I've made my choice. And Gemma is paying for it.
She walks away before I can respond.
Adrian's jaw is tight. "She'll come around."
"Will she?"
"She has to." His voice is hard. Final. "She's a Nero. She'll do her duty."
I look at him. At the man I love. The father of my child. The Don who rules this family with an iron fist.
And I see both sides of him.
The one who holds our son like he's precious. Who makes love to me in the morning light. Who looks at me like I'm his entire world.
And the one who sacrificed his sister's happiness for an alliance. Who made Gabe suffer before sending him to prison. Who would kill anyone who threatened us without hesitation.
Both versions are real.
Both versions are mine.
"The ceremony is starting," Adrian says, noticing the guests moving toward the ballroom where the wedding will take place.
We follow, moving as one unit. Adrian carries Angelo. I keep my hand on his arm.
The picture of a perfect family.
From the outside, that's what we look like. The Don and his wife and their heir. Powerful. United. Untouchable.
From the inside, it's more complicated.
But then again, everything worth having is complicated.
We take our seats at the front. The Nero family. The place of honor.
The music starts. The guests quiet.
And Gemma walks down the aisle alone, and I feel tears prickle against my eyelashes. I want to run up and take her in my arms, spirit her away. Instead, I sit perfectly still watching complicity.
I watch. Bear witness. Acknowledge the cost of this life.
Saint is waiting at the altar. Tall, tattooed, dangerous looking. He watches Gemma approach with an expression I can't read.
They're strangers being forced into marriage.
Like Adrian and I were.
The ceremony proceeds. Traditional. Formal. The priest speaks about love and commitment and partnership.
Words that ring hollow when everyone in this room knows this marriage is about power, not love.
But maybe that's not entirely true.
I glance at Adrian. He's watching the ceremony, but his hand finds mine, lacing our fingers together.
We started as a business arrangement. A pregnancy trap. A forced marriage.
But we became something else.
