PROLOGUE
AIDA
My stomach rolled for what felt like the thousandth time that morning. Outwardly I was calm and collected, but inside I was a complete mess of emotions. I couldn’t pinpoint which one was strongest. Regret? Sadness?
Maybe a mixture of both.
I placed my palm on my stomach to quell my nerves and stared at myself in the mirror. I shouldn’t have agreed to this. I should have changed my mind.
But did I really have a choice?
From the time the first words were uttered, I knew my life had taken a turn—a turn I’d never expected. A turn I never wanted. But I was raised to confront challenges head-on—to never give in. So why did it feel like I was about to give away my entire life? Why did it feel like today would be the last day of the life I’d always dreamed of?
I inhaled a breath and gazed down at my shaking hands while trying to ignore the buzz of women around me. As soon as I’d opened my eyes this morning, everything had been a whirlwind of activity. The time ticked by, bringing me closer and closer to my final destination. It haunted me, promising that nothing would ever be the same again.
My finger smoothed over a bead on my white dress, causing a smirk to pull at my lips. The symbol of this dress was ironic. I wondered if the people around me truly believed I was a virgin? I may have been raised in an Italian family, but that didn’t mean I’d saved myself for marriage.
Marriage.
Holy shit. I was about to get married.
My eyes widened, and the long fake lashes one of the women had applied to me poked me in the eye.
“Fuck,” I murmured. Gasps echoed around me, but I didn’t care. I was doing this for the family.
My family.
His family.
I ground my teeth together and stepped closer to the mirror. My face was made up to within an inch of its life, and I could have sworn I had cracks in my makeup where it was layered on so thick. “No.” I shook my head and sidestepped the woman trying to push a veil into my hair. “No,” I said, louder this time. “Out,” I gasped, feeling the world starting to tilt beneath my feet. “Everybody but Noemi…get out.”
I spun around, waiting for them to exit the room we were holed up in at the back of the church. Apparently, it was tradition in his family, but at this point, I didn’t give a flying fuck.
“Aida—”
I held my hand up. “I mean it. Everybody out.”
There was a pause and then, “You heard her.” My big sister stepped closer to me. “Get out.”
It was only seconds until the room was empty, leaving just me and Noemi, and it was in that second, I knew I’d made a mistake. Maybe I could run away and forget all of this ever happened? Maybe I could dye my hair and move to another country? Maybe I could—
No. I couldn’t.
My family would be left behind, and I couldn’t bear to think about what would happen to them if I left him standing at the altar. I was fucked either way.
“I hate my life,” I groaned, turning back to the mirror and pulling off the fake lashes that weighed heavy on my eyes. I finally felt like I could actually open them properly. “I hate this dress. I hate this makeup.” I threw my hands in the air. “I hate it all.”
I knew I was acting like a teenager and not the twenty-year-old woman I was. Twenty. I scoffed. In a matter of hours, I’d be married off and have to live the rest of my life known as his wife. I was getting married to a man I barely knew. Sure, I knew of him, which also meant I knew exactly who and what he was. A dangerous man. A man who got everything he wanted.
Including me.
“I can’t do this,” I whispered.
“Aida.” Noemi rushed forward and planted her hands on my shoulders. She was always the impulsive one of the two of us. I was level-headed and planned things to a T. I even knew what college I’d be attending when I was nine years old. And yet, it had been me thrown into this situation. I didn’t do well with change, and my entire life was about to be turned upside down.
“You can do this.” She bent at her knees, so our eyes were level. “Think about what this will do for Mom and Dad. It’ll change everything.” That was what I was afraid of.
“But—”
“You can do it, Aida.” She nodded, almost as if she was trying to do it for me. “I have an idea.” She smiled, the kind of smile that told me she was about to go rogue, but at this point, I couldn’t bring myself to care. My skin itched from the layers of material I was wearing, and the pins in my hair pulled on my scalp every time I moved. “Sit.” She led me over to the chair I’d sat in for hours as people had transformed me into someone I didn’t recognize.
“We don’t have time,” I huffed out as Noemi rushed across the room and came back with her bag. “It starts in ten minutes—”
“I only need five.” She stood between me and the mirror as she pulled a wipe from the packet. “If he wants to marry you, then he needs to see the real you, not the you they all think he wants.” She swiped the wipe over my cheeks and eyes, and I finally felt like I could move without cracking. I closed my eyes and let Noemi work her magic. She started with my face, then moved to my hair and pulled every pin out of my head. “There. All done.”
I opened my eyes and stared in the mirror, only this time I actually recognized the woman staring back at me. A light layer of foundation along with a swipe of mascara and lip gloss was all I ever wore, and Noemi had stripped me right back to that. My wavy dark-brown hair came to the middle of my back, covering most of the lace on the huge dress.
Loud knocking rang on the door, followed by, “Aida, they’re ready for you.”
“One minute, Dad!” Noemi shouted. She pulled me up and dragged me to the screen I’d dressed behind. “Mom got you this the day we went dress shopping,” Noemi whispered. She pulled a box from under the chair and placed it on top. “Today isn’t just about what he wants.” She
put her hands on either side of my face. “Make it about you too, baby sis. Don’t let him decide the rest of your life.” I heard her words loud and clear.
“Get changed.” She undid the buttons on the back of my dress, winked, then stepped backward. “I’ll see you out there.”
The door clicked shut a couple of seconds later, and I reached down to open the box. My stomach rolled in excitement when I saw the simple dress I’d fallen in love with at the bridal shop. It only took me a minute to get out of the dress I hated and into the one I loved—a simple A-line with no sleeves, and intricate lace from my collarbone working down into the off-white material. It was a statement, one that I knew most of the people sitting in the church wouldn’t appreciate, but it was me. It was my style.
“Aida?” Dad called again.
“Coming!” I took one final look at myself in the mirror, pushed the comb of the veil into my hair, then stepped toward the door.
I worked on autopilot as we walked to the big, ornate doors of the church. This was it. This was the moment everything would change.
“You’re doing great,” Dad murmured from next to me. He was dressed in a perfectly pressed suit, something that I’d never seen him wear before. I was used to his usual T-shirt and jeans while he worked in the food store he owned. Even on Sundays, when we all came to church, he only wore a shirt with his jeans. But that wouldn’t suffice for today. Today I was getting married. I was about to promise vows to a man I barely knew. What the hell was I doing?
“I don’t think I can do this,” I whispered, glancing around to see if anyone heard. A few people were still milling about, but as soon as they went through the side door to the main part of the church, it was just my dad and me.
“Baby girl.” He turned to face me fully and clasped my shoulders. His brown-eyed gaze met mine, but I looked away, concentrating on his graying mustache that was perfectly combed and trimmed. I wasn’t sure what he was thinking, but as soon as I stared him in the eyes, I knew I wouldn’t have a choice. This wasn’t just about me. This was about all of us. With this one sacrifice, it would mean my dad wouldn’t have to work eighteen hours a day like he had for most of his life.
“If you don’t want to do this, we can walk out of here right now.” He squeezed a little and nodded. “You’ll always be my baby girl, and I’ll always protect you.”
I’d have been lying if I said I wasn’t tempted to take him up on his offer. No one was making me do this, at least not physically, but I knew what the fallout would be if I didn’t do it. My family would suffer. The family who had supported me every step of the way. The family who fought to make sure Noemi and I had a better life than they did. I couldn’t walk away because, if I did, I’d be turning my back on them all.
“No,” I croaked out. “It’s just nerves.” I tried to smile behind the veil and spun around to face the doors.
“If you’re sure…”