Kate

"Ow, sorry." I apologized for the millionth time as I stepped on my dance partner's foot again.

"Relax. Let him lead you." Mia lecture from the other side of the room as she danced magnificently with another man.

"I'm-" stomp "-trying, sorry. Again."

From her position lounging on an oversized sofa chair Stacey snorted. She had a small bowl of chips balanced on her stomach and while totally capable of dancing, was permitted to escape the torture of classes due to her "condition."

The condition of Pietro sticking his spawn in her of course.

The poor instructor could do nothing but take blow after blow to his foot, he knew the Genovese family and even though the four of us here were harmless he didn't dare risk upsetting us and thereby upsetting the family as a whole. Meaning he didn't dare show frustration at my completely awful and downright dangerous dancing.

"Maybe you need a new partner." Some other guy suggested and I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, because if the instructor himself can't get me halfway decent I'm sure one of his pupils could. I'm fine, I'll get it."

"Always worth a try."

I let go of the instructor and turned around only to realize it wasn't a pupil who had been speaking to me. I opened my mouth but before I could get a word out Ellie had thrown herself into my legs and knocked me over. Nash's amused face turned to concern and he jogged over. "Come on Ellie, Katie's got a wedding in two months she can't afford a broken ankle now."

"Oh my God look how big you've gotten!" I praised Ellie, totally ignoring Nash. "Look at your hair! I can't believe your dad would let you do that!" Innocent little Ellie had a streak of blue in her beautiful golden locks!

"It clips in." Nash assured me and picked Ellie up off of me. He sat her down at his side and then offered me his hand.

I let him pull me up to my feet and threw myself at him. "Holy shit!" I hugged him and then pulled away and punched his arm. "You asshole. I thought you were dead or something!"

"What?"

"You were supposed to be here like two weeks ago! You haven't called me back or texted me and you know when people randomly vanish from my life the past few years that usually means, well you know what it means!" For good measure I punched his arm again. "You scared the shít out of me!"

"Language!" He scolded and held his hands up submissively. "If I tell you we got you an amazing present do you promise not to hit me again?"

"I'm serious Nash. Don't scare me like that."

He slung an arm over my shoulder and turned to face the rest of the group.

Begrudgingly I began introductions. "This is my cousin Tera and my friend Mia, you guys know Stacey. This is Nash and his daughter Ellie."

"Is that the one Alessio is making wear a dress to the ceremony?"

"What?" Nash asked and glanced to me.

I pushed his hand off my shoulder. "Well if you would've called me back earlier I could have asked you how you felt about it but since you didn't we just had to guess on your sizes and stuff. Hope it fits."

"Don't you want your present?" Ellie said bouncing up and down with excitement.

"Shouldn't you be waiting until the actual wedding to get us something?"

"Somehow I think you'll make due without a third blender." He said and stuck his hand into is back pocket, he handed me a small jewelry box.

"Open it, open it!" Ellie said before I could respond.

I smiled and pulled the shiny silver wrapping paper off of the package. I hesitated and turned dramatically to Ellie. "Is it a new car?"

She giggled.

"I guess a car would be too big for this box...maybe a pony, a small one...could be a ring but I already have one of those..." I muttered to myself as I opened it. It was a gold necklace in the shape of the state of New York, there was a heart cut out where New York City would be.

"Home is where the heart is."

"Oh Nash it's beautiful."

He shrugged. "It's not a big deal."

I hugged him again and then Ellie.

"Now onto more important matters." He said growing more serious, he paused and waited for me to put the necklace back on before continuing. "Your dancing. Seriously."

"Oh shove it. I'm just learning."

"You're like a lion attacking a gazelle. Your instructor is the gazelle."

"Oh come on. I'm not that bad." I insisted.

"I swear, I saw claw marks."

"Hard to believe I was worried about you." I muttered as he took one of my hands and put the other on my waist. He shushed me and I rolled my eyes.

"Just let me lead. Ellie has been in dance since she was three. I've got this."

"So why doesn't she teach me?"

"After what you did to your instructor?" He said and we started moving. "I wouldn't let you near her with those lion's claws."



***



"So, when do I get to meet the mysterious girlfriend?" I asked Nash as our group made our way back up the stairs to the estate.

"Claire is so pretty." Ellie assured me, her hand attached to my own. "She cuts the crust off my sandwiches every time." She boasted and I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Wow. That is impressive. You guys must be really good friends!"

"Yeah." She continued matter-of-factly. "Most of the time. Sometimes she yells at Dad because he doesn't want to let me be a big sister."

"Oh. Wow." I glanced to Nash then back to Ellie. "Well you know I'm not a big sister either."

She sighed heavily. She was going to make a very dramatic teenager one day. We entered the house and Ellie frolicked away. "Ellie come back here. I'll introduce you guys at dinner. Ellie!" He called after here.

I chuckled and with a sigh he followed after her.

"He's not bad to look at." Mia said and dropped her gym bag beside the door. "I'm going to grab a shower before dinner."

"That doesn't sound like a terrible idea" Tera agreed.

"I have to make a run. I was supposed to pick up some samples for the napkins." I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Up until this point in my life I knew of only two kinds of napkins, the disposable, and the cloth. Tonight I would be presented with a few dozen different types of fabrics to consider.

"Mrs. Genovese." One of the workers stopped beside us, picked up Mia's bag and put it over his shoulder. "Mr. Genovese is requesting you."

"Alessio sent someone to tell me he is requesting me? You've got to be kidding me."

"No ma'am. His father."

"Oh. I was just about to-" I motioned to the door and then lowered my hand. "Lead the way I guess."

I followed him to Ugo's office, the same one Aria had wrapped herself around Alessio in. He gave me a slight nod once we were outside of it, when it became apparent that I was braving this one alone I knocked lightly on the door and he called from the other side. "Entrare."

I poked my head in first to see that he was alone first and then came in fully. He was on the phone and for some reason he reminded me so much of Alessio in this moment. The ash tray had a lit cigar smoldering away, the way even though the person on the other line couldn't see his expression he scowled deeply enough to have made my blood run cold if it was directed to me, even with his age and salt and peppered hair he had never let his body go and their posture was exactly the same. He tapped finger impatiently on the corner of his desk as he listened to the party on the other line speaking, with each tap his wedding ring knocked on the wood with an annoying round of clap. Even the way he didn't even glance at me as I walked in reminded me of Alessio and I knew immediately this was a business call.

I took a few steps backwards to the door, not wanting to impose as I knew nothing came before business but he waved me forward despite still not having looked up at me at all. I sat slowly in front of his desk awkwardly allowing him to have his conversation as privately as he could.

I couldn't understand much of what was being said. Alessio did this too, took his business calls in Italian most often. While I had finally begun to learn the language, Alessio spoke much more slowly for me when speaking to me in Italian so I could process what he was saying, Ugo did not do this. Nor was I trying to understand. I got an occasional snippet, something about beheading someone, something about money. Typical work day.

Finally with a sigh he hung up and turned his attention to me. "Katherine." He said with a curt nod.

"Hi." I forced a smile. "You, uh, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, I thought, being you are soon to be my daughter in law that we should talk." He folded his hands calmly onto his desk. "How was your lesson?"

"Good, thank you." I replied awkwardly. I could count the number of times Ugo had sat alone on one hand and none had been more awkward than this one.

"Katherine, I'm sure you've come to realize family is very important for us." I didn't reply and he didn't wait long to see if I would. "Alessio is not only my only son, but my only child as well. He is everything to his mother and I."

"Of course."

He watched me for a long time, I'm not sure why. Wearing me down? Seeing if I had more to say? Just to drive me up a wall? "I'm not getting any younger Katherine."

My mouth opened slightly. Was this going to be a conversation in which he instructed me to make him a grandfather stat? Was it not enough they had control over so much in our lives already, now they wanted to have a say over my uterus too?!

"I may look fresh and spritely, but I am becoming an older man as time goes by. Someday, I will die Katherine, and what will be left of this family? I am not sure." I still wasn't quite sure where he was going with this but he got to his point relatively quickly. "Our business needs and heir Katherine, it is of the utmost important that our family business remains in the hands of family. I'm sure you can understand this. Pietro has been quite adamant already that their son won't be taking over when the time does arise, you can see this puts me in a bit of a position Katherine."

Son? They were having a boy? I thought they were waiting to be surprised at birth?

"I want Alessio Katherine. He is my son, it has always been in the cards, it is what he wants as well. When the time comes, Alessio should rise to the position. It is only fitting."

My mouth came open, but somehow a blatant NO didn't come out.

He leaned forward in his seat. "This isn't a city Katherine, I'm not leaving him in charge of a piddly side show, this is an empire. The responsibilities are greater that that he's ever known, the power surpassing that of anyone else in this earth and I can assure you with utmost certainty, his protection will be great. There's not a more safe man in the world than myself. The risks would surely be lower than that of his role in New York. This is what was always planned Katherine, what was always meant to be. Alessio is meant to be at the top, Gia and I want nothing more than to know he is keeping the business our family had cared so much for alive."

"I don't-"

He held a hand up to stop me, not that I had any more words coming out any time soon. "You should think about it Katherine. It would mean everything to not only me, but Gia as well. She wants nothing more than to show you our lifestyle."

But it wasn't our lifestyle.

"We are family now Katherine, right? That means everything. And as family, I'm sure we will have much time in our future to come to an agreement on this matter." As in the decision was already made. Alessio was to take over the family again. But here? In Italy? And when? "I understand you have some samples to be picked up, one of my boys will drive you."

I blinked and I was in the hallway following someone to what I could only presume was the car, cursing up a storm in my mind. I should have told Ugo how I felt. I should have told him hell no. I should have told him that that was not the life we wanted. That we had bought a house, more than modest by Alessio's standards, that we had fully stepped away from this. I should have told him I didn't need time to think about it and work it though, and no matter how long I was his daughter in law these things wouldn't change. I should have told him, with all due respect their estate was beautiful, fancy, expensive, the workers were wonderful and convenient, but it was not what we wanted. It was not what we needed, that he needed to find a new heir.

But I didn't. I didn't say anything.

Actually, I'm pretty sure on my way out I had thanked him. Thanked him for fȕcks sake!

I would have to have this conversation with Alessio. The mafia, despite being what had brought us together in the first place was a deal breaker for me. I couldn't go through that again.

I looked up when we'd gotten outside. The sun was beginning the set making the area around us darker, the air was growing moist with humidity as though it may rain soon.

Had it not been for the sound it made when it hit the ground, I probably would not have ever noticed the beautiful necklace Nash and Ellie had got me slipped from my neck and hit the ground. My driver kept walks as undenounced to him I crouched down and began feeling the ground for the necklace. "Damn it." I muttered as I ran my finger tips along the ground, after a few moments I came to my knees and crawled a bit while searching.

It was one thing to lose the necklace, it was another to do so on the very day they gave it to me.

I finally located the necklace and stood up. I tried to examine it but it was too dark to determine what had caused it to come off in the first place. I tucked it into my purse and continued to the car.

I heard the car door shut as I was walking, my thoughts a complete cluster fuck. The car revved up and for a second I could hear the radio kick on and then suddenly an unimaginable sound boomed, heat swelled around me and I was thrown into the air, all too fast I came down again and hit the ground hard.

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Hi. It's me. Your author who is not dead. (: I just wanted to thank everyone who has messaged me, or commented on my profile or a chapter of the story asking how I am doing and those of you who have mustered up all your patience and stuck with us this long. It means a lot to me that so many of you have actually taken an interest in not only my work, but my actual well being. You guys are awesome. And I am in a much better place today than I was a few months ago, or even this time last year to be honest. I haven't personally responded because I feel like it would be weird to response to messages from months ago but just know I have read them, and I do appreciate them. I can't promise to have quick, or frequent, or awesome updates as my schedule is not as friendly as it was when I started the trilogy and I've been working on rewriting and polishing HWTC so I can begin submitting to agents! Plus I have two birthday parties to plan, two more to attend, a baby shower, and vacation all coming in the next month. So. Yeah lol. But I am trying!

If you're reading this, thanks for sticking around this long!