Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

NICO

I haven't made a lot of mistakes in my life. But letting her go that night was one of them. I should have stayed beside her. I should have never left her alone. And I should have done everything to prevent the eventual consequences of my actions.

Aurora blames me for breaking her. And maybe I was responsible. But I also can't forgive her for taking away my chance to put her together.

She pulls away first. She's great at doing that. For a second, I just stare at her, feeling like I'm underwater, like it's only the two of us in existence. And then that bubble shatters and the sound of applause in the church reaches me. Aurora stares at me with accusation in her eyes and I remember one of her conditions. Our kiss was meant to be a simple one. That was anything but simple. It was longing personified.

Unfortunately for her, it was mutual.

"That was the last time you get to kiss me," she whispers.

Despite the dull ache in my chest and the need pulsing within me, the urge to kiss her again, I smile.

"I really need you to stop lying to yourself, mi vida ," I say softly.

What I despise the most is how much of a liar she's become over the past ten years. She's adept at muddying the truth of her actions and feelings, even to herself.

Thirty minutes after my inauguration as Don, I realize my wife is missing. It's such a foreign concept to me, the idea of a wife, a family, albeit a fake one. The ballroom where our wedding reception is occurring is opulent, with crystal chandeliers, grand décor, and impeccable service. The wedding planner I hired certainly did her best, and everything looks perfect.

The one thing that isn't perfect, is the fact that my wife is nowhere to be seen. She disappeared soon after Sebastian proclaimed me as the new Don. He's been surprisingly pliant, performing his de facto father-of-the-bride duties without effort. He even managed a smile for the pictures. I have a feeling he's planning something, but I can't really be bothered by that at the moment. The last time I saw Aurora, she was talking to Camila in a corner, doing her best to act like she doesn't despise this entire show.

I excuse myself from a conversation with Barco, one of our head enforcers who controls the gambling rings, in order to seek out Vlad. He appears as soon as I step away, and the look on his face tells me he already knows what I want to ask.

"She stepped outside a couple of minutes ago, boss," he informs me. "Said she needed some air."

"You let her go alone?" I ask, uncomfortable with the idea of her being out of sight.

They might smile and congratulate me, offer their best wishes, and say how glad that are that I've claimed my rightful position. But at the end of the day, this is a pit full of vipers and snakes who wouldn't hesitate to drag me down given half the chance.

"Danny's with her, of course," Vlad states.

I watch as he fixes the cuffs of his jacket. He's dressed more formally than I've ever seen him in a blue suit. He even took the time to style his dark hair and trim his beard. He looks great, not as imposing and glum as he usually is. There's even a smile on his face. I tilt my head to the side, observing him.

"What's got you in such a good mood?"

"It's your wedding, boss. Plus, you're Don now."

"You sound as if you doubted that I would succeed," I say.

"Of course not. But it does feel good that we've finally gotten to this point. You got the kingdom and the woman."

At that I stiffen. "I didn't get the woman. Aurora still hates my gut."

"She really doesn't."

My eyes narrow. "I wasn't aware that you knew her so well."

"You forget, boss, that while you were in Mexico on that secret operation, I was here, guarding her. She and I spent a lot of time together that year."

"Don't remind me," I grit out, uncomfortable with the idea of her spending any time with any man who isn't me.

I realize that, in truth, I have no claim to her and that my jealousy is unwarranted. But when it comes to Aurora, I can't help but feel like this. I've felt like this since I was a kid. It's unnerving.

"Anyway, boss," Vlad continues, tone carefully controlled. His eyes shift nervously, like he can tell he's on thin ice. "At the risk of you punching me, I think you need to ease up on her."

"Meaning?"

"Don't be so intense all the time. This isn't the version of you she knew and liked. You've always been like this, but not with her. Remember when we were fifteen? She was teaching you how to ride a bike, and you fell on your ass. I've never seen you laugh like that before. For a second, I thought you'd be mad, then you looked at her, and the both of you just lost it."

He smiles like it's a fond memory and I resist the urge to actually punch him. Unfortunately that would draw the attention of everyone in the ballroom.

"I told you never to mention that day ever again," I grit out.

It's one of the more embarrassing moments in my past. I don't have a lot of those. I remember Aurora practically forcing me toward the back of the compound. There wasn't supposed to be anyone there. She had recently found out I couldn't ride a bike and refused to let it go. So, I agreed to one lesson. Which was a complete disaster. Even worse, Vlad was there, hiding behind one of the trees. He ran off before I could confront him about it.

He's right, though. I was happy back then. Things were easier.

"Yes, but my point is, the two of you used to be friends. And I think you need to learn how to be friends again."

"I doubt that's possible. There's too much history, too much baggage."

"So what? You're just going to let her go?"

My jaw clenches, and I shake my head. "That's not going to happen."

I already made the decision to do that once. And being around her again makes it clear that it was the wrong one. Vlad gives me a "there you have it look", although he also looks a little wary. We don't have talks like this often. I've known him half my life, and despite Adrian's ridiculous claims about being my best friend, Vlad might be the closest thing I've got to a confidant. He's not just my friend; he's my brother. I know he would give his life for me in a heartbeat. And if I'm being honest, I would give mine for his.

"I'll go back to surveilling the party, boss."

I nod. "Thanks."

Once he's gone, I decide to go in search of Aurora. I send Danny a text asking where she is. When I arrive, she's pacing back and forth between the ends of a hallway. Danny's leaning against the wall, watching her.

"You can go," I tell him once I arrive.

He inclines his head before walking away. I take his place, just watching her for a couple of moments. She's changed out of her wedding dress and is now wearing a shorter white dress which stops above knees, hugging her waist, before flowing down. Her brown hair billows down her back in loose ringlets. Her eyes are furrowed in concentration, and she pretends not to notice my presence as she continues her pacing.

"Do you want to dance?" I ask, breaking the silence in the hallway.

She stops short, shooting me a confused look. "You hate dancing."

I like that she still remembers little things like that about me. It makes it clear that she was lying when she claimed to have forgotten me.

"Yes, but you like dancing."

"There's no music here, Nicolas," she says frostily. "And even if there was, shouldn't we be dancing in front of the people who came to watch our farce of a wedding? You know, to keep up appearances."

"Not everything has to be because of our deal, Aurora. Maybe I just want to dance with you."

She's taken aback by that. "I don't want to dance with you. And funny how you'd mention our deal when you were so eager to flout it earlier."

"You mean the kiss," I drawl. "Aurora, you kissed me back. It was mutual."

"It wasn't supposed to be like that," she states.

"You mean it wasn't supposed to feel like that," I counter, stepping forward.

She takes a step back as I approach her. And another, until her back hits the wall, which is exactly what I wanted. I stand in front of her, keeping my hands on either side of her face, caging her in. I wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for the shudder that rolls through her. The way her body reacts to me makes it clear what she's truly feeling, despite how much she tries to hide it.

"Tell me what you felt," I prompt.

Her jaw clenches. She doesn't push me away and she doesn't avoid my gaze. Most people would look away uncomfortable at my proximity, but not her. She meets my stare, her eyes bright and unflinching. It's consuming, that look in her eyes. I feel blood rush through me, going straight down to my cock.

"Tell me how it felt," I repeat. "I'll kiss you again if you do."

"I don't want you to kiss me again," she grits out in frustration.

"Liar," I whisper, leaning down so our faces are even closer, our mouths only a hair's breadth from each other.

And she still doesn't push me away. Her overpowering scent surrounds me. It's heady. Just when I'm about to say fuck the consequences and kiss her, someone appears in peripheral of my vision. My jaw tightens at the sight of Adrian leaning against the wall, watching us.

"You guys are adorable," he says, smiling widely.

Aurora finally pushes me away while I turn to glare at the interruption.

"What do you want?" I ask, my tone hard.

"Sorry to end whatever this is, but your presence is required inside, Nico. One of the leaders of the Yakuza would like a word. Seems urgent," he informs me.

"All right. I'll be there in a minute," I say dismissively.

He leaves while I turn to look back at Aurora. She pushes off the wall, straightening her dress.

"We should head back inside."

She starts to walk but I place my hand on her wrist, halting her.

"Wait, we're not done."

She sighs softly. "Nico..."

"Let's go on a honeymoon," I say suddenly, coming to the decision in a split second.

Her eyebrows rise. "That wasn't a part of the deal. And it's completely unnecessary."

"No, but think about it, sweetheart. It'll be the perfect way to keep up those appearances you're always worried about," I point out.

Also, it's the perfect chance to rekindle our relationship. I'm just not sure what we might rekindle. Vlad said we would try being friends again, but I don't see how that's possible, considering how much I want to kiss her and fuck her. And just hold her, until she can't run away ever again.

She bites her bottom lip thoughtfully and I'm surprised she's considering it. I thought for sure she'd turn me down.

"Where would we even go?" she finally asks.

"Anywhere you want, mi vida ."

She thinks about it for a while before carefully answering.

"I want to go to the beach house. That's assuming Valerio hasn't sold it after all this time."

The beach house she's referring to is one her family owns that is located about an hour from here in a small town called Winnetka. Aurora and her sister used to spend all their summers there when they were younger. I accompanied her there a few times myself. It holds a lot of memories. Happy ones mostly. I guess it makes sense that she'd like to revisit it.

"Of course he didn't sell it. Actually, it's yours now, same as a couple of other properties here and in Italy. I was waiting for you to ask about his will. He left a lot to you and your sister."

She takes that in for a couple of seconds.

"Okay," she nods. "We can talk about that later. But are you sure we can just leave? You're still the Don."

"The world won't burn if I'm away for a couple of days, Aurora."

"What are you planning?" she asks, her expression suspicious. "You never do anything without an ulterior motive."

"Maybe I just want to do this one thing for you."

"Or maybe you're planning something," she retorts. "You're lucky I want to find out what it is."

I smirk. "So, you'll go with me?"

She sighs softly. "Only because I think it would be nice to get away for a while. Although I wish I'd be getting better company."

"I'll be on my best behavior, I promise."

She eyes me distrustfully. "That's even more worrying. I prefer it when you're a jerk."

"Because you're a masochist that gets off on me being mean to you?" I ask teasingly.

"No, because it's easier to remember how much I hate you."

"Duly noted, sweetheart. I'll ask Vlad to make preparations. We'll leave soon," I tell her before straightening. "Shall we, Mrs. Ramirez?" I ask, offering her my arm.

She groans before linking her arm through mine. "Do not call me that."

I lead her toward the ballroom.

"And Nico?"

"Mm?"

"I'll be taking you up on that dance you mentioned earlier."

I smile "No problem, sweetheart."