Page 1 of The Arianna Arrangement

Prologue

Tucker

“You’re sure there’s no way around this?” It wasn’t the first time my mom had asked my dad this question, but I hoped it was the last.

His sigh told me he was as tired of having this conversation as I was hearing it. “Yes, Ashley. I’m one-hundred percent positive this is something we have to go through with. You heard Apollo.”

“It’s fine, Mom. Please stop worrying.” I was nervous as it was, meeting the girl that I’d have to marry one day, but her nerves were making everything worse.

She looked at me over her shoulder, assessing me as her eyes roamed over my suit, tie, and hair, making sure I hadn’t messed it up since leaving the hotel.

Coming to New York for the first time should have been exciting, but so far it had just been stressful since we arrived the night before. Maybe after this meeting was over, it would get better.

Dad cleared his throat as he turned to face me, the gates to the compound we were going to looming in the distance. “Remember, you only speak to adults if spoken to. This is a completely different world than what you’ve grown up in, so you will have to follow my lead. When we walk in the house, we will be frisked for weapons, then taken to Lucian. You will call him Don Vitale and give a slight head bow like we’ve practiced. He’ll then introduce you to his son, Alessandro. Because you are seen as his equal, both heirs to your family, you shake his hand. When he introduces you to his daughter, then and only then do you look at her. Understood?”

I nodded. “Yes. I remember.” It sounded stupid as heck but my dad and Uncle Apollo had been driving this into me for the past couple of weeks since the meeting was set up. “When he introduces her, I look at her, step forward, hand her the flower, then take her offered hand and place a kiss on the back of it.”

A single red rose sat next to me on the seat of the car. It was supposed to be a symbol of my commitment to this deal.

My dad eyed the rose, then he gave a slight nod. “Good. Have you decided what you’re going to call her?”

Apollo had told us the men in this family always had a nickname for their wives. Typically something Italian, and we’d spent some time looking over ideas. He thought if I came in with one, it would win some bonus points with her dad.

My eyes flicked to my mom as I felt increasingly uncomfortable. Talking about girls in front of her was weird.

Her face softened. “If you haven’t, that’s okay. Typically people don’t give each other pet names until they’ve been together for a while.”

“But they don’t live in our world.” Which is why I’d spent way longer than anyone should, trying to decide. My dad showed me pictures of her and she was pretty, but calling her bellissima, which means beautiful, felt awkward, especially since I’d have to say it in front of her family. Amore or Mio Cuore were even worse because I didn’t love her. I hoped to one day, but I didn't right now. And Dolcezza was out because she might not be sweet at all. “Vita Mia.”

It means “my life”, and while it still seemed like something an adult should say, not a kid because she definitely wasn’t my life, I was giving my life to her to save my family, so that’s why I ultimately chose it.

My mom smiled. “That’s beautiful.”

The car came to a stop, and both of my parents turned around, facing the front. The driver rolled down the window by my dad so the Vitale security could verify it was him before letting our three cars through.

We always traveled with security around Crestwood, but the amount we brought to New York was way more than normal. There were two with us in the car now. Michael, my dad’s head of security, was driving, and Sean, my personal bodyguard, was in the passenger seat.

Until this deal had been made, I didn’t have a personal bodyguard. There were a few for us kids that drove us to and from school and went with us when we were out in public, but now, apparently, I needed one specifically for me. He would stay by my side for the rest of my life. Or, until someone else took his spot, I guess.

There were two other SUVs with us with four guards each. I didn’t know if this was because outside of Crestwood was dangerous, if my family thought the Vitale’s would actually use this as an attempt to attack us, or if they thought it was a good idea to put on a good show for them.

The gates opened and we made our way up the long drive and around the circle loop in front of the mansion.

As soon as we were out of the vehicle, the guards patted us down for weapons, even my mom. That pissed my dad off, though I don’t think they could tell. He had perfected his mask over the years, but I knew him well enough to be able to see through it.

I hoped my mask was pretty good too because right now, I felt like I might puke.

When we reached the top of the steps, the door opened and a man gave a bow. “Mr. Givenchy. Mr. Givenchy. Mrs. Givenchy. Welcome.” He stood and closed the door behind us once we were inside. “If you’ll follow me, they’re waiting for you in the parlor.”

Rich people had such weird names for rooms. I knew that technically my family was rich too, but our rooms all had normal names.

When we entered the room, the first thing I noticed was a man that was taller than my dad, and looked to have bigger muscles than Uncle Apollo. His hair was black and slicked back, and his eyes were so dark they looked black too.

He reached a hand out to my father. “Zephyr. Nice to finally meet you in person.”

My dad shook his hand. “The honor is all mine, Lucian.” When they released hands, their attention turned to me. “This is my son, Tucker.”

I gave the head bow we’d practiced and repeated the words Apollo made me say until I dreamt about them. “Don Vitale. Thank you for having us in your home and allowing me the opportunity to meet your daughter.”