Chapter 33

FREYA

As we turned off the path that had led us through the Upstate New York wilderness, and onto a long pebbled driveway that would take us to Luca’s home, it felt like there was a bundle of nerves sitting at the bottom of my stomach like a rock.

It was the middle of the night, so I knew that I probably wouldn’t have to meet many people tonight, but I was still nervous. I was about to start my new life in my new home with a man I had only met a few weeks ago but somehow loved. If that wasn’t enough, I was supposed to help him lead with no experience of leadership.

I mean, I barely knew anything about the mafia, and now I was about to become ~Donna~ of an entire crime family. How did that make sense?

We were sitting in the back of a car that he had left at the airport. Luca, always knowing when I was feeling uneasy, wrapped a comforting arm around me and gently pulled me to him.

He rubbed his nose against the side of my head.

“What’s bothering you, ~bella mia~?”

I shrugged and snuggled closer to him, not really wanting to get into it at that moment. I could barely speak through the lump in my throat.

As if he knew what I was thinking, Luca said, “Everybody is going to love you. You have nothing to worry about. You are going to do great.”

Still in his arms, I turned my head to look up at him. His eyes were gentle and soft as he gazed down at me.

“Are they going to be okay with a normal person like me being your ~destino~? Being their donna? And what is everyone going to expect of me? I don’t know anything about leading. How am I going to be any help to you?”

Luca pulled me closer to him. “My family will automatically love you as their donna. It’s what the whole family has been waiting for. They’ve heard that I’ve found my ~destino~ and that we’ll all be stronger and more connected because of it. They trust me as their don, and you as their donna.

“You may not know it, but you have all the qualities needed to be the perfect donna. We will ease you into your new job and you’ll learn over time. And I have complete confidence that you will find being a donna more enjoyable than you thought. You were born to lead by my side.”

I swallowed. ~Jeez, I’m not feeling any of the pressure now.~

I nodded. “Okay,” I said. “I can do this.”

Luca kissed the top of my head.

“Yes, you can. And if it makes you feel any better, the only person that you’re going to have to meet today is my destra, Angelina.”

“And my ~destino~, Elio!” Matteo yelled from the front. “He’s up waiting for me to get home.”

Hearing the excitement in his voice, I smiled.

“Do you think you will be able to handle that? You won’t be too overwhelmed?” Luca asked me in a worried tone.

I knew that he was desperate for me to be happy with his family. It was almost cute how worried he was. My heart melted a bit. I took a deep breath and turned my body fully so that I was facing him.

“I’m going to be fine. Just stay with me, okay? I don’t think that I’ll be able to get through this without you by my side.”

Luca smiled and then leaned down and kissed me gently on the lips.

“Always. I’ll never leave you.”

I felt the love that I had for the man sitting beside me grow. I smashed my lips into his and wrapped my arms around his neck. Luca moaned against my mouth.

“Okay, so while you guys make out, I’m going to go see my ~destino~,” Matteo said.

Before I could even look at him, I heard the front car door slam and the faint sound of Matteo’s footsteps running away. Out the window beside us I saw a giant house with multiple stories. It looked more like a hotel than a house, really. I couldn’t help but gape at it.

I felt Luca’s hand on my leg, running up and down it.

“How ya doing, ~bella mia~?” His voice sounded hesitant as he watched me react to his vast estate.

“I just…,” I started. “Wow.”

Luca nodded as he looked at the house.

“That’s as good a reaction as any. This is your new home. It houses over five hundred members of our family. Many of the other branches loyal to the Contis live in other houses similar to this one around the state.”

I swallowed and let out a shaky breath of air. “And you live here as well?”

“Yes,” Luca said. “We both do.”

I nodded. “Well…,” I said slowly. I looked at him, grabbing his hand and squeezing. “I guess it’s time for us to start our new life together, huh?”

He squeezed my hand right back and smiled widely.

“After you,” he said, gesturing to the car door beside me.

Once inside the house, the first thing I noticed was that the inside was just as magnificent as the outside. I walked into the grand foyer with my chin to the floor, barely able to contain how beautiful it was. A large, winding staircase greeted me, seemingly going up for at least six floors.

Pillars surrounded us in a circle, and my cheap, not-so-white-anymore sneakers met what seemed to be expensive wood floors that turned into marble as you went through more of the house. All walls were painted pristine white when they weren’t covered by giant windows. Wooden beams were on the ceiling, giving the entire house a very cabin-like vibe. It was absolutely breathtaking.

I hadn’t even noticed that Luca was watching me, gauging my reaction, until he tightened the arm that was already tightly wrapped around my waist.

“What do you think?”

I couldn’t stop looking around me. “I don’t think I’ve ever been anywhere as nice as this,” I said in awe. I looked up at Luca. “You didn’t tell me you were this rich!”

Luca chuckled. “I’m not. This is all the family’s money at work. I’m just in charge of it.”

“But you’re the one who gets to decide how to spend it, right?” I said.

Luca thought about it for a moment. “I suppose.”

“Then you’re rich,” I said. “I don’t think I’ve ever had more than a thousand dollars in my bank account, except for when I saved enough to go to Naples. I’ve always been living paycheck to paycheck.”

Luca wrapped both arms around me, pulling me to him so that my back was pressed against his chest. He then leaned down so that his chin was resting on the top of my head.

“That will never happen again. Not as long as I’m alive.” He pressed a hard kiss into my hair.

The determination in his voice made me shiver.

Suddenly a woman stepped up next to us and cleared her throat. She was tall and fit, with beautiful red hair. She was absolutely stunning.

“Don, Donna,” she said, acknowledging both of us with her head bowed. Then she got down on her knees and bowed, still as a statue.

I pressed further into Luca, not really sure what was happening or how to respond.

Luca leaned down so that his mouth was right next to my ear, his hot, minty breath fanning the side of my cheek.

“It’s a sign of respect. Be prepared to be greeted like this for the rest of your life,” he whispered. He stood straight again.

“Hello, Angelina. It’s great to see you again. I hope my absence didn’t make your life too hard.”

The minute that she was addressed, she stood quickly and smiled, losing all formality in her stance. She rolled her eyes and laughed a bit.

“You know perfectly well that this was probably the worst couple of weeks of my life. You are never allowed to leave for so long again. Your job is way harder than it looks.”

Luca chuckled. “It’s nice to finally get some recognition. Thank you for all of your updates. They definitely helped keep me up to date. You did an amazing job while I was gone.”

Angelina smiled brightly and then let her eyes drift to me. She approached me slowly, never letting her smile drop.

“It is so nice to meet you, Donna,” she said in a kind, genuine tone. “I was unbelievably excited when I heard that our beloved Don has finally found his ~destino~.”

I nodded hesitantly, taken aback by her up-front kindness. Although, it made me feel better that my first interaction with someone here seemed to be going okay so far.

“Um, thank you,” I said.

Angelina came closer to me and then reached out her hand to shake. “My name is Angelina, the destra of the Contis. I hope that we can be good friends.”

I smiled back. “I’m Freya.”

Luca squeezed my side.

“But you will not call her that,” he said to Angelina.

Angelina rolled her eyes. “I know that. I’m not some idiot who wants to have an angry don hunting me down for disrespecting his ~destino~.”

Luca glared at her and I just laughed. “I really hope we can be friends too,” I said genuinely. She seemed to be really nice. ~Maybe I’ll actually be able to fit in around here.~

Angelina beamed at me.

“Oh, Donna! I have someone for you to meet!” Matteo came running into the room, pulling someone along with him.

He wrapped his arm around the other man’s waist and smiled. The man was blond and well-built, with stunning gray eyes and a ready smile. He looked at all of us nervously as he entered the room, and immediately bowed to Luca, Angelina, and me.

“This is my ~destino~, Elio,” Matteo said as he looked at Elio lovingly, wearing an enormous smile.

“It’s nice to meet you, Elio,” I said. “I’m Freya.”

Luca frowned. He leaned down so he could talk to me.

“Stop telling people your name. Only I am allowed to call you that.”

I just rolled my eyes. “I can tell people to call me whatever I want,” I said.

Luca ignored me, but I could tell that he wasn’t happy with my response. He looked back at Elio. “This is your donna. You are lucky to be one of the first in the family to meet her.”

Elio nodded but didn’t look up.

Matteo laughed. “You can look up now. They’re not as scary as they seem.”

Elio slowly raised his eyes and scanned the room, looking at everybody but Luca. “Sorry,” he said as he smiled at me. “I’m not used to being in the same room as the four most powerful members in the family.”

“Me? Powerful?” I scoffed. “I don’t think so.”

Elio laughed. “You may not feel like it, but you have the power to make anyone in this family do whatever you want.” He glanced at Luca nervously.

“Even the don. Some would say that you are the most powerful member of this family.”

I looked up at Luca questioningly to see if that was true. He met my gaze and did not deny it.

“Come,” Luca said as he pulled me away and toward the large staircase. “We’re going to bed.”

The others bowed their heads in respect as they watched us go.