Vienna and I hurry out of the bathroom, and I put my hand on Xavier’s arm and lean into him. I can play games too, and I excel at them.
“Come on, honey. Let’s get married. Leave the grunts alone. You know they are just doing their job.” I press a kiss to Xavier’s cheek then smile brilliantly at Lance, battingmy eyelashes like an airhead. Both men look surprised at my reaction. Xavier’s shock turns to suspicion, and Lance puffs out his chest with ego. I internally roll my eyes. Lance isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but Xavier is smart enough to be wary of my quick one-eighty.
“The sooner you accept this, the happier Mr. Maricuso will be,” Lance tells me gruffly, and I smile at him.
“Oh, I’m actually looking forward to this. I’ve wanted to have my hands all over Xavier for a while, and once I’m his wife, he won’t have any reason to deny me.” I pretend to share a secret with the man. “It also means I won’t have anyone cockblocking me, if you know what I mean, especially with Stacey’s upcoming nuptials to Tristan.” I wink at him, and he wrinkles his nose and scowls at me.
“Stacey was my fiancé until she decided she wanted that asshole and dumped me like yesterday’s news.”
My mouth drops open in shock, and I flinch. Whoops, I completely fucked that up, didn’t I? Xavier snickers quietly before wrapping his arm around me and steering me in the direction we were heading. “You can all wait here. Colton and Vienna will witness the nuptials. I don’t want to wait any longer.” He nuzzles my neck, taking liberties now that I went in the direction I did.
Damn it. I messed up twice. Goosebumps erupt all over my arms and legs, and my nipples tighten until they could cut glass. Damn it, this man just does it for me, even if he is a complete asshole. If I’m truly honest with myself, I’m kind of turned on about how duplicitous they were. I thought I was unplayable, but they certainly proved I wasn’t. I can’t decide whether to be impressed or pissed.
“Ah, I’m sorry, Mr. Maricuso, but your father insisted that we witness it as well, and it wouldn’t be good for any of us to disobeyhim,” one of the other guys calls out, and I feel Xavier stiffen before nodding his agreement.
“Very well. Hurry up then.”
Well, shit. It really does seem like Mario has them all by the short and curlies. At least they are decent enough humans to care about Addison being used against them. Maybe there is hope for them. I’m not sure I can ever trust them again, so maybe it would be better for me to make my own plans. Then, when they have nothing for Mario to hold over them, we will see where they stand. Only then can I consider letting them back in—if that’s even what they want. For all I know, once they are free and clear, they may take Addison and disappear like I want to. They will have more than enough money to do that if they truly are Mario’s adopted children and he has them in his will. The Maricuso family isn’t small potatoes by any means, they just can’t hold a candle to the Russos, and Mario is greedy. I’m sure they could live a nice life on what he leaves behind when I make sure he’s so dead, not even the scavengers will want him.
Colton holds a door open ahead of us, and we enter. Looks like it’s a small, civil ceremony room with bench seating for anyone who wishes to attend. At the front is a man in a suit standing before a raised section, which I’m guessing is for the bride and groom.
The man looks up as we enter, and although he smiles, it gets a little shaky when Mario’s men follow us in.
“Mr. Maricuso. Welcome,” he says, his voice a bit wobbly, but he gestures for us to come forward. “And I guess this must be the lovely bride.” He looks down at his paperwork before looking up, his eyes widening ever so slightly. “Miss Victoria Russo?”
“Thank you for squeezing us in on such short notice.” Xavier walks forward, holding me tightly against his side. “We really appreciate it.” He’s friendly and affable, and I see the officiant relax a little.
“If you could face one another and hold hands, your attendants can stand on either side.” He waves his hands around, gesturing to where he wants us. Xavier arranges us as instructed, and when Vienna steps up behind me, she is holding a bunch of flowers. I have no idea where they came from.
“Are we ready?” he asks quietly, looking at me.
My hands are cupped gently in Xavier’s, and I could yank them away if I wanted, but when I look up into his eyes, they are practically begging me to go along with this. When I glance at the rest of Mario’s men, I notice that Lance has his hand tucked into his suit jacket again. I guess this is the mafia version of a shotgun wedding.
I scoff out loud at my almost hysterical thoughts, and the officiant looks at me a little wildly, like he thinks I’m one short fuse away from exploding, and he wouldn’t be wrong. I know now is not the time though. If I do this, Addison will be safe for a little while longer, giving me a chance to extract her from this situation and free us. That’s the only reason I smile and nod at the officiant to start.
“Welcome, friends and family, to the wedding of Xavier James Maricuso and Victoria Annabella Russo. We are gathered together to witness their commitment to each other in marriage, a union of love, trust, and mutual support.”
I start to roll my eyes at the bogus words, but Xavier gives my hands a squeeze, and I stop myself. I don’t think the officiant will stop this even if I protested, but there is no need for me to make his job harder.
“Do you, Xavier, take Victoria to be your lawfully wedded spouse, to have and to hold, for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness and health, to love and cherish, from this day forward?”
Xavier stares at me, and I see his eyes soften as a small smile lifts one corner of his lush mouth. “I do.”
My heart starts to race, and although I present an outward sense of calm, internally, my body is a fucking mess. This is it. I’m actually getting married to the man I’ve been slowly falling for who betrayed me so heinously. My father would roll over in his grave if he actually had one. Or would he? From what I understand, I was always meant to marry Xavier. Gio all but confirmed it. How could my father betray me like this? It’s something I will get the answer to eventually… I hope. Damn it, I should have negotiated a visitation once I went through with the wedding. Why didn’t I do that? I know I was in shock, but I didn’t even argue once I saw the video. I caved like a sandcastle being washed away by the high tide and agreed to marry Xavier without another thought. I should probably examine that a little closer, but I also push that into the tiny box for later as the officiant continues, turning to me and asking the same question.
“And do you, Victoria, take Xavier to be your lawfully wedded spouse, to have and to hold, for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness and health, to love and cherish, from this day forward?”
I don’t even hesitate before I reply. “I do.”
Xavier’s smile kicks up even more, even though my face shows no emotion.
“Excellent.” The officiant heaves out what could only be a sigh of relief. “Please exchange rings as a symbol of your promise.”
A frown creases my brow, and I look at the officiant, slightly confused. Rings? I don’t have a ring to give him. Nobody told me I would need one. Shit.
Xavier releases my hands and turns to Colton, who hands him a box. He opens it and pulls out two rings before handing the box back to Colton. He takes my hand, which I just left hanging in the air in my shock, then slides them onto my left ring finger. I stare down at them in surprise as he starts to speak.
“I give you this ring as a token of my love, and I promise that I will stand behind you every step of the way in this marriage. I will be your weapon to use or the arms to seek comfort in. I promise to support, cherish, honor, and be faithful to our family, whatever that may look like. With this ring, I thee wed.”
