Mafia Marriage

VIII (Revised)

Giovanni was at a meeting for the better part of that afternoon. His mother had told him that she was playing hostess for Giuliana's bridal shower. He had no idea what went on at those things and he could honestly care less. He hadn't spoken to Giuliana since the engagement announcement, that night he had let her lean on him as the night wore on and she became exhausted. He figured that her nerves made her incredibly tired, even though she hid it well he knew that her nervousness and anxiety were wearing heavily on her. But Giovanni was impressed with her ability to act natural under pressure.

Dante and Vincent had texted him and told him to meet him in the VIP section of the club that a business associate owned. It was supposed to be a pseudo bachelor party according to Dante. His brothers and even his father would chastise him for working too hard or too much, his father was concerned that Giuliana would expect an attentive husband and he wouldn't be one.

"We're already up here," Vincent said over the phone as Giovanni pulled into the parking lot of the nightclub.

"Alright," he responded, "I'll see in a minute." 'Fuck I'm tired,' Giovanni thought to himself as he pulled his tired body out of the backseat of his chauffeured Escalade. The last thing he wanted to do was be surrounded by loud music and drunk people, but at least the VIP section was private and closed off.

The bouncer let him in right away and with a smile and a "Hello Mr. Graziano, have a good time sir." Giovanni nodded his head in acknowledgment. It was almost midnight and the individuals in the club were just getting started in their long night of partying. At 27 years old, Giovanni still liked to drink but partying just wasn't his thing anymore. 'At least Giuliana doesn't like this shit,' he thought to himself as he smoothly walked through various bodies before climbing the stairs to the VIP section, his driver and bodyguard Nick following behind him.

Dante was already drinking a beer and Vincent had a gin and tonic in hand. "There's the lucky man!" Dante said once Giovanni entered the glass room that overlooked the ground level of the club. "I ordered you your favorite," Vincent said handing him a glass of scotch. Vincent wasn't one to get drunk either, now that he was 29, he too had grown out of that phase of his life. Unfortunately Dante still liked the club scene and wanted his brothers to be there too. The only reason the two older brothers would go with him was because they had to make sure he got home okay and didn't do anything stupid. Carlo and Giorgio, two Graziano capos, were already there drinking as well.

"You know once I get married I'm not going to be coming to these places with you," Giovanni said as he took a drink. "Bring Giuliana with you! I bet she would like it," Dante joked. "Yeah I'm sure," Giovanni said dryly. He didn't know much about Giuliana, he didn't know what her hobbies were or what she disliked. The only thing that he knew for sure was that she loved flowers, not floral print, real flowers from a florist.

Vincent stood by the floor to ceiling glass wall that overlooked the dance floor and the lounge sofas on the outskirts of the dance floor. He was looking intently at the dance floor and the patrons dancing. "Did a girl catch your eye?" Dante joked from the other side of the room. Vincent didn't say anything but instead his eyes followed a group of girls as they made their way from the dance floor and to their table. Dante came to stand next to Vincent to see what had captured his attention, "Yeah a girl sure did catch his eye, your fiancé."

Giovanni was standing next to his brothers in the blink of an eye. "What the fuck is she doing here?"

"My guess is her parents said no to a bachelorette party and they took it upon themselves to throw their own," Vincent answered. "I only see Monica, Isabella, and Hanna Caparelli."

"Are you going to go crash their party?" Dante asked Giovanni, watching to his amusement as Giovanni's eyes narrowed.

"No let them do what they want," he said instead, shocking the other men in the VIP area. They half expected Giovanni to storm downstairs, grab Giuliana and force her to go home. He watched her laugh and drink, she was definitely tipsy as were the other three girls who were with her. He stayed rooted in his spot watching them like a hawk, but he also could see the other men drooling at the sight of them.