Hold On

Chapter 40

He stepped forwards, smoothing out his suit, once he was in front of me; his arm extended," You look beautiful".

My bottom lip trembled as I tried to keep my smile," Thank you", I whispered. I placed my hand on his, and Bee grabbed his other free hand. Alessandro led us downstairs, Mikey was close behind me and the boys were behind him. I looked around with hope to see Alek and Alene but deep down; I knew I wouldn't see them. Not here anyway, beside me at the moment, but I am still dreading the time I will confront Alek about Sofia.

My mood became a bit dark, but I quickly shook my head and sighed.

Today is a good day. It is a happy day. Be happy!

Once we were at the bottom of the stairs, the doors to the ballroom were right in front of us. Slowly I released Alessandro's hand with the intention of stepping behind him and Bee so they could both enter but he swiftly grabbed it once more.

"Don't". I stared at our hands, then lifted my gaze to meet his.

"What?"

He smirked," you both will be by my side", my mouth slightly opened.

"This... that's not my place. I can't stand beside you".

"Yes you can, and you will because you earned it. Alessia, we are equals", before I could reply; the voice of the herald interrupted us as he announced those who entered. The doors slowly opened, allowing the light from inside to seep through the gap. My breath hitched as my eyes fell upon the heads of everyone looking in our direction, Alessandro tugged on my hand, gesturing to me to start walking.

I kept my composure as the herald announced us," Presenting Capo Alessandro Rossi, accompanied by Beatrice Williams Rossi and Alessia Williams Rossi". We descended down the stairs as everyone's eyes burned holes onto our skin. I glanced at Alessandro, wondering why Mikey or the boys weren't announced. I noticed him peeking over at me and once he realized he was caught; Alessandro chuckled.

"They only announce the head of the family and the person right beside them; this was a way for me to introduce you both to our society". Bee smiled as we stepped onto the floor, she let go of Alessandro's hand and ran over to the triplets. I looked over to the side and saw Alek, who had the biggest smile on his face, as he held Alene in his arms. A smile was forming on my face but it quickly faltered when I met Sofia's eyes, I frowned and looked away, allowing Alessandro to guide me towards the middle as everyone dispersed.

"What are we doing?'' I whispered as he faced me, still holding onto my hand.

"Dancing", he gently placed his hand on my hip, making sure it didn't make me feel uncomfortable, then let go of my hand to guide the other one on his shoulder.

"Ok- wait. What?" without realizing it, everyone had already formed around us, Alessandro waited for the music to play, and once it did he began to move.

Alessandro's POV

I held onto her, a bit surprised at how stiff she was, considering Alessia was a dancer who should be accustomed to this.

Maybe I make her nervous?

I smiled as she looked everywhere except my face, but my expression changed as soon as I heard the whispers.

"I didn't know the Rossi's have a mistress?"

"That thing? She's probably their toy".

I looked over at them and realized they didn't belong to any important families so instead of letting them finish their thought, I signaled one of my men, and with no other instructions, they were taken. I lowered my gaze to look at Alessia, her face was dark and sad, the hand that rested on her waist gently tugged on her ear.