The Storm Before the Calm

Chapter 3

Aurora Salvatore

Running around with my nieces and nephews was all the exercise I ever needed in my life. Cardio, check. Lifting heavy weights, check. Sore muscles every day, check. But the love overpowered the soreness and fatigue any day, and I'd never trade that for the world.

As I ran around with all of them, as they all played 'dragons' very loudly, which was a game they'd long ago made up, I tried to keep my eye on my youngest nephew who had just began walking around.

"Cena!" [Dinner.] My mama had hollered over to us, waving her arm in the air to get our attention. "Si, grazie!" I hollered back, so all the kids knew it was time to head in. My mama always hated when I was running around like a child with no shoes on. She said it wasn't ladylike of me, but I argued that there was no one here to act ladylike for. It wasn't like I was looking for a husband, and I never would again, so that was that.

I scooped my nephew up, so I could carry him to dinner, holding Bianca's hand as we walked back to the terrace as the others ran as fast as they could to fight over the chairs at the kids' end of the table. As I edged the terrace, I slipped my perfectly pedicured toes into my heels again, walking along the bricks, when Ariana stopped in front of me, her eyes huge as she stared up at me.

"Aurora Angela Salvatore." She said seriously, but I just smiled down at her confused. "Ariana Salvatore?" I asked, confused, as our little nephew laughed at her, not understanding a single word coming out from her mouth.

"I need a new change of underwear. Have you seen Papa's fresh meat?" She asked, and I furrowed my brows, still confused. Fresh meat? Sometimes, I forgot she was only 20. "He's gotta be pushing his 30's, and I may have not gotten laid in a while, but oh my God, I want every orgasm that man can offer up on a silver platter." She said dramatically, and I would've laughed had Bianca's little voice not interrupted us.

"What's an orgasm?" Both our eyes got huge, as we forgot she was innocently standing there, and she was never one to bite her tongue. Fucking Angelina reincarnate. My jaw dropped, but I quickly shut it when I heard Antonio's voice approach us.

"What's a what?" He asked, obviously having heard her. "Nothing!" Ariana said a little loudly, causing Angelina to look over at us. "Bianca, Zio wants you to sit with him for dinner!" Ariana said, pushing Bianca towards Antonio, like he didn't have his own 3 kids to handle for dinner time, smiling guiltily. He reached for my nephew, as I twisted my body, letting him take his son so I could take my usual seat at the end of the table away from where I knew business talk would take place.

I was heavily into our familia business, but my Papa didn't entirely tell too many people just how deep into it I was, since it wasn't traditional nor safe for women to work in the mafia world. But ever since the incident, I demanded I had more of a role in the business, and my papa gave it to me. I was still searching for-

"Ow!" I said to Ariana across from me, who kicked my shin under the table. I rolled my eyes as I heard his slimy voice from next to me. "You okay, princess?"

I clenched my jaw, and thanked the server who poured me my usual glass of whiskey as I settled into my seat. "Not your princess, Romeo." I said through clenched teeth, sipping my whiskey. "Aren't you supposed to be at the other end of the table, puttana?" I grinned at him, using the nickname Antonio and I had for him that he hated. He basically sucked anyone off in this family for brownie points, so we nicknamed him appropriately...

He got visibly angry at the nickname, and I wanted to laugh at how childish he was.

Suddenly, my papa began clinking his fork against his water glass, trying to get everyone's attention. "Familia, as always, there is nothing I love more than our familia Friday dinners. And I am especially excited to announce that our very own Viscous has come back home, and is joining us for dinner and festivities tonight!" He slapped his hand on an unfamiliar face's large shoulder and I almost physically gulped upon laying my eyes on him.

What the fuck kind of sick joke was this? How could someone so fucking perfect not be personally carved by a man in the sky who didn't exist in my head? Sharp lines. Broad shoulders. Bright green. His dark hair complimented his tan skin, and bright green eyes that bore into me already as I felt my mouth completely dry. What the fuck? Why was he looking at me like that? He looked pissed off at the world that I even existed...

As my father continued speaking, I turned my head to Ariana, who was already looking at me with a huge smile on her face, biting her bottom lip. We spoke with only glances, and she knew that I was now understanding what she was saying...and fuck, did I not disagree with a single world that she'd uttered earlier. Although, I could do without Bianca asking what an orgasm was.

I was brought back to Earth upon hearing my name. "Some of you may remember him from when he lived here, but Viscous works for the familia back in our home country. Viscous, please, these are my other girls, Aurora and Ariana Salvatore." I smiled softly at my Papa, thanking Antonio for opening his big mouth before I could steal another look at whoever the fuck this Viscous guy was.

"These two are the lesser annoying versions of Angelina." He said, laughing, earning a few other chuckles from around the table. "Vaffanculo, Antonia!" Angelina said, using the feminine form of his name to mock him like she'd always done, and thankfully, dinner went back to a semi-normal vibe, although I kept forcing myself not to look down the table to my right.

"Aura, this bruschetta is delicious!" Renata said from next to Ariana, as she wiped Bianca's mouth with a napkin. I smiled at her, about to thank her when Romeo's fucking voice came out of his face again. "I bet not as delicious as you, princess." My smile fell as I turned my death glare to him, who sat on my right.

"Just because your name is Romeo, doesn't mean you are." I said to him, trying to politely tell him to fuck off before I snapped on him. He always knew how to push my buttons, and I hated that he was my papa's bitch boy and was always hanging around Ariana and I as 'protection' even though I was a better bodyguard than he was.

He just winked at me, continuing to eat the fucking food that I'd made, sitting at my fucking table, making me want to rip his tongue out of his fucking head so he couldn't taste it or speak to me ever again.

Before I could fully turn my head to resume conversation with Renata and Ariana, however, my eyes betrayed me and stole a glance at Mr. Viscous, but my heart skipped a beat when I saw him sitting back in his chair, forearms resting on the arms of the chair, with his whiskey glass in hand as he glared holes through Romeo's head.

Apparently he hated Romeo and me... cool. At least Romeo was justified. Nobody liked that fucker.

The second and main courses of dinner were served, and as I reached for my steak knife, smiling at something Renata was saying, I felt Romeo put his fucking hand on my leg under the table. My smile immediately fell, and my head fell, glaring holes through the top of his hand as his fingers dared to touch my leg like they had the right, then without lifting my head entirely, my eyes glared up at Romeo as I side eyed him, as he smirked while sticking a bite of steak into his mouth.

I clenched my jaw, making sure to lower my voice before speaking. "If you don't move your hand off of my leg in three seconds," I started, lowering my steak knife to dig into the top of his hand, and his smirk quickly fell, "I will cut your fingers off right here, and fucking feed them to you."

He dared to look at me like I had no right to speak to him this way, and as I finally drew blood, he tore his hand away, wrapping his napkin around it, looking at me surprised. "Fucking bitch." He muttered, as I just brought my knife back up to my mouth, licking his blood off as I stared into his soul, and went back to eating my fucking dinner.