THE MAFIA’S PET BABY

AUTHOR'S NOTE Thank you so much for choosing to read my story. Your support means the world to me. Please don't forget to drop your beautiful comments as I would love to hear your thoughts, so please feel free to express yourself. Love, Angel. ----------------- ALL MY LOVE I stood in front of the mirror, trying to get ready for the big day, when my little girl Lily came running to me. "Mama, mama, I want a ribbon on my hair." I sighed; I was so exhausted. I had already spent hours cleaning and decorating the house in anticipation of our guests. It was Lily's third birthday today, and we decided to celebrate it. I was particularly excited about this day because I'll finally get to see the whole family after a while. No one's really going to prep you for the efforts it takes to build your own family, not to talk about how you have to do it even on the days you don't feel like it. I looked at Lily and saw that she was growing impatient. Her big brown eyes were starting to well up with tears. And she kept screaming. "Baby, let me finish up, I'll do that, okay?" I assured her. I only ignored her because I was in the middle of doing my makeup and I didn't want to leave it half done. I knew that if I didn't finish it now, I might never come back to it again. Just as I was figuring out what to do, my husband, Ryan, walked into the room. He looked handsome in his pair of white shirt and black pants. His curly hair, although messy, was partly styled to the left. Lily was a copy of him, the same bulky brown eyes with full brows. Ryan was every girl's dream then in grade school, and till now he still managed to draw attention to himself. Yes, I got married to my crush in grade school. Ryan would always snatch my pencil and make me chase after him round the classroom. I chuckled at the memory. I was about to leave a remark on his appearance when he cut me off. "Give the child what she wants," he said abruptly. I felt taken aback by his tone. "But honey, I'm trying to do my makeup. Could you at least help out?" I turned towards Lily. I couldn't bend down to her size. "Daddy's going to help you okay." Ryan shot me a cold stare, "If you were doing something important, I would understand." He chuckled. "But makeup? No one will even look at you." I felt a sting from his words and I froze. Ryan can decide to be mean every other day, but today? No, I'm already so overwhelmed. I looked at Lily and I saw that she was still waiting for me to put the ribbon on her hair. I took a deep breath and moved over to a seat as I placed her on my legs, helping her tie the ribbon around her ponytail. She was growing up so fast, and days like this only made me realize how important it is to cherish this moment with her. Ryan spoke up again, "I don't think the guests will be needing anything else from you. Mom has already sent some workers over." That's right. It's always his mother running the affairs of my house. I pleaded with him days before about how we needed extra hands to make party preparations more manageable, but he dismissed me, saying I was five people in one. I tightly held on to lily's little hands for support. His eyes met mine and he continued. "If you didn't get me, I wouldn't want you appearing on that stage. Do you understand?" "But why Honey?" I asked, trying to keep my voice down. "She's my daughter too. We're a family. I thought on a day like this, we should celebrate and not neglect each other.” My airways were tightening again. "It's Ryan to you" he warned, as he stared at his watch impatiently. He then reached out and snatched Lily away from my hands, cradling her. "Hey baby, you shouldn't be sleeping, it's your day" he cooed, trying to wake her up from her sleepy state. I watched in silence as he carried her away and headed back to the mirror to continue my makeup as I applied final touches to my face. "Doesn't look like I'll be able to achieve those toned noses like the girls on the TVs do", I sighed at my third attempt to contour my features. Just then, I heard the sounds of cars pulling up outside. I peered outside the window, seeing the SUV's lined up with the logo "Rutherford industries" made my heart skip, like it was going to leave my body. "They're here". I whispered as I realized I needed someone to help me zip up my dress to the end, so I headed downstairs. But I guess I was too late. The Rutherfords were already making their way into the house and I couldn't run back. Lily squealed with joy as she ran into her grandfather's arms and Ryan hugged his mother. Ryan's parents, Reginald and Victoria Rutherford, were both impeccably dressed. The Rutherfords were a prominent wealthy family in the business world, and they looked every inch the influential couple that they were. Victoria's eyes scanned the room, with her hands still copping Ryan's face. Our eyes met, and she gave a little smile before looking away. I tried to smile back, even though I was nervous. I was always intimidated by their presence. Since no one was talking to me, I slipped away from the scene, looking around at the list of several dishes all around the table. My eyes landed on these beautiful green-white cupcakes, and they were the perfect sets I've ever seen. I couldn't ignore them as I picked one of them up, taking a slight bite. It tasted just as it looked. I closed my eyes, so I could savor the taste even more then I heard a voice behind me. "Considering your size, you do have enough room for that," Victoria said, her voice cutting through my chest. I turned around to face her with the cupcake still in my hands. I tried to play it cool, but my face was burning hot from the embarrassment. "Good day, ma'am", I greeted him. She looked at me from head to toe, sizing me up. "If the dress doesn't fit darling, maybe you should change into something else," she snapped. And that's when I realized I hadn't even zipped my dress and now everyone's eyes were on m