Red

C H A P T E R T H I R T Y F O U R

Red had become my trademark so when picking a gown for this evening, it was a no brainer - it needed to be red. I ran my palm down the silk and sighed. Truth be told, I hated these events.

Individually we went through full body scanners and bag checks to make sure we weren’t smuggling in weapons.

I grabbed a champagne flute from a server the second we walked through the door.

“Willa, lay off the alcohol today. Yes?” Antonio glared at me with fury.

“No.” I replied, chugging it back and stopping another server to swap my empty glass for a full one.

“Willa, Antonio.” Simultaneously, we froze before slowly turning around to face the familiar voice.

“Father?” Antonio asked. “What? How?”

He didn’t have a scratch on him, not a hair out of place. His dark eyes set on me and his mouth quirked up in the slightest smile.

“He let me go.” I swallowed down champagne too abruptly I almost choked.

“He let you go?” I questioned, finding the whole notion suspicious. “He wouldn’t just let you go.”

“I’m here, no?” Antonio and I exchanged a wary look. “Quit being so suspicious, I will take it from here.” He walked away, heading in the direction of Nikolai, they shook hands and started a conversation immediately.

“Hey!” I flagged down a server. She had a tray of something. I turned my nose up at it. Posh people food was so tiny. “What’s the canapé?”

“These are cheese and cranberry tartlets, the chef used goats cheese for a little salty flavour which compliments the sweetness of the-”

I held my hand up to stop her and took one from the tray, eating it in one bite.

“That’s actually really good, you can leave the tray.” She looked a little dumbfounded but handed me over the silver platter.

“Honestly Willa, you’re an embarrassment.” My brother chastised. “If you’re going to eat a whole tray of canapés at least do it in private, the dressing room is over there.”

“Mr Antonio Valentino.” A large man approached us. I rolled my eyes, not wanting to listen to mafia talk. Instead I took my brothers advice and disappeared inside the dressing room.

My feet halted on the carpet, Ace was standing in front of the mirror fixing his bow tie. He wore a full tuxedo and it was honestly a better view than the Grand Canyon. Yet, I tried to turn back and leave without being noticed because I didn’t want to thank him for freeing my father.

Truthfully, the whole situation frightened me. Why would Ace just let him go? Did he do that for me?

“Are you working this party?” His eyes fell to my tray and then back up to me, twinkling with amusement.

I sat down on the poofe and ate silently. His large hand came down to take one and I slapped it away. He took one anyway.

I watched him eat, trying to pluck up the courage to ask the burning question.

“Why did you let my father go?” He turned back to the mirror, and resumed fixing his bow tie.

“Need-to-know-basis.”

“I know you Ace, you wouldn’t just let him go. Your actions are brutal and cruel, my father doesn’t even have a scratch on him.”

He turned to face me. “Need I remind you who you are?” He took another cranberry cheese thing and bit into it. “You’re nobody, I am the don of a fucking mafia family. You’re the daughter of a don. You know why daughters in the mafia exist? Only to worship the men, to marry and form merges. To produce the heirs. Know your place in this society Red.”

“I’m better than those girls.” I defended. “I hate those girls. They can’t fight for shit. They’re merely objects belonging to oppressive, controlling men. They marry because they’re forced not for -”

I stopped myself.

“For love?” He asked, quirking a smug brow.

“No.” I answered, although that is exactly what I was about to say.

“For what then?” He sounded so cocky, he knew I wanted to fall in love.

“I don’t know but certainly not through choice. The mafia girls you know, the mothers, daughters, sisters. Their husbands are chosen for them in some kind of business transaction. I’m not one of those girls, I never will be one of those girls. I’ll choose my own life partner and bot have my father pick one for me.”

“Right, you want puppy-dog eyes and long walks on the beach. You want to be surprised with beautiful flower bouquets and given chocolates on Valentine’s Day.”

“First of all, I’d rather open a bouquet box to a new gun. Secondly, no. I’m not saying I need love or even want love. I’m simply saying, I want someone who I at least get along with even if that person isn’t necessarily a leader.”

“But if you’re going to settle down with just about anyone, a lower level or even a civilian, then what’s the point if you’re not in love?”

I stopped talking because I had no answer. He had me by the balls and he knew it.

“You want love, admit it.”

“I don’t do love.” I folded my arms stubbornly and he smiled. “Love is a weakness.”

“We will see about that.” He answered smugly, like he knew something I didn’t.

“What’s that’s supposed to mean?” I snapped, irritated by him. Right now he offered me nothing more than annoyance, and he was eating my food.

“It’s a good thing really.” He continued, his voice turning flat. “You not wanting love. Nobody would ever be able to handle you Red. You’re too fucked up. My dad left you with a few too many scars and I don’t think anyone would be willing to stick around and unpack all of your bullshit.”

I flinched at his unkind words, they were unexpected and unnecessary.

“Why aren’t you ever nice to me?”

“Because we’re enemies and you literally manipulated me in order to get close, you wanted me to drop my guard down and trust you.”

“Ace, I didn’t try to get close to you. We had sex, multiple times. That’s all. It’s when two people fuck and there’s no emotion, no commitment, no feelings. We just do it for fun.

You’re like the lingering ex-boyfriend I never asked for. Always so mad and mean to me because you care too much. This is business, we don’t get to have emotions or feelings. We fuck. We fight. We kill.

Let it go Ace for one night, come have a drink with me, dance. Relax. We’re unarmed, there’s neutral guards. We can be normal. That’s what you wanted, no?” I put my hand on his arm and he brushed it off.

“No, not with you. Not now.” I sighed and stood up to leave but before doing so I shoved a small pastry into his mouth and then walked away.

He grabbed me back and I fell into his chest. He chewed really fast, trying to clear his mouth but it just wasn’t fast enough.

“Fine, one night?” I was intrigued by how willing he was to agree but nodded anyway. “Not here. There’s too many eyes, let’s leave.”

“You’re missing the point.” I laughed. “I know I’m safe in here. There are thermal scanners everywhere. There’s no way someone can sneak in weapons, hell I’ve tried.”

“You’re safe nowhere Red, I could snap your neck right now with my bare hands. I’m getting out of here, come with me.”

“Like leave, completely? And go where? Ace, you need to stay. You’re the don, your business is here.” He leaned down and kissed me, just a small tender kiss on the lips.

“Come with me Red, we don’t have much time.” Much time for what? “Let’s go, let’s leave, right now.”

“Okay, fine.” He grabbed my hand and led me through the crowds, on the way he grabbed a bottle of champagne and two empty glasses.

I scanned the room for my brothers or my father but I couldn’t see any of them. I did however note Nikolai leaving in a town car and was thankful he didn’t spot me with Ace.

“Where are we going?” I asked once the cold air of night hit me. He kept walking, dragging me along with him and didn’t once stop to answer me.

“Do you feel safe with me?” He pushed open an iron gate into the gardens.

“No.”

“Do you feel frightened of me?”

“No.”

“What do you feel around me?”

“Mostly sexual frustration.”

“And if we took away the sex, the plotting, the fighting, what would that look like?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know.”

“It would look like this.” He grabbed my hand and pulled into him, wrapping his arm around my body.

I laughed as my hair bellowed in the breeze and my soul sparked brightly. Under the twinkling garden lights Ace and I danced to low hum of music travelling through the nighttime air.