Azalea Faye Larau - The sweetheart socialite with a fire underneath and an up and coming ballet dancer in London striving to stay afloat in an ocean of sharks, all the while dealing with heartbreak and loss.
Harlan Emeric Marchetti - The Italian Maf...
"Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?"
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"I need to know one more thing," I said, my voice tight as my eyes switched between papa and uncle Gabriel, "Am I safe here, or am I just a pawn to be moved again?"
"You are our family, the daughter of my Adrienne and Alistair. You are not a pawn, Azalea, but the heart of our legacy, and we will protect you at all costs." Papa's eyes softened while my heart thudded at the mention of my parents.
The room fell into silence, thick and suffocating. My heartbeat drummed a steady and anxious rhythm, each thump echoing in my chest like a distant warning.
I looked down at my hands clasped tightly in my lap and the pale knuckles betraying the tension coursing through me.
A storm raged inside me, fierce and unrelenting and I couldn't make sense of the tangle of emotions pulling me in different directions.
"Azalea?" Papa's voice snapped me back into the present and I blinked, meeting his searching gaze.
The room felt sharper now as I nodded, forcing a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes.
"I'm fine. It's just a lot to take in." I said, my voice even and masking the storm inside.
Papa's eyes softened, a flicker of understanding passing through them when he exchanged a brief, knowing glance with Gabriel before turning his attention back to me.
"We've asked too much of you tonight. Get some rest, ma fleur. Tomorrow, we'll discuss what comes next." He spoke gently.
I nodded again, standing on legs that felt unsteady beneath me when papa's voice stopped me in my tracks.
"Come here, my children." He gestured for me and Jamie who glanced at each other in confusion before I walked behind the desk when papa stood, towering over me and standing tall and proud as he pulled me in his warm, fatherly embrace.
He was muscular, and surprisingly fit. I imagined him to be more... chubbier. But he seemed every bit an imposing man if you didn't really know him.
I felt the back of my eyes burn from the paternal warmth I so desperately needed as I hugged him back and sniffled, feeling him press a kiss to my head.
"You are our precious flower, and my Adrienne's little baby." He murmured lovingly before we both pulled away, emotion clear as day on our faces.
As I stepped back, he gestured for Jamie and hugged him too, patting his back affectionately.
"It's good to have you back, Jameson. We could use your mischievousness around here. It's as dull as a coffin with Raphael around." Papa joked and we all chuckled while Raphael simply muttered something under his breath, brooding by the window.
