Chapter2

#Chapter2

Family-02

/"What the hell happened to you?/" I asked angrily. I was already planning how to torture whoever had done this.

/"Leo Ramono, punched me,/" he answered, looking anywhere but at me.

/"Why?/" I shouted. Matteo shushed me nodding toward Gabby’s bedroom door. I nodded and grabbed both of the boy by the arm, pulling them further down the hall. /"Why did that brutto figlio di puttana bastardo hit you?/" I yelled at him. I couldn’t stand it when people didn’t treat someone in my family with respect and the fact that Leo was Arianna’s little brother didn’t help. /"I’m telling Lucca,/" I turned to stomp away before remembering that Lucca was with our father on the docks. I wasn’t allowed there unless I was with one of them to remind the men not to even look at me. I stopped walking and turned to look back at my little brothers, /"when he gets back,/" I walked past them, walking to my room and shutting the door before Dante could ask me not to tell anyone else about Leo.

I spent an hour in my room pacing and holding myself back from storming out of my room and finding Arianna so I could give her a message for her younger brother. I pulled my phone from my pocket and called my best friend and cousin, Gia, as I flopped on my bed.

/"Hey,/" I heard her answer after a couple of rings. She sounded distracted which wasn’t like her.

/"You okay?/" I asked her as I flopped on my bed.

/"Yeah,/" she sighed, /"my father is being so stupid. He is suggesting that I marry some guy that’s coming from Italy./"

I sat up quickly, /"What?/" I shouted. /"He can't do that. Is he crazy? I will talk to my dad have him order that he let you marry who you want. I can't believe he is being so old school. What does your mom say?/" I rambled off question after question. I couldn’t believe my uncle he was usually the one with his head on right in this family.

/"I have tried everything. I pointed out that him and mom and your parents all married for love and he said this was important and that I would learn to love him,/" she growled the ending. I scoffed. This was really unbelievable. /"You haven't even heard the best parts yet. He said that your dad agreed that it was a good idea and I have to move to Italy when it's all done./"

/"You can't!/" I was off my bed now, /"there's no way you can move to Italy and leave me,/" I was pacing again. Something I did when I thought. /"I will think of something. This is crazy. Maybe Ant can think of something./" Ant was a second cousin that used to run the family in Italy but moved here after coming to help fight a little war my dad was dealing with. He gave the family over to his brother and has been helping dad with things here. He was able to talk him out of things sometimes. /"If that doesn't work, I’ll try my mom./" I said my goodbyes and hung up before dialing Ant’s number.

/"Ivy, is everything okay?/" He answered in his Italian accent that had always been very thick.

/"Yeah. I mean... kind of,/" I sighed. I knew I needed to calm down. Dad taught me that acting with feelings can lead to making situations worse. /"I want to ask you a favor./"

I heard Ant chuckle, /"what can I do for you?/"

/"Have you heard about Gia’s arranged marriage?/"

/"No, I haven't. What are you talking about?/"

/"Uncle Gio apparently set up a marriage between her and someone from Italy. Gia said Dad agrees with it!/" I nearly shouted and realized that my feelings were showing.

/"I can’t believe that your father would agree to anything like that. Not after what he went through to get your mom./"

/"That’s what I don’t understand,/" I told him.

/"I will talk with your father and see what I can find out./" I sighed in relief.

/"Thank you, I knew I could count on you,/" I told him.

/"I didn’t say I could change his mind. Just that I would talk to him,/" he said in a warning tone. Ant hated making promises. In fact, he did do it in case he couldn’t keep it. I hung up the phone after thanking him again. I turned around when I heard my bedroom door open.

/"I want to apologize,/" Lucca said with his head down. I sighed, I really hated fighting with my twin. We used to be best friends when we were little and I missed that connection we had sometimes. I knew that when it really came down to it, he would be there but sometimes I felt like others were more important to him than me. He lifted his head and took a few steps toward me, /"I know that she bothers you and I shouldn’t-/" I held up my hand to stop him.

/"It’s okay. We have bigger problems than your girlfriend,/" I sighed and sat on my bed, looking at my feet. Lucca sat next to me waiting for me to explain. /"Gia is getting married./"

/"What?/" He shot up from the bed. Gia was a little older than us but Lucca always acted like he was her big brother. She was an only child and he always felt it was his duty to protect her. /"She hasn’t even dated since that scum Dion, two years ago. How the hell is she getting married?/" He was pacing now, one of the only things we had in common.

/"Uncle Gio,/" I made a face when I said his name. I loved my uncle but wasn’t happy with him now. /"Believes that an arranged marriage is a good thing./" I watched Lucca’s face morph into shock and anger before he quickly covered it like he was taught to by our father.

/"Well, I will talk to the guy. Make sure that he treats her right,/" he shrugged. I could feel myself about to explode. I couldn’t believe he would say something like that. Before I could say anything, he held up a hand. /"Call Gia tell her that I will take you both out tonight,/" he walked to the bedroom door and put his hand on the handle before turning back to me, /"try to cover your asses this time though. I don’t need a repeat of the last time we went out./" He didn’t see me roll my eyes as he left. The last time wasn't even that bad and my dress wasn’t that short. Some guy, I think his name was Shawn, just liked the color. At least that’s what he told me to get the conversation going. I had just started making out with him when Lucca came back from dancing with Arianna and saw his hand moving close to my ass. I doubt he even took a breath before he ripped the guy from me and beat his face in. Lucca loves to play the tough scary brother.

I roll my eyes again at the thought and pull my phone out to call Gia and tell her to come over and to bring something cute for us both to wear since I hide all my fun clothes at her house, where we don’t have a snooping brother to find them and throw them away.