Tied to You

Chapter Five

Alessandro POV
"Stronzo, get out of the way!" Tony yelled, slamming his hand down on the horn of the car.

The car stopped abruptly and the entire party was pulled forward by the force.

My father muttered to himself, shaking his head as he massaged his temple. It was clear he didn't trust Tony's driving skills, but that was the least of his problems for now.

"Alessandro, please be kind to the girl. She seems lovely, and it's important that you two get along before you get married," My mother stressed.

"Mama, of course I'll be kind. I-"

"It doesn't matter if he's kind or not. They're getting married and their only job is to have children to help in the mafia. They can like each other later," My father argued.

I pretended to be interested in my phone to suppress the old-fashioned speech my father was giving. It was clear that his intentions with my wedding were not at all similar to my own. Despite it being a business proposal, it was also my future. It wouldn't be fair to deny her of her dreams, whatever they may be.

I looked back up, just to witness Tony swerving yet another pedestrian on the road. Various insults in Italian filled the car and it was clear that Tony would not be driving the family anywhere, ever again.

"Don't forget Alessandro," My father continued, "your cousins and uncle are coming too. Make sure Salvatore is aware that Chiara is your future wife, not some puttana he can take home with him today."

Salvatore was one of my more interesting cousins, to say the least. He didn't have the best reputation with my father. This was clear from the very first moment Salvatore and I got in trouble: we were chased by the cops for a petty theft of booze, but made a quick escape straight into the hands of my father. Unfortunately, ending up in a holding cell past sunset would've been a better fate for us, but it was too late to know.

Unlike me, his unorganised life led to many of his family members cleaning up behind him. Not only this, but his womaniser traits also made him very well known in areas that weren't the best for our image as a mafia. His bad habits were some that many of our younger cousins looked up to in an attempt to copy his lifestyle, but it was something I wished to prevent.

For the rest of the trip, the car was mostly silent. When it wasn't, we filled it with insults to Tony's driving, Tony's shouting at multiple drivers and people, and my father's constant lectures about everything to come.

My mind wandered to Chiara and how she would be feeling about the entire situation, and I prayed that her family wouldn't be as chaotic as ours.
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Chiara POV

"Dad said to get ready, we're going to leave in a half hour." Matías said.

He usually never spoke to Papa, so it was surprising to see him here, delivering the message.

"Okay, we'll go get ready."

Quickly leaving the room, the two men staying there, I went up the stairs and worked my way up slowly; the pain would remain for a few days, and I really didn't need it.

Entering my room, I saw my dress that I had laid out on my bed, a pair of high heels sitting at the foot of my bed. I slipped the dress on, tugging on it gently to fix any creases or bunches made.

Slipping on the heels after putting some lotion on, I stood in the mirror as I brushed my hair slowly, letting the fresh curls cascade down my back as I shook the curls out slightly.

Applying some mascara and lip-gloss, I grabbed a short coat and pulled it over my shoulders.

The slit in the dress where my leg was stood out more and I smiled; Pleased with how I looked, I headed downstairs and saw my family waiting for me.