Hating The Mafia King

20: Something Like That

~ RACHEL'S POV

It has been a few days since the engagement party, and Richie's arm has made a remarkable recovery. He no longer requires a bandage and can utilize his hand without experiencing any discomfort or pain. Both Richie and I have been quite occupied lately, juggling work responsibilities and making preparations for Abel's upcoming wedding. Organizing a wedding while keeping it concealed from the media can be quite challenging. But Richie is really doing his best to ensure everything goes smoothly.

While Richie is working on that, I have been working on my plan and have recently stumbled upon some intriguing information. It appears that Richie Maranzino is concealing his true identity under an assumed name, which the government is currently using. I have yet to gather all the pertinent details, but once I do, I may have valuable leverage at my disposal.

While I'm busy unraveling Richie's secrets, I've been getting to know more about his family members, especially his stepbrother's fiancé, Calista. She's become my favorite person in the bunch. She's incredibly kind, considerate, friendly, and has a great sense of humor. I never realized what a sweetheart she was until we shared a bottle of wine together. Emma is also wonderful, and I'm starting to like her too. However, Emily is still the same difficult person who always manages to get on my nerves.

As I dig deeper into Richie's world, Rebecca has been a tremendous help. I can't help but think that if I had confided in her about Richie years ago, I might have achieved my goals much sooner. But I suppose now is as good a time as any to make my move. Speaking of Rebecca, she and I are supposed to meet later today but I have to cancel on her since I have to accompany Calista and Abel to pick out a wedding dress. I didn't want to accompany them but Calista had me convinced that it's a once-in-a-lifetime event and that she really needs my fashion expertise. So, I couldn't say no and had to prioritize the wedding over my plans with Rebecca.

I pick up my phone and dial Rebecca's number. After a few rings, she finally picks up on the third one.

"Hey girl, what's up!" she says, her voice full of energy.

"I'm good," I reply, trying to sound casual.

"Alright then, why did you call? I thought we were meeting by two," she asks, sounding a bit confused.

"Yeah, about that. I can't make it at two today. Calista asked me to join her to shop for a wedding dress," I explain, hoping she understands.

"Who's Calista?" she asks, her curiosity piqued.

"She's Richie's stepbrother's fiancé,"

"Wait, Richie's brother is getting married?" she exclaims, clearly surprised.

"Yeah, but it's a closed wedding though. They don't want anyone, especially the media, to know about anything,"

"Ohh okay," Rebecca says, her tone indicating that she understands the need for privacy.

"Yeah, so... Are you mad that I'm ditching on you?" I ask, feeling a pang of guilt.

"I would have been, but Angelina wanted us to go shopping. She's got this gift card and it's gonna expire tomorrow, so I guess I will just go with her," she says, sounding a bit relieved.

"Okay, but don't have fun without me okay," I tease, trying to sound playful.

Rebecca takes a moment to respond, whispering something over the phone. I can tell she's with Angelina. Finally, she says, "I won't. Tell Calista I said congratulations."

"I can't, I'm not supposed to tell anyone," I say, feeling a bit disappointed.

"Alright. Talk to you later." She says and ends the call.