My mother is strangling me.
It's not my fault she had me up until late because of her stupid house party. And now she wants me to wake up early for a brunch with more random people who she wants to impress. Ugh.
"Rory! Come ON. You need to get up. Our guests will be arriving soon."
"Who is it this time, Mom?"
"Oh sweetie, I think it's best if you find out yourself when you meet them for brunch. Now hurry up!" Her last sentence trails off as she herself heads back downstairs to prepare for our surprise guests. But me? I try to go back to sleep and remember my dream again.
Every time it's the same. A scary and secretive man who gives me more than my boyfriend of five years, Michael, ever has. He never tells me his name and I never really see his face, but the memory of his touch and his kisses haunt me all hours of the day until he blesses me again in my dreams only to stop short of fulfilling my fantasy.
Of course, I know he's only in my head. But I wish he were real and I wish he stayed when I asked him to. Michael is great, but Michael is safe. He's vanilla. Only in my dreams do my true fantasies come true.
Once I accept my mystery man will not be making another appearance in my mind's eye for the day, I head into my bathroom to get ready for this inevitable brunch my mother planned.
I look in the mirror at my crazy bed head and my wild curls that I've never attempted to tame. Empty green eyes stare back at me and I wonder if this life is worth it to my parents, or if they sense the same void I live in. Seems like a thought too big for a Saturday morning after a party.
I finally make it down the stairs in a cute yellow sundress and sandals. My hair is better, but still not good. I tried to put on some makeup but ended up just pecking myself with concealer to hide the bags under my eyes and lip gloss to make my lips shiny because why not. My hands are too shaky for me to be any good at doing my own makeup, but sometimes I wish I was a normal girl who could enjoy simple things like that. Unfortunately for me, my family is anything but normal.
I round the corner into our dining room and see two men and a woman who are vaguely familiar. My father sits at the head of the table, with my mother to his left and the older man to his right. Between the older man and the woman is a man who I assume to be their son because of the resemblance.
I take my seat next to my mother, who smiles but pinches my thigh for my rude tardiness, and across from a man who looks to be slightly older than me, maybe around 27 or 28. He's startlingly handsome, with deep blue eyes and chocolate brown hair. Not to mention his physique that is barely concealable by his white dress shirt. His tattoos can hardly be contained either. Hot damn. Just because a girl has a boyfriend doesn't mean she can't appreciate when one of God's favorites is placed in front of her.
My father clears his throat and speaks to the couple, "Mr. and Mrs. DeLuca, this is my daughter, Aurora. Aurora, this is Matteo DeLuca and his parents. They are friends of mine." My father finishes almost nervously, which is strange. He's never nervous because he always holds the power. If he's nervous, should I be too? I smile anyways, hoping it looks genuine. I've never been very good at faking my emotions.
The DeLucas make small talk with my parents while I play around with the grapes on my plate. Since I woke up so late, it's almost like the time slot where I should have eaten slipped by and my stomach decided I wasn't hungry anymore out of nowhere. I keep my head down, but I can feel his eyes on me. Matteo DeLuca. I knew his name sounded familiar. His family owns a lot of the same types of businesses as mine. The difference is the media loves him, and girls across the country melt at the sight of him on the front of their Billionaires Monthly or whatever it's called.
I guess that makes our families competitors. Which is weird because they're having brunch at my house. It's at this moment that my dad decides to clear his throat again.
"Aurora, honey, the reason for our brunch today wasn't just for us to socialize." Okay now I'm confused, what's he talking about now?
"We wanted to tell you the good news with everyone here." My mom butts in, but why did she include the DeLucas in the "everyone"?
"I'm confused. What are you guys talking about?"
"Rory sweetie, Matteo here is getting married."
"Okay...great for him? Who's the bride?"
"Well, see honey, that's what we were gonna talk to you about, actually, you see—"
Matteo DeLuca chooses this moment to speak for the first time as he cuts my father off and says, "You are the bride. You will be my wife, Aurora."
