Chapter 128

“That’s what you get,” Nico says, laughing and following us into a living room at a more leisurely pace with Lucy on his arm. “For speaking to children! Something which I make it my policy to never do.”

“Is it that you won’t speak to them?” Frankie chimes in, wry, his voice low so only we can hear, “or that they won’t talk to you?”

“What?” Nico snaps, turning to glare at him.

“You’re like, the male modern-day equivalent of a swamp witch, Nico,” Frankie says, laughing. “Angry all the time, zero fun, with a sincere possibility that you’ll eat them alive if they come too close. Honestly, I wouldn’t be so proud of myself if I were you.”

Nico just rolls his eyes and waves a hand, dismissing him, but Lucy and I laugh. Frankie gives us a wink.

Christian, fortunately or unfortunately, tries to wrangle the kids, to get them to stop shouting his secrets out –

But suddenly the door swings open and we all realize that it’s way, way too late for that as Giana and Bianca come sweeping in, their eyes wide.

“What?” Giana breathes, an infant baby curled up in her arm. “What – what’s all this?”

Despite her confusion, Giana is impeccably dressed in a gorgeous maxi gown, printed with bright flowers, her dark hair coiled on top of her head. Bianca, coming after her, stares wide eyed at the group of us standing in her living room, but she doesn’t say a word. The kids immediately work to wrap their arms around Giana’s legs next, but when she swats them away they tuck themselves behind Bianca instead.

“Giana,” Christian says with a sigh, moving forward with his hands out towards her, “how’s the baby –“

“No way,” Giana says with a huffy little laugh, taking a step back and holding a hand flat out between them. “Nope – you do not get to come in the house with an announcement like that and get to just ‘hi Giana how’s the baby’ me, Cristian. What – what –“ she quickly scans the group of us, her eyes sticking on me before she snaps them back to Christian. “Where’s Violetta?”

“I don’t know where Violetta is,” Chrisitan says, standing up straight and slipping his hands cooly into his pockets before moving his hard gaze to his step-mother. “Why don’t you ask Bianca?”

Bianca’s mouth pops open and she takes a single step back, like she’s been slapped.

“Ohhh no,” Giana says, holding her baby tighter to her chest and glancing back at me. “Cristian – Chris, please, please tell me you didn’t…”

“Oh, Crisitan…” Bianca moans, putting her hand up over her face.

I blush a little but do my best to hold my chin high.

“Enough,” Christian snaps, frowning between Giana and Bianca and reaching a hand for me. I step forward and he wraps that arm around my shoulders, pulling me close. “You will greet my wife with the honor she is due, Giana. Bianca.” He glares hard at both of them.

Neither make any changes to their stance or demeanor, still staring at him aghast.

“Uncle Cris is in trouble,” Ricky hisses to his sister, giving a nasty little chuckle.

“Oh, Cristian,” Bianca finally says, her voice breathy and sad as she presses her hands to her chest and shakes her head. “I…I wanted so much more for you.”

I grit my teeth, doing my best to not let my devastation at that phrase show.

Because honestly…am I that bad?

“Bianca!” Christian barks out, livid, his arm slipping from my shoulders a bit as he takes a step towards her, ready to give her a piece of his mind.

“Enough, enough,” Giana says, holding a hand up between Christian and Bianca and looking between both. “We’ll have peace in this house, if only just to keep the baby asleep. Iris,” she says, turning to me, looking a little exhausted. “Best wishes in your marriage, I’m sure you’ll be very happy. And welcome to the family.”

Her words do nothing to truly make me feel welcome, though. The deadpan way they just spill off her tongue makes it very clear that she’s doing it because Christian expects her to – not because she means any of it. No, her true emotions are very clear in the way that her eyes drop over me, looking at me like some ridiculous dog that someone dressed up in diamonds and feathers.

Like I absolutely do not belong here.

Christian takes a deep breath, clearly seething and not missing the message either, but he just steps back and tightens his arms around my shoulders.

The room is silent and awkward for a long minute before Tony strides through the door. He skitters to a stop, though, when he sees the nine of us just standing, tense and quiet.

“Whoa,” Tony says, looking between us. “What…what did I miss?”

“Oh, I don’t think you missed anything, Tony,” Giana says, turning her glare on him now and gesturing towards me with an open palm. “Because of course you’ve met our new sister-in-law.”

“Oh, that,” Tony says, chuckling a little and slipping his hands into his pockets, looking so like Christian in that moment that I’m shocked again by the family resemblance. Tony shrugs. “What, like it’s a big deal?”

Bianca groans and turns away from Tony, heading to the mantle where she takes a tin pill box off the corner and, her hands shaking, starts to spill a few small white tablets into her palm. The children trail after their grandmother, keeping safe behind her legs.

I rip my eyes away from Bianca as she tips the pills, dry, into her mouth, returning my gaze back to Giana as she advances on Tony.

“Yes, Tony, it is a big deal – and you should have fucking told us rather than just letting her walk in here – “

I blush deeply and Christian tightens his arm, stepping forward to intercede.

But Tony just laughs and puts his hands up, his voice booming out over everyone else’s. “I thought you liked a surprise, Giana!”

“I like my strippers popping out of cakes, Tony,” Giana bites out, “not walking in my door calling themselves my sister-in-law –“

I groan at that, tucking my face down into my hands.

“Oh whatever, Gi, it doesn’t matter,” Tony says, waving a dismissive hand at her. “Come on, Cris,” he says, turning towards Christian, his face serious again. I raise my head a little, peering at Tony through my lashes. “Dad knows you’re here. He wants a word with you. Nico and Frankie too.”

I give a little squawk of protest as Tony claims every single one of my allies, and Christian loosens his arm, turning towards me.

“I have to go,” Christian murmurs, slipping a hand under my chin and turning it up towards him.

“What am I supposed to do!?” I whisper, frantic. Because he’s just going to…leave me here!?

“Stay with Lucy,” he murmurs, leaning forward to kiss me on the forehead. “And don’t let them bully you, Iris. You’re my fucking wife – you outrank them. Most of them.”

“Which ones don’t I outrank!?”

But he just smirks at me, I think a little pleased to see a bit of spirit come back into me and gives me a nod. “You can do this, Mrs. Romano,” he murmurs. I exhale a long and deep breath, closing my eyes, but then I nod. Because this is what we came here for, after all – so Christian could have this meeting.

And it’s not like I thought this was going to be easy.

Christian gives me an encouraging squeeze and then lets me go, following Tony through the door, Frankie and Nico following him. Frankie, ever supportive, gives me a grin and a wink as he goes. As the door closes behind them, Lucy comes to my side, looping her arm through mine.

Giana turns back to us, her eyes going immediately to our linked elbows and then darting up to meet Lucy’s eyes. A smirk curls the corner of her lips. “Making our allegiances known, are we?”

“Being a real bitch about the new addition to the family, are we?” Lucy returns, but the verve and sass with which she says it just makes Giana burst into a grin and then a laugh.

Jealousy curls in me as I glance over at Lucy, who is all boldness and sass in a tiny package. God, I wish I could be more like her.

“All right, sis,” Giana says, turning her dark eyes to me and giving me a devilish smile. “You’re family now, for better or worse. Let’s see what you’re made of.”

She turns away towards the door to the kitchen, pressing through it. Lucy moves to follow her, pulling me along.