The Italian Don's Captive Bride

Chapter No. 14

Cassandra Petrova:-

"Good morning, my beautiful fiancé," Eliseo murmurs as he comes from behind and kisses my cheek when I was alone having breakfast on the dining table. "Having breakfast without your husband-to-be, I see. I feel hurt now, Cara Mia."

"I waited, but you were nowhere to be found. I asked the staff; they said you didn't leave the mansion. It's strange. You didn't leave the mansion, and yet you couldn't be found anywhere in the mansion." I coldly spoke as I took a sip of my coffee. "Is there a secret passage I should know about here, or maybe you were in that forbidden corridor?"

"I know you are a curious and intelligent little kitty, but you aren't getting anything out of me until you are Mrs. Cassandra Leone instead of Cassandra Petrova. My enemy's daughter," he said in a straight tone, as he sat in the head chair of the table beside me while the staff served him breakfast on his plate.

"Then out of all women, why did you f*****g chose the enemy's daughter to be your bride?" I snapped. "I didn't ask you to choose me. Trust me, you would have been my last choice."

He ignored my question, instead sliced on his omlette and focused on eating. I placed my coffee cup down and wrapped my arms around my chest as I glared at him. How dare he ignore me?

"Don't you dare ignore me, Eliseo Leone. I am Cassandra Petrova. I don't like to be avoided or ignored. So, you better answer my f*****g question before I stab this butter knife in your eyes and pop them out." I threatened, but he chuckled in response and kept eating his breakfast unbothered.

"I want to see you try, my little devil." He winks, and continued, this time staring at me with his blue eyes. "Enough of this talk. Stop wasting your energy and breath on something you will not get the answers to. Instead, why don't you focus on choosing your bridal gown and start preparing for the wedding that is going to be in 48 hours."

"I am not choosing a shit." I snapped, angrily throwing the utensils on the table, and stood up.

Eliseo didn’t even flinch. As usual, he sipped at his espresso, blinking wearily back up at me.

"That wasn’t a request, Cassandra," he said in a slow voice, brushing his mouth with a linen napkin and putting it on the table. It wasn’t a suggestion or a choice. "

He was now standing as well, looming in that dark tailored suit like the mafia king he was. His voice dropped in an almost threatening tone like poison.

"It was an order."

I looked at him, balls of fists by my sides. “You can threaten me as much as you want, Eliseo, but I don’t serve like a brainless trophy”.

He smirked, moving around the table until he was standing just inches from me. His hand extended, and with terrifying gentleness, he transferred a hair strand behind my ear.

"You’ll learn to," he murmured. “Eventually. Or the consequences will be your lessons, better than my commandments ever could.

I slapped his hand away. He didn’t react. Instead, his hands went into his pockets, turning around again back towards the table like he was bored already.

“Oh,, and one last thing,” he said quite casually. “I am going out, and by the time I return in the evening, I want you dressed as I’ve asked your family for dinner tonight.

I froze.

"What?" My voice was a whisper, marginalized.

“You heard me.” He looked at me over the back of his head. “The great Petrovs will be eating together with the Leones under one roof. Isn’t that what you ever desired? Peace. Unity. A family dinner.”

"You’re insane." I drew my breath, my heart thumping in my chest. Do you truly believe that they will make an appearance?

He showed me a devilish grin. “They’ve already accepted. I offered them an offer they couldn’t refuse.

My stomach twisted. If indeed he had succeeded in bringing my family here, to this mansion… I had no idea if I should be afraid, terrified, or enraged.

“And Cassandra?” he said, leaving. “Wear red. You’ll want to appear like a fire when you occupy the seat at the table between blood and betrayal.

“Eliseo”, I called after him, my tone sharper now: a tone that held something I could not define, maybe: was it fear? Panic? Fury?

He stopped by the archway without looking back.

“Cancel it.”

That made him turn. Slowly.

“Cancel what exactly, my love?” he inquired, as though he did not know that.

I snarled, “The dinner,” and advanced. “You need to cancel it. Right now. Before it’s too late.”

His head tilted. “Too late for what?”

"For blood." I snapped. "You think that you are being shrewd, bringing the Petrovs into the lion’s den. You think you’ll win some power play, or intimidate them by seating them at your table. But what you are effectively doing is setting up a goddamn bloodbath. Do you really believe that your family and mine can sit in one room and not want to tear each other’s throats?"

He didn’t answer right away. He just looked at me with unreadable eyes.

"I don’t want to see my father dead,” I added as a voice of sobbing. Or my brother… or any other individual for that matter. I’ve lost enough already. If this is a game to you—some twisted display of power—it’s not worth the trouble. Cancel the dinner, Eliseo."

He was quiet for a long time, his jaw ticking, looking at me.

Finally, he turned around to face me, moving slower this time and stopping just inches away. He spoke in a low tone.

"I’m not declaring war, Cassandra. Not tonight. I’m giving them one chance. One. To realize what they will be gaining once you become a Leone. And if they play neat… we might leave that table with more than just bloodlust."

“And if they don’t?” I asked bitterly.

"Then at least we’ll all stop pretending that peace is possible."

“Eliseo…” I whispered, voice shaking. “Please.”

He caressed my cheek, softly this time, breathed words like a promise with warnings.

“Be ready. Seven sharp. Red dress. And Cassandra?”

I lifted my eyes to him, filled with dread, scraping in the back of my throat.

“In case anyone bleeds tonight…it won’t be you.”

"Because it will be you." I snapped pushing his hand away, "You don't know what you have just done by inviting my family over here. I swear it any of my family member gets even a single scratch, I will show all of the Leones and your men why I am feared and called a deadly assassin. I am warning you for the last time, Eliseo, Stop this right now or things will become bloody."

"Then I can't wait to see my future wife getting into action because it won't give me any chills but a raging hard on and another reason to be inside of you and make you my wife," he murmurs huskily as he leaned closer to peck my lips. "Dinner is happening, Cara Mia, whether you like it or not."