Chapter three
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The call came in just past nine and he answered on the second ring the way he always did because a man in his position could not afford to miss things
"Sir" the voice on the other end said "I thought you should know. The Sanders girl. They are giving her to De Luca"
The silence that followed was not the silence of a man who had nothing to say. It was the silence of a man choosing very carefully what to do with what he felt
"Absolutely not" he said. Quiet. Final. The kind of voice that did not need volume to mean business "I will not allow that. Not to Brad's daughter. Not while I am still breathing"
He ended the call and sat for a long moment in the dark of his study with his hands folded and his jaw set and the weight of a promise he had made a long time ago sitting heavy across his shoulders
He stood up and walked down the hall to his wife's room
She was at her vanity when he came in and she looked at his face in the mirror and turned around immediately because she had been reading that face for decades and she knew when something was wrong
"Savannah is to marry De Luca" he said
Her face dropped
"You are not going to let that happen" she said and it was not a question
"Absolutely not" he said
"So what are you going to do about it"
"Beat De Luca at his own game"
She frowned "What are you talking about"
"Find her a husband first" he said
"And are you magically going to get a husband from heaven"
"Not from heaven" he said "from our home"
She stared at him
"You are not saying what I think you are saying"
"It is time he settles down anyway" he said "and I cannot think of a better match or a better way to keep her close and safe. This is the best way. This is the only way"
His wife held his gaze for a long time. Then slowly she turned back to her mirror and he saw in the set of her jaw that she had not said no and he was grateful for her understanding.
“Time to get matters into my own hands” he said to himself
Alexander
The gates of the Giovanni estate came into view and I let the car idle for a moment before pulling in. Thirty seconds of silence. I needed it
I caught my reflection in the rearview mirror and dragged a hand through my hair. Auburn. Always doing whatever it wanted. My mother was going to see it the second I walked through that door and I was going to hear about it and I simply did not have the reserves for that tonight
Light blue eyes stared back at me. Strong jaw. Catherine's nose, or rather she had mine since I got there first. I looked exactly like a man who had been in back-to-back meetings since six in the morning and driven straight here without a break and whoever had decided this family dinner was necessary tonight owed me something exceptional on that table
I pulled through the gates
My mother was at the door before I had fully stepped out of the car. Elena Giovanni had a radar for her children that many years had done nothing to dull
"Your hair" she said immediately, reaching up to fix it with both hands the way she had been doing since I was seven
"Hello to you too Mom"
"You look tired. Are you eating"
"I eat"
"Properly Alexander"
She pulled me down and kissed my cheek and I let her. Some battles were not worth picking
Catherine appeared in the doorway behind her with her arms crossed and that particular grin she reserved for moments when she had something waiting
"Here comes the most famous bachelor in America, who unfortunately is my big brother" she announced
"Shut the f**k up Cat"
"No cursing at the table" my mother said without missing a beat, the same way she had said it our entire lives
"We are not at the table yet" I said
"Don't argue with your mother" my father's voice came from inside, quiet and settled in that way he had always been
I walked in. He was already seated and he looked up when I came in with something behind his eyes I could not quite place. I let it go.
We sat. The food was good, it always was. For a while, it was just the four of us the way it used to be and I felt the day begin to loosen its grip on me
They mentioned marriage somewhere in the middle of it and I barely looked up from my plate. They always wanted me to get married. This was not new. I made a vague sound and reached for my drink
Then my father set down his fork
"There is a business partnership on the table that will take this company further than anything we have built so far" he continued "and beyond the business, your mother and I are not getting any younger Alexander. This family needs an heir. Your mother was your age when she had you"
My mother reached over and covered my hand with hers "We just want to see you settled my love. Happy"
"We have arranged a marriage" my father said "between you and the daughter of Peter Sanders"
I picked up my glass
Peter Sanders. I knew that name. I knew that family. And the one thing the world knew about Peter Sanders and his daughter was Serena Sanders who had made it her personal mission to be impossible to ignore at every social event I had ever had the misfortune of attending
I choked on my drink
Across the table, Catherine did the same
We looked at each other. We looked at our father. Then back at each other
In perfect unison, we said "Say what now"
- Writer
