The Alpha's Property

“Did Papa tell you why he chose this ring, Ale? Did he tell you the story behind it?”

I shake my head; he had just said Sal would know the message from her father and I didn’t question further.

“When Yaya (Nan) died, she left the ring to me, but Papa said it was too precious for a small girl since I might lose it. I insisted Yaya had left it to me and it was my responsibility. Within three days I had lost it, and I wailed like a banshee. I accused people of stealing it, I thought my papa had secretly taken it and hidden it away. I had every drawer out, I searched every nook and cranny trying to find the ring, but it was nowhere to be found.”

I can picture her tearing the house apart, her face red with frustration.

“I was devastated. I loved my yaya and her parting gift to me was now lost because of my pig-headedness and my aversion to trusting others. My father said there was a lesson in everything that we go through and that I should trust the people who love me to have my best interests at heart. He told me he only wanted to mind the ring for me until I was old enough and big enough to use it, and to prevent it from being misplaced. He was sure it would show up, but it didn’t.”

I bite my tongue, trying not to interrupt. Obviously it did show up again, and I’m curious to know how.

“Then in the middle of the night my dog took ill, she was writhing around in pain, and I screamed for my papa to help her, so he rushed her straight to the vet. She had to have surgery to remove the diamond and ruby platinum ring from her intestine. The silly beggar had snaffled it when I wasn’t looking. My dog was back to normal and after a good clean, the ring went back into the dusty ring box, and I happily handed it to my father for safe keeping. He said if there ever came a time when I questioned him again, the ring would show I needed to trust him.”

I hold her in my arms as silent tears roll down her cheeks. The ring reminds her of her papa’s love, and now our love is entwined in that too.

My father knocks gently on the door of the room we are sitting in. “Sorry to interrupt. You will be legally married this evening by the registrar. They took some persuading, but Matteo can be persuasive. You will then be free to arrange your own celebration but in the eyes of the legal world and the Mafia, you will have a legally binding marriage certificate to confirm you are together and intend on leading this firm together. Congratulations, son, and to you too, my new daughter-in-law.”

I kiss Sal on the head. It is hardly the romantic declaration of love I wanted to give her, but by all that is holy in this world I plan on showing her just how much she means to me and how much her love and loyalty mean to me. I will worship the very ground she walks upon from this moment on.

She is the single most important thing in my life now.