WHY DID HE MARRY ME

The Truce

We went slow.

That was the rule after the roof. No big talks. No labels. Just hand holding and coffee and sitting in the same room without needing to fill the silence.

It felt dangerous. And good.

The truce with Vince held for 10 days.

No threats. No letters. No calls.

Alessandro was still working 14 hour days, but he came home. He ate dinner with me and Daniel.

Daniel even started calling him "Al" once. Alessandro pretended not to hear.

On day 11, it broke.

I was in the office with Alessandro going over charity budgets. Marco knocked.

"Mr. Moretti. We have a problem."

"What."

"One of our trucks. South side. Hijacked. Driver is in the hospital."

Alessandro went still. "Who."

"Vince's crew," Marco said. "They left a message. 'Truces have rules.'"

"Get the car," Alessandro said. "Now."

He looked at me. "You stay here."

"No," I said. "I'm coming."

"Seraphina"

"If this is about me, I'm coming," I said. "If it's not, I can help."

He stared at me for 5 seconds. "Fine. But you stay in the car."

---

The hospital was chaos. Police. Our guards.

The driver, Tony, was okay. Broken arm. Concussion.

"He said they took 2 million in product," Marco said. "And they said to tell you, 'wives don't run businesses.'"

Alessandro's jaw ticked. "Get me Isabella."

"She's not answering," Marco said.

"Then we go to her," Alessandro said.

In the car he was silent. Angry silent. The kind that scares people.

"Are you going to kill him," I asked.

"If I have to," he said.

"Then don't," I said. "Not yet. Not if we can fix this."

He looked at me. "You want me to negotiate."

"I want you to win," I said. "And killing him starts a war we can't afford."

He didn't answer.

---

Isabella met us at a warehouse. Alone. No Vince.

She looked tired.

"This wasn't me," she said before Alessandro could speak. "I swear. Vince did this behind my back."

"Then control your husband," Alessandro said.

"I tried," she said. "He thinks you are weak because of her."

She nodded at me.

Alessandro stepped in front of me. "Say it again."

Isabella held up her hands. "I'm not here to fight. I'm here because if this keeps going, we both lose everything. The cops are already circling."

"So what do you want," Alessandro said.

"A meeting," she said. "You. Me. Vince. Neutral ground. Tonight. We settle this or we burn it all down."

Alessandro looked at me.

"Say yes," I said quietly. "But on our terms."

He nodded. "Tonight. 10PM. The docks. Just us four. No guns."

Isabella hesitated. "Vince won't like that."

"Then he shouldn't have hijacked my truck," Alessandro said.

---

We spent the rest of the day planning.

Alessandro was cold. Focused. He barely spoke to me.

At 9PM we left. Me. Him. Marco. Two guards waiting in cars two blocks away.

The docks were dark. Wet. Smelled like rust.

Vince was already there. With Isabella.

He looked at me and smiled. "The nurse."

"Don't," Alessandro said.

Vince held up his hands. "No guns. Right. Let's talk."

For 30 minutes they argued. Territory. Money. Respect.

It was going nowhere.

Then Vince turned to me. "This is all because of you. You should have stayed in the ER."

I stood up. "And you should have stayed out of my brother's debt."

Vince laughed. "Feisty."

Alessandro moved so fast. He had Vince against a container in one second.

"Don't talk to her," he said quietly. "Ever again."

"Alessandro," I said.

He let go. Breathed hard.

Isabella stepped in. "Enough. Vince, give back the product. Pay for the truck. And we are done."

Vince looked at her. Then at Alessandro. Then at me.

"Fine," he spat. "Product back by morning. Truck paid. But this isn't over."

"It is," Alessandro said. "Or next time I don't stop."

We left.

---

In the car I was shaking.

Alessandro noticed. He took my hand.

"You okay."

"Yes," I said. "Are you."

"No," he said. "But I will be."

We didn't talk the rest of the drive.

Back at the penthouse, he walked me to my room.

"I'm sorry," he said. "For putting you in that."

"I chose to be there," I said. "And it worked. The product comes back."

"Because I threatened him," he said.

"Because we stood together," I corrected.

He looked at me. "You are really something, you know that."

"What am I."

"Brave," he said. "Stupid. Brave."

I laughed. "I'll take it."

He leaned in and kissed me.

Not on the forehead. On the mouth.

Soft. Careful. Like he was asking.

I kissed him back.

When we pulled apart, he looked as shocked as I felt.

"That wasn't slow," he said.

"No," I said. "But it felt right."

He nodded. "Okay. So we go a little faster."

"Okay," I said.

He kissed me again. Then left. "Goodnight, Mrs. Moretti."

"Goodnight, Mr. Moretti," I said.

---

The product came back at 6AM. No note.

Vince paid for the truck by noon.

For two weeks, nothing happened. Peace.

We fell into something new.

Morning coffee together. Him teaching me how to read a balance sheet. Me teaching him how to make pasta without burning it.

He started sleeping in my bed. Not every night. But most nights. We didn't do more than kiss. We were both scared of messing this up.

Daniel moved out. Got his own apartment. Paid for by Alessandro. "So he has a fresh start," he said.

One night about a month after the docks, we were on the roof again.

"Can I ask you something," I said.

"Always."

"Are you happy," I asked.

He thought about it. "I don't know if I'm happy. But I'm not miserable. And that's new."

"That's good," I said.

He pulled me closer. "You did that."

"No," I said. "We did."

He kissed me. Longer this time.

When we broke apart, he rested his forehead on mine.

"I don't want to lose this," he said.

"You won't," I said.

"Promise."

"I promise," I said.

---

The peace lasted 18 days.

On day 19, I got another letter.

No photo this time. Just words.

"She is making you soft. Soft men die."

I showed Alessandro immediately.

He crumpled it. "It's not Vince. His handwriting is worse."

"Then who."

"I don't know," he said. "But we are going to find out."

He doubled security again. Started sleeping with his gun in the nightstand.

I hated it.

One night I found him in his office at 3AM. Not working. Just sitting.

"Can't sleep," I said.

"No," he said. "I keep thinking about what happens if they get to you."

"They won't," I said.

"How do you know."

"Because you won't let them," I said. "And because I won't let them."

He looked at me. "Come here."

I did. He pulled me onto his lap. Careful of his healing ribs.

"We are in this now," he said. "For real. Not contract. Not business."

"I know," I said.

"If anything happens"

"Don't," I said. "Nothing is going to happen."

He buried his face in my neck. "I love you, Seraphina."

I froze. Then relaxed. "I love you too."

He pulled back. "You do."

"Yes," I said. "Stupidly. Dangerously. I do."

He smiled. The first real smile I'd seen from him in months.

"Good," he said. "Because I was going to say it every day until you did."

---

The next morning we got the news.

Vince was dead.

Car bomb. Outside his club.

Isabella called Alessandro herself. Crying.

"It wasn't you," she said.

"No," Alessandro said. "It wasn't."

"Then who."

"I don't know," he said. "But we will find out."

He hung up. Looked at me.

"A new player," he said. "Someone who wants both of us gone."

"Great," I said.

He took my hand. "Hey. We handled Vince. We can handle this."

"Can we," I asked.

"Yes," he said. "Because we are not alone anymore."

He kissed me. Hard. Sure.

When he pulled back he said, "So. Ready for round two, Mrs. Moretti."

I smiled. "Always, Mr. Moretti."

Outside, the city was quiet. For now.

Inside, we had each other.

And that was going to have to be enough.