Til Death Do Us Part

@ FallenHope95

"Lia." Luca said softly, allowing her name to sit in his mouth for a moment. He suppose that wasn't the worst name. It was short, quick and to the point. Plus it easy to remember and that was the important thing right now. There was no denying his father this girl as his bride. The man knew that he had pushed it a bit too far. Though none of them felt right for what he was about to do. Even something was off about this girl as well but he was just going to have to let it go.

The man was quiet for a moment before turning to his father and giving him a nod. He would be able to take it from here. So there was no need for the man to be hovering over them as they tried to get to know each other. It would be important for Luca to give out some information about his bride once they were back in her homeland.

The boss nodded before leaving the room to let them be. Once the door was shut behind them, Luca turned back to Lia before standing up and heading over to the bar. "Do you want anything to drink, Lia?" The man asked as he grabbed one of the bottles of liquor from a cupboard.

As he poured himself a drink, the man continued to speak. "Tell me about yourself Lia. I know that you are 18 and from France but not much else. Are you going to university? What is your family like? Your friends?" As much as a conversation like this would normally bore the man, it was now important that he kept track of the information that Lia gave him. That and figure out how to keep an eye on her. He wondered if she would try to fight this once they got back to France.

@ BearGirl
Being left alone with Luca kinda nerved Aelia. She didn't know him, hell, she didn't know the older man either. Although, Lia did feel safer in his presence than with Luca. As he just looked at her when she was tied up like a lamb and then walked off like she was nothing. This guy's a lot more unpredictable than the older man it seemed.

"I could go for a drink," Lia said quietly as she watched Luca as he stood and went to go back drinks. He was tall and looked well built, she definitely didn't want to be on his bad side. Shifting in her chair so that she was leaning against one of the arms, Lia brought her legs up and folded them to the side as she got comfortable in her seat. She was still nervous as hell, but, she was going to be forced to marry this guy tomorrow, so she needed to try and relax around him.

Key word, try.

Slowly, Aelia arched an eyebrow as she listened to the questions that were being thrown at her. It was almost like she was being interviewed for a job. "Well, I'm going to be starting school this fall. I haven't decided on what I want to do though, so I thought I'd just focus on some pre-rec's." She told him. "I live with my grandparents and have a few close friends who are dorks and are fun to just hang out with."

"What about you?" Aelia asked once she finished talking about herself. "How old are you? How'd you get into this-" Lia paused, not sure how to word her question. "Life?" Her head tilted slightly, a look of worry on her face as she wasn't sure if she'd crossed a line for prying or not. "Are you going to college or anything?"

Nodding, Luca poured Lia a drink as well before he headed back over to her and set the glass down in front of the woman. He moved back to the couch across from her sitting down as he started to nurse his drink. Right now, the man wasn't overly interested in getting himself drunk. After all, he needed to listen to what Lia was saying. Listen and burn it into his head. 

"I am 22, so a few years older than you," Luca responded to her, making a mental note to figure out who her friends were. He was going to have to keep close tabs on Lia. Perhaps he would need to bug her...maybe a GPS tracker as well? These were things that he would need to think through before they left. 

"I already graduated from college. I have a dual degree in business and finance. It was important that I learned how to run things. As for my life I was born into it. But I survived because I knew what I was doing and I'm not an imbecille." The man knew that he would be a good leader once he got his piece going. It was just going to take some time. He would definitely know how to run things behind the scenes. Now Luca needed to work out how to get loyal members and squeeze their way into the system in France.

Picking up the room binder, Luca set it down on the coffee table and slid it over to her. "We can order dinner if you are hungry." The man set his drink down as he let out a small hum. So far, Lia was being good. There was no yelling, no crying, no begging. Though Luca was not sure if that was for the better or for the worse. Before he really got anything set up, she would need to be under control. "Did they tell you how to survive before bringing you to me?"

1. imbecile

@ BearGirl
A look of surprise appeared on Aelia's face as she listened to Luca. She did not see this guy as someone who'd go to school, much less have double degrees. In two of the hardest fields in her opinion. Business and financial both dealt with a lot of money and words that she didn't really understand. She'd much rather work with animals or medicine of some kind.

Slowly, Lia raised her glass to her lips and took a small sip of the drink that Luca had prepared for her. She couldn't help but to wince at the harsh burning taste and feeling as she quickly swallowed and tried to act as calm as she could as she set the drink onto the coffee table.

"Your parents must be proud that you're in the same...trade... as them." Lia chose her wording carefully once more as she slowly grabbed the binder and opened it. Her eyes widening a little as she noticed the prices of the food and then glanced towards the names of things. Half of the stuff she couldn't even pronounce. "I think I'll just get a small salad." She mumbled shyly. Her cheeks were a little pink from embarrassment. Slowly, things were ticking away, piece by piece Lia was feeling more and more overwhelmed. She did her best though to keep calm.

Closing the book, Lia slid it back towards Luca and sat up in her seat. "How to survive?" Lia repeated, her lips moving into a frown before she slowly shook her head no. "No, that older man, Nicola, didn't tell me anything but that I'm supposed to marry you or that you guys were going to kill me and everyone I care about." The remainder of what was going on sent a small shiver of fear down Lia's spine. She was terrified, and just wanted to go for a walk to forget about everything.

"Why? Do I have to learn to be a killer or something?" She asked, hating the idea of hurting people.

@ FallenHope95
An eyebrow was raised at Lia as she mentioned that his parents must be proud of him. It was an interesting sentence to come from a woman that, Luca was rather sure, did not approve. Why would she? As far as he knew, Lia was just a normal citizen from France, not some criminal or part of a gang. It was unlikely that she even knew any gang members. Unless she was one of those women who fantasized being with someone like him...Now that was possible. 

Reaching over, Luca took the hotel phone and called down to the front desk, ordering them both something to eat before hanging up. He had been hungry as well. As to why Lia wanted a small salad after not eating for quite some time was beyond him, but he didn't care enough to stop her. 

Luca turned back to the woman, listening to her word before a chuckle came from him. He almost couldn't stop the full-on laugh that was bubbling under the surface. "A killer? No." The man said, pure amusement in his voice. There was no way Luca would try to train her to do anything of the sort. She seemed like the type of person it would take forever to convince to do it. The amount of work that he would have to do wasn't worth gain. 

"I think you have the wrong idea of what I am talking about, fiancee," Luca said, his eyes turning hard again. "To be honest, dear. I don't and won't care about you. I don't care about your life, your friends, your family or what you will be up to. The positive thing for you here is that I am going to let you do whatever you want for the most part. Though, here's the kicker. If I find out that you tried to betray me, or blow up this lie or even tell someone one little thing about me, I will destroy you. You will see no mercy from me. Your life, your friends, your family. All of it can be gone in a moment. So, if you want to get through this marriage, if you want to survive, you better do what I tell you to."

@ BearGirl
It seemed like everything was going alright. Things between them felt light, and Aelia felt like maybe, just maybe, things weren't going to be as scary as she thought. Maybe she'd be able to pull through this sort of thing without any sort of incident. Maybe, Luca wasn't as scary of a guy like the rest of the group. After all, he was laughing. Given it was at her expense, but still. He seemed, to want to keep their playful sort of conversation going.

Of course, though, it seemed to have gone from good to bad in an instant. An with a snap of his fingers, Luca was able to remind Lia of what was going on. Her smile that was slowly coming out of the shadows quickly slid back in, allowing for her frown to show it's ugly head once more. She was a slave, a captive, whatever term someone would want to use when they hear this arrangement. Lia was stuck with a man who could kill her and her family without blinking an eye. He was not someone she'd want to mess with, and shouldn't.

"Yes sir," Lia mumbled quietly, shifting her gaze down towards the cream colored plush chair she was sitting on. No longer feeling comfortable looking at the man who was sitting across from her. Instead, she slowly started to pick the little fluffs that were on the chair. A little habit of hers when she was trying to not let her emotions show. She couldn't burst into tears, not here. Not in front of Luca, she was already weak compared to him, she didn't need him commenting on anything else.

After a couple of moments, Lia slowly glanced up towards Luca. Then just looked down at her drink as she grabbed it and took a few tentative sips from it. Wincing each time the burning liquid hit her throat. "Do you." Lia paused as she stared at the drink that she had lowered to her lap. "Have, rules or something you want me to follow?" She felt like a complete idiot for asking something like that. Like this was some stupid game that she was playing. She regretted asking that question., as she really didn't want the answer.

@ FallenHope95
"I will have rules but not yet," Luca told her honestly. He knew that there would need to be some rules set into place for their safety. Though, he did not have an idea on what those should be yet. There were the obvious ones, but he needed to think through it more than just telling her not to rat him out.

As he took another sip out of his drink, there was a knock on the door. Standing up, Luca headed over and let one of their guards in to place their meals on the coffee table in front of them. Once they had left, Luca closed the door behind them and headed back to his spot. 

While walking past Lia, the man hesitated before stopping in his tracks. In truth, Luca wasn't interested in making the young woman fearful for the next few years. He knew he needed to make his stance clear on snitches, but he would prefer something a bit more calm. So, Luca gently laid a hand onto her head, trying to reassure her. 

"I will figure out a way to make this arrangement beneficial to both of us. I think it would be best if we both get something out of it, don't you agree?" Luca asked. He waited for a moment before dropping his hand from her head and going back to his chair. "If there are consequences to you betraying me, then there should be benefits to you keeping quiet."

The man leaned back into his chair and took another sip of his drink before motioning to Lia to go ahead and start eating. 

@ BearGirl
The world seemed to slow down as Lia watched the small bubbles in her glass pop. The ice cubes clacking as they slowly melted and shifted in the glass each time she slightly tilted it. Whatever it was that Luca had made her, it was strong, yet it didn't seem to be helping her nerves. She still felt so on edge that she felt like she was going to explode with anxiety.

Being so enchanted with her drink and her thoughts, Lia hadn't even realized that their food had arrived. At least, not until Luca set his hand on her head. Blinking from her thoughts, Lia took in the still rather large salad that she'd requested before looking up towards Luca as he spoke to her. His words sounded quite good. She'd love to get something out of this since she was signing her life away to protect her family, but. Just knowing that they'd be alive another day was good enough for her.

"Right," Aelia said quietly, not sure what Luca wanted as a reply from her. She wasn't in the business of making deals or negotiations, so, she was just saying what sounded right at the moment.

Reaching out, Lia grabbed her salad and her fork before she leaned back slightly in her seat. The salad was still rather large and was sure to be light. Yet, her stomach turned as she slowly stirred it around and munched on it. She had only managed a few bites before she looked up at Luca quietly. "Are we, just filing papers for this, marriage thing tomorrow? Or, is there suppose to be an actual party?" She asked, not sure what to expect tomorrow as this isn't exactly a normal set up for marriage. She didn't have a dress, nor did she have a ring to wear. Were these guys going to pick things out for her? Was she just going to get a ring from Luca and sign papers at a courthouse? She wasn't sure, and that kinda freaked her out as well.

Growing up, Lia dreamed of wearing a white wedding dress. Getting married on a beach or in the woods or something. Flowers in her hair, and lots of pictures being taken that she could put in one of her scrapbooks. She was excited to marry a man she could call her best friend, but. Now things were all changing and she got herself into something she never dreamed of. Mafia's were real. Danger seemed to be surrounding her minute after minute that she's around Luca. Somehow, she needs to survive this.

@ FallenHope95

"We will be getting married in the courthouse without a priest or anything like that. Just something simple and quiet." There was no reason to have a big party or to get married under a church or even spend much money on this wedding. This was a temporary marriage and one that Luca wanted to quick get over with so they could move on. Though, there were a few things that needed to be taken cared of before the wedding tomorrow. Things that he would not participate in, however.

Luca glanced down at his food and started to eat as well. He was hungry. Though, after this, he was going to disappear and someone else would be in charge of Lia for the meantime. Until they left for France, she was going to be under strict guarding as it was going to be hard to trust her. Not that going to France would change that but then she would solely be Luca's responsibility.

After about half of his meal was done, the man looked over at the woman across from him. He wondered if there was more that he should be doing to cultivate an understanding or relationship with her. There marriage wouldn't matter that much, right? As long as she kept quiet, what else would the rest of it matter?

The man wasn't sure but he didn't want to end up fucking himself over because of some girl. "Is there something that you want at the wedding tomorrow?" He asked, his voice now softening a bit.

@ BearGirl
Yup, it seemed that Aelia's dreams of a beautiful wedding were over. As those words left his mouth, no priest, court house. Ugh, nothing romantic in the least bit. Not any young girls dreams, at least none that Aelia knew back home in the country side. Weddings were sacred things in her family, but, it was looking like things weren't going to be in her favor at all.

Unless a small idea was popping in Aelia's mind as she nibbled on her not very filling dinner. Her bottom lip popped in between her teeth as she gently nibbled on it. Maybe, she could get her dreams to come true another way. She didn't need everything on her wishlist to be happy, and Luca needed them to seem like they really were a real couple.

"Well." Lia started, quietly, still feeling a little bit shy as she set her empty plate on the table and looked towards Luca. "You guys want us to seem like a real couple, so I want a few things." She mentally kicked herself for the wording, but she decided to keep running with it. "Most couples have pictures of their wedding in their house so when friends come over, they can see them and relive the memory. I want a wedding photo of us, and I want a wedding dress. Doesn't have to be fancy, but I'll need to find a white dress that could be a wedding dress as well as a casual dress."

A sense of pride washed over Aelia as she came out of her shell and demanded something like that from a mafia guy. He was sure to think of her as being an idiot for wanting something like that, but, hey. She couldn't help but to want to ask for a few things. "Afterall, your not the only one who has people they need to fool now. My friends and family will be asking me for pictures and about you. I need some proof that we got married. Oh, a ring. We need rings, married people wear rings."

The more Aelia allowed for herself to blabber, the more she started to feel like a little school girl again. Talking about all of these things that she's always dreamed of having.

@ FallenHope95
Luca was quiet as he listened to Lia list off the things she wanted at the wedding tomorrow. This was not what he had been expecting. It seemed to him that the woman wouldn't ask for much if anything at all. Though that clearly was not the case. She had desires for a wedding that she probably didn't want, and more than that, she had multiple things she wanted. Fuck, Luca regretted asking. He could care less about the ceremony as long as no priest was involved. 

"Well, you can speak to the women planning the wedding tomorrow when they come by to pick you up soon. I know they have some plans of their own, but they would be willing to listen to what you want." Luca then gave her a bit of a shrug. He didn't actually know if that was true. These women were married to other members of their mafia. It would be impossible for Lia to push them around. In fact, it would probably be hard for her to get a word in but that wasn't his problem. 

Looking down at his watch, Luca continued on. "They should be here in a couple of minutes, actually." He glanced down at his food, taking another bite. Though before he could get another one in, there was knocking on the door. 

"Luca! Siamo qui per prendere la tua sposa!" A woman's voice came from the other side, followed by some laughing, from what sounded like a group. Luca told them to come in and soon, four women were walking in. They all came up to Luca and Lia. The eldest woman, who seemed to be in her late 60s turned to Luca and spoke. "È lei?"

Luca stood up to face the woman, a slight smile of amusement on his face. "Si." The woman gave him a nod before turning to the rest of the woman, including Lia. The other women, two around their 40s and early 50s, and the youngest around 30 motioned for Lia to follow them. "Come, girl, we must get you ready for tomorrow."

1: We are here to pick up your bride!

2: Is this her?

@ BearGirl
What Lia was expecting from Luca, was for him to tell her to shut up and that none of that was going to happen. No rings, no pictures, not even a flower for her to have to celebrate her wedding day. Even though it was forced, she did want something happy to happen. A girl could dream, right?

Which was why a look of pure confusion appeared on her face when he spoke of the girls planning it. "What?" She asked, surprised and not quite sure she had even heard him correctly. Relaxing back in her seat a bit, Lia contemplated who'd be planning the wedding. Who would be willing to get into a mafia family's affairs? Well, besides Lia, but she didn't count because she was being forced to marry.

When the knock on the door came, Lia looked warily at Luca before turning her head towards the door. As the women came in, the appearance of them sent a sense of dread down Lia's spine. These women were all tall and gorgeous. With their long legs and slender builds, they all appeared to be supermodels to her.

Then, as one of the girls looked towards her, Lia couldn't help but to sit up straight and suck in a deep breath. Her eyes looked at the dark haired woman who seemed to be studying her before looking towards the one who seemed to be in charge of the girl group. "O-okay." She said quietly, glancing towards Luca warily to make sure it was okay with him to go before standing up.

As the group of girls started to walk towards the door, Lia followed behind for a few steps before the one who was staring at her, grabbed her arm to pull her up next to her. "Ah, la sua pelle è così morbida! Lei ha degli occhi così belli!" She said as she glanced towards the other girls in the group. Then, a small frown appeared on her lips as she raised Lia's hand and looked at her nails. "Le sue unghie sembrano poterle aiutare." The sigh that followed the woman's words caused Lia to frown as she watched the woman holding her hand. She had no idea what she was saying to the group, but she had a feeling it wasn't all nice things.

1. Ah, her skins so soft! An she's got such pretty eyes!
2. Her nails look like they could use some help though.

The woman looked Lia up and down again. Though, it was not long before one of the woman piped up again, having a thought. "Forse dovremmo fermarci al centro benessere? Sarebbero in grado di dare una mano con tutto ... guarda."

"La spa è l'ultima cosa di cui dobbiamo preoccuparci per le donne. Abbiamo un matrimonio da pianificare e in meno di 24 ore. Ottieni i tuoi atti insieme." The eldest woman snapped at the younger ones before shaking her head in a disapproving manner. The blonde woman, who seemed closest to her age sneered about but the other two immediately stopped what they were doing and nodding. "Sì madrina" The younger woman said.

The blonde haired woman turned to Lia and began to speak directly to her. "My name is Juliet," She then pointed to the youngest woman, "This is Sofia." She moved onto the woman closest to her age, "Maria." Juliet then turned to the eldest woman. "And this is Gaia." The woman gave her a bit of a nod, showing respect before turning back to Lia. "We are here to help you plan your wedding. It is tomorrow so we don't have a lot of time but we will still make sure that is is fantastic."

Maria looked Lia up and down for a moment before letting out a hum. "And we will go to the spa - if we have time to do so." She casted a look towards Gaia, who then gave a small nod in agreement. Maria then continued on. "First, we will go shopping. We need to get wedding rings and a dress. The venue is already chosen and so is the officiant so there is no need to worry about that. And we can't spend too much time at the mall either so it is important that you choose quickly."

Sofia smiled at her, gently taking her arm as they headed down to the lobby and towards the limo at the entrance of the hotel. "We will still find something gorgeous for you to wear though, so don't worry." She let out a small giggle.

As they got to the limo, the driver opened up the door for the ladies to let them in. Though after they slid inside, two bodyguards slid into the limo after them. Though, their heads turned, looking out of the window instead of joining into the conversation.

1. Perhaps we should stop by the spa? They would be able to help out with her whole...look.
2. The spa is the last thing we need to worry about ladies. We have a wedding to plan and in less than 24 hours. Get your acts together.
3. Yes, Godmother

@ BearGirl
It was starting to feel like these women were leaving Lia out on purpose as they spoke in Italian to each other. She had no idea what they were saying, but each time they looked at her, she got the hint it was about her. Right about now, she was really starting to regret not studying more Italian before she came to Italy for her small vacation. She felt like she was missing out on a lot, not just of what these women were saying, but of everything. The culture, the food on menu's, and it certainly would have helped had she gotten lost and needed directions. There was only so much she could use her phone for.

"A venue's already been decided?" Aelia asked once the introductions were out of the way. These women didn't seem as scary as the guys who dragged her into this mess. So asking them questions seemed a little bit easier. Even though, the grip that Sophia had on her arm was a reminder that she was still a prisoner in this arrangement.

As they walked back down into the lobby of the hotel, Lia took this chance to quickly glance around. The place was gorgeous, silk curtains on the windows, fine furniture lined the resting area in the lobby. Not to mention the beautiful waterfall that was built into the wall on the right side. This place was amazing, and Lia would have loved to be able to just wonder the lavish hotel had she had time.

Walking outside, Aelia couldn't help but let out a small, "Oh.." of surprise as she saw that they'd be taking a limo. She had never been in a limo, not even for the Senior Prom in high school. So, as she slid into the fancy car, Lia couldn't help but let her bright green eyes look around in awe. She briefly wondered if the woman she was surrounded by rode in limo's often or not.

The bodyguards that followed them into the car caused the breath to hitch in Lia's lungs. She had four women watching her every move as they helped plan this sham of a wedding. Now, she had two extra people to watch over them? How paranoid could a Mafia person be? Okay, that's probably a stupid question, but isn't it a little excessive for her to be surrounded by six other people? Probably not to them.

As the limo drove along the wealthier side of Italy, Lia couldn't help but keep her gaze on the windows. Everything outside looked beautiful. The buildings, the landscape. It all looked like places that were taken out of magazines or paintings. It was all just so breathtaking. Then, as they pulled into the mall area, Aelia couldn't help but gulp. It looked larger than any mall she'd been to at home, but that's not really saying anything like the one at home only had about six stores in it and it was an outdoor mall.

"Where are we going to go first?" Lia asked the woman as she followed them out of the limo.

@ FallenHope95

"Yes it has been, thank goodness." Juliet said with a bit of a sigh. "The men wanted to have a Massina wedding at the courthouse can you believe that?" She shook her head a bit as one of the other woman, Maria spoke up.

"It is a good thing that we heard about it when we did. Now we took over to ensure that this wedding is up to standards. We can't let the men ruin this family's reputation just because of the circumstances of this wedding." All of the woman agreed with her and Gaia spoke. "We will get this done correctly. They do not understand the importance of this. So, it is our duty, for the family, to take over in areas that they lack."

The woman seemed pleased with Gaia's words, now leaving the mess alone. Once the limo stopped, they headed out and made their way into a boutique wedding dress shop. The guards followed suit, though once they arrived at the door, one guard stopped in front of it and the other headed inside.

The dress shopped seem to be closed. There was a sign on the door that said *closed until 3pm* and the shop seemed abandoned as well. However, two dress consultants came out from hearing the door open. Large smiles across their faces as they headed up to the woman. The one in charge took a look at Lia before deciding to speak in English. "Welcome to the store, ladies. We are very excited to have you. Please, follow me."

With that, the consultants headed over to an area with large circular couches and a small podium and three mirrors in front of it for the bride to stand. Behind the couches was snacks, water and champagne for the woman. "Please, sit ladies. We have champagne, desserts and other delicacies for you. My assistant and I have spent some time pulling some dresses that fit into what we discussed on the phone. I also know that you need this dress done by tomorrow morning so I have two seamstress here to take the dress once one is picked. Have you ladies thought of anything else or shall we start the fitting now?"

@ BearGirl
It really surprised Aelia that these women seemed so confident in themselves. That they weren't intimidated in the least bit of what these guys were into. The dangerous things they all have their fingers dipped into. Aelia really had to hand it to these woman for sicking up for what they wanted, but. What Lia wanted to know was. What was the Messina's reputation?

It seemed like Aelia didn't have time to ask though because as soon as the words started to form in her mind, they arrived. Being ushered out of the limo and into this fancy shop, Lia felt like things were all happening so fast. Glancing around quickly, taking the whole place in. Lia started to feel like she was on that show, Bridezilla or one of the other shows where the dresses were way more than she's ever seen in her bank account.

Glancing towards the sales consultant, Aelia felt a sense of relief wash over her as the woman spoke in English. It was a nice change from not being able to understand what was being said in front of her. "I still feel like something with sparkles would be a nice change up." Juliet piped up as she and the other woman who was with Aelia moved to sit along with the couches, some getting some champagne while they saw the dressed.

"Ugh, we already agreed. No sparkles, right?" Sophia asked, looking towards the other woman to see if they'd back her up. All the while, Lia couldn't help but to frown slightly and shake her head. "No sparkles please." She mumbled quietly, which earned a small smile from one of the sales consultants.

Once it was decided that nothing more needed to be said, the sale women led Lia into the dressing area so that she could try on some of the dresses. There were some that were long and flowed like a Princess gown, some were A-lines that didn't fit Lia's figure in the least bit. The mermaid ones made Lia seem shorter then what she already was, so they decided to stay away from them altogether.

It was starting to seem like they wouldn't find anything that'd fit for Aelia, a dress caught her eye out of the corner of her eye. "What about that one?" Lia asked the women, then pointed towards the one that was on a chair in the corner of the dressing room. "Oh that, it was a return." One of the sales consultants said as she picked up the dress and showed it to Lia. "The length was to short when the designer made it and we're waiting for the replacement." The lady explained and was about to put the dress away before Lia quickly spoke up. "Can I try it on?" She asked, which seemed to surprise the women who were helping her with the dressed.

The women agreed to allow Lia to try on the dress and as soon as she stepped out and looked in the mirror. Aelia's eye lit up. It was perfect, it was what she always dreamed of. "Wow." She breathed out, looking at the short dress and turning a little bit to get a good look at it. "This is beautiful," she mumbled for the first time of the dresses she's been trying on.

"What if add this?" One of the sales consultants asked as she brought over some silver heels to go with the dress and a beautiful hair piece to add some color. "Woah," Lia mumbled, her eyes widening as she looked at how beautiful everything was.

@ FallenHope95
A frown came over Maria's face as Aelia came out in a short white dress. The woman leaned back into the couch and shook her head a bit. "It is much too short. That is not a wedding dress, that is a reception dress or maybe even for brunch."

Juliett looked a little uncertain before leaning forward and speaking. "I think it is actually quite beautiful." Those words received Juliett a sharp glare from Maria. Who brought her head down and leaned back into the couch, deciding it was best to keep her mouth shut. She understood how this worked. She was the youngest, and the others had been part of the mafia for much longer than she.

Sofia turned to Maria, raising an eyebrow at her before continuing. "It may not be the perfect wedding dress but she does look beautiful in it. This is the only dress all day that Aelia has liked. I don't see why she can't pick that one."

Before Maria had the chance to argue, Gaia raised a hand to stop her. The woman turned her attention to the saleswoman. "Could your seamstress get this done by the morning?" The woman immediately agreed. "Yes, of course."

"Then this is the dress. Please bring some veils out for her to pick some and then we must be on our way." The woman nodded before heading off to get the veil options. She came back barely a minute later with many different types that she thought would work well with the dress. "Pick one quickly, Aelia. We still need to plan the rest of the wedding."

@ BearGirl
All of the back and forth with the women that she barely knew was starting to give Lia a headache. They had an opinion over everything it seemed. Rather they liked something or not. If they wanted to know who designed it, if it was in fashion, one of the women, Lia didn't know who because she was changing, asked how many of the dress had been sold. Then going on that a Massina didn't wear over sold clothing.

Massina, the family name. Aelia's soon to be the last name. It was all slowly starting to sink in for Lia. She was getting married. To a man, she didn't even know. To a man who was in a mafia. A man who probably has killed more people then he could count. Someone that she's never in her wildest dreams dreamed about. This was all just becoming too much.

Raising her right hand, Aelia rubbed the inside of her eyes tiredly. She was developing a headache from all of this. How the hell was she going to break the news that she got married on her vacation before college to her grandparents? They were bound to flip! Especially her grandfather, he was so old fashioned, wanting the guy to come to him for approval for her hand in marriage.

Snapping from her thoughts by Gaia's voice, Aelia looked towards the veils that were being brought out for her to choose from. Lowering her hand, Aelia glanced at the veils that she was being presented with before spotting one that caught her attention almost right away. "How about that one?" She asked, pointing out the one that looked kinda like a tiara. It was simple and cute, and just want Aelia wanted for her wedding.

@ FallenHope95

A nod of approval was all it took for the saleswoman to take that specific tiara. "Lovely. I will get this rung up for you ladies and then you can be on your way. And everything will be ready for pick up tomorrow morning." After that, the saleswoman headed off to the back to tend to some matters.

Gaia looked at the other three woman, who had been speaking - or rather complaining - about this and that the whole time they had been there. Gaia never said much during these trivia debates but once she spoke her peace about something, it was over. The other three argue with the older woman once she made a decision.

Maria, standing up from the couch let out a small sigh. "Well, I suppose that is that. Aelia, you should go get dressed and then we will move onto getting you and Luca rings for the wedding." She then turned to the other three. "I have to make a few calls, I will be in the limo when you are ready." Turning on her feet, Maria headed out of the shop.

Sophia shook her head as she watched the woman head out. She then turned her attention back to Aelia. "She is right, you should go get dressed again. And just leave that dress in the dressing room. They will pick it up to bring it to the seamstress." She then waved her hand a bit, motioning for Aelia to head back to the dressing room.

Gaia, now done with the nonsense that had occurred, stood up and headed to the back where the saleswoman had gone. "Meet me in the limo ladies when you are done. Paying should only take a few moments."

@ BearGirl
Did she fall into an alternate universe? What in the world is going on? Just this morning, Aelia was pretty sure she woke up naked in front of men, being given the ultimatum about marrying some guy or dying. Now, she's getting wedding things that she's only ever dreamed of. In places that she knew she'd never even been able to afford. It was like, Lia was constantly playing hop scotch with worm holes or something. She couldn't even wrap her mind around where they could have possibly decided that the wedding would be held.

Doing as she was told by the bossy ladies, Aelia quickly went back into the dressing room. She changed into the dress that Nicola had given her to wear. Thinking about it, how did his men even know what she'd fit into? Well, on another thought, she really didn't. Although, what she did want to know was, who was Nicola really? An who was Luca to this group? High ranking officials or something? Did mafia really even has ranks like in the movies and books?

Pursing her lips together, Aelia smoothed out her hair and dress. She really didn't want to, but she had to hurry to meet up with the older women. They seemed to be on a time crunch and Aelia was sure that her mind would be driving her crazy if she got lost in her mind once more.

So, stepping out of the dressing room in her dress. Aelia looked around warily before moving to leave the store. The guard that was inside, was right behind her as she moved around. Probably ready to jump her if she tried to do anything funny. Then, as she got outside, Aelia followed the other guards lead and got into the limo as he was holding the door open for her.

"Is there anything else besides the rings that we need?" Aelia asked as she glanced towards the other women who were in the car. This whole thing was sprung upon her, so Lia was kinda clueless about what else she could possibly need.