He gives me a rueful smile and turns back to the road. “I think we should call ourselves even and start with a clean slate, don’t you?”
“I’d really like that.”
“I think we made a good start on that over the last few days.” He gives me a wicked smile and a wink, and I laugh as I lean my head against the window.
“I mean, sure, I guess, but you could use a little practice,” I tease him.
“Oh, practice, huh? You better watch out, Victoria Russo, because I’m about to bring my A game. It is so on.” Heat and promise lace his words, and I shiver with visceral need.
My voice is husky when I reply, “Bring it.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
When we eventually arrive home in the late afternoon, the house is lit up brightly, and the foyer is a riot of pale pink roses and baby’s breath. I wrinkle my nose at the cloying smell and nauseating abundance of pink.
“Ugh, could she be any more cliché?” Vienna grumbles as serving staff hurry through the house, taking boxes of glasses to the ballroom.
We trail after them and find an extravaganza of activity being directed by Stacey, who is dressed in a slinky pale pink dress, which is low cut, and her breasts are just about spilling out. She actually looks really nice, but her behavior ruins the picture. She’s belittling and bossing the staff around like she’s the lady of the house, and I see them shoot her some glares when she isn’t looking.
She catches sight of us and turns her wrath on us. “Where the fuck have you been? Our guests will be arriving any minute, and look at the state of you.” She scowls at Tristan with disgust. “Go get changed before you embarrass me.”
I step forward, ready to give her a taste of her own medicine, but Xavier’s hand on my arm stops me. “Take a breath, Tori. Two days. That’s how long you have to keep it together. Don’trisk Mario punishing you and not bringing your father here tomorrow,” he murmurs into my ear.
I scowl at him for being so reasonable but turn my back on the bitch and lead the others out of the ballroom. I hear her laughter trailing behind us.
“Oh, would you look at that? The great Victoria Russo brought to heel by a man. I swear that is the best wedding gift ever.”
I clench my fists tightly and picture her head exploding to keep myself calm. Two more days will be the mantra I live by for the next forty-eight hours.
We head upstairs and split up, all of us needing to shower and change before dinner. Thankfully the others give me some space, and I have a blissful half hour to myself. I stand in the shower and let my mind go blank as the hot water washes over me, taking all my worries down the drain with it.
When I finally shut the water off and dry my body and hair, I wrap my towel around me and go in search of something to wear. When I get to my closet, I find Vienna pushing coat hangers to the side as she rifles through my dresses.
“The best way to piss Stacey off is to outshine her,” she says, looking over her shoulder at me. I barely hear what she’s saying, because she’s dressed in an emerald green sheathe that hugs her delicious curves from her neck to her hips before trailing off into a mermaid tail at the base. Her hair cascades down her back in a pin straight waterfall of red. She looks absolutely stunning.
“Fuck me,” I mutter quietly and wipe the back of my hand across my mouth to make sure I’m not drooling. “You look gorgeous.”
She beams at me before returning her attention to my clothes. “Thanks. I figure psychological warfare is just as effective as the violent kind. Ah, this one.” She pulls something out and turns, holding it up for me.
It’s a blood-red dress with spaghetti straps and low neckline with a split in the side of the skirt that almost goes to my hip. “If we have to watch Stacey put her hands all over Tristan tonight, then we are going to do it with grace and style. We are going to outshine that vapid bitch so no one will be looking at her.”
I grin at her fierce statement. “Sounds like a pretty good plan to me,” I tell her, dropping my towel and reaching for the dress. She hands it over and leans back against the dresser, watching as I slide the fabric over my naked body. I settle it into place and spin for her approval.
“Fucking perfect,” she murmurs, her eyes heated with desire.
“Hmm.” I tap my finger against my lip. “I think we can do better.” I move to the dresser and hip bump her over a little. I pull open the top drawer, and her gasp of surprise makes me smile. The top drawer is full of jewelry. Most of it belonged to my mother, things my dad gave her before we were born. It’s a treasure trove of gold and gems. I don’t get a chance to wear any of it very often, but this is the perfect occasion. I reach in, selecting a pair of emerald and diamond earrings and a matching ring set and pass them to Vienna.
“Here, these were my mom’s. They will go beautifully with your dress,” I tell her before returning my attention to the offerings.
“I can’t wear your mom’s jewelry,” she argues, and I press a finger to her lips, silencing her protests.
“You can and you will. I didn’t know her, but I hope she would be happy with me giving my girlfriend some of her things.” She shakes her head, but I interrupt her protests. “Besides, it’s not like I’m going to ever have children. You can give them to Addi when she grows up.”
“But Casey might have a girl. You could give them to her,” she argues, and I roll my eyes.
“Gio has his own stash of things to pass on to any children. It seems my mother had a penchant for shiny things, and my father indulged her… a lot.”
I reach for a long, silver chain with a ruby pendant on the end of it, slipping it over my head and settling it between my breasts. It’s perfectly located to draw everyone’s eye to it.
