Dominic (Made Men Book 8)

by Sarah Brianne

  “Then you should have gotten to know him,” Maria said the words so unforgivingly. “Because then you wouldn’t see Lucifer at all.”

  “That would take time, Maria,” Dante tried to get her to understand. “Time I plan to take as I work with him as the new Luciano boss.”

  Maria raised a brow, seeing the answer already on her father’s face. “But not as my husband.”

  “You’re a Caruso; I expected you to marry one of my men.”

  “No, you wanted me married to Sal,” Maria corrected him. “Tell me, how is it that you can justify me marrying one son of Lucifer’s but not the other? When you look at Sal, do you see Lucifer?”

  “When I look at Sal, I see the boy I took off the street who Lucifer had let rot. He fathered him, yet he didn’t raise him like he did his other children. When I look at Sal, I see a son.”

  “And I see a brother,” Maria told him what he could not understand. “If you expected me to fall for one of your soldiers, then you shouldn’t have raised me around them.”

  “Probably,” he agreed.

  Still seeing the disappointment, Maria knew she was missing something. “Why is it really that you will never be able to accept me and Dominic?”

  Dom was a made man, sure from the wrong side, but the families were supposed to be joining together as one. Her marrying Dominic only solidified that fact, which was why Lucca had encouraged it.

  Dante clearly had been holding in a secret, as his ice-blue eyes pierced her soul before he revealed the truth of it all. “Dominic does not have pure Italian blood.”

  Maria drew her brows together, but before she could speak, her father continued.

  “We like our names to represent our Italian heritage, but have you never wondered how his children’s names differ from ours? Dominic, Angel, Matthias, Cassius are all names of … Spanish descent.” Dante finally broke the secret that not many Carusos knew. “Spanish women held the only qualities Lucifer admired and respected enough in women to father children.”

  Dominic and Cassius’s looks suddenly made sense, while the other children had taken theirs from their father.

  Maria couldn’t believe that this was why her father didn’t approve of their marriage and that he thought she was supposed to suddenly see Dominic differently.

  “This is why you don’t approve? Because Dominic isn’t Italian enough for you? Well, thank God you don’t allow women into your organization, so what the hell do you care?”

  “Lineage is everything, Maria.” He warned that any children from their union wouldn’t be able to become made.

  Yes, she did know. The mafia went back generations in this country, and no matter where you were located, the only way you could become made in an Italian mafia was being one hundred percent Italian. It was the most basic requirement, written in stone long ago, and it hadn’t been changed or challenged …

  Yet.

  “I find it funny how the biggest piece of shit that ever walked this earth is somehow less nearsighted than you. Lucifer was smart to let go of the old ways, because yours are going to be the death of you.”

  Both of them knew Chloe didn’t have an ounce of Italian blood running through her veins, yet it wouldn’t keep Lucca from marrying her or fathering children with her, and having his children become made. That stupid rule was going to end with her father’s reign, and they both knew it.

  “When I took control of this family, I made a promise to uphold those values, and I will until my reign ends.” Dante spoke with finality, the blood oath he made upheld. “I cannot show support for this wedding, because then I go back on that oath. My men and the many men I’ve had to turn down because of the blood in their veins … it isn’t fair to those people that I give you an exception because you’re my daughter.”

  Maria understood. Her father was stuck in his old ways and felt bound in blood to uphold the sacred family rules, but she was his daughter.

  “You had no fucking trouble supporting Drago.”

  “Katarina has no record of where she came from. Not even her own family knows who her mother was. Can I assume she is of Spanish descent based upon his previous relationships? Yes. But there is no proof, and she looks every bit of her father. My men would never question it.”

  “Then Sal?” she asked frustratingly. “You would have supported that fucking union.”

  “Salvatore Lastra is one hundred percent Italian. I can take his mother back generations.” Dante made it very clear. “The one Italian son Lucifer had, he gave up.”

  Let it go, she whispered to herself.

  Maria had reached the end of her rope. There was nothing more she could say to get her father to approve of her marriage, so she had nothing more to say to him. The one thing she knew about her father was that he would never change. It was why he had his hand in making her who she was, why she stood so strongly as a woman who wanted to be taken seriously and to hold power in this family. If twenty-two years hadn’t proved he wouldn’t change his ways because she was a woman, Dante wasn’t going to change his ways about Dominic not being of full Italian descent in the next five minutes.

  “I’m sorry that I can’t be there.” Dante stood solemnly, saying the words that he truly meant as he went for the door. “But I hope you two enjoy my wedding gift.”

  Maria didn’t know what she expected, but it hadn’t been the emotions she felt as she sat there alone. She had been fine with her father not attending her wedding before he had come in, but now she couldn’t help but feel hurt that her father refused to walk his daughter down the aisle. He chose the family over his own family yet again, and this time … it truly hurt.

  She had to fight down the tears as she went for the door. Maria was already running late, and while she needed a good cry, she wouldn’t allow herself one.

  Opening the door, Maria’s emerald green eyes were already on the verge of tears before she saw the man waiting behind the door. He held the same emotions in his cold heart that were in hers right now.

  “Maria”—Lucca held out his arm—“may I walk you down the aisle?”

  Fifty-One

  The Letter M

  As Maria walked down the aisle alongside her brother, she felt as if she was floating on air from being up so high in the open sky. The sun was beginning to set, and the glittering city below was starting to sparkle. At the top of the Casino Hotel, with just the few people they had shared the day with before, made this the only acceptable and most perfect wedding in her eyes.

  Looking at Dominic as she took each step, made her cold, dead heart feel as if it had been hit with a defibrillator from the possessive way he was staring at her.

  Dom held his tatted hand out as she approached …

  Taking his hand, she wasn’t sure she would ever let go.

  Both men gave each other a nod as her brother took her bouquet, then went to take a seat next to his fiancée. Dante might not accept the validity of their union in the family, but Lucca was making sure it was.

  Clasping both their hands together, the contact sent an electric charge through her at the firm hold Dominic had on her, showing her that she wasn’t the only one who planned to never let go.

  “You look beautiful, princess,” he whispered the words for only her to hear.

  “Thank you.” Maria took in the sight of him as he stood in a suit that made him somehow look hotter than ever. She let him see with her eyes just what she thought of him. “You do too.”

  Maria and Dominic stood in front of their families, alone, at the top of the city. The only other participating member was the one neither Maria nor Dominic had expected to be there.

  Sal normally didn’t come out from behind his computer, always watching the cameras, trying to find One-Shot, but he made an appearance in a way none of them had expected ….

  Clearing his throat, Sal began, “Dominic and Maria have chosen us, those special and most important to them, to witness and celebrate the beginning of their life together. Today, as we create thi
s marriage, we also create a new bond and a new sense of family, one that will undoubtedly include all who are present here today.

  “Do you, Dominic Luciano, choose Maria Caruso to be your partner in life, to support and respect her in her successes as well as her failures, to care for her in sickness and in health, to nurture her, and to grow with her throughout the seasons of your life together?”

  Dominic’s hazel eyes made her an oath. “I do.”

  “Do you, Maria Caruso, choose Dominic Luciano to be your partner in life, to support and respect him in his successes as well as his failures, to care for him in sickness and in health, to nurture him, and to grow with him throughout the seasons of your life together?”

  “I do,” Maria said the words she never thought she’d say as she made her oath to him.

  Reaching into his pocket, Sal gave the ring to a brother.

  Taking the ring, Dominic began with glossy eyes. “Through this ring,” he said, sliding it onto her slender finger, “I accept you as my wife, now and for all time.”

  Maria stared down at her finger, seeing the ring that he had chosen for her. The gold intricate band with small diamonds throughout sat on top of her engagement ring like a crown.

  Sal went to his other pocket, handing the ring she had chosen for Dominic to a sister.

  “Through this ring”—Maria slid the thick gold band that was encrusted in tiny diamonds that was fit for a king over the letter M, as if their destiny had already been decided long ago—“I accept you as my husband, now and for all time.”

  “Before us no longer stands Maria and Dominic alone, but one couple about to embark on a new future,” Sal spoke over the sniffling of the girls. “One that they hope you will share in and be a part of as their marriage journey begins and lasts long after the celebration ends tonight. I now pronounce you husband and wife.” Grinning from ear to ear, he concluded, “Dom, you may now kiss your bride.”

  Maria’s heels left the ground when Dominic swept her up in his arms. Her new husband didn’t hold anything back, giving her a passionate kiss that had her wondering if the stars that were now overhead were closer than they appeared.

  Fifty-Two

  A Gift From My Father

  Walking into their small reception, hand in hand, Maria finally found out what gift her father had gotten them for their wedding as she heard the voice sing.

  The girls who had tears in their eyes on top of the building now sat with fresh tears in their eyes for a whole different reason.

  Jordan James started out at fifteen years old as every girl’s young heartthrob. In his later twenties now, he had been through ups and downs throughout his very successful career, but three things stayed the same—he had one hell of a voice, a massive fanbase who would always support him, and he was drop-dead gorgeous.

  The celebrity had frequented the Casino Hotel throughout the years whenever he was in the city for a concert, and her father had always taken great care of him. Maria guessed he must’ve gotten in the red while he was here, and this was how he planned to pay his debt.

  Jordan liked booze, gambling, women, and everything else in his playboy rich lifestyle—which had landed him in hot water. Needless to say, the underground casino was his favorite place to be.

  Every girl’s dream would be to either marry the singer or have him sing at her wedding, and somehow, if it all wasn’t perfect enough, Maria’s first dance with Dominic as husband and wife would be just that.

  Leading her onto the dance floor, Dom wrapped his hand around her waist while he lifted up the hand they were holding. Swaying to the beautiful song, he smiled as he leaned his head down toward her ear. “Thank you for wearing white this time, princess.”

  “No promises for next time. I’d personally like to find out what would happen if I didn’t.”

  “I have no doubt that you will.” Dominic laughed. “I wasn’t aware we would have such great guest appearances, but I suppose I should have guessed, since I was marrying you.”

  “Yes, well, apparently, Sal is an ordained minister now.” She laughed herself. “I wonder how long that took to print off his computer and what happened to the person who was supposed to be marrying us.”

  “I loved it,” he admitted to her so sweetly. “It made marrying you that much more special to me, Maria.”

  “Me, too,” she agreed, finding herself happy that he was happy.

  Motioning her head toward the singer, she addressed their second elusive guest, “And that is a gift from my father.”

  His brows slightly furrowed. “It is?”

  “Yes … He appreciates the lower level festivities and must’ve owed my father a favor.”

  “I see.” Dom smiled. “My sister is crying. She was obsessed with him when his first song came out. I couldn’t get her to quit singing that stupid song.”

  She gave a quick look around. “I think all the girls are crying.”

  “But not you.” He spun her. “Does not even Jordan James have an effect on Maria Caruso?”

  “He’s not my type. I only have one of those.” Her skirt lightly twirled around her. “You.”

  He tapped the ring he had just put on her finger with the hands that were in the air. “I know, I have proof.”

  Staring at their hands, she couldn’t get over how they looked together. “I love my ring. It’s so beautiful.”

  “I thought my princess needed a crown.”

  Ugh. The way he treated her and the things he said just made her melt more every day.

  Kissing her on the cheek, he thanked her for his. “And I love mine, even though something tells me I’d hate to know how much it cost.”

  “Kat helped me pick it out yesterday.” She could immediately see how much more special it now was to him. The Lucianos weren’t afraid of jewelry. The bigger, the better. They loved thick, weighty pieces, and Maria wanted him to have the best one that made his tattoos that much sexier. “And don’t worry about it,” she assured him with an evil smile, remembering sliding that black credit card. “Lucca wanted me to marry you, so I made him pay for it.”

  Dom shook his head at her, realizing how much trouble he put himself in by marrying her. “Maria, I love you, and I love the matching shoes you bought me, but you do know you’re a bit spoiled, right?”

  “Like I said, you don’t call me princess for nothing.” She placed a light kiss on his lips. “Would you want me to change?”

  “Hell no.” He kissed her back. “All I want to do is spoil you.”

  “I noticed.” Maria smiled, reminded of the gift. “The shoes would have also been a great way to get me to marry you sooner.”

  “Well, I can’t wait to see them up close later tonight,” he said hotly, leaning down in her ear once again.

  “Why wait?” she groaned as her stomach somersaulted. “We can go right now.”

  “Sorry, princess, but you’re going to have to wait a bit longer.” Dominic pulled her closer to him. “You can only get Jordan James to sing at your wedding once.”

  He has a point. Maria turned to look at their family and motioned for the couples to come up and share their first dance.

  The girls had never dragged their men out of their seats faster, each couple coming up to slow dance together. However, the girls weren’t looking up at their men; their eyes were focused on Jordan James.

  Maria had never seen Chloe look at another man in her life, but she was glancing over at the singer, starstruck. Both she and Elle were girly girls at heart and had been in love with the singer since he exploded onto the music scene. Lake and Adalyn being in love with him went without saying.

  Hearing the song beginning to end, she looked back at her husband, seeing the pure love in his hazel depths, as he stared at her.

  “I have never been so happy in my life, Maria,” he whispered to her with such honestly, as he placed his forehead against hers. “I just want you to know that.”

  “I don’t think I have either,” she admitted, closing her eyes
, Maria didn’t have many feelings, but she felt many things as their first and most perfect dance came to an end.

  All clapping as the song ended, the girls’ much more enthusiastically, Jordan exited off the stage and headed straight for the married couple.

  “You’re looking as beautiful as ever, Maria,” Jordan complimented with a sly smile as he gave her a nod before he looked at them both. “Your father wanted me to tell you that he was sorry he couldn’t make it, and he wanted me to congratulate you both, but I think you’re the one to congratulate.” He held out a hand to Dom.

  Maria couldn’t help but smile at Dominic, who had a look of shock on his face as he looked at her.

  “That is true.” Dom then smiled, taking the singer’s hand. “Thank you for singing for us.”

  “No problem.” Jordan’s eyes slightly sparkled, clearly thinking about how he planned to spend the rest of the night. “Well, I hope you all have a lovely rest of your ni—”

  “Actually.” Maria stopped him from leaving, watching the men drag their women back to their seats to keep them away from the singer. “Do you think you can sing a few more of your best hits for me?”

  “I don’t actually sing a lot of my songs anymore,” Jordan told her, not wanting to sing the songs that had made him famous at fifteen.

  “Listen, I would tell you that I’d make sure you were taken care of for the rest of your stay,” Maria just cut to the chase, giving him the blunt and honest truth, “but my friends are all in love with you, and I’m really just trying to piss my brothers and their boyfriends off.”

  “Well, in that case”—Jordan smiled a million-dollar smile as he looked at the uncomfortable men in the room—“I will.”