He shrugged, “Neither were douchebag dads, fake dating, or saving you from your late-night escapades. We’re adapting.”
Chapter Nine
ROME
“You need to remember everything and report it back to me,” Bee insisted from her spot on my bed, where she had been lounging for the last few hours. “And I meaneverything.”
Bec had invited me to a charity event and, for some reason, believed I was wildly unprepared to attend… as if I had no sense of decorum. I didn’t argue and instead spent three hours listening to all the ways I was expected to behave tonight. This was our first proper outing as a couple since the officialstatement had been released earlier this week, confirming our relationship.
I wasn’t even allowed to dress myself for tonight’s event. Bec was on her way here now with a suit for me to change into. I guess my off-the-rack suits weren’t fancy enough for the likes of Rebecca Bly. Which… honestly… valid. I found them on clearance.
Bee was more excited than I was about my attendance. She lived for the society news and gossip of New York City. While the information usually had little interest to me, Bee was my secret weapon tonight. I knew who was coming, who their dates were, the faces I needed to keep an eye on, and the drama that would be simmering underneath the surface at the party.
A knock sounded at the front door, and I could hear a stampede of feet running to open it. Everyone was over the moon to meet Bec. My sisters were excited to get their payback and question my girlfriend, even if it wasn’t real. My mom was less than pleased when I had explained the arrangement to her, but she was still curious about who Bec was.
All my mom wanted for her children was for them to be happy in every aspect of their lives. She understood why I hadn’t settled down when in the Army, but now that I was back in my hometown, she was a bit insistent on me finding arealrelationship and putting down roots. She wasn’t naive to my previous escapades and knew I was trying to turn over a new leaf. She respected Bec, but was worried about how this would all turn out for me.
To be fair, I hadn’t thought through what exactly would happen when this all came to an end. I didn’t know if I would lose my job or potentially ruin my reputation, but once I promised that I would stay in New York City even if this did end in smoke and flames, my mom calmed down a bit.
“Aren’t you going to go and greet her?” Bee asked.
I shook my head. “I wanna see how she fares against the piranhas we call our family.”
Bee chuckled but accepted my answer nonetheless. It wasn’t that I wanted Bec to be eaten alive by my sisters, but I wanted to show my sisters who Bec really was. Like the rest of society, they were all under the impression that she was this cold ‘Ice Queen’ the media had dubbed her, when in actuality, she was the opposite. She was strong, smart, and fiery.
Bec burned red hot, and it was time the rest of the world got to see it.
My bedroom door flew open, revealing a panting Livia with Bella at her side, holding a garment bag.
Bella wandered into the room and hung the bag on my closet door. “It’s Prada.”
I made my way to the bag and unzipped it, revealing a black suit, black shirt, and black tie. “Is that good?”
Livia’s eyes grew wide. “You don’t know what Prada is?”
“I’ve spent the better half of the last decade in a desert… sue me.”
Bella shooed our sisters out the door and started pulling the suit out of the bag, handing me the shirt first. “It’s an expensive brand. This suit costs more than Livia’s car.”
I took the shirt and motioned for Bella to turn around as I changed. The two of us had needed to share a room for most of our lives as children and had grown accustomed to routines such as these. She turned towards the wall and peered out of the front window.
I peeled off my work suit and replaced it with the surprisingly well-fitted shirt and suit pants. “You can turn around now.”
She obliged and appraised the look. “I know exactly what you need. Put on the jacket and your guns that you carry around everywhere.”
I sighed and affixed my ankle and hip holsters to my body. No one understood why I still carried the two guns with me everywhere I went, but between the nature of my job and my time in the Army, I had learned it was better to be safe than sorry.
I watched as Bella unclasped the necklace she was wearing before fixing it on me. She proceeded to unbutton the top two buttons on the shirt and positioned the necklace to her liking. “There,” she mumbled as she took a step back. “Skip the tie, it’s not you, and the chain completes the look.”
I took the small, silverRpendant between my fingers. All of my sisters owned one. Mateo had bought them for each of their twelfth birthdays. He wanted them to always remember their heritage as a Romano.
“R for Rebecca?”
Bella smirked, “Like I said… perfect.”
“Come on, Bella, let’s go show off this fancy suit to my fancy new girlfriend.” I winked and threw my arm over her shoulders as we made our way down the stairs towards the chattering voices in the foyer.
There were moments I wondered if moving back in with my family was the right decision. When I moved back to New York City, I had looked at apartments, but kept feeling drawn to my family. After being away for so many years, I yearned for their company. I had more than enough money to live on my own, but I liked being here.
