Page 23 of Mafia’s Fake Bride

He gave a soft chuckle before gave a deep sigh.

“We’re in a strange situation,” she said, just to have something to say. “It’s not going to be easy. None of it.”

“No, it won’t be. It never is, though, not when she’s involved.”

“Can you help me pick out hairstyles and clothes?” She sat up and turned to look at him, her knees pulled up to her chest. “I want to look… right.”

“Let’s see what you have in the closet, and then we can see if we need to go shopping.” He smiled to reassure her and moved to the edge of the couch. “As for your hair, that kind of bun thing you had it in a few weeks ago will do.”

“The French twist? Okay, that’s simple enough to do.” She’d learned it from a video online, one she’d found on her phone, and had recreated it.

They went into their bedroom and she opened her closet. Dresses, shirts, pants, skirts, blouses, sweaters, and shoes filled the space. She looked at Matteo with a trace of guilt in her eyes. “I might have gone overboard.”

“No matter, you deserve it all.” He kissed her forehead and pulled out a black dress that went down to her lower calves. “Something in this shape, but not so… black.”

“Oh? Okay, well, I have it in emerald green.” She pulled it out of the green side of the closet. She’d coordinated it all by colors, which might be OCD she thought, but it made sense to her and that’s what mattered.

“Hmm. Maybe not.” He frowned and looked along the greens before he moved down to the reds. “This maybe.”

He pulled out a long sheath dress, put it back, then pulled out a red lace and silk Valentino dress. The very top of the dress and the sleeves were lace with ruffles that came just above her wrist. It was mid-thigh length, tasteful, sophisticated, and just a little sensual.

“Perfect,” he declared. He pointed at a pair of red heels and then went to her jewelry box. He’d filled that lately too until she almost felt as if every day was Christmas. He pulled out a pair of gold and ruby earrings, studs, and a ruby ring that matched.

“That’s the decoration taken care of,” he said with a smile and turned to look at her. “Now, what else?”

She laughed because it had taken him five minutes, whereas she’d done nothing but think about which dress would be appropriate for days now. The dress he’d chosen was one she’d dismissed as too girlish so she asked him why he’d chosen it.

“Celeste and my family, the friends she’s invited to this exclusive dinner, will all judge you on the front you present. A sexy dress will make them think you’re a tramp that married me for my money. A formal dress will look like you’re trying too hard. This dress is too much for a board meeting, but it’s perfect for this kind of dinner. You’ll feel confident and look the part.”

“It sounds so simple when you put it like that.” She looked down at her nails, manicured with gel almond-shaped nails and a nice scarlet red polish with a slight hint of black glitter at the tips. “I feel so inadequate sometimes.”

He came up to her and tilted her chin up to look into her face. “You’ve not had a lifetime to learn things like this, Marie. You had a lifetime of trying to survive, of dealing with a mother that didn’t want you, of feeling like your only purpose was to be a servant. Well, that’s over with, baby. You’re my wife now, and you get to think about the important things, but also silly things like this, that don’t really matter, but they do matter to people in this world you’ve found yourself in.”

He pulled her down to the bed, an understanding smile warmed his eyes as he did.

“I couldn’t do this without you.” She clutched at his hands, desperate for the comfort only he could give her. “I’d be so lost.”

“You wouldn’t have to if it wasn’t for me.” Guilt marred his features, and they both looked away. It was the first time they’d really had any kind of conversation about the matter. She waited, breath held, as he sat there, looking for the right words to say. “What I did, I did for family. I did because I thought it would save us both in the end. It wasn’t right, but I can spend a lifetime making it up to you.”

“That sounds good to me.” She hadn’t exactly forgiven him for the lies, the untruths he’d told her. Or the deception he’d been a part of, for that matter. Still, it was hard to stay angry with him, to be cold and unfeeling towards him when he made her feel like a queen every single day. In bed and out of it. “I don’t really want to do this. I feel like I’m walking into a viper’s nest, but it has to be done, right?”

“Unfortunately, it does. And believe me, I’d rather not go either, but we have to. If I’m going to take over for Celeste, then I have to make an appearance. Besides, a few of my cousins aren’t too bad. I think you’ll like my cousin Trina, in fact. She’s the most playful of all of them.”

“A friend would be nice.” She hadn’t thought any of his family would be the kind of people that would talk to her. She’d assumed every single one of them would turn their noses up at her. And the friends too, apparently there would be friends of the family there as well. “You don’t think she’ll try to do something to humiliate me, do you?”

She looked at him earnestly, worried that this would be the case.

“More than likely, yes. You’ll have to be on your guard, cautious, around all of them. Even Trina until you get to know her. My advice would be to make small talk, stay away from politics, and keep the conversation as light as you can. With Trina, you’ll get to know her over time, but still, just in case, be cautious.”

“We really have to do this?” she asked again.

“Yes. It’ll be like tearing off a Band-Aid. Once it’s over, it should get better, easier to do. And I’ll be there don’t forget. You won’t be alone.”

“Good.” She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. “I hope I can get to sleep tonight. I’m so nervous about all of this I could barely sleep last night.”

“I’ll make sure you get to sleep.” He gave her a saucy wink and stood up. “Come on, enough of this now. It’s Christmas eve and you have more presents to open.”

“More?” She looked at him in surprise, what else could he possibly get her?