3. Bianca

3

BIANCA

I’m living a nightmare.

This can’t actually be happening. I can’t be about to be wed to the Don of one of the most powerful crime families in New York.

Is he even a Don if he is Bratva, instead of Italian mafia?

Doesn’t matter. Alexei Koslov cannot be my future husband. He can’t be my future anything .

“ Papino , how could you do this?” I swallow the lump in my throat.

I’m about to be married off to a complete and utter stranger.

“You should have warned me.” I blink back tears.

“We needed an alliance with the Koslov’s, bambina . For protection against the Gilantos.”

A hysterical sob escapes me.

Of course it comes down to business. It always does with my father. Every time I think I might be his top priority, I’m always proved wrong…

When will I learn?

“And there was no other way?” My voice cracks. “Does it have to be through marriage? I-I could go and work for them like I do with you. I could…I could do anything else! Papino , please. ”

My eyes are stinging with tears as I look at my father.

Part of me is glad to see the guilt etched across his face, but knowing he didn’t make such a bargain lightly does little to make me feel better.

If anything it only makes me feel worse.

What has my father gotten himself into that meant he had to sign my life away to the Koslov’s?

I’m only twenty-three and nowhere near ready for marriage. Hell, my last relationship during my senior year of college turned out to be a complete dumpster fire, and I vowed to take a break from men for the foreseeable future.

“No, there was no other way, tesorino .” My father sighs. “You are my only child. I had to offer them something of great value to me.”

My chest tightens at his words—at the hidden meaning beneath them.

Only child .

My mother died giving birth to me, and my father has never remarried. He lost the love of his life the day I came into the world, and although he never blamed me for Mamma ’s death, I carry the mantel of guilt heavily on my shoulders.

Perhaps this is my way of finally making it up to him.

“You have to know this wasn’t an easy decision for me, Bianca.” He reaches for my hand. “I hope you know I’m not handing you over to the Koslov’s lightheartedly. You are my world, and I’ll do whatever I have to in order to keep you safe.”

“This doesn’t feel like keeping me safe, Papino .” My eyes fall to the floor. “It feels like I’m being fed to the wolves.”

My father flinches, and my chest tightens.

But I should be hurt for a minute or two. I deserve it, don’t I? I was forced to organize a wedding for months that I didn’t know was my own until I got here.

I was betrayed by my whole family. And now I’m being given or sold for something that has nothing to do with me.

Does no one care?

“They will not harm you. I made it pretty clear to them that I wouldn’t tolerate it.”

“Is that meant to be reassuring?”

My father glances over his shoulder at the crowd of guests who will soon enough start to wonder where the hell the bride is. Little do they know she’s in the corner about to commit a felony against her own father if he doesn’t start talking.

Or maybe they all know and are avoiding looking at me because they pity me.

“Come with me, stellina. ” My father guides me back into the makeshift cloakroom, away from prying eyes.

“Do all the guests know whose wedding they’re here for? Am I the only one not in on the truth?” I shake my head. “What about Rosanna? Was she in on it this whole time?”

“They know.”

I’m about to throw up.

The hours I spent pouring over seating charts and food choices for my cousin’s wedding, and Rosanna won’t be the one walking down the aisle toward the love of her life.

I’ll be the one walking toward a life sentence, because there’s no other way to describe it .

My entire body is shaking so badly that I have to reach out and cling to one of the coat racks to steady myself.

The humiliation and betrayal are almost crushing me. And it doesn’t help that Alexei Koslov’s smirk when he realized I had found out the truth is playing on repeat in my head.

Asshole .

“You could have been straight with me from the start, Papino . Making me think I’m a guest when I’m really the one getting married is low, even for you.”

“I couldn’t risk you not showing up.” He bows his head. “You overthink things, bambina .”

“For good reason. Why couldn’t you trust me enough to tell me? I’m not an unreasonable person. If you have a good reason for this marriage, then I deserved to know. I deserved to have the time to understand, to come to terms with it.”

I look down at the floor, trying to stop the knot from forming in my throat. “After all this time, have I not proven myself? That I care about this family? I know what’s expected of me, Papino . After all, I’m your only heir.”

“You’re right.” My father sighs, rubbing at his jaw as he looks at me with pity in his eyes. “I should have gone about this another way, and I apologize for that.”

“What exactly is being asked of me here, Papino ? Do I just need to sign the marriage license and be done with it?”

He shakes his head.

I shake mine in return. “Of course not… It’s not enough that I have to legally bind myself to a stranger, but I have to sign away my freedom too? You’re making me give up my entire life, Papino . Everything I’ve worked so hard to build for myself…”

We both look at each other for a moment, and my shoulders sag with the weight of what’s to come .

My life is being ripped out from beneath me, and there’s nothing I can do about it.

“I don’t even have Zara with me.”

“ Bambina —”

“No. It’s my goddamn wedding day, and my best friend isn’t even here! How fucked up is that?” My arms are flying around me now. “And how do you think she’s going to feel when she finds out I got married without her even knowing ?”

I laugh. “Of course, how could she if I didn’t even know? How pathetic is that?”

“I couldn’t risk you finding out. I had to pretend it was a family-only affair to stop you from learning the truth and bolting.”

I stare into my father’s blue eyes, so much like my own.

But he is nothing like me. He doesn’t care. Did he ever?

There’s no way I’m walking away from today without a ring on my finger. Emilio Bellucci always gets his way, no matter what.

“I hope you know what you are doing, Papino . And I hope this is worth losing your daughter over.”

My father lets out a long sigh.

“I’m sorry, bambina .” He reaches down to press a soft kiss to my cheek. “But this is the only way.”

“Then let’s get this over with.” I fight the tears that are threatening to spill down my cheeks.

The last thing I want is for Alexei to see me crying. I can’t show any weakness to this man and risk him using it against me.

My father leads me back over to the elevator and presses the button for the penthouse suite where my cousin Rosanna, the fake bride, is waiting to dress me. Her blue eyes are shining with tears as she rushes over to me and takes me by the hand.

“I’m so sorry, Bianca,” Rosanna mumbles as she leads me into the luxurious bedroom.

My eyes fly to the white garment bag hanging on the back of the bathroom door and my knees almost give out beneath me.

“I wanted to tell you all this time, but your father made me promise… I’m so sorry.”

I’m barely listening to Rosanna as I walk across the bedroom and run my fingertips over the garment bag. My stomach is in knots as reality starts to set in, and I fight the urge to run into the bathroom and hurl my guts up.

All I can think about is everything that I missed out on.

This is not my wedding. This is someone else’s wedding that I planned and am now taking over.

None of this was done with me in mind. None of this is my choice. From my dress all the way to my fucking husband. This is not how it was supposed to be.

My wedding day was meant to be filled with happiness and love , but those things feel so far away.

My eyes flutter closed, and I picture Alexei’s face as he towered over me in the elevator, his dark eyes devouring me as a smirk tugged at his full lips.

Something flutters in my stomach, and my eyes fly open as goosebumps break out over my skin.

Alexei Koslov is dangerous, and I would do well to remember that.

The moment I put on the wedding dress, I am just another pawn in his twisted game. And I’ll play my part well.

“Your dad’s an intimidating man. I didn’t know how to tell him no.” Rosanna continues to babble on, filling the silence with empty apologies as I stare and stare at the garment bag. “The dress will look just as lovely on you…”

I know she’s only trying to ease her own guilt in the role she played in this, but I’m too tired to care. Too hurt.

In truth, I loved this dress, for Rosanna. It suited her curvy frame perfectly, and the strapless detail with her flaming red hair draping around her shoulders would have been breathtaking.

I never for a second pictured myself putting it on and walking down the aisle. Marriage was so far in the future for me, something I thought would happen when I felt ready to commit fully to someone I loved, someone who I wanted to build a life with.

Instead, it’s moments away, and the man meeting me at the altar is one of the most powerful men in the city, and a complete and total stranger.

“I guess I better get dressed.” I reach for the zipper with shaking hands.

I let Rosanna fix my hair, keeping with the slicked back updo, and touch up my makeup. I can barely look at myself in the mirror as she works, not wanting to see the haunted look in my eyes.

The moment I step into my wedding dress and Rosanna fixes the zipper, I feel as if the last bit of air has been ripped from my lungs, and I won’t ever be able to take a full breath again.

I clutch at my stomach, my heart racing so fast I might pass out at any moment.

“You look beautiful, Bianca.” Rosanna finishes fastening me into the dress.

I say nothing, my throat thick with tears as I wait for her to pull on the silky gold dress that I arrived in.

I lose count of how many times she apologizes for the role she played. She shouldn’t be the one walking with me to the elevator where Papino is waiting, or the one to stand beside me at the altar to take my flowers as I exchange my vows.

That was always meant to be Zara’s role—my best friend since freshman year of college. She’s my rock, my person, and she’s not here.

How can I explain all of this to her without risking her safety?

I bite down on the inside of my cheek as I take my father’s arm and step out of the elevator, my legs threatening to buckle with every step.

As we round the corner, I let out a whimper as every seat is now occupied, and I’m standing at the end of an aisle leading to my future husband.

I lift my eyes to find Alexei staring at me, a smirk tugging at his lips as his eyes flick over me.

My cheeks heat as he takes in my strapless dress that clings to my waist before fanning out into a long train.

I can’t deny he’s an extremely attractive man, with his broad stature and chiseled jawline. But there’s also an underlying hint of danger that radiates from him. It's there, behind every smirk, every stolen glance.

Why do I feel like this man is going to be more trouble than he’s worth?