Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 387(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 387(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
“But she’s got a wedding to prepare for,” Stefano pointed out, and I shot him a grateful look and jumped on his words.
“Yes, I need to look for a wedding dress.” There was no way Massimo could say no to that, could he?
Apparently, he could. “We’ll have some designers come here.”
“Oh please,” I said, almost begging. Both brothers looked at me. “Please, I’ve been dreaming about picking out my wedding dress since I was five.” It wasn’t exactly true, but it wasn’t really a lie, either. I’d known since that age that my purpose in life was to marry a man of my father’s choosing, so surely the thought of a wedding dress had crossed my mind at some point. “And you have such wonderful stores here. I’ve heard about the ones on the Michigan Mile.”
Stefano chuckled. “You mean the Miracle Mile. Or Michigan Avenue.”
“Yes, those.” Under the table, I crossed my fingers as I looked at Massimo. “Please?”
He squared his shoulders and tore into a piece of toast. Finally, he nodded. “I’ll speak to Carmine.”
Relief poured through me, even though I didn’t know what Carmine had to do with it. “Thank you.”
He nodded and swiped on his phone screen. He had a phone of course. So did Stefano and probably every single person in the house. But not me.
Still, if he’d allow me out to look at wedding dresses, then I’d at least get to see some parts of Chicago. And hopefully, Lake Michigan. At the very least, I’d get to breathe in some fresh air that wasn’t as old and stuffy as the furniture around here.
“Thank you,” I said again, but Massimo ignored me. Stefano, however, caught my eye and gave me a smile.
He was definitely my favorite future brother-in-law.
After breakfast, and after I saw Massimo stride out the front door to a waiting car, I took advantage of Stefano’s invitation to explore the house. I steered clear of closed doors, not wanting to intrude on anyone’s private space, but there was still lots to explore.
There were ample guest bedrooms filled with ornate furniture. Though I probably wasn’t the best judge, it all looked like top-quality stuff to me. But everything was dark, massive, and old. Unlike my house, where we’d eventually run out of money for updates, around here it seemed like the Morettis had bought the best forty or fifty years ago and hadn’t felt the need to change.
Still, there were some beautiful things. Vases, chandeliers, furniture that looked like it belonged in a museum. I was sure that if I had access to the internet, I’d find the furniture to be from top designers.
As I poked around a room with high ceilings that seemed to be a combination of office and library, I wished I had internet access for other reasons, too. I’d used it occasionally, but always under the watchful eye of my mother or a tutor. If I had it now, I could learn more about my new city. Probably not more about my fiancé’s family, though. Even I knew that wasn’t the kind of thing you should look up online.
A stack of books on the corner of a desk were all hardcovers. I skimmed through them—the most recent one had been published twenty-five years ago. But you’d think with things that old they’d be dusty or in bad shape, but that wasn’t the case. The room was clean and orderly, though the air had a slightly stale scent to it. I figured that was more because of lack of use rather than any kind of dirt or mildew.
There was a mirror between tall bookcases, and I paused, looking in it. My tan skin looked sallow, and there were slight shadows under my eyes. So much for impressing my new husband. Wearing a pretty dress didn’t help if I looked like I was in The Walking Dead. Still, my hair at least looked shiny, and it retained some of the waves from yesterday.
Squinting in the mirror, making faces at myself, I inexplicably thought of someone else with curly hair. I could picture her now: tall, blonde, and gorgeous. I’d only met Piper in person once, but she was everything I wasn’t. Confident. Assertive. And somehow poised, too.
She was a nurse and didn’t take bull from anyone. Our one meeting had made quite the impression. I wished I had a way to keep in touch with her. I’d managed to get hold of her to tell her about my arranged marriage, but I hadn’t spoken with her since.
Glumly, I went on to explore the next room. It was just so frustrating at times. Young women were supposed to have friends. They were supposed to have at least some freedoms.
But I never had, and it was beginning to look like I never would.
At the end of a hallway, a door was open just a crack, but I could see a glow coming from inside. Curiously, I paused at the door. It took me a moment to identify the soft tapping sound, and then I realized that someone was using a computer. Maybe it was a staff member and they’d let me use it to email Piper? I did have an email account—a secret one my parents didn’t know about, but I didn’t get a chance to use it much.