Thirty Five

Sofia

I wake up to the sun shining through the blinds. I look to my left to see the bed empty, then look around the room. Everything is the exact same as three years ago: the same four-poster bed with light gray sheets, my perfume and jewelry that I left behind on the dresser, the picture of us on our engagement is still next to his side of the bed, along with the one from Paris under the Eiffel Tower. My heart skips a beat, and a small smile appears when I realize I feel happy for the first time since I found out the truth.

I get up, use the bathroom, and do my morning routine before I snatch Damian's shirt off the floor, and put on a pair of old pajama shorts that I left three years ago. They still fit. Huh. I follow the smell of pancakes and bacon downstairs. Yum, my favorite.

When I reach our open-plan kitchen, my husband is standing at the stove. He only has his jeans on, his chest bare for me to see. I notice some ink on his chest that wasn't there before I left, and I walk over to him to get a better look. He lifts his head when he hears me and smiles wide. I duck under the arm he holds out for me. He furrows his brows, confused, but I ignore him, and I lift my left hand, my rings back on my ring finger, shining in the sunlight. Damian took them off my necklace last night after our round of shower sex. We then made love in the bed, and placed them back on my finger. He kissed them, then kissed me, before making love to me again. It was perfect.

I trace the numbers and my name on my husband's chest, and tears fill my eyes when I realize the dates.

As if reading my mind, he grabs my finger. He places it on each date as he recites, "The day we met, the day we were official, the day I took your virginity, the day we married, and this last one is Mila's birthday. I got it when I found out about Mila." A tear falls, and he wipes it away.

I rest my head on his chest and whisper, "I love you."

I can feel him smile against my neck where he puts his head and rasps, "I love you, too."

We pull apart when we hear the door open.

"Mamma, papa!" I smile instantly as Mila runs into the kitchen and straight into my arms. I lift her and hold her tight while Damian puts his arms around me, and I look up at him and smile. He smiles back while Mila looks up at us with a huge grin. We hear the camera click and turn our heads. Alexandr, Phoebe, my father, Sergi, Dimitri, and Maria stand there smiling, tears in their eyes. Mafia men, my ass.

Maria has her phone out. "For your mamma." I smile, my eyes turning glossy again.

"Breakfast, anyone? It seems you all decided to crash my time with my wife," Damian states, and I burst out laughing, which makes him smile. We all sit at the table while Dimitri helps Damian make more food and dish out our breakfast.

Breakfast was amazing, full of laughter and love. I sat in Damian's lap, where he dragged me when I tried to sit next to him. Everyone laughed while I blushed. Hard. His left arm is tightly around me as he uses his right to feed Mila, then me and himself. And sometimes I feed him. It's perfect. I finally feel at home.

I look at Maria; her eyes are glossy. I mouth, “Thank you.” A few tears fall onto her cheeks. Dimitri notices and wipes them, and I smile.

"Mama, what is wrong? Don't cry," Alexandr states, leaning over his father to wipe away more tears that fell. Damian whips his head toward his mother.

"It's just that they're finally together again. I've been praying for this day for so long," she cries.

I feel Damian relax under me.

"Fresh start," my husband murmurs against my neck, and I repeat, "Fresh start."

Our families smile, and Sergi gives me a wink to break the ice.

"So, malen'kaya Zvezda, my little star, who is your favorite dyadya?" he asks Mila, causing us all to chuckle and look at Mila.

She grins. "Papa, then Phoebe." I lose it in laughter. I can feel Damian shaking underneath me.

Alexandr pouts. "He can't be your favorite; he's your papa, not your uncle, and Phoebe is your aunt, so she doesn't count." I laugh harder while Phoebe bites her bottom lip.

I nearly fall off Damian's lap when Mila answers, "Papa is always my favorite, and Phoebe is pretty."

It's a good thing he's holding me. Both men pout while Maria, my father, and Dimitri look at their granddaughter with pride. Phoebe's eyes water at her compliment, causing Al to chuckle and grab her hand, kissing it, making me smile at their love and affection for each other. Just as Sergi is about to say something, the doorbell rings.

Everyone looks confused.

"I'll get it," I state and go to get out of my husband's lap and answer the door, but he squeezes my sides.

"I'll get it, malyshka; you're not inappropriate clothes, and I don't want to shoot anyone."

I shake my head and state, "You're not even wearing a shirt!"

Everyone chuckles as he helps me off his lap, then sits me back down in his seat, smirking at me as he heads toward the front door.

I settle in to eat more pancake but nearly choke when I hear who arrived.

"Damian, we were told you'd be here this weekend, and we came to see if you wanted to sign those pesky annulment papers, and finally marry my daughter."

Zia Emilia?

My father's brows shoot up in surprise, and anger quickly replaces the shock when he realizes what she said. He looks at me, and I just shrug. I've known since my wedding that all was not as it seemed with these two women, family or not; they only see greed. My father's face goes red when he realizes I've known about their antics for a while, and I didn't think his face could get any redder until Luna opened her mouth.

"It's been three years, baby. It's about time we wed; you know you’ll need a wife when you take over, and because I'm Italian and my uncle is the Don, you'd still get both Mafia's. You need a strong wife by your side, not someone who runs at the first hurdle. And you need an heir. You know we are compatible, especially between the sheets."

Maria's hand slowly reaches for Dimitri's gun, making me and Phoebe snort, and gaining the attention of everyone at the table. They look at Phoebe, who's trying to contain her laughter, then at me. I lock eyes with my father-in-law, trying to avoid bloodshed, and point my eyes toward his gun. He looks confused while my father, Alexandr, and Sergi notice what I mean, and try to hold in their laughter as well. It's not until Maria just about touches the weapon that he realizes what I mean and quickly grabs her hand, shaking his head. I put my hands over my mouth to silence my laughter. Damian still hears me, though, because he turns his head, giving me a raised brow. I just blow him a kiss, making him smirk.

When I think they are finally leaving because Damian hasn't said a thing to them, Luna opens her mouth again, getting his attention.

"Come on, Damian, you know she's not pining for you. Some people are saying she's dead, others are saying she left with her lover. You are aware she was fucking your brother and Sergi, right? I saw them; they had a threesome. Sign these papers, and let's plan our wedding. I miss you, baby."

My mouth opens in shock. She's accusing me of being unfaithful. In contrast, both men accused look like they're about to puke at the thought of sleeping with me. Al quickly grabs hold of Phoebe's hand, which is wrapped around his gun.

Everyone laughs silently…until they realize what she said.

"Eww," I accidently say out loud. My nose scrunches up, causing everyone at the table to laugh. This time, Damian turns halfway with a smirk, so he obviously heard me. I shiver from disgust, causing him to bite his lip to stop laughing, knowing that would never fucking happen.

It's good to know he finds my discomfort laughable, the dick.

Zia Emilia speaks again, clearly not hearing me. "Damian, I believe she is gone for good; I have already spoken to a lawyer who says all you have to do is sign these papers, and then you are free to finally be with Luna. You never consummated the marriage, so an annulment is a simple thing. Luna will make the perfect queen."

I hear my father mumble, "Always knew she hated that she was the second oldest and couldn't take over as a Don. Fucking money-grabbing cunt."

I smirk, then get up out of my seat. I need deal with this before my daughter witnesses things she should not.

I make my way over to Damian as Phoebe eggs me on. "You go, girl."

Everyone laughs again. The ladies at the door can't see me behind Damian’s large frame. Damian hasn’t spoken yet, and when I get close enough to put my hand on his back, I can see why. He's vibrating, struggling to hold his temper; he's pissed. I can understand why. He finally gets his wife back, then these two come and talk shit. This is supposed to be our new start. I won't let them plant any more fucking seeds of doubt in my family anymore.

I slide my hand from the middle of his back, rounding his left side, then up toward his chest, my wedding rings in full view of our guests. He visibly relaxes, and then lifts his arm for me to tuck into his side. He pulls me into his body, locking his arm around me, holding me tight.

"Zia Emilia, Luna? What a surprise! I didn't know you kept in touch with my husband while I was away.” I say in my sweetest voice as Damian's arm tightens around me. Fuck, he smells good. A bit of spice and oak, and something that is all him—I've missed it.