smirked, taking a swig of his drink without a single sign of anger or regret upon his face. “You’re whipped more than Tallon.”
“Hey! As if you aren’t.” I gave him a straight-faced look. “Mia’s got you wrapped around her finger, and you know it.”
“I never said she didn’t.” Alessandro chuckled and relaxed as his eyes softened at the ntion of his girlfriend.
I could tell how much he cared for her, how much he loved her. It was written on the beaming look he gave, the lightness he carried himself with.
He’d changed ever since he had t Mia, and I was glad to see how positive her influence had been on him.
“But about the feud,” I hesitated, sending him an unsure glance, “I wasn’t sure how happy you and Dad would be about it. I know how many good people you lost to them.”
“You’re right,” Giovani sighed, looking weary as the mories of all those we lost hit him. I could see that he still carried their deaths on him like weights over his shoulders. “But the feud had to end or more lives would be lost. There was too much bad blood there for or your father to end it, but you managed to do it.”
He gave a look full of pride and wonder. “I chose the right person to leave the family to.”
“Thanks, Gio,” I grinned, a warmth filling up.
I rembered the uncertainty and anxiety when I had first been nad the Don—Alessandro’s anger at being passed over once again, and the mbers of the family who thought I was too immature or too young to make the calls necessary.
But contrary to everyone’s expectations, even my own, I had succeeded.
“I can’t take all the credit though,” I said. “It was only possible because of Alessandro getting inside their heads and their ranks, Vinny for setting everything up, and especially Natalia. Without her, we never would’ve been able to get close enough.”
“Yeah,” Alessandro smirked. “Who knew all it required was falling in love with the enemy’s niece and having her betray you, get kidnapped, shot in place of you, and then getting married?”
I sent him a glare as Giovani turned to both of us with a bewildered glance.
“I have a feeling I’m missing a few crucial parts to the story.” He raised an eyebrow, looking between Alessandro’s smug grin and my death glare. “What’s this about getting kidnapped and shot?”
“Later, Gio,” I sighed, shaking my head as I let it go. “How have Olivia and Elio been? I saw him a few years ago but he’s sixteen now, right?”
“Unfortunately,” Giovani responded, looking cross as he reached out for his ice water and gave it a scowling look like he wished it was vodka instead.
“That bad?” Alessandro chuckled, a huge grin on his face as if he particularly enjoyed Giovani’s misery.
“I know they said teenagers are hellions, uncontrollable, unpredictable and just chaos incarnate, but I guess I expected Elio to be better,” Giovani grumbled, swirling the ice in his glass unhappily. “He was such a happy-go-lucky kid but once he hit twelve or so, he just turned into such a smart-ass.”
“Ah, teenagers,” I nodded, grinning. “Let guess. He thinks he has to be in charge of everything, is unreasonably angry all the ti, and no longer accepts any kind of physical affection. How many holes in the walls have you had to fix?”
“Dozens,” Gio reluctantly admitted, sending a dark look. “If he wasn’t my own son, I’d have sent him here for so well-needed discipline, at the very least to give ti with my own goddamn wife without him barging in with so new chaos he caused.”
“Please,” Alessandro snorted. “The only reason you haven’t is because Olivia would kill you.”
“At least Elio hasn’t set the kitchen ablaze yet,” Giovani sent Alessandro a pointed look.
“Oh yeah.” I jolted from the sudden mory. “Weren’t you like ten the first ti, though? That hardly counts as a teenager.”
“Cooking isn’t my forte.” My elder brother just shrugged in response. “Besides, every teen boy’s an arsonist deep inside.”
“That is objectively not true,” I said firmly, but by the way Giovani’s face began to darken with misery, I was beginning to question myself. I thought back to my own childhood, frowning as I tried to rember any ti I’d played with fire. “I never set fires.”
“Not as a teenager.” Giovani gave a dark look. “But on your second birthday, you set the cake on fire.”
My mouth dropped open and Alessandro openly burst into laughter.
“I completely forgot about that!”
“I don’t rember that.” I blanched, staring at the two of them as they laughed over the shared mory.
“Of course not. You were too little. You got obsessed with matches and demanded that the candles be lit all the ti. Well, your dad did it. And by the ti it was ti to serve the cake, it was covered in lted wax, so we lit it up again and boom, the whole thing caught fire,” Giovani explained with a grin.
My face felt warm as I watched the two burst into more rounds of chuckles.
Before I could analyze any part of that story, however, I heard a loud bang as the front door burst wide open downstairs and a very obnoxious voice scread out, “We’re ho!”
“And that would be Dahlia,” I sighed, rising from the desk as I swerved around.
Gio and Alessandro followed as we climbed down the steps and sure enough, the sound of the girl’s chattering grew closer as we entered the living room.
“I thought I said a little shopping,” I smirked, leaning against the doorway as I gazed at the floor of our living room, which was completely filled with boxes and bags.
“There was a sale!” Dahlia huffed, crossing her arms.
“Tallon!” Natalia’s face lit up with joy as she saw , and she quickly stepping over the bags as she rushed over and threw herself into my arms. “I got my dress and it’s so beautiful! I can’t wait for you to see it.”
“Not until the wedding day, though,” Mia reminded her from where she sat on the couch.
I grinned at my fiancée, giving her a soft kiss as I soaked in the happiness she was practically radiating.
Alessandro brushed past , taking a seat on the couch next to Mia and wrapping his arm around her shoulder. “So, I’m guessing you guys had fun?” he asked with a quirk of his lips.
“Yes, Olivia and Dahlia were quite happy to fill in on so of your more interesting childhood mories,” Mia said slyly, giving him a wink as his face darkened.
He glared at Dahlia, who gave a smug laugh.
“That’s what you get for skipping my birthday last year.”
Olivia, ever the kind soul, took pity on him with a smile. “We didn’t tell her anything too bad, I promise.”
“Alessandro, what’s for dinner?” Dahlia asked, turning to him expectantly.
“What are you looking at for?” he sneered. “Buy your own damn dinner.”
“Do you hear this, Mia?” Dahlia huffed. “His own sister cos into town for the first ti in years and he doesn’t have the decency to take us to dinner? Co on. Leave this terrible brother of mine. You are much too good for him.”
“This we know.” Mia grinned but then placed a kiss on his cheek. “But I love him anyway.”
I raised an eyebrow, smirking as Alessandro’s cheeks burned a bright red and he coughed to hide his embarrassnt.
“I’ll buy, Dahlia,” I told the group, giving my soon-to-be wife a huge grin. “It’s the least I can do considering I am the groom.”
Natalia bead at my words.
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