ACE

Chapter 88: Yes?

Playlist for This Chapter: Lover of Mine by 5SOS, Tell Me You Love Me by Demi Lovato.

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As we walked hand in hand through the hall and towards the front, I felt everyone's eyes one me as they regarded me carefully, judging me with their cat eyes.

"Ace, Dove. Good to see you." Stefano came up to us and so did Salvatore.

"You too." I smiled warmly at them as we chatted a bit. Nico had to meet some other people as well and we continued to make our rounds, saying hello to the relevant people.

"Here." Nico handed me a champagne glass and took one for himself, downing it in one go.

"Whoa there, slow down. Are you okay?" I put my hand on his arm, glancing at his stressed and tense features and frowned.

"Nico, sweetheart, is everything alright?" I asked him when he gave me a weak smile.

"Everything's fine, my love. I'm just a little tired is all." He dismissed the topic entirely as I nodded reluctantly, pecking his cheek as he held me close by my waist.

"How do you like the party so far?" He asked me after we'd sat down.

"I love it. It's absolutely amazing. I'm so proud of you." I grabbed his face in my hands and pecked his lips, watching his smile widen.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Yeah." I pecked his lips once more when a throat being cleared behind us made us break apart and turn our heads.

"Sofia." I said unimpressed when she smiled not so nicely at me before throwing a seductive smile towards Nico who turned right back around after rolling his eyes. 

I saw his clenched fists and covered his hands with my own, feeling him relax.

"Dove, what a pleasant surprise to see you here." She said in a fake nice tone when I scoffed.

"Cut the crap. We both know how you exactly feel about me being here." I said when she rolled her eyes.

"Well, sue me for trying to extend an olive branch." She said and my eyebrows raised in surprise. I saw Nico looking over at me from the corner of my eye meaningfully.

"Thanks, but no thanks." I said and turned back around.

"Whatever. I just wanted to ask when you're returning back home, since you don't really plan on staying here for long, do you." She asked sweetly but before I could answer, Nico spoke for me.

"Never. She's staying forever." He said, our eyes connecting as we passed a smile to each other.

"You do realize she doesn't belong to our family or isn't even remotely connected to our world. You can't keep her by your side." Sofia crossed her arms over her overly exposed chest, her red dress glimmering under the light.

"If I gave a fuck, I would've answered you. But I don't, so get the hell out of here." Nico said through clenched teeth when I rubbed his thigh softly to calm him down.

"And last I checked, I was the Don, not you." He said angrily when Sofia huffed, rolling her eyes before she stomped away.

"Ignore her my love." Nico said intertwining our fingers together when I smiled and nodded.

"I will, don't worry. Although you look really cute when you worry for me." I squished his cheeks between my palms so his lips formed a pout.

"So cute." I cooed and pecked his lips once more when he shrugged my hands away in annoyance.