As much as I loved my brother, I wasn’t so sure we could go back to the way we used to be. But we could try. Both of us had changed in the past year, and not for the better.
Luca poured wine into the glasses and passed them around the table. He raised his glass in the air, and we echoed his movement. “While we have all of you here, we wanted to tell you something.” Luca grabbed my left hand, and the diamond on my finger gleamed in the sunlight. “Alex has accepted my proposal.”
Kali squealed. “Congrats, girl!”
I returned her smile. “Thank you.”
She sipped from her glass. “When are you getting married?”
“Would you let me finish?” Luca said to Kali.
She sat up straight and slapped on a fake smile. “Sorry. Go ahead, Luca.”
He cleared his throat with an annoyed expression on his face. “As I was saying, Alex and I are getting married in a few weeks. We would like all of you to be part of our wedding.”
“Aiden is my man-of-honor,” I told him.
Luca scowled. “What the fuck is a man-of-honor?”
“Like a maid-of-honor but a man, silly.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Luca snapped.
“I don’t care what you think,” I challenged. “I want Aiden on my side of the aisle.”
“But he’s a Knight. He belongs on my side.”
I rolled my eyes. “Does it matter, Luca? Either way, your side of the aisle will have more people. Kali is my only bridesmaid, and you know how I feel about my family.”
“The Belles will take part in the wedding,” he said in a firm tone.
“Aiden is with me. Non-negotiable.”
“Fine. Whatever you want. We have more important things to worry about.” He pressed his lips together. “Marcello,” Luca said in an authoritative tone. “You will be my best man.”
I burst into a fit of laughter.
Luca glanced down at me. “What now?”
“You can’t order everyone to be at our wedding. It’s customary to ask. Nicely, I might add.”
Kali chuckled softly and shook her head when our eyes met. She knew Luca was acting like an ass. He was so used to ordering people around it hadn’t even occurred to him to ask his brothers to be in our bridal party.
“Men don’t ask,” Luca shot back. “We tell. Marcello, you’re my best man. Bastian and Damian, you two are my groomsmen. Aiden, I guess you’re Alex’s whatever the fuck she wants you to be. And Kali, you’re tasked with getting a few of the younger Belles to join us.”
Kali leaned her elbows on the table and looked at Luca. “Sonny’s sister, I’m assuming?”
“Yes. Drake’s sister, too. Make the introductions.”
“Luca,” I groaned. “Stop being so bossy.”
He dipped his head down until our lips almost touched. “I am the boss. In the bedroom and this fucking town. Get used to it, wife.” He lowered his voice and whispered in my ear. “Keep talking back, and I’ll take you upstairs and spank your ass.”
“Jesus, Salvatore,” Aiden complained. “Can you at least wait until I’m not around? She’s my sister.”
His nostrils flared as he looked at my brother. “Don’t tell me how to talk to my wife.”
“Okay, you two,” I interjected. “I hate when you fight. Can you please get along?”
Kali tapped her nail against her glass. “I think a toast is in order.” She raised her glass in the air. “To the happy couple!”
“Cent’anni,” Luca said, a traditional Italian salute, as we tapped glasses.
Luca
Alex painted on the floor in my mother’s studio. She laid on her stomach with her butt in the air, the paintbrush gliding across the canvas. I loved watching her work. Apart from being inside her, there was nothing better in this world. She looked so free and in her element. My mother had the same look when she painted as if nothing mattered while creating another masterpiece.
“Stop staring at me,” Alex said with a sexy smile. “If you’re going to linger, sit and stop hovering over me.”
“Hovering is what I do best.”
She pointed at the plush armchair beside her. “Sit or leave. Make your choice.”
I laughed at her feistiness. No one but Alex could ever tell me what to do and get away with it.
“We both know who is in charge in this relationship,” I shot back before I took a seat beside her. “But I hear marriages take compromise to work.”
“They do.” She sat up with her palms on her thighs. “So you better learn how to share the power in this relationship.”
I smirked. “Okay, baby. Whatever you want.”
“You’ve been saying that a lot lately.”
“I’m just happy to have you back.”
“I missed you too,” she confessed. “There were brief moments when I thought I would never see you again. And my first thought was that I wished I had told you how much I love you.”
I leaned forward, my arms rested on my thighs, and held her gaze. “I said it once before they kidnapped you. But I was drunk and out of my mind after seeing you with Marcello. I don’t think I understood my true feelings. I just knew I wanted to possess you. That I could never let you go.”