OWNED BY THE MAFIA: His Obsession & His Downfall

Chapter 13

LYRA

Dante was walking toward me.

My heart immediately started pounding.

I didn't know what he wanted, but judging by the amused look on his face, I knew he hadn't forgotten me.

I took a small step backward.

"Dont..."

Before I could finish, the lights in the ballroom dimmed slightly, and a voice came through the speakers.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen."

Everyone turned toward the stage.

Dante also stopped walking.

I looked at him for a moment before turning my attention to the stage as well.

"Thank you all for joining us tonight to celebrate a very special occasion."

The room filled with applauses.

I glanced at Dante again.

He was standing a few feet away now, his expression unreadable.

The man on the stage continued speaking, but I barely listened.

My attention was still fixed on Dante.

Until I heard a familiar name.

"Please welcome the beautiful bride to be, Miss Iris Lombardi."

My head snapped toward the stage as Iris stepped forward.

She looked nervous, but she smiled politely as everyone applauded.

I smiled too.

Then the announcer continued.

"And now, please welcome the man she will soon be joining in marriage..."

I felt something inside me tighten.

"...Mr. Dante Russo."

My smile disappeared and my heart stopped.

For a second, I honestly thought I had heard wrong.

Dante Russo?

No.

My eyes slowly moved toward the man standing across the room.

He was already walking toward the stage.

Dante... Dante Russo.

My stomach dropped.

No.

No, no, no.

I looked at Iris, then back at Dante, then at my father.

The man my father had chosen for my sister was Dante!!!

I felt like the entire room had tilted beneath my feet.

I couldn't breathe properly.

My mind went completely blank, then a thousand thoughts hit me at once.

Dante was Iris's fiancé.

The man who had come bleeding into my apartment... The man I had spent hours with...!

I pressed my fingers against my palm, trying to steady myself.

How could I have known?

I hadn't even known his last name.

I hadn't known that he was the man my sister was supposed to marry.

But now I knew.

And there was no way to pretend I didn't.

I watched as Dante reached the stage.

He stood beside Iris and they looked so good together. Almost as though they were meant to be.

The announcer continued speaking about the two families and the alliance between them, but his words blurred together.

I couldn't hear anything clearly.

All I could hear was the pounding of my own heart.

Then Dante reached into his pocket.

My breath caught.

He pulled out a small velvet box.

My stomach twisted as he opened it.

A beautiful diamond ring rested inside.

Iris looked down at it, her smile faint.

Dante took her hand.

I felt my chest tighten.

Then, slowly, he slid the ring onto her finger.

The ballroom erupted into applause.

Everyone around me smiled.

Some people even raised their glasses in celebration.

But I couldn't move.

I stared at the ring on my sister's finger.

That ring meant she was going to marry him.

Him... The same man who had stood in my apartment.

The same man I had found myself thinking about.

My throat tightened.

How was I supposed to tell Iris?

How could I possibly look my sister in the eyes and tell her that I had already had something to do with the man standing beside her?

My stomach twisted painfully.

She trusted me.

At least, I wanted her to.

We had only just found each other and I didn't want to hurt her.

I didn't want to become another person who disappointed her.

I looked at her again.

Everyone was applauding, but Iris wasn't smiling anymore.

Her eyes were fixed somewhere ahead, and the sadness in them was impossible to miss.

She looked like someone who was trying very hard to hide how unhappy she was.

My heart sank, she didn't want this because she loves someone else.

And yet here she was, standing beside Dante Russo with an engagement ring on her finger while hundreds of people celebrated the future she never wanted.

I looked at Dante.

His eyes suddenly met mine.

The amusement was gone.

He stared at me for several seconds, his expression unreadable.

Then his gaze moved toward Iris.

Something flickered in his eyes before he looked back at me.

I quickly looked away.

I couldn't do this.

I couldn't sit and watch my sister marry a man she didn't love, a man I had sucked off on my apartment floor.

I needed to get out of there.

The applause continued around me, but I barely heard it. My eyes moved frantically through the crowd, searching for one person.

My father.

If anyone could explain what was happening, it was him.

I finally spotted him standing near one of the tall windows, speaking to a man who looked roughly his age.

I swallowed hard.

Before I could think twice, I grabbed a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and downed it quickly.

The bitter taste made me wince.

I wasn't even sure why I had done it. Maybe I needed courage. Maybe I needed something to stop my hands from shaking.

Taking a deep breath, I started walking toward my father.

People had already begun moving toward the dance floor, couples laughing and talking as music filled the ballroom.

I ignored them.

My father noticed me before I reached him.

He raised his head and immediately beckoned me over.

Of course he did.

I forced my feet to keep moving.

When I reached him, he placed a hand lightly against the other man's shoulder.

"Lyra, I'd like you to meet someone."

I looked at the man beside him.

He looked to be around my father's age, dressed in an expensive black suit that did absolutely nothing to improve his appearance.

He was shorter than I expected and had a very unfortunate hairline.

I tried not to stare.

"This is Mr. Bianchi," my father continued. "He is an important business associate."

The man looked me up and down slowly.

His eyes lingered long enough to make my stomach turn.

I immediately felt uncomfortable.

Then my father said the words I had been dreading.

"He's the man you're going to marry."

My heart sank.

I stared at him.

Then at my father.

Then back at him.

Surely he was joking.

He wasn't.

Mr. Bianchi smiled, revealing a row of teeth that somehow made him even less appealing.

"Beautiful," he said.

I fought the urge to step backward.

He extended his hand toward me.

"Would you dance with me?"

I stared at his hand as if he had just offered me something poisonous.

Absolutely not.

I was ready to turn around and walk straight out of the ballroom.

Then I looked at my father.

The warning in his eyes stopped me.

My feet suddenly felt glued to the floor.

I slowly placed my hand in Mr. Bianchi's.

His smile widened.

He led me toward the dance floor, and I followed reluctantly.

The music was slow, and couples moved gracefully around us.

Mr. Bianchi placed one hand on my waist.

I stiffened immediately.

Then his hand slowly began moving lower.

I slapped it away.

His smile faltered.

"Keep your hands where they belong," I said quietly.

He gave a nervous laugh.

"Of course."

I forced myself to continue dancing, counting every second until I could escape.

Then it felt like someone was watching me intensely.

I turned my head and my breath caught.

Across the ballroom stood Dante.

He wasn't dancing.

He wasn't speaking to anyone.

He was simply staring at me.

His emerald eyes were darker than I'd ever seen them.

His jaw was tense, and his expression was cold.

My stomach twisted.

Why was he looking at me like that?

I quickly looked away, but I could still feel his stare burning into my back.

Mr. Bianchi said something, but I didn't hear him.

My mind was somewhere else.

Dante and my sister.

With the engagement ring now sitting on my sister's finger.