The Mafia Contract Series

I am so excited I almost can’t walk. My legs are shaking, and my eyes are watering because I am so emotional. My wedding day. I never expected one quite like this one and as I step back and stare at myself in the mirror, I can’t quite believe the woman looking back at me.

Somehow Greta has pulled off a miracle and as fairy godmothers go, she is a talented one because from out of nowhere, she rustled up an exquisite bridal gown that is much better than I would ever choose.

Ivory silk is encrusted with diamonds but unlike my evening dress, this one is absolutely huge. It makes me seem so small inside it and as I stare in awe at the folds of taffeta that flare to the ground and trail behind me; I swallow the lump in my throat as I struggle to breathe. Ivan calls me Princess and I am beginning to believe it myself. The diamonds that sparkle around my neck almost blind me and the intricate way Greta has styled my hair makes my face seem smaller, more delicate even, as it sits in a chignon pulled back from my face. She has woven diamonds into it which scares me to death because despite what she said, I can tell these babies are real ones and not the fake ones she pretended they were.

My make-up is polished perfection and yet looks so natural I wouldn’t know it was there and I sat like a statue while Greta went about her work, and she created a masterpiece.

“You are perfect, Charlotte; you are such a beautiful bride.” The admiration in her voice makes me happy and it must show in my smile because she laughs. “Oh, to be young and in love.”

Her words bounce around me like a delicious dream. Love. Is this what I’m experiencing right now? Ivan isn’t the kind of love I thought I’d find. If anything, the complete opposite, and I wonder what my parents would think if they saw me now. It seems so wrong to be making such a monumental life choice without them by my side, but then again, they have their own secrets to hide. The fact they lied to me my entire life isn’t sitting well with me at all.

I have a lot to say to them when I’m home, and I trust Ivan to make that happen. I understand we are up against the ticking clock and there is a huge problem looming, but as soon as the dust settles, I want to return to London and make everything right. If they haven’t died already from the fact I was kidnapped in the first place, I’m certain they will both have a joint heart attack when they meet their new son-in-law. It makes me smile and Greta grins.

“Well, my darling, it’s time to get a husband. Shall we?”

She offers me her arm and I experience a twinge of disappointment inside me, knowing there should be a different person walking by my side. I always imagined my father would be the one to give me away, but it turns out the man who enjoys that title is a stranger to me anyway and hasn’t earned the right. So, I smile bravely and follow her outside and it strikes me as we walk, that I never had any doubts I am doing the right thing. I want to marry Ivan and I want to discover what destiny does with us because this could be the start of the most incredible journey of my life.

I am speechless when we round the corner and I see a gazebo resembling a fairy-tale palace set against the most amazing back drop. My eye is drawn immediately to the man standing there, and I swallow any emotion as he watches me approach, intensity standing beside him like a bodyguard. He radiates menace and something else. Desire. It’s a powerful thing, being the object of a man’s desire and especially a man like him.

With every single step I take, it’s like a magnetic pull and I couldn’t back out now if I tried. I’m walking headfirst into oblivion and I’m not looking back because I crave this man and everything heading my way and am impatient to become his wife in every sense of the word.

The priest standing by looks at me kindly and as I reach Ivan’s side, Greta steps to one side and joins the scary security guard who met us on the first day.

The priest smiles and makes to speak, but before any words make it out of his mouth, Ivan holds up his hand and silences him, making me anxious that something’s wrong.

He turns toward me, and I witness pure emotion blazing from Ivan’s eyes as he says so softly only I can hear him. “You are beautiful, Charlotte. You are the most perfect princess, but before we go any further, I just want to make sure you are fine with this.”

“Ivan.” I roll my eyes, which causes him to grin.

“Are you seriously asking me that on my wedding day? Perhaps it is you who is having doubts?”

I cock my head to one side, feeling worried about that, and he takes my hand and says huskily, “I always understood I’d marry. It was going to happen and not because I fell in love. My bride was one of convenience, someone who would give me power to use against my enemies. The mafia way.”

I’m not enjoying the turn this conversation is taking, and then he strokes my face and stares deep into my eyes, saying huskily, “Then I met you and I realized what marrying for power really meant.

Just imagining a different bride standing beside me caused my heart to physically ache and knowing I must watch you walk away from me was a knife through that heart. When I watched you standing in that beautiful dress last night, it struck me how much you looked like a bride and then it hit me. You were. You were my bride and, as it turns out, the person who has all the power in this marriage is you. That’s why I need to know that you want this; you want me because to force you to do something against your wishes means that one day you will walk away from me and that is the only thing in my life so far that has ever truly scared me.”

“Fuck, Ivan.” I sniff and wipe the tears away from my eyes that are destroying Greta’s work of art.

He looks concerned as his words hit home and reaching up, I stroke his face and whisper, “I only want you, which is strange but true.” I laugh through my tears and fix a frown on my face. “So, nice try savage, but you’re not getting off my line so easy. You will marry me and save me from my wicked father, and we will live happily ever after.”

Without breaking eye contact for a second, he says firmly, “We are ready now.”

He takes my hands and holds them in his and as we repeat the sacred vows, we both mean every word. Married for power, he says, I kind of understand what he means because being this man’s wife means nothing can ever touch me. Nobody can hurt me and life can’t knock me down all the time he is by my side.